by Ashlee Price
I shook my head no and tried to walk back inside, but his hand shot out and stopped me with a firm grip on my arm.
“No, Scott, not anymore.”
Chapter 4 – Scott
I’d expected her to be mad, so when she tried to walk away, I couldn’t say that I was really all that surprised about it. What I was a little shocked about, though, was how much my heart clenched with the idea of her walking away. I didn’t like it when she said that she wasn’t mine anymore. She was always going to be mine. I just had to get her to agree to it. At first I’d underestimated how upset she was, but I wasn’t going to make the same mistake again.
“Just hear me out, Jesse. I know that there are a lot of questions that you have, and I owe you an explanation, I know that.”
“Don’t worry about it, Scott. I get it, really I do.”
“You don’t get it at all, or you wouldn’t be looking at me like you wanted to scratch my eyes out right now.”
Jesse just shrugged and pulled her arm away. “Well, if you’re going to be here, I’m going to need some coffee. I still have a lot of packing to get done before I have to vacate your father’s property.”
“That’s one of the reasons that I’m here. I didn’t know about that, Jesse. I didn’t know about it until you told me about it on the phone the other night.”
Her face turned red and she looked down, no longer able to meet my gaze. It made me wonder what had her looking like that. I knew that she had every right to be mad at me for what my father had done, but it didn’t mean that it was my fault or that I’d had anything to do with it. That was the first thing that had to be clarified between us before we could move forward. I knew that.
“I find that rather hard to believe. Your signature was on it, remember?”
I tried to tell her that it wasn’t true. Someone had apparently forged my name, and although that was illegal, there wasn’t much I could do unless I wanted to get my father in trouble. That was not a battle that I was ready to have yet; in fact, it was one of the very last things that I wanted to focus on right now.
“Yes, it was, but I wasn’t aware of it. I don’t think that I signed it, Jesse, but if I did, you have to understand that I sign hundreds of contracts for various things every week and I don’t read them all. I would have never signed it if I’d known what it was. You have to know that, Jesse. Why would I cosign on that loan, just to do that a month later?”
She shrugged, and I could tell that although she wasn’t completely on board yet, her wall was starting to crumble a little bit. I was getting through to her.
“Well, I don’t know why you did that, Scott. Maybe you knew that this was going to happen and just wanted a date. I never could figure out what you saw in me, and I guess I don’t care.”
“I saw a woman who was full of fire and not afraid to tell me when I was being an ass. You were the first person in a long time who talked to me like that.”
“So yelling at you is what sealed the deal? Like that was a good thing?”
I chuckled and nodded my head. “I spend most of my day around people who want something from me, so they say whatever they think I want to hear. While it’s good for my ego, it gets old. You were like a breath of fresh air, Jesse.”
Her eyes were still looking at the ground, so I raised her chin up so that she was looking right at me. “I see a beautiful woman that I don’t want to be without for another moment. That is what I see when I look at you, Jesse, and so help me, I don’t know why I said what I said before.”
“It’s okay, Scott. I told you that it’s fine. You don’t have to explain anything.”
“I do, because you still just don’t seem to get it. I love you, Jesse, and there is nothing more I can say than that. I love you more than I ever thought was possible. I didn’t think I was capable. You’ve met my father. I thought I was cursed to be like him, that I could never feel the way I was supposed to. But I don’t want that. Nothing is more important to me than you, Jesse. You have to see that.”
Jesse was looking at me like she was trying to decide if I was telling the truth or not. I’d forgotten for a moment that I had more to offer than just words. I went to the inside pocket of my jacket and pulled out the deed that had cost me so dearly to get my hands on.
“I want you to have this, Jesse. No one will ever take this shop away from you. I know how much it means to you, and as soon as I found out what my father had done, I fixed it.”
She looked at the paperwork that I handed her and gasped. “Are you serious, Scott? Don’t mess with me about this. I don’t think that I can take any more crushed hopes, Scott.”
I told her that it was the deed and that the shop was hers again. Not just that, but I had paid off all of her debts, as well as the remainder that she owed on the building herself. She was in better shape than she’d ever been, but I didn’t mention that part. I didn’t want her to let that dictate what she told me next, when I asked her the question I was there to ask.
“I have something else to talk to you about, Jesse.”
“Well, if it’s anything like this, I think I want to hear it.” She was holding up the papers for the deed, and I could tell that I’d made her week. The smile on her face had made mine.
“I want you to marry me, Jesse.”
Her eyes moved to mine, and I could see the shock. It reminded me that I had the ring in my pocket, the one I’d picked out that very day. It was perfect, and I already knew deep down that she was going to say yes. She had to. We were destined to be together.
“Are you serious, Scott?”
When she saw the ring, she knew that I was. She covered her mouth. I could see the wisp of tears in her eyes, and I knew that it had done what I’d wanted it to do. It made her speechless, and even though I didn’t get the yes that I was dying to hear, the nod of her head was good enough for me.
Moving to pull her back into my arms, I kissed her. I’d missed the taste of her so much that before long I was pulling her tighter to me. “I’m never going to let you go again, Jesse. My heart can’t take it.”
“Good, because that was the longest and most miserable month of my life. Now that I know what your love can be, I never want to go without it either. I love you, Scott.”
To be continued in Part 9…
Served Part 9: Treat
By: Ashlee Price
Prologue
Jesse wakes up every morning wanting to pinch herself to make sure that the life she’s living is actually real. She’s engaged to be married to one of the wealthiest men in the city, and not only is he handsome and kind, but Jesse is head over heels in love with him. When she isn’t running her bistro, her days are filled with planning her dream wedding.
Meanwhile, Scott is busy deciding what he’s going to do with his career. While he loves many aspects of his job, he’d done working under his father’s thumb. He has to find a new direction, and after he takes the first step, Scott is ready to go back on his own again.
Then, with the wedding only a week away, Jesse reconnects with someone from her past – and it threatens to disrupt the perfect life that she’s trying to make for herself.
Chapter 1 – Jesse
I turned over and felt the body next to me. It took me a minute to realize that it was Scott, and that was only when I saw the ring on my finger. I couldn’t help but feel giddy, and I couldn’t help that I wanted him again. Scott was everything that I’d ever wanted and now he was mine. After he’d asked me to marry him, Scott had stayed over and made love to me all night. It was like he’d saved up for me, and I was exhausted and sore. Moving produced a grimace.
“Where are you going?”
“To the bathroom.”
“Don’t take too long, Jesse. I need you again.”
I groaned. I ached all over, and the last thing I needed was more of him.
“Maybe after I take a shower, Scott.”
He nodded and turned back over in the bed. I could see his tanned back, and I have to
say that I was tempted to get back in bed with him right then, no matter how I was feeling. He was gorgeous and his body was sculpted. My hands itched to touch him, but then I remembered that I needed a break. If I didn’t get out of the bed and away from him, I was going to be sucked back into his vortex and there was no telling when I was going to get out of it.
Turning on the water, I let it steam up the room, trying my best to ignore the tenderness in my limbs. I felt like I’d been stretched ten ways. Scott liked to move me around and bend me like a pretzel. It felt wonderful in the heat of the moment, but now I was questioning how flexible I really was. When I got into the shower, though, the hot water started to soothe me. I leaned my head against the tile in front of me. I could have stayed like that forever, zoned out.
Then I felt a hand on the small of my back and I arched with remembrance. “I thought you were coming back to bed.”
I looked back at Scott and saw that he was ready again. He always was, and now that we had been apart, I was starting to think that he was never going to get enough of me. If the man wasn’t so overwhelming maybe I would feel the same way, but the amount of lust and desire that he had far trumped mine. I could already feel his hands moving closer to my core as his body slid against me. There was no telling him no. My mouth wouldn’t protest even if I wanted it to.
“I need you Jesse. Now.”
I was lost with his words and intent. I couldn’t stop myself from pressing back and bracing my hands to the tile. Scott was never slow or steady. His lovemaking was just like his personality, forceful and erratic. By the time the water grew cold, I didn’t even care.
***
“I’m sorry. I just can’t get enough of you.”
“Well, you’re going to have to, Scott. It’s time for me to get going or the shop isn’t going to be open on time.”
“I’ll help you if you want.”
I remembered the last time I asked and just shook my head as I pulled my pants on. Now I was aching even worse than before, but I had a smile on my face that reached from one side to the other. I couldn’t help it. I could even feel the weight of the ring on my finger. How had everything changed so quickly? I wouldn’t have thought it possible. I was now engaged to Scott, and I couldn't stop thinking that I was going to wake up from it all. I really hoped that wasn’t the case. If I was dreaming, I never wanted to be woken up again. Ever.
“It’s okay, Scott. You’ve got your own stuff to do, I’m sure. You usually were up before me last time you stayed here.”
He sat up and there was an almost instant frown on his face. I wasn’t sure what he was upset about, but there was something there. “I don’t know if I’m going to go in today, Jesse. There’s a lot going on, and I don’t know, I might just stay up here and wait for you to close up shop so I can come down and ravish you again.”
His words sent a shiver through me, and I ducked the hand that was trying to pull me to him. I couldn’t get sucked back in. I would never be able to get out in time, so I put a little distance between us. I was more than a little relieved to hear the knock downstairs.
“I have to go let Melissa in. I love you, Scott, and I’ll see you later.”
“I love you too, wife.”
I pulled back from the kiss and met his gaze. “We aren’t married yet, Scott.”
“That’s going to be fixed rather quickly, mark my words. I won’t let too much more time pass before you’re mine in all ways.”
Another shiver went through me like electricity, and I had to move away from him again. His attraction was downright gravitational, and I couldn’t get away from him fast enough.
“Later, love.”
My smile was big, so big my cheeks were hurting, but I couldn’t stop. Ever since he’d kissed me again and told me he loved me, I just couldn’t straighten up my lips. I didn’t want to. Scott had changed me for the better. How could there be fault in that?
Melissa was waiting for me outside, shivering. I felt bad for not getting down sooner.
“Sorry, Melissa. I didn’t mean to keep you waiting. I wish you’d take that key I leave in the office for you. Then you wouldn’t have to freeze.”
She shrugged and moved into the building before looking at me a little strangely. The permanent smile was still plastered on my face.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah, why?”
“I don’t know, when I left yesterday you were kind of bummed, and now you’re smiling like that.”
I tried to force the corners of my mouth down, but I couldn’t. I was just not going to be able to, and pretty quickly I gave up trying. It occurred to me then that she didn’t know about Scott and everything else that was now a memory. She didn’t know anything… but then her eyes settled on the addition to my hand.
“What is that?”
She pulled my hand to her and looked at the rock on my finger. It was big, but tasteful, and it was beautiful. What it meant was so much more than the gem and the gold. I was going to be married to one of the wealthiest men in the city, but more than that, I was going to marry the only man I ever really loved.
“It’s an engagement ring.”
Melissa scowled, and I couldn’t help the increased pleasure in my face. I really did need to say something.
“From whom?”
“Scott.”
“No.” There was disbelief in her face. “How did it happen?”
I started to tell her the story in hushed tones as we got everything ready for the day. I went to the door to open up for the morning and noticed a woman who had the same color hair as me waiting in the already forming line. I felt another shiver run over me, but it had nothing to do with Scott anymore.
Chapter 2 – Scott
“What the hell is this, Scott?”
The paper on his desk was my resignation letter. After our last conversation on the phone, I wanted to see him face to face for this. I knew that he was going to be mad, and I wanted to be the one to tell him what else I’d done. It was time for me to make my stand against him, something that I should have done the first time he tried to dictate my life through the company.
“This is my resignation. If you’ve read it, it’s all in there rather clearly.”
His scowl was met with my smile, and that seemed to make him even more irritated with me. I didn’t care, though, not now. Now I had everything I needed. A few nights with Jesse had made me realize what was really important. It was time to get rid of everything that wasn’t.
“You’re quitting?”
Nodding my head, I watched his eyes scan the letter, never once really looking at me.
“I don’t know what to say, Scott. I thought that we had this all figured out.”
“You said that if I couldn’t do the job I should give it up.”
He told me that he hadn’t said that. Finally his blue eyes met mine, and there was that sadness that I’d seen before. “I meant that you needed to get your act straight. That young woman was messing with your focus. You just need to get it back.”
“Her name is Jesse, and she’s going to be my wife in a couple of weeks. There is an invitation to the wedding in there as well.”
“You can’t be serious.”
“I assure you that I am. I also took the liberty of buying out your interest in her company. She now owns it free and clear, as well as prepaid taxes for the next twenty years so there are no more mishaps.”
Jackson’s face started to get red, and I could tell then that I might have pushed it a bit too far. I should have stopped there, but I wasn’t able to.
“You went behind my back and bought the place?”
I told him that I had. I felt a small sense of guilt for a moment, like I’d turned my back on him, but I knew that I’d done what I had to do. I had to do it for Jesse, and in a way it was trying to make amends for my father’s evils. I’d spent a lot of my life doing that, it seemed, but maybe this time would be the last.
“I don’t even know who you are,
anymore Scott. This isn’t something that you would have done before you met this woman. I knew that she wasn’t going to be good for you. I just had no idea how bad she was going to be for you. Now you want to marry her? She’ll suck you dry and there will be nothing left.”
“That may be so, father, but I did just fine without you and your money all of those years. You seem to forget that I was already rather successful when you started coming around again. I always figured that it was because you knew that I didn’t need you anymore.”
Jackson looked tired and distressed, but I wasn’t focused on that. I was still upset with him and what he’d tried to do. I didn’t know if I was ever going to be able to forgive him. It really was the last straw, and now that I’d said what I’d come to say, I was ready to leave. There had been so much that I’d wanted to say, but then again, it didn’t really matter. None of it did anymore.
“I just want you to be successful, and I know what kind of woman can help with that. I learned that lesson with your mother. I loved her. I really did, in my own way, but she was never one to push a man to be better. She was happy with things the way they were. She had no drive. Jesse doesn’t have any drive either, and you need that to keep you on track.”
I just shook my head. He really didn’t get it. I was irked with him bringing up Mom, but it was another issue that I was just going to let go. She’d made her peace with him long ago and told me to do the same, but I wasn’t as forgiving as she was.
“What you think of who I choose doesn’t matter. I’m going to marry Jesse, and if you want to come to the wedding, just keep your thoughts about her to yourself. She’ll be the mother of my children one day, and I’ll never treat her the way you treated Mom. You may have loved her in your own way, but you never saw how hard she struggled. You could have helped, but you were too worried about wasting your money.”
Jackson tried to respond, but I told him that I was done talking to him. I was already distancing myself from him. It was what I’d done before, and now I was only worried about what came next. My father was part of my past, and that was where he needed to stay.