His last attempt ended with him not losing his life, but finding purpose to begin a new one. With his mind lost in the ecstasy of the drugs he took, Ian walked onto a freeway onramp in Las Vegas and threw himself at a passing vehicle. He was rushed to a Las Vegas hospital and due to his injuries spent a several months detoxing and healing from his injuries in a rehab facility. Most of his torturous time in the hospital was spent on devising a plan to find Grace and sweep her off her feet once again. It came as a surprise to him how easy it was to kick his drug habit and heal his physical wounds. Believing in his determination to find Grace, he found the strength he needed to push forward and get healthy.
“Grace, time to get up!” Michelle calls from the kitchen. “Do you want to go to the café and get coffee or should I make us some?”
Grace rolls over in her bed groaning. Michelle pokes her head around the partition. “Oh now don’t go pulling a Michelle on me. Get up! We’re going to be late if you sleep any longer.”
Michelle grabs Grace’s blankets and pulls them to the floor.
“Ugh, you’re such a brat!” Grace says, as she shoots Michelle a glare.
“I know,” Michelle says, as she casually walks back to the kitchen. “Le café or home brew?”
“The café,” says Grace, as she pulls herself out of bed.
Grace’s schedule for the day is jam packed. First, she has two art classes, and then a runway show later that evening. Since she moved to Paris, most of her days are spent this way. Filled with classes, modeling jobs, or castings. Her busy schedule helps her to keep her mind off the things she would rather not think about.
After the long day Grace had, all she wants to do is sink onto her couch. She turns her key in the door and lets her backpack fall to the floor with a sigh.
“Hey!” she says, to Michelle as she walks in the loft door.
“Hey,” says Michelle without turning to look at her. “Jaden called.”
“Oh, he did?”
Michelle doesn’t turn away from her computer. “He said he would try to call you tomorrow.”
“What is so fascinating?” Grace asks, as she sits in the chair next to the desk.
Michelle moves her computer screen around so that Grace can see what she is glaring at.
“Oh wow, Missy! Is that me?”
“You know it’s you, stupid. Do you like it?” Michelle teases.
On the screen is a black and white photograph of Grace. She is wearing a garment that looks like a black leather bathing suit. Her curvy backside rests against the floor-to-ceiling glass panes in the loft. A bright light from the day’s sun conceals the panes of the window, making it look like she is floating in the clouds. Both of her arms rest pointedly, behind her head. Her long blonde hair is pulled back into a loose bun. Her bangs fall over her face, but do not conceal her smoldering gaze. On her feet she wears a pair of spiked, high heel, ankle boots. Using her tiptoes she elongates her legs and this helps to form her body in just the right way, making all of the contours of her body appealing. On her arm she wears a single, thick leather band on her wrist, silver spokes jutting out like tiny daggers. Around her neck is a leather strap ornamented with black feathers. The angle of her face and her dead-pan eyes, bring sexiness to the photograph that she is not used to seeing in herself. Grace notices that for the first time in her life she looks like a woman, not a teenager.
“It’s amazing, Missy. You’re a great photographer. Especially since you made my ass look ten times smaller than what it really is.” Grace laughs.
“Do you care if I use it in my show? Do you think it’s too sexy?”
Without hesitation, she answers, “No, not at all. It’s a beautiful photo. Use it!”
Michelle returns to working on the photographs.
“So, what’s up with Jaden?” Grace asks.
“Oh you know, same thing different day. He was chatting about some remodeling he’s done to the old house,” says Michelle, still not taking her gaze off her computer.
“I loved that old house.”
“I guess Jaden found a bank statement for an account that he didn’t know that Grandpa Joe had, and apparently Grandpa Joe left Jaden all the money that was in it.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, so he’s using the money to remodel the house and record an album.”
Grace thinks about the old house and all the glorious times she had there with Grandpa Joe, Jaden and with Ian. Her heart sinks as she thinks about Ian. How happy they were and how in love they were when they first moved in. Will I ever be open to loving like that again?
“I hope he doesn’t modernize it,” Grace says, breaking the silence in the loft.
“I don’t think he would do that. He loves the style of that house too much. He just mentioned something about restoring the woodwork, new floors, and new paint.”
Grace can see that Michelle is too preoccupied with her photographs to have a conversation, despite Grace wanting to know every word that Jaden said.
“Well, I suppose I’m going to lie down,” Grace says, as she rises from the chair and heads for her bedroom. “Night, Missy.”
Grace heads to her room and changes for bed, all the while contemplating calling Jaden back. She decides that she’d rather not dredge up old memories tonight after such a long day and crawls in bed.
The sound of her cell phone ringing wakes Grace. She rolls over to look at the alarm clock sitting on her nightstand. “Midnight!” she huffs. “Ah hello?” she asks, with a raspy, tired voice.
“I woke you up, didn’t I?” asks Jaden.
“It’s midnight here,” she says, laughing. “How are you, Jaden?”
“I’m good. I’m sorry. I can never get the time difference right,” he says, in his smoky voice. “I can try to call later?”
“No, it’s okay,” Grace says, as she raises herself to a sitting position. “I want to hear about what you’re doing to my house.”
Jaden laughs at her. “Your house, huh?”
“Yeah, my house,” she says, laughing.
“So Michelle told you about my inheritance I take it?”
“Of course she did.”
“Ya know, I’ve just been redoing some of the old woodwork, the floors, got rid of that gnarly wallpaper in your old bathroom and stuff like that.”
“You’re not going to modernize it, are you?” Grace asks.
“Never! You should see what we did to the backyard!”
“We?” Grace asks.
“Oh ah, yeah, I got myself a new roommate,” Jaden says, with hesitation. “Anyway, I put a fire pit in and these righteous outdoor couches, and this thing that is like a bed, but for outside.”
“That sounds really nice, Jaden,” Grace says, with a yawn. It is not that she finds the conversation boring. She loves hearing from Jaden, but she is just exhausted.
“Michelle emailed me some of the photos she is thinking of using in her show,” Jaden says. “You look incredible.”
“You’re too sweet. How are you, besides being rich now?”
“I’m doin’ alright, yeah, I’m alright. My band is getting quite the following, and I’ve been writing a shit load of new songs. Mostly acoustic stuff,” he says, with enthusiasm ringing from his voice.
“Are you ever going to send me that CD you promised me?”
“Ah man I totally have it in a package ready to send, but I keep forgetting to. This construction crap can really distract a guy. Plus the one I record in the studio will be way better.”
There is a moment of silence between them.
“Grace?” he asks, apprehensively.
“I’m here. Sorry. I’m just so tired. I had school all day and then a runway show,” she says, with another yawn.
“You’re doing so well in Paris. I’m proud of you. I was wondering, I have a bit of money left over after all the home repairs and recording my album. I, ah…I would like to come and see you girls.”
“That would be fantastic!”
; “Would you mind if I shacked up at your casa for a couple of weeks?”
“That would be perfect. When were you thinking of coming?”
“Maybe next week. I’d like to be there in time for Michelle’s gallery showing. It means so much to her, and I really want to be there for her.”
Grace is surprisingly overwhelmed with excitement at Jaden’s words.
“Anytime you want, Jaden. You’re always welcome here.”
“Awesome. Well, when I get my tickets I’ll call you with my arrival time and all that jazz.”
“Sounds great.”
“Grace, I guess I’ll see you soon. I hope you can go back to sleep.”
“I’ll be fine, trust me.”
“Bye, sugar.”
“Bye.”
Grace pushes the button on her phone to end the call and slips her phone into the drawers in her nightstand. She is beyond excited that Jaden is coming to visit, but her eyelids become heavy as she falls to sleep.
Jaden hangs the telephone up and sits still while thinking about what he has just done. Ian would be devastated if he knew that Jaden knows where Grace is, and that he was not telling him. He would be further devastated if he knew that Jaden was going to visit her.
Jaden has grown immensely close to Michelle over the past few months via telephone calls and emails, and he has always been close to Grace. He cannot help wanting to see them. There is something inside him urging him to go to Paris. He needs to see with his own two eyes how the girls are doing. He yearns to be face to face with Grace, to see for himself that she is truly happy.
It is probably a big mistake, but the girls are his close friends, his family.
He considers revealing the truth to Ian, but then decides once again that it does not matter. Grace is over five thousand miles away in another country. Even if he did confess to Ian that he knew where she was, nothing would ever come of it.
Jaden searches through the contacts on his phone and finds Grace’s phone number, clicks the edit button, and then changes her name to Meghan H. Searching for Michelle’s number, and the loft number, he changes the names of each of them, giving them aliases. He is mostly confident that Ian would not look through his phone, but wants to be sure there is no possible way Ian would find a way to contact Grace.
Jaden finds Ian in the backyard hammering a bench together. “That looks rad, man!” Jaden says, as he stands behind him.
“I’m almost done. I just have to put the other armrest on.”
“Want a water or something?”
“Water sounds great. Then do you think you could get your lazy ass out here and lay down the pathway to the pool?”
Jaden laughs. “Sure, man. I just had to call my mom. I’m going to go visit her next week.”
“Is she okay?”
“Yeah, I just miss her, and since I have some money left I wanted to go on a little trip.”
Chapter 19
Jaden only has one duffle bag slung over his arm when he walks into the loft.
“I can’t believe that’s all you brought,” says Grace, as she studies him.
“I like to travel light,” he says, as he puts his bag down on the hardwood floor. His head swirls around the loft in a stupor. “Man, you girls have a sweet pad,” he says, as he walks to the windows and looks out over the city. “I can see the Eiffel Tower from here!” he shouts. “You’re doin’ alright.”
“James did a great job finding us this loft,” Grace says, as she walks to the kitchen.
“And he pays your rent too, huh?” Jaden asks, in astonishment.
“And both of our tuitions at art school,” Grace says, as she pours Jaden a glass of soda.
“Is he feelin’ a bit guilty for kicking you ladies out or what?”
“No, that’s not it. I think he just wants us to live our dreams.” Grace sits on the couch and pats the cushion next to her. “Let me look at you,” she says, with inquisitive eyes flowing over Jaden’s entire body. “Your hair is shorter, you look skinnier, and…is this a new tattoo?” she asks, grabbing his arm.
“Ahh, man, I got that one right after you moved out. This is my new one,” he says, and he rolls up the sleeve on his plain black t-shirt.
“You look really good. However, I think you’re in need of some of my cooking.”
“Oh, I couldn’t agree with you more,” he says, rubbing his hands together and licking his lips. “You look pretty damn good yourself, sugar.”
Grace’s cheeks warm. “Thanks. Are you hungry?”
“Nah, I’m good. I ate on the plane.”
“Yuck.”
“It really wasn’t that bad.” Jaden’s eyes circle the bright room again. “So, your rooms are behind those panels? Don’t you two need more privacy than that?”
“No. We do just fine.”
“What about when you bring your boyfriends home?”
Grace giggles. “We don’t have boyfriends. We’re too busy, besides…well, I’m not ready yet.”
“Ah, I see. I like the way you’ve decorated. It’s super girly though.”
“We’re girls, Jaden. How else would we decorate?”
“I suppose that’s true. I brought some pictures of the renovations,” Jaden says, digging into his duffle bag. Handing Grace a stack of photographs, Jaden’s eyes catch hers. She is comforted with him being by her side. Grace thumbs through the prints and is amazed at the difference the changes have made. “Wow, you did all of this yourself?”
“My roommate helps.”
“That’s awesome. Do you like him?”
Grace cannot make out the expression that has fallen over Jaden’s face as she waits for him to answer.
“He’s an alright kinda guy. Doesn’t cause too much trouble and keeps to himself.”
The two of them sit on the couch for hours talking, neither of them mentioning Ian. Grace wants to ask him so badly if he has heard from Ian, and if he is okay, but at the moment she does not want to open her heart up to what Jaden may have to say. She would rather enjoy his company than dig up the past or learn truths from the present that would horrify her.
Michelle bangs through the door, almost weighed down with the camera bag and lights she carries in her arms. Jaden jumps up from the couch and runs over to help her. After he helps her with the heavy bag and lights, he wraps his arms tightly around her. “My famous photographer,” he says, as he hugs the breath out of her and kisses her on her head. Grace fondly watches them embrace and for the first time notices the closeness between them.
“My rock star,” she says, grinning. “I hope you brought more stylish clothes than this for your photo shoot!” She laughs, as she tugs on his t-shirt.
“You know it, baby! I brought all my cool outfits,” he says, smiling.
“Yeah and he shoved them all in that,” Grace says, as she points to Jaden’s duffle bag lying on the floor.
Michelle wrinkles up her nose and then they both laugh.
“Already ganging up on me and I just got here.” Jaden laughs.
Michelle takes his hand and leads him back to the couch and Grace follows. She is made aware, just by simple gestures they make, that Jaden and Michelle seem to have grown very close.
“I’m going to make dinner,” Grace says, turning for the kitchen.
“Okay, thanks sis,” Michelle calls back to her from the couch.
After dinner, Grace and Michelle find blankets and pillows and make Jaden a bed on the couch.
“Are you sure you’re going to be okay sleeping here?”
“I’ll be fine. It’s comfortable,” Jaden says, then yawns.
“I can’t believe you’re here,” Grace says, starting at him lying on her couch, his dark eyes small from tiredness.
“Me neither. I wasn’t sure when I would see you ladies again and I never thought I’d see Paris.”
“I cleared my schedule as much as I could so we can show you around the city.”
With his eyes closed Jaden lets out an exhausted yawn. “T
hat sounds groovy, sugar.”
Grace stands, walks to where Jaden’s head is, and bends down to kiss him. “Bonne nuit, my friend.”
Grace shuts off all the lights and then peeps in to check on Michelle. “Are you awake?”
“Barely.”
“I love you.”
“Love you too, sis.”
“See you tomorrow. Wake me up if you two wake up before me.”
“Uh huh,” Michelle says, sounding half-asleep.
Grace climbs into her bed and turns the lamp off that sits on her nightstand. She snuggles into her comforter and closes her eyes with a smile on her face. Having Jaden around warms her heart.
Jaden spends his time in Paris with the girls showing him all over the city. They visit all the tourist spots and some unknown places the girls frequent, like their favorite café that is just down the block from their loft. Not once does anyone mention Ian’s name. Jaden has been fighting with himself the entire visit on whether he should confess to Grace that Ian is once again in his band, and living with him. As long as Grace does not bring it up, Jaden is content to let sleeping dogs lie.
“Two weeks sure has gone by fast,” Michelle says, somberly, as she takes the seat at her computer.
Jaden is in the chair next to her, looking through hundreds of photographs she has shot of him over his entire visit.
“Sure has. Oh, I like this one for my album cover!” He shouts as he points to a black and white photograph of himself leaning up against an old distressed door on a random Paris street, with a cigarette dangling from his lips.
“That’s one of my favorites,” says Grace as she slinks up behind the two of them.
“I’ll work on it and burn you a disc tonight…” Michelle pauses, then pouts with her lower lip out. “It will be ready before you leave tomorrow,” she says, still pouting. “Damn it!” she gasps, as she leaps from her chair. “I’m late for my shoot! I gotta go!” Michelle rushes to grab her camera bag then runs over quickly to Jaden and kisses him on each cheek, then does the same to Grace, and Grace does the same to her.
The Falling of Love (The Falling Series Book 1) Page 24