228

“So, tell me, Jake … You say you’re happy? Funny … Because I remember the word abortion coming up when I told you that you would be a father! You said you didn’t even want kids! Yet here you are now playing Mr. Daddy-to-be of the year, buying her a fucking house!” Marissa is sitting back with arms crossed across her cleavage, every word like venom on her tongue, glaring at me and not him, with highly intoxicated hatred.
“Why wouldn’t I feel differently? You came to me after one drunk night that I can’t even fucking remember and told me there was a baby. I am in love with Emma, had been for so long, and your appearance almost screwed up the chance I had with her.” Jake stands up and walks off toward the unit behind us. Grabbing the bottle of wine, he steps back, filling his glass to the top. “When Emma found out she was pregnant, it was different. It changed everything, Marissa, because I love her and want a life with her because she’s my world.” He picks it up and downs the whole thing in one go.
Oh, this is not good.
Jake drinking is Jake sliding into a more impulsive, more aggressive mode, where he can be unpredictable and harder to control. I throw him a wary look, and when he goes to top it up again, I swipe his glass away quickly, giving him a pleading ‘please don’t’ glance. He frowns at me and sighs before planking the bottle on the table, sitting down instead. I inhale heavily, trying to relax as much as possible while this crap continues.
“So where does that leave me?! Our baby?!” She spits.
“Same place it already is. Visitation, access. I’m just not jumping through hoops for you. There’s no reason to be a part of your life before the baby is here. I don’t need a relationship with you because, to be honest, it would always be like this; it has always been like this.” Jake waves a hand between them, gesturing at each other, locking his green no-nonsense focus on her and willing her to back down the way I’ve seen him make many a man crumble.
“Fuck no! … You want to see your baby, then you sure as hell accept that I’ll be here and in your life. No relationship with me, then no fucking visitation!” She slaps her hand on the table again, and I can’t contain it anymore.
“Is that what it’s all been about? Having him in any way on your terms? Whether he wants it or not?” I sound angry, maybe even as vicious as her, but I don’t care. I’m seeing through her bullshit. This isn’t about the baby. This is about being close to him, having control over him like he’s her possession, and somehow needing to bow to her will. It’s about forcing Jake to have her in his life.
“Is that what your jealous little head tells you? That I want him? That I’m trying to take him from you?” Marissa laughs nastily. “Sweetie, please, he’s the one who fucked me senseless that night and got me pregnant. He was the one who was all over me, asking for me to go home with him. If I wanted Jake back, I only need to ask.” She smirks, but I only narrow my eyes and frown. Even I know that’s wrong. Jake isn’t someone who lets what he wants slip away. He’s someone who goes after it, and if he wanted her all along, then I wouldn’t be sitting beside him now. I saw her texts telling him she still loves him, and he never bothered to reply. The woman is deranged if she believes what she’s saying.
“Marissa. I haven’t wanted you in any way since I was about fifteen, and even back then, I’m pretty damn sure it wasn’t even real love.” Jake sighs, even he’s exhausted with this conversation, and I can feel the vibes coming from him. He wants her to leave, as do I since he doesn’t see this going anywhere.
“He’s never wanted you, Marissa. I know him better than you ever will,” I say flatly, focusing on my hands and the napkin I’ve been twisting the life out of instead of those fierce dark eyes emanating all sorts of hate my way.
“You know your fucking boyfriend cheated on you, right? With me … about four weeks ago,” Marissa spits at me across the table, shoving her plate out of the way and knocking over some empty water glasses.
“If you mean he kissed you, then yes, he told me.” I glare back at her, lifting my chin defiantly. I lock my gaze onto those dark brown, almost black dangerous eyes glaring back at me. My face is completely devoid of emotion, even though it feels like a punch in the stomach to say it, just like it used to. There’s a look in her eyes of surprise at me knowing about the kiss before she narrows them viciously.
“Kiss? Ha fucking ha! He had his tongue down my throat and his hand up my fucking dress, almost making me cum, inches away from fucking me if I hadn’t stopped it. He wanted me just as much as he did the night he stuck a baby inside me.” She tosses her hair back over her shoulder, and I jump when the table is slammed by Jake’s palm disrupting everything and scaring the hell out of me.
“That’s not what fucking happened, and you know it.” He yells at her, and I cringe in fright, pulling myself back in my seat, my heart rate going crazy, my mind swirling with images of him and her. I don’t even know what to believe in. She seems to find pleasure in sitting up straighter, meeting his fire head-on, and I seriously start to wonder if there was more between them that night. My doubts and insecurities filter in as I try to get a handle on the pain in my chest.
“I’m surprised you can even remember, Jake darling, seeing as you were obviously high on God knows what and probably can’t remember exactly what happened. You were an absolute mess if I remember rightly.” She purrs and flutters at him. I feel sick to my stomach, my head a mass of confusion. I look at him and her and back again in painful panic. I don’t want to believe her, and I shouldn’t.
I can trust him. He’s been proving that to me all along, hasn’t he?
“Why? You think because fucking you once had been so unmemorable that I wouldn’t remember four weeks ago? I remember every single moment, Marissa, right down to the second you launched yourself at me, and I rejected you because I realized the only girl I ever wanted was Emma.” Jake is seething. I know him. I watch him and read his body language. He’s not lying.
He’s angry that she would imply there was more. He’s enraged that she has the gall to try to do this to me, to hurt us, and I’m not going to let her do it to him or me. I have one hundred percent faith that what Jake told me was the truth, and this manipulative bitch is just trying to make me leave him again. Making a pathway for her to try to get her claws into him, and I sure as hell will never let that happen.
“You have no clue. I saw the state of you. There’s no way you remember accurately what you did with me, and I can assure you that you definitely remember how to finger fuck me to an orgasm, Jake.” She smiles and evilly licks her lips, looking directly at his crotch now that he’s on his feet, and I flinch. The urge to use one of these steak knives has never been so appealing.
“You’re a liar.” I lift my chin, eyes pouring tears that I wasn’t even aware were falling, and face her full-on. “You’re a disgusting, pathetic tramp and a liar. Do you really think I would believe you? Over him?!” I stand and slowly start folding my napkin neatly, lying it on the table, old PA Emma taking control, pushing my erratic emotions down.
“Then you’re a fucking idiot because once a cheat, always a cheat. Whether he kissed me or fucked me, he still cheated! Believe me. He will again!” Everyone is standing and glaring at one another. Well, Jake and I at her, and her at both of us.
“You would know.” Jake cuts in with a snide comment and a snarl. “You are the queen of fucking cheating, Marissa, right?!” I catch that spark of fury, bracing myself for another onslaught of nastiness, but she cackles, laughing like a crazy witch.
“All these years, Jacob. You’re still so sore about all that because you’re in denial. You feel like you do about me because it still hurts, baby. You still love me. You never forget your first love, and you never get over them. Do you remember telling me you loved me, Bambina? When you used to fuck me over and over. You could never get enough of me, could you? Seems you still can’t.” She’s purring at him, using his pet name, which makes me pale, my fists clenching, and my nails biting into my palms. Jake shakes his head at her and snarls again. My fury is building to epic proportions at the thought of the two of them, back then and now when they made a baby. It’s all one giant mess of visions and agony, making me want to rip her head off.
“I don’t want you. I have everything standing right next to me that I could ever want. You’re just that irritating nail in my shoe that I can’t get rid of.” Jake delivers it with a sneer, but she doesn’t falter, just more bedroom eyes and lip licking.
“He did more than kiss me, Emma. He was unzipped and ready to go if only I’d stopped resisting. Pushed up against the wall in a dark smoky club. I bet you were the last thing on his mind, baby cakes.” She meets his eyes full-on, challenging him defiantly, a glimmer of calculation in that face, and I know without a doubt she’s lying. Jake may be all about kinky sex and hot-blooded even when drunk, but I know he wouldn’t screw someone in a public bar, especially not her.
I don’t even have to think about it. Jake’s whole posture, anger at what she’s trying to do, and the tension in the room tell me that I know the truth. I know he wouldn’t have done that to me. She kissed him, pushed herself onto him, and he didn’t stop her immediately. He let it happen for seconds, and then his head snapped into place; his brain came around, pushing her away. I know him better. I know that he didn’t do this to us. I know without question because every part of this unfolding scene tells me so. I don’t know Marissa, but even I can see she’s lying, pure, bare-faced manipulation.
“You know who else was there, Marissa? … Daniel … and Daniel’s version will undoubtedly match what Jake remembers, so don’t try to split us up with your rancid bullshit because, yes! I am pregnant, and we’re not only buying a house right next door but Jake’s asked me to marry him more than once. So, please, a guy who is so quick to run off to his ex will surely not ask me to marry him and mean it.” I rant at her.
Enough is enough. It’s time I made a stand. I need to show her exactly how this is going to go. Jake and I are untouchable; some manipulative little bitch full of lies will not come between us in this way. I trust him, know what he’s done, and am ready to forgive him completely. I’m not going to let some narcissistic tramp come between us. All the pain and anger and the weeks of going without sex, not only because of my broken heart but also his guilt, and this slut is at the center of it. Enough is enough. I throw my napkin aside and hoist myself in sheer fury.
“And I say yes … Yes, fucking yes!” I turn to Jake and grab his hand, pulling it to my stomach, ready to fight for what is rightfully mine, not about to let some cheap-ass fake tramp take it from me. Jake and I have a future to look forward to and a child but holding back and being afraid made all this happen in the first place. I rejected the world he wanted to give me and hurt him, and now I have him back. I’m not going to let some asshole woman come between us and get in the way of that.
Jake is mine, always mine. Now. Then and forever!
“Will you marry me, Jake?” I fixate on him with pure sincerity, my heart pounding crazily, every part of me thumping out of my chest with sheer adrenaline, meaning every freakin single word. Jake’s dumbfounded and stalls for a moment before yanking me to him, so I’m facing him full-on. His eyes are searching my face in sheer confusion.
“I told you I would give you fireworks and a floor show, Emma, but if this is what you want, you know I’d marry you right now. Just say the word, and I’ll marry you in a heartbeat.” He can’t conceal the sudden soft emotion in his eyes, which fuels what I’m doing, making my decision concrete. I love him. I need him, and I never want anything or anyone ever to pull us apart again.
“I just want you.” I lean up and softly kiss him on the mouth, my eyes filling with emotions and tears, sniffing back the sudden surge of happiness.
“You’re pathetic. Both of you. Screw you both!” Marissa throws her glass at the wall and storms toward the closed door, spitting venom at us, sheer hatred and disgust over her face. “You’ll wake up one day and look at that miserable icy little bitch you married and think of me, Jake. I was your first love, and despite this bullshit show, you kissed me, still want me, and you’re just too hung up on the past to see that.” She turns to me with pure malice. “Good luck trying to trust him, Emma. I can assure you he will crawl into my bed repeatedly in years to come because we fit, him and I, we’re the same, and it’s only a matter of time before I get him back.”
“Marissa, just get the fuck out.” Jake throws her a look that screams leave before I make you leave and turns back to me, pulling me into his body a little forcefully.
The door slams, but neither of us looks her way, too locked in on one another, and I just gave myself to him completely and wholeheartedly. We both exhale almost in unison at the sudden silence of her exiting. The immediate calmness and serenity that washes over the whole room so quickly now she’s not in it.
“I’m sorry, baby. None of what she said is true. I swear, Emma. That’s not what happened.” He pushes his forehead to mine and focuses on my mouth, my heart ripping into shreds at the look of devastation on his face. Despite my show of unity, he's worried that I still doubt him, but I shake my head.
“I believe you, Jake. I know you wouldn’t do that to me.” I cry again as I reach up and slowly kiss him on the mouth, tears of relief and maybe even joy. Possibly hormonal, seeing as crying has become second nature since he impregnated me. Jake closes his eyes and kisses me back, deepening it slightly, tongue flicking against mine deliciously, aiding the wounds from the confrontation from hell. He pulls back and runs his fingers through my hair, scooping it behind my ear, focusing those beautiful green calm eyes on me.
“I love you more than life, Bambina … I know you said the stuff about marrying me in anger, Emma, to hurt her—”
“I didn’t!” I cut in and cover his mouth with my fingers. My heart is soaring at the peace I feel right now. “I mean it, Jake … You’re my life, and I’m done with all this bullshit. I want our baby to be born a Carrero. I’m done being scared … I love you so much, and I forgive you.”