whispered in a low, intimidating tone.
I buried my face in my hands. Fire exploded across my face and ears. It was worse than anything I could have possibly imagined. Jared hadn’t just been hired to protect me since my father had passed away; he’d observed my awkward tween years, my humiliations, and every one of my embarrassing failures.
The degradation was unbearable. I sprang from my seat and headed for the door, but before my first step, I heard Jared’s chair grate against the floor. In the next moment he gently grabbed me from behind, wrapping his arms around my waist.
“I know this is humiliating for you,” he spoke quietly in my ear. “I wanted to tell you, I begged Jack to let me expose that cheating little maggot so many times, but he wouldn’t let us interfere unless it was absolutely necessary. Doing that to you on your birthday,” he said, fuming, “it was the breaking point for me. That night was the first time I’d fought Jack on anything.”
I flipped around and pushed away from him. “I’m not humiliated about Stacy! That was years ago! I’m humiliated because of this!” I said, gesturing to the space between us. “When you meet someone new, that’s the way it’s supposed to be! New! You know all of my bad habits…you’ve seen me do God knows what. You’re only supposed to know the best parts about me in the beginning!”
He stood there for a moment, shaking his head with an expression of confusion and awe. “I love everything about you.”
It was at that moment that I realized why his eyes seemed so familiar to me. “You were there,” I whispered, scanning his face.
Beyond the cocktail dresses, the twinkling lights draped from every tree and light post, and the smell of the freshly cut grass and imported flowers my mother insisted on, his eyes flickered in my memory. I pressed deeper, feeling the light sheen of perspiration on my skin from the exceptionally warm night, the smell of the chlorine from the pool, and the sounds of the crowd humming in happy, flowing conversation.
When I glanced across the lawn at my father, I caught the glowing blue eyes of a stranger standing by the koi pond. His tailored suit and absent tie set him apart from the sea of tuxedos. Our eyes connected for only a second before he reluctantly pulled them away to face my father, who was having a low, serious conversation with him.
My memory replayed in slow motion as the chiffon of my short, white dress waved gently against my legs. Once again his stormy blue eyes singled me out of the crowd, and I shied away from his stare.
I snapped back to the present when Jared called my name.
“You were speaking to my father by the pond. That was you,” I said, my eyes wide with realization.
Jared’s brows pulled in. “You remember that?”
“It was just before I’d gone to the pool house. Jack was by the pond, talking with that face he made when he was giving orders.” I tried to recall every detail I could. “You were throwing rocks in the pond; I only saw you for a moment, but that was you, wasn’t it?”
Jared nodded slowly. “I wanted to throw Stacy out, take him somewhere and…I don’t know. Punish him, I guess. Jack refused, but he realized how I felt about you, then. He insisted that my family, including me, be kept a secret from you indefinitely. That was a rough night,” he sighed, rubbing the back of his neck.
“I am so sorry,” I whispered, not knowing what else to say. My heart ached for all the years he’d spent as a ghost.
Jared took my hand in his and pulled it to his chest. It was then that I realized I’d been absently twisting my Peridot ring around my finger.
“I picked up this ring, you know,” he said, softly pressing his lips against my fingers. “Cynthia was up to her neck in party details and she’d forgotten to get it,” he smiled. “And because you were in my father’s presence, I was sent to pick it up for you.”
“Great. They used you as a gopher.”
“I volunteered. I wanted to,” he explained. “I can’t describe the way it made me feel to see your smile when you opened the box. You were so pleased with it, and I had a part in that,” he said. His smile faded. “Later, it helped a little with the…misery of never being able to console you when I’d see you twist this ring around your finger. I know it sounds ridiculous, but it has always been comforting to see you reach for it when you’re upset.”
I stared at him, bewildered. I wasn’t sure how to feel; even with the suspicions I’d already had, I couldn’t have prepared myself for what he was telling me.
“Please don’t leave,” Jared whispered, still holding my hand to his chest.
I looked down at my feet and then reached down to unbuckle the straps of my shoes from around my ankles. “You’d just follow me if I left, right?” I said, kicking off my shoes.
“Even if it weren’t my job,” he said with an impish grin. He looked down at my bare feet. “I’m glad you’re staying, we still have quite a bit to discuss.”
“There’s more?”
Jared nodded and led me to his small, grey couch.
“Maybe we should save the rest for another night. It’s a lot to take in,” he sighed.
I ignored him. “Why did you sit beside me on that bench the night of Jack’s funeral?”
“You were crying. Jack was gone. I couldn’t think of any more reasons to stay away.”
“What about your father? Didn’t Gabe care that you were breaking the rules?”
Jared looked to the floor. “He died the morning of your father’s funeral.” He spoke as if exhaustion had just set in.
I gasped. “Gabe is…?” I couldn’t finish.
Jared had comforted me just hours after his own father’s death. I gently pulled his chin to face me. His eyes were thick with grief, as if he was experiencing it for the first time.
It dawned on me how it must have felt to Jared, to see me suffering, and the deep need he struggled with to make it go away. I felt the same urgency that very moment. My eyes focused on the thin line between his lips, and I moved a bit closer to him.
Jared rested his soft hands on each side of my face. He leaned in slowly, inches from my mouth. His jaw tensed; he seemed to be struggling with what he had been told was the right thing to do and what he wanted.
He shook his head. “This isn’t why I brought you here,” he said, pulling away from me.
“I know,” I sighed.
Jared stared at the floor, working to even out his breathing.
I touched his arm. “Maybe you’re right. Maybe we’ve had enough truth for one night.”
“Do you want to leave?” he asked, concerned.
“No!” I paused to regain my composure. “No. I just meant that maybe we could talk about something else…if you want,” I fidgeted. “Your training, what schools you went to, friends…girls,” I said, a corner of my mouth turning up.
“Girls?” he repeated, raising an eyebrow.
“You know about my utter failure when choosing a boyfriend, and I’m sure you saw the awkward dates I’ve been on.”
“Those were never a good day at work for me,” he said, furrowing his brow.
“It’s only fair,” I reasoned. “You must have had at least one bad date….”
Jared shook his head dismissively. “I didn’t have time to date.”
I wasn’t sure what expression was on my face, but it made Jared’s eyes squint with chagrin. He clearly didn’t expect to talk about his love life, or lack thereof.
“I was focused on keeping you alive. Making mistakes in my family means more than having to say you’re sorry.”
“Never?”
Jared shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “It wasn’t that I never had the opportunity, or that I wasn’t allowed the time…or even incessantly encouraged,”—his face twisted into a disgusted scowl—“I just had my priorities.”
“Should I feel guilty or flattered?”
Jared looked straight into my eyes. “By the time it occurred to me to care about things like that, I already knew you were all I’d ever want.”
