Scars (Marked #2.5) (8 page)

12

“Move.”

“No.”

“Oh for the love of God,” Sam groaned while pushing a not-so-amused Jaime out of the booth. “Luke, get your butt out of that seat and let the poor girl out. She looks like she wants to escape, and I need a break from the two of you.”

“Samantha, mind your—” Her head snapped toward his, her hand still making shooing motions toward Jaime. Those eyes, so much like his, turned to slits while daring him to argue. The anger behind those orbs made him pause mid-sentence.

“Shut it, dear brother. Wouldn’t want the beans spilled before it was time…would you?”

Beans? Spilled?

I was more confused than ever. My headache grew and my temples throbbed. This entire night had become too much, and I thought it was time I left.

Emotions were a bit high. Our attraction couldn’t be denied, but it could never go past that. After my last breakdown, I made a promise to both Talan and myself that I would become a new woman. One he would be proud to have on his arm.

A woman that only gave her body to the man she loved. Talan was all I needed, and on more than one occasion had proved this to me.

“Fresh air does sound amazing,” I interjected, while the siblings…

How had I not seen that?
They’re
related.

My eyes snapped up and toward an again-quiet Jaime. He looked pensive and a bit sad. But why? So many questions ran rampant through my head at that moment, and the more they did, the more I needed to get him alone.

“Jaime, can we—”

“See,” Sam jumped in before I could finish. “She needs a break, and you two…” she pointed a manicured finger at them “…can talk while we are gone. Make up your motherfucking minds on how to proceed.”

“Fine.” Luke stood up then, reluctantly, and let me out of that suffocating booth. Again, our bodies touched as he left me minimal space to squeeze through on my way out. His hard to my soft felt amazing. It was as if he were taunting me, daring me to push him away. “Hurry back.”

Together we walked in silence toward the bathroom. Sam seemed to be lost inside her head, and I was drowning inside muddled thoughts that made no sense to me.

“Are you okay?”

“I like him.”

We both spoke up at once. Samantha’s words didn’t register at first, but when they did, I felt no animosity. Like earlier in the evening, they made sense to me. The responsibility I felt toward Jaime had lessened because he would no longer be alone.

This had been a setup.
That was my next thought. Luke took the heat off Jaime while he showed me that he found someone. A girl that could and would give him everything I couldn’t.

I felt used, and it wasn’t by Jaime.

The room grew smaller—I was suffocating. Luke toyed with my emotions, was having a laugh at my expense. Why would Jaime allow this? Sam seemed nice, and if given a chance, I would have told him this. Given my approval.

She looked like the type of girl secure enough to let us remain friends. Of course limitations would be set, but I was more than okay with that. The past was the past, and it was staying that way.

Our ship had sailed a long time ago.

We hadn’t been together since the last time in the parking lot of his lounge, and I was okay with that. And it wasn’t because of his lack of desire for me or me for him, but because I wanted more than a quick fuck.

It didn’t feel right to use him like that anymore. While I cared for him, I would never love him as more than a good friend.

“How long have you two been seeing each other?” I asked, having to know if he’d been with the two of us at the same time. If this relationship was to work between us, there had to be nothing but honesty.

“Recent. We’ve only been talking for a week now; this is our first date, so to speak.”

“How did you reconnect?” Jaime never mentioned either of them, and I found that strange. We never hid anything from the other, no matter how hurtful it could be.

“After Luke calledtelling me he was moving down here, he asked that I contact Jaime. Between phone calls and setting up this dinne
r
,
we connected. He’s simply wonderful, and I’d love to see where this goes.” Her eyes never left mine as she spoke. There was nothing but honesty and hope of acceptance in her eyes, and that meant more to me than anything. She wasn’t pushing me out.

Nodding, I turned to face the mirror and checked my makeup. “Do you know about us?”

“Yes.” It was her turn to offer me an understanding smile. “Jaime has been nothing but honest with me about your relationship and how he feels. He’s a flirt, and if I want this to work, I have to break him out of this habit. I just hope you won’t fall into bed with him again.”

“Wasn’t planning on it, though I must be honest with you, he was very suggestive tonight when I arrived.”

“I know, and you didn’t act on it.”

“How are you so sure?”

“Because I was here early enough to witness it for myself—I had to. He pulled you in, but nor your body or mind were here with him. The one that brought you to the present was my brother.”

“That definitely made this entire situation easier.”

“Yes, Jaime was very blunt and honest about your past. I can’t say that I am comfortable, but I will deal. Just don’t let me down, Janice. Something inside me really likes you and thinks we could become friends someday.”

“You have nothing to fear.” This time, I took ahold of both her hands and looked her in the eyes. “That’s all we were…sex. I don’t love him, and hope you realize this and give him a real chance.”

“Do you care for him at all?” The look in her eye at that moment was one of a scared woman. I’d recognize that expression anywhere; it was the one I wore day in and day out since Maya had come into my life.

“I do,” I said, and her face fell. “But the one thing you need to understand is that my love for him is pure and brotherly. I care for him deeply, but I’m not
in
love with him. Jaime will never be my destiny.”

“Thank God.” Sam took in a deep breath, the tense posture she held moments prior disappearing. “Cause to be honest, I kind of like you and so does my bro—”

“Stop.” At the hard edge in my tone she flinched, taking a step back from me. Reassuring her with a small smile, I opened my clutch and reapplied my lipstick while gathering my thoughts. My eyes met her guarded ones once again after letting the small tube slip into my bag. “I know where you want it to go, but it’d be a waste of time. I’m already spoken for…in love.”

“Well, Luke won’t like that.” The smugness threw me off. Hell, the entire evening was strange. Strange enough to confuse and excite me. Tempt me, but at the same time control the madness that resided within my mind. I couldn’t deny the effect Luke was having on me. It was a dangerous notion. “He won’t stop, not until he has what he wants. And at the moment it seems that would be you.”

Beside me Sam fluffed her hair and pulled up the short skirt she wore just a tiny bit. The woman acted as if she’d said nothing. As if that revelation hadn’t made my breath hitch and my heart beat wildly inside my chest.

Her fantastic legs became my focus as I tried to regulate my reaction to her statement. While her beauty was understated with her minimal makeup and simple clothing, her body was a knockout. Moreover, if the gleam in her eye told me anything, it was that my Jaime was a lucky man.

It was a slightly bitter pill to swallow. The future was so uncertain. Things changed in the blink of an eye every day, and I wondered if our friendship would survive this. Or was it my time to bow out and let him be happy without my craziness to ruin it?

Inside of an almost-empty bathroom with a girl I barely knew, my life changed. I had one of those moments. Losing him to her wouldn’t be the end of my world, just the intermission into my next chapter.

This was the chance to have something I’d never had before: a female friend. A notion that once seemed so off base, now made me happy.

“I like you too.” Samantha smiled at me and pulled me out behind her and toward the restaurant’s bar.

“Where are we going?”

“To celebrate us.” 

After our celebratory shots, we made our way back to the table, each with a mojito in hand. Laughing and toasting the entire way, our newfound truce had put me at ease, and my guard had come down. Not having to worry about her or Jaime made me happy, and I wanted to enjoy myself.

Luke was a worry, but for the remainder of the night, I didn’t want to care about anything.

The laughter and smiles didn’t last very long. Sad to say that as much as it saddened me, I wasn’t surprised. Nothing this good would last forever.

Everything within me died the moment we were within earshot of our table.

Luke and Jaime were glaring at each other—their postures had gone from friendly, to angry and combative. Again, what the fuck?

Those fucking words had seemed to be the theme of my night.

“Don’t you fucking go there, Luke,” Jaime hissed out, the tone menacing and dripping with jealousy. I’d heard him like this before, the last time being that night in his club that I saw Brian. “This isn’t why I brought you here…are you fucking stupid! She needs help, not another cock to fuck.”

Were they fighting over me? To help me?

“You’re jealous; I get it, but back the fuck off. Watch the tone with me.” Luke’s aggression, the way the palm of his hand slammed down on the table almost causing his beer to topple over, caused a ripple of uncertainty to rush through me. I wanted the cocky man back, not this. “Janice is dealing with more than you could ever comprehend. I’ve seen that kind of pain before, witnessed more mental breakdowns and destruction in all my years of practice that I know the signs and what she needs. Your bullshit isn’t it, Jaime.”

“Agreed.” He nodded his head, but I knew him well enough to know that the sneer on his face wasn’t going to lead up to anything good. “But as her doctor and not booty call.”

“Who the fuck said I would or wanted to sleep with her! She’s nowhere near ready for me. Patient first…”

I’d had about enough.

How dare they? How could Jaime?

After I trusted him, brought him into my home and bed—my heart. Fuck him.

Oh God, the pain. I couldn’t breathe, and the room spun with each labored inhale and exhale I took in.

“Janice, I—”

“Don’t.” Pushing Samantha’s hand away, I took the few steps remaining between them and us and slammed my own drink upon it. The glass cracked, and some of the sweet concoction spilled over the rim of the damaged glass.

“Hey, babe. What’s wrong?” Who spoke, I had no clue. Their voices merged inside my head, sounded like every one that had called me crazy at some point in my life.

Crazy. Detached. Withdrawn. Extremely Depressed.

“How fucking dare you.” Jaime’s mouth opened to protest, but the murderous glare I sent his way kept him quiet. “You are just as bad as
them
,” I sneered, and he flinched. Comparing him to my parents was for me the equivalent of “I hate you.” The gig was up, and he knew it.

“Janice, let’s talk about this.” Instead of punching Luke in that perfect face of his, I settled for letting out an incredulous laugh. And they claimed I needed the help. No, I saw him for what he was now; another lying, pill-pushing asshole trying to use me as his life’s work and greatest accomplishment.

This bitch was no one’s experiment.

“Fuck you, Mr. Wiles.” If he was taken aback by my words, he didn’t show it.  Instead, his hand reached out to grab mine, but I dodged him before he could touch me. “Fuck you and everything you stand for. I don’t want or need your sick version of help.”

“Sit down, Janice. You’re making a scene.” Luke tried and failed to make me listen. As if I gave a flying fuck at this point.

“Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have better things to do with my night then stand here and let two sanctimonious assholes dissect me.” With those parting words, I turned around and made my way toward the nearest exit. In the background I could hear Jaime cursing and calling out my name. It didn’t stop me.

I carried on with the last shred of hope I had, my humanity decimated. They’d killed it. Killed me.