by Joelle Duff
Seth was there too, but he stayed near the back of the room. I knew there was something going on between him and Lucy, judging by the way they kept glancing at each other nervously, but I didn’t have a chance to ask Jackson. I would have time.
Eventually Jackson forced everyone out, which I was thankful for. Just the trip home from the hospital had exhausted me, and I was ready to sleep for the next three days straight.
I went to stand up, but Jackson wouldn’t have it. He scooped me up into his arms instead, and I just nuzzled into his neck. He hadn’t been home in days either, and I knew we were both looking forward to a nice, hot shower.
Jackson washed me slowly, gently, and I relished in the feel of both the water and his touch. It was like his hands alone could erase all the bad memories of the past few days, and it wasn’t long before I was nearly begging him to make love to me.
“Shhh Mellie Rose, you need your rest,” Jackson whispered into my ear, as he dried my body gently with one of his fluffiest towels. I had my arms around his neck, and was pressing kisses along his collarbone, up to his ear. He laughed softly, but just wrapped me up in the towel so that I couldn’t even move my arms. He scooped me back up in his arms, and carried me back to his bed.
I loved my bed back at my loft. Or I thought I did, at least. It was small, but it was mine. That was what I always thought.
It all felt different now. Jackson’s bed was big and luxurious, sure, but it was more than that. It felt comfortable; safe.
“Wait here,” he said, setting me down gently. I was still in just the towel, which didn’t bother me so much anymore. Jackson headed back toward the bathroom, but opened the door next to the bathroom. It was the closet that he didn’t use, the one that I hung my clothes in when I was staying over sometimes. I waited patiently for him to come out, but I couldn’t help but be curious why he was in there. I didn’t have anything in there now, since he’d been gone for almost a week before the attack happened.
When he emerged, I noticed he carried a white gift bag in one hand, and my favorite nighty in the other. It was the one that Darcy hated. I’d told her I’d gotten rid of it, even though I kept it tucked safely away in the back of my dresser. Jackson had never seen me wear it.
“Where did you get that?” I asked, staring at the piece of white fabric in his hand.
“Your apartment. Darcy went and got a few of your things while you were in the hospital, since she knew you weren’t going to go back there any time soon.”
I nodded sadly, and grabbed the nighty from his hands. He didn’t move his eyes away from me while I pulled the fabric over my head, and moved to pull the covers down on the bed.
I settled myself under the blankets, and pulled myself up so I was sitting. Jackson sat on the bed next to me; I could feel his warmth through the blankets that separated us.
“I wanted to ask you something Mellie, before you go to sleep,” he said, and I noticed that he was watching me anxiously. Jackson was never nervous about anything, so it unnerved me a bit.
“Go ahead,” I said, smiling to reassure him.
“Actually, before I ask you, I have something for you.” He held out the white bag he’d carried out of the closet, and I took it from him.
“What is it?” I asked curiously, gazing into the bag but not actually pulling anything out.
Jackson laughed. “Just open it.”
I did as he said, and pulled out a rectangular jewelry box. My breathing hitched, not entirely sure what to expect.
I opened the box, and immediately felt tears in the corners of my eyes. It was a pearl necklace, nearly identical to the one that Collin had pulled off of me that night.
“We had to replace two of the pearls, but otherwise Lucy was able to find all of them,” he said. I almost couldn’t believe what he was saying.
“Wait, this is my pearl necklace?” I asked as I brushed my fingers lightly over the smooth round pearls. I knew that I was crying, but I didn’t care. It was my necklace.
“It is. After the paramedics took you from your apartment, and the police took Collin, Lucy tried to pick up all the pearls. Like I said, two were missing, but otherwise they’re all there.”
There was a lump in my throat so big that I couldn’t say anything. I just nodded, and just continued to stare down at my necklace. He had it fixed for me. He and Lucy made sure my necklace wasn’t lost forever.
“There’s one more thing Mellie,” Jackson said. I turned to look at him, my vision clouded with tears. “I was wondering if you would come to London with me for Christmas. I was hoping I could introduce you to my grandparents.”
“London,” I said, and I knew I wouldn’t be able to hide the excitement in my voice. “You want to take me to Europe.”
“I do,” he said, smiling. “And when we come back, I was hoping you move in with me. Permanently.”
Part of me knew that I would be moving in with him after all of this, but it still thrilled me to hear him say it. He wanted me with him, always. He didn’t mind my bad habits or my cleaning compulsion. He loved me, and I knew it.
“Wait, what about the café? It’s almost fifteen minutes away, and I don’t have a car. How will I get there?”
Jackson just laughed. “Like you haven’t been driving my car for almost two months anyway. I think we can take care of that.”
I couldn’t help but laugh too. A year ago, I would have never even considered moving in with a man before marriage, but the past nine months had taught me more than I’d learned in the previous twenty-three years combined.
I knew now that I didn’t have to be selfish to be happy, and that I didn’t have to compromise who I was in order to be a good person. I’d learned that love really was patient and kind and forgiving. Love was never a bad thing, and it came in so many different forms. You didn’t need to be married to someone to love them, and you didn’t need to give yourself up to love them. True love meant loving the person that they are, not the person that you want them to be.
Jackson crawled into bed with me, and I scooted down so he could wrap his arms around me. There really was no other place in the world that I wanted to be. And if someday it all went away, I would still love him. A year from now, or ten or twenty, if Jackson and I decided that we weren’t really meant to be together, I would still love him. Because he was the one that taught me these things about myself, and about life. He was the one that showed me what compassion and love and happiness truly meant. It was because of Jackson that I knew how to breathe again.
The End.
Acknowledgements
Am I really writing an acknowledgements section? It seems surreal. I never, in a million years, thought that I would actually be publishing this book of mine that took me over five years to write. It’s been a project of passion, of getting that perfect love story out of my head.
I guess I should thank my husband first and foremost. Robert, you’ve believed in every single crazy dream I’ve ever had, and I wouldn’t be where I am without you. You’re my confidence, and I’ll be forever grateful for that.
To all my blog readers, I love you. Thanks so much for your support and encouragement. It means more to me than you know, truly.
And, of course, to Taylor Swift. You have no idea who I am, but you’ve changed me. Thank you.
About the Author
Joelle Duff blogs, plans weddings, and writes love stories. She’s also obsessed with Taylor Swift, loves the color pink, and likes to wear bows in her hair.
Also, I just wrote that in the third person and it was totes weird.
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