Unbreakable (13 page)

Fumbling with the packaging, she unties the bow and rips at the corner of the package, tearing all the paper off in one swipe. She pulls the top of the black box off, looking up at me when she sees the small velvet box inside. Pulling it out she flips open the top of the velvet box.

“Oh my god,” she gasps.

“It’s just a promise ring. There will be a better ring someday. But for today, I promise you that I love you with everything that I am, and I want you to know that it is only you, it has only ever been you that I love.” Swallowing a lump in my throat, I stop. Tears spill out of her eyes, and I reach to wipe them off her cheeks.

“I want you to remember this moment—right now. How much I love you.”

A sob falls from her throat, and she lunges her body at me, hugging me and crying into my chest. When her crying fades, she pulls back from me.

“It’s so beautiful,” she says, looking at the ring that is still sitting in the box. Pulling it loose from its perch, I kiss her finger before I slide the ring on for her.

“Don’t ever doubt my love for you. Ever.”

“Never,” she says, pressing a kiss to my lips. This may be the best Christmas ever.

Walking down the quiet hallway of Jefferson Hall, my shoes squeak against the freshly buffed marble floors. Sunlight peeks out from under my academic advisor’s door. I stand there for a second before I knock.

“Come in,” I hear Janet’s cheerful voice say. Turning the knob, I push open the door to find Janet sitting at her desk, strumming away at her keyboard. Her chair swivels around, and she stands to shake my hand.

“Hi, Jessica! Nice to see you.” Her handshake is firm and fast. This woman is seriously amped on coffee or energy drinks, or really just likes to work during the holidays. “Take a seat,” she says, pointing to the chair that is perched next to her desk. Setting my purse on the floor next to the chair, I lower myself down, crossing my legs. Janet sits confidently in her chair, clicking away with her computer mouse.

“Thanks for stopping by to meet with me over the holiday break. I was reviewing this semester’s classes and your previously earned credits. Because of your dual-credit classes that you took in high school, you’re nearly done with your sophomore year of college,” she announces.

“Huh?”

“You did take dual-credit classes in high school, correct?” She lowers her glasses at me, waiting for me to validate her statement.

“Yes.”

“Well, when you started here this fall, you were only a few credits shy of an associate’s degree. With the amount of hours you completed this first semester, you’re well on your way to completing your sophomore year of college by the end of next semester.”

“Are you kidding me?”

“Nope, kiddo. You are ahead of the game; well ahead of the game. At the rate you’re going, you’ll be graduating almost a year and half ahead of schedule.”

“Really?” is all I can muster. One might be excited about this, but I’m scared shitless.

“Well, this is why it was so urgent that I see you right away,” she says, looking back to her computer screen again, still clicking away with that damn mouse. “I see you have declared yourself a Broadcast Communication major.”

“Um, yes.” I validate, fidgeting with my fingers, still in complete shock at the news that’s just been dumped on me.

“Well, darling, you need to start considering an internship. You need to build your resume. There are classes on campus that you should register to take for the fall semester, but let’s get you a head start on an internship. It is a required part of the degree. They are difficult to come by. The sooner you start looking, the sooner you’ll land something. I’m worried if you wait until next summer, and don’t find anything, you’ll push back that graduation date over a silly internship.” She’s clicking away on her computer and talking at the same time. “Now, I’ve got a few contacts I’m going to e-mail you. Some are out of state.”

My heart stops. “Out of state?” I whisper.

Janet stops typing and looks up at me. “You don’t
have
to go out of state. I’m simply telling you that I have some contacts out of state. If you can line up something at a local television or radio station here locally, then, by all means, do so. What I am telling you to do, is get
something
lined up for the summer, and soon.”

My mind is in a million different places right now, and I’m beginning to panic.
Shit.
I have to get an internship lined up quick, and I’m not leaving Santa Ruiz. I’m staying here with Gabe.

“Okay, I’ve just sent you an e-mail with a couple of different internships that are available to students of SRSU. I’d love to sit down with you after the holiday break to discuss your plans for the summer and see if I can be of any assistance to you. Sound good?”

“Yes, thank you. This was really unexpected news.” I pull a tight smile onto my face. There goes a relaxing Christmas break; I’ll now be too fucking stressed out about applying for summer internships. Grabbing my purse from the floor, I leave Janet’s office as fast as I can.

Walking to my car, I feel my phone vibrating in the pocket of my jacket. A million thoughts are running through my mind. Sliding into the driver’s seat, I pull the phone from my jacket and click the e-mail icon. There sits the e-mail from Janet.

Jessica,

It was nice to see you today. Per our conversation, I have enclosed a list of internships that I know are accepting applicants. Please read each description carefully for requirements needed to apply.

I skim the rest of the letter until I get to the bottom where I see an attachment to the e-mail. I click the attachment, which opens another letter. My eyes run the length of the page, and all I see are:

Phoenix, AZ
….

Albuquerque, NM
…

Dallas, TX
…

Wilmington, NC
…

Hattiesburg, MS
…

I’m not leaving Gabe, even for a summer, which means I need to find something local, and fast. I call Gabe and wait for him to answer.

“Hey, baby. How’d the meeting go with your advisor?”

“Hey.”

“Everything okay? You sound upset.”

“I’m okay, just stressed out.”

“What happened?”

“To make a really long story short, she wants me to find an internship for this summer. I’ve got so many credits that I’m almost done with an associate’s degree.”

“That doesn’t sound like a problem to me. Why are you stressed?”

“Because it’s all happening so fast. She sent me a list of internships, and all of them are out of state.”

“Aren’t there any around here?”

“Maybe, but I’ll have to find it myself.”

“So do it.”

“You’re not helping me calm down.”

Gabe starts laughing into the phone. “Just try to relax, babe. We’ll talk about this when you get home. Worrying right now isn’t going to help you.”

“I know, it’s just…the thought of leaving you scares me.” I wait for him to respond, but when the silence continues, I wonder if the call was dropped.

“So then don’t take an out of state internship. We’ll find you one here.”

I can almost hear him smiling through the phone. Breathing a sigh of relief, I find my nerves settling just a bit. I love that we’re a team, and in this together.

“I’ll be home soon.”

“See you when you get here. And, Jess.”

“Yeah.”

“Don’t stress. It’ll all work out. It always does.”

“I hope so,” I mumble.

Waiting for Jess to get home, I sit on the tan plush couch in her living room, anxious to share my news with her. I’m worried that she’ll still be stressed when she walks through the front door and I want her happy.

“What are you doing here?” she asks, stepping through the front door. She sets her purse on the sofa table, and kicks off her shoes.

“Nice to see you too,” I mumble, seeing her mood hasn’t changed since we spoke.

Frowning, she turns and walks over to me, leaning down to give me a kiss. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for it to sound like that. I’m glad you’re here, I’m just surprised to see you, that’s all.”

“I let myself in. I wanted to be here when you got home. Have you calmed down at all?” I ask, not sure I want to know the truth. Pulling her arms out of her jacket, she hangs it on the back of one of the kitchen chairs. Walking over, she throws herself down on the couch next to me.

“Actually, yeah. I can deal with finishing school early. I just didn’t want to have to leave you for a summer for a stupid internship. As long as I can find something here, I’ll be fine.” She reaches out to touch my hand.

“Don’t stress over it. It’ll work out; it always does,” I remind her again.

“I know. How was your day?” She says with a sigh.

“Good.”

“Oh, yeah. What did you do?”

“Watched some TV, went to the gym, and got a phone call,” I say nonchalantly.

“From?” Her voice is full of curiosity.

“The Human Resources Department from the City of Santa Ruiz.”

“And?”

“I got the job.”

“I’m so proud of you, baby!” she squeals. “I knew you’d get it. When do you start?” She leans in, planting kisses all over my face. Her mood shifts considerably.

“Beginning of January. Chief is giving me the rest of December off.”

“Good. We’ll have the next few days to celebrate.”

“I know a few ways we can celebrate. You know what they say relieves stress, right?” I say, and then kiss her.

“I’ve heard about that, but I’m not sure it’s true.”

“Maybe we should test the theory,” I say, picking her up and carrying her down the hall to her bedroom. Laying her down on her bed, I settle in on top of her. My erection is pressing through my jeans, and I know she can feel it as she repositions herself underneath me, rubbing up against it.

“I need you,” I say between kisses.

“Not yet,” she whispers, pushing me gently against my chest.

Sitting up, she pulls her gray sweater over her head, and tosses it onto the floor next to my sweatshirt. She’s wearing a black lace bra; my favorite color on her. Leaning forward, she kisses me while her fingers reach for the waistband of my jeans. Running her fingers just under the waistband, she moves them back and forth, teasing my skin as she makes her way to the button.

She works the button as I shift to my knees. Sliding my jeans and boxer briefs down my thighs, she stops them at my knees.

“Lay back,” she tells me, pushing me backwards. Making quick work of her jeans she kicks them off her feet, leaving on just her bra and panties.

“You don’t have to do this,” I say, but praying to God she wants too.

“I want too. I like doing this to you,” she smiles.

Moving to the side of the bed, she lowers herself to the mattress and crawls over to me. Straddling me like she has so many times before, my erection is pressing against her through her panties. She wants to be in control this time, so I let her. I smile to myself. I love it when my girl gets naughty. Lowering her face to mine we’re forehead-to-forehead, nose-to-nose and mouth-to-mouth. Her breath has a hint of mint, and her lips are full and soft as I lean forward to claim her mouth.

Jess pulls back from the kiss, confusing me, but she immediately lowers her mouth to my cheek, kissing me down to my ear. She nibbles on my earlobe, and I feel her warm breath against my ear giving me goose bumps. Slowly, her kisses make a trail down my body, across my chest, where she lightly suckles my nipples, gently nipping at them with her teeth. I’m so fucking hard right now, and all I want to do is flip her over, rip her panties off, and take her.

Dragging her tongue down my stomach, she presses light kisses as she continues her way south. I’m full of anticipation and need, and I’m not sure how much longer I’m going to be able to lie here and take her sweet lips on my body. Closing my eyes, I will my body to calm itself. I feel her warm tongue brush against the tip of my cock, and my entire body shudders at the feel of her soft tongue licking my engorged head.

“Fuck,” I moan as I reach out and wrap my fingers in her long hair. Pulling her mouth off of me, she looks up at me; a huge smile crosses her face.