Strictly Business Page 18

  Bethany pinched the inside of her wrist, hard, until she felt her eyes stinging. Then she walked toward him, her hands wringing like she had something really horrible to tell him. Something that was tearing her up.

  * * * * *

  Jake saw the tears shimmering and jumped up, helping Bethany over to the sofa. She sat down, pulling Jake’s hand so he sat with her. When he tried to pull his hand away, she held it between hers, keeping him there. She looked into his eyes, shook her head, and whispered, “Jake, I’m just so sorry.”

  “Sorry about what?” He had no idea why Bethany could possibly be apologizing to him. She’d been a little aggressive in her pursuit after their one date a few months ago, but nothing worth tears.

  “I’m sorry…for what I have to tell you.” She took a deep breath, sighing it out slowly. “I saw your girlfriend, Jessica, right? Anyway, I saw her in Evanston at the Hotel Terra. She was with that guy, her partner. What’s his name, Mike?”

  Jake nodded, he didn’t know why they’d be in Evanston, but hearing Jess was with Mike didn’t raise any immediate alarms. “Okay, so she was with Mike. He’s the construction foreman she uses.”

  Bethany shook her head again, looking even more distressed than she had before.

  “No, not just with him, she was with him. I saw him kissing her.”

  “Bethany, they’ve been friends since college, he kisses her all the time, the head, the cheek, the forehead. I’m sure you just misinterpreted it. Really, it’s fine.” Jake stood, reaching a hand to help her up. He was upset by what she was saying, although not for the reasons you would think. He had rushed home to see Jess and she wasn’t even here.

  She jumped to her feet, pressing her body against his, her face against his shoulder. “No, Jake. God, I don’t want to be the one to tell you this. He was kissing her. Not a little peck, but a kiss.”

  She looked into his eyes, a soft tear slid down her face while she gently swayed against him. An obvious invitation. “The kind of kiss we used to share.” She ran a fingernail down his cheek.

  He felt his body tense. His first reaction was denial. There was no way Jess had gone behind his back to be with Mike. He pushed Bethany away. “You need to go. You’re mistaken. Now, please leave.”

  She gave him a sad little smile. “Okay. Jake, if you ever need anything, you have my number.” She left, closing the office door behind her.

  After she left, Jake couldn’t help but think about what she’d said. She’d just seen a quick peck and misunderstood, right? There was no way that Jess was with Mike. But, what if she was? Was she in Evanston right now? Was Mike with her? Jake picked up the phone, called the Hotel Terra, asking to be connected to Jessica Wythe’s room. He was informed that Ms. Wythe and guest had already checked out of their suite. He asked if Mike Jacobson was still there and was told that there was no Mr. Jacobson registered there. Jake thanked the man and hung up.

  The jealousy he’d been trying to hold at bay coursed through his body. Not only had they been there, but apparently they’d shared one room. A suite, no less. At the nicest hotel in Evanston. You didn’t book that kind of a room without a reason. Jake should know, he’d reserved a suite for Saturday night.

  He sat there, jealousy beginning a slow boil into rage. She may have been a virgin when she met him, but she was now just like every other woman he’d met. Willing to use him for his money, his name, but perfectly willing to sleep around on him. The engagement ring in his desk drawer seemed to mock him. She was just like Karen.

  * * * * *

  Jess climbed out of the cab they’d taken back from Evanston. It’d been an expensive cab fare, but better than having Ben come and get them. Jess grabbed her smaller case while Mike pulled the rest of their luggage out of the trunk. She paid the driver, and sent him on his way, turning just in time to see Bethany watching her.

  Bethany wiggled her fingers in what Jess supposed was a wave of sorts, then smiled an evil grin as she climbed into her sports car. Jess shook her head wondering why someone who lived here drove something so impractical. She was going to get a truck. It was only on her way into the house that she thought to wonder why Bethany had been here. And even that didn’t last long. She threw her suitcase in her room then ran back down to Jake’s office. She’d seen his truck in the drive, and knew he was home.

  Jess flung the door open, seeing Jake standing by the window looking out. She ran over, throwing her arms around his neck, pressing kisses to his cheeks. She was so excited to tell him her news that the fact that he wasn’t responding didn’t even register. Neither did his expression. At least, not at first.

  “Jake, I have the best news…we had such a great weekend. I can’t wait to…” Jess looked at him, finally seeing the pure rage flaring in his eyes, making his face tight, his jaw clenched. “Jake? What’s wrong?”

  Jess reached her hand out to touch his arm, pulling away when he flinched at her touch. She instinctively backed up a step. She had no idea why, but his anger was directed at her. All at once, seeing Bethany, seeing her evil little smile, Jess was nervous. Her hands started to tremble. “Jake, what’s going on

  “Where were you?”

  “What? We were in Evanston. Why? Did something happen?”

  “And, you were with Mike?”

  “Well, yeah I was.” Jess waited, Jake was leading up to something, but she didn’t know what.

  At once, the anger she felt simmering within Jake broke wide open. “You shared a room with him? I leave town for one weekend and you run off with Mike. What the hell? I told you how I felt about him, told you he was in love with you. And you don’t care? Or, maybe you figure now that you’re no longer a virgin, you can run off and fuck whoever you want and I’ll never know the difference! Or, was this a trial phase? See if he can make you come like I can? You needed something to compare it to?”

  The only word Jess could say was, “Bethany.”

  “Yeah, she saw you. You forget darlin’, you’re in my neck of the woods. People here tell me what my girlfriend does behind my back. I’m not going to marry a whore... not again.”

  * * * * *

  Even as he said the words, Jake wished he could call them back. Even as he was yelling accusations, some piece of him registered the shocked and hurt expression running across her face. He knew, somewhere deep, he knew he was wrong. But he couldn’t stop the words, the pain. And he wouldn’t apologize. He waited for her to say something. The words that would tell him he was wrong. Or the words that would shatter his heart forever.

  Instead she said nothing. He watched her face, her eyes, and knew he’d made a mistake. He’d seen her silver eyes fire in anger, spark with laughter, heat with desire, glaze over in pleasure. Now, he was looking at iced steel.

  Jake watched her, shoulders stiff, back straight, a blank look settled on her face. He waited for her to yell, to cry. He waited to feel the sting of her hand on his cheek, knowing he deserved at least that.

  She very slowly turned and walked to the door. Jess opened the door, risking one last glance over her shoulder. He hadn’t moved. He couldn't. She left, closing the door gently behind her.

  Jake watched the door shut, feeling his heart shatter within his chest. It would’ve been better if she’d slammed it. It was over. Never had a closing door felt so final. Jake headed to the cabinet in the corner. This required tequila, and lots of it.

  * * * * *

  Jess went back upstairs, to her room. Or, the guest room. It wouldn’t be hers anymore. She picked up her cell phone and called the cab company, asking for the car to come back. She packed her stuff, all of it. It took much less time than she’d expected. She laughed wryly. A place that had meant so much to her, and she hadn’t even made a dent. Tomorrow, it would be like she’d never been there.

  She went downstairs. Seeing Marsha in the kitchen, she stepped in, giving the woman a huge hug, much to Marsha’s surprise. Something in her face must have tipped Marsha off, because she hugged back, patting Jess’s chee
k as she backed away. Jess walked out the back, seeing the cab ready and waiting, thank God. She was not at all sure how much farther pride would carry her. She waved at Ben, then glanced over, seeing Mike running toward the cab.

  “Jess, what happened?”

  Mike looked terrified. Jess wished she could say something to ease his worry, but she just couldn’t. If she said anything, anything at all, she would break. She just shook her head at him, waving her hand.

  Mike, pulled her in for a hug, squeezed her for a minute. “Call me.”

  Jess nodded as she opened the car door. She would call as soon as she could speak again. She took one last look around, taking in the scenery. The guys, all busy working. Cody fighting with Demon, Ben watching and laughing. Marsha standing on the back porch, by the swing, looking like Jess was leaving her. Jess looked at the trees, the hills, still green even in August. The barn needing a coat of paint. She had thought she’d found home. It looked like she’d been wrong. Jess sighed as she sat down, closing the door behind her. It wasn’t the first time, but it might just be the most painful. She couldn’t imagine anything in her life ever feeling worse than this.

  Mike knocked on the glass and Jess put down the window. “Jess, obviously something went wrong, but you said that love wasn’t comfortable. Stay. Talk to him. Maybe this is just an uncomfortable time.”

  Jess looked at him, patted his cheek and shook her head. “No, this is too hard. It shouldn’t be this hard.”

  Mike opened his mouth to say more, then finally nodded and stepped back, watching as the cab pulled away.

  Chapter 28

  Jake heard the sound of boots, followed by the door slamming. Rather than acknowledge someone had even entered his house, he sat at his desk with his head in his hands, looking at the mostly empty tequila bottle on the corner of his desk.

  “So, it’s true? I didn’t read that wrong?”

  Jake looked up. He'd known it was Cody before he'd even walked in. No one else would've been stupid enough to bother him right now. When the question finally penetrated his fuzzy brain, he managed a nod.

  “So, what happened?”

  Jake heard the anger and accusation in Cody's tone, which just served to rile him up even more. Drunk and pissed off is not a good combination.

  “She fucked Mike.”

  “Mike, like Mike her foreman?”

  Jake nodded.

  Cody laughed.

  Jake glared.

  “They were in Evanston this weekend. They got a hotel room. Bethany saw them. Said they were kissin’.”

  Cody nodded. “And you what? Asked Jess and she said she fucked Mike?”

  “I called the damn hotel! They had one room. Only one, Cody. He’s been after her forever. I knew it as soon as he got here.”

  “Did you ask her? Did you even ask her why she was in Evanston?”

  “She didn’t deny it. She didn’t say anything. She just turned and walked the hell out.”

  “What did you say to her? Did you tell her Bethany had seen ’em together?” Cody was shouting right back at him, venom dripping off of Bethany’s name.

  Jake put his hands on his head, running them through his hair. “I don’t know. I don’t know what I said.” He sat, falling backward since his legs wouldn't hold him up anymore. “I’m pretty sure I called her a whore. Among other things.” His voice had gone eerily calm even to his own ears.

  “Because of Karen. You believed Bethany because of Karen.”

  Jake only nodded.

  Jake watched while Cody considered this. He could see anger warring with a lifelong friendship. Anger won out.“You’re a damn fool! You weren't even this stupid when you actually thought I would lie to you over your fucking ex-wife. You don’t know what you had, what you threw away. Do you even know who she is?”

  His question confused Jake, but in his drunken state, he couldn't even manage to shrug.

  Cody shook his head. “A damn fool. You deserve this one, pal. Whatever pain you feel, this time you brought it on yourself.”

  Before Jake even knew he was considering it, he threw the tequila bottle straight at Cody’s head.

  Cody ducked as it crashed into the wall. He backed up, opening the door. “If you ever pull your head out of your ass, let me know. I’ll tell you why she was in Evanston. Right now,” Cody shook his head again, “you don’t deserve to know, and you sure as hell don’t deserve her!”

  * * * * *

  Jess walked into her house, dropping her suitcases as soon as she was in the door. She would deal with them tomorrow. She looked at the answering machine, seeing it flash twenty seven messages. She realized she hadn’t checked her home voicemail in almost two months. She went to her fridge, pulled out a bottle of water, the only thing in there, and sat down to listen to the messages.

  Jess fell into bed that night, sure she wasn’t going to sleep. She knew the tears were coming, she could feel them burning her eyes, her throat. She was surprised they hadn’t surfaced already. She lay her head on the pillow, waiting.

  She woke the next morning, shocked she’d slept, and slept late. It was almost nine. She needed to get dressed, get to the office. She had to pack this house, call a realtor. She had to call Cindy. Check in with Mike.

  That was when it hit.

  She sat up in her bed, feeling the water roll down her face. She was almost relieved. The sooner she cried, the sooner she could move on.

  Unfortunately her heart had other plans. She cried all day Wednesday, all night Wednesday night, all day Thursday. She couldn’t shower, couldn’t move. She had water sitting by her bed, knew she should drink it. She should find food. She couldn’t. She couldn’t stop the tears, the sobbing.

  * * * * *

  Thursday night Jess heard the front door open and close quietly. She knew the door had been locked so she figured it was probably Cindy. She tried to pull herself together, but couldn't even manage to move. When Cindy walked into her bedroom she was still in a heap on her bed, sobs wracking her shoulders.

  Jess looked up and waited while Cindy took in her appearance. “Aren’t those the same clothes you were wearing when I left you on Tuesday?”

  Cindy patiently waited for an answer. Words that Jess just couldn't seem to form.

  “Have you eaten anything, sweetie?” Jess shook her head no. “Water?” Another head shake.

  Cindy nodded. “Okay, let’s shower first. Then we’ll eat. I promise you’ll feel better after some food and water.” Cindy walked over, using her much larger frame to leverage Jess off the bed. She half carried, half dragged her into the bathroom, stripping her like she was a child and getting her into the shower.

  Jess finally managed to speak. “Can’t …stop…crying.” Her words were slow, her voice scratchy, but she got the words out.

  “I know.” Cindy sat on the toilet while Jess showered, handing her a towel when she finished. As Jess dried off, Cindy headed out, giving Jess a few minutes to dress.

  When Jess made it out of the room, she walked into the kitchen to find Cindy putting away groceries. There were also plates and fresh Chinese food sitting on the table. They sat and ate in silence. The tears were still sliding down occasionally, but waning, and the sobs had finally stopped. After the meal, during which Jess barely touched her food, she helped Cindy rinse the dishes. When the last plate was dried, Jess turned to her best friend.

  Before Jess could even form the question, Cindy answered. “Mike called me. He hadn’t heard from you and he was worried. He told me you might need a friend.”

  “Thank you.”

  ‘Thank you’ was completely inadequate. She needed to say more. As she mentally dug around for the words, Cindy shook her head, holding a hand up. “No, no, we're not doing the ‘thank you’ thing. Do you want to talk about it?”

  Jess shook her head, one last tear sliding down. “No.”

  “Okay.” Cindy waited a few minutes in silence before saying, “So, let’s open our business here. I like Austin. I already
have a house. You already have a reputation in this area.”

  Jess was horrified at the thought, which must have shown on her face, because Cindy started to backpedal.

  “We don’t have to talk about it now. I was just trying to take your mind off…just give you something else to focus on.”

  Jess shook her head again. “No. Wyoming. I still want to go to Evanston.”

  Now it was Cindy's turn to look horrified, which was almost enough to bring a laugh to Jess's lips.

  “Jess, I don’t think that’s such a great idea. I mean… God, sweetie. Are you sure?”

  Jess nodded. “Wyoming is…home. I need to be there.”

  Cindy stared hard, clearly trying to see if she meant what she said. After several long minutes, Cindy nodded. “Okay. Wyoming it is. Tomorrow, me and you…we’ll quit our jobs and start packing our houses.” She looked around, taking in Jess’s sparse, clean, bland house. “How about we sell them both furnished?”

  "No, we can't do that. I have everything here. I can hire a moving..."

  Cindy interrupted. “Seriously. New state, new home, new life. Let’s start fresh.”

  Jess looked around her house. It was classically elegant. She had hired a decorator to make sure that her home looked perfect. "It does kind of look like a hotel, doesn't it? Not a home." Then she sighed, long and deep.

  “It’s a new you, too, Jess. I like seeing you, the real you, instead of all this,” she said waiving her hand around her. “Let’s celebrate that!”

  Jess nodded, a hint of a smile sliding across her face. “Let’s do it. New house, new business, new life. But same great friends.”

  Champagne or not, this was a toast to a new future.

  Chapter 29

  Jake hadn’t spoken to Cody in over two months. He’d left for a couple of rodeos and hadn’t even mentioned to Jake he was going. This shouldn’t be all that surprising. Hell, nobody was speaking to Jake much nowadays. Not that he blamed any of them. He’d been nasty and ill-tempered since Jess had left. He groaned softly just at the thought of her. It was still so raw, it felt like yesterday.