“We?”
“Yes, I want to be here for you.”
He gives me a half-hearted smile before returning his attention to Bella. “We aren’t going to do anything. He’s on parole in Oklahoma, so he can’t come to Texas.” By the tone in his voice, he’s trying to convince himself more than anyone.
“What’d your mom say?” I rub my hand gently on his knee “How does she feel about it?”
“She doesn’t know.”
“What do you mean?”
“I didn’t tell her about the letter. She’s been through enough because of that asshole. She doesn’t need to be stressed out more.”
My stomach sinks. I’ve seen Jax do a lot of growing over the last couple months, but this doesn’t feel like a step forward for him.
“Are you sure that’s what she’d want?”
“That’s what shedeserves.”
This doesn’t feel right. I don’t think Aimee would want to be kept in the dark like this. “Jax?—”
“It’s the right thing to do.” He tenses up. “My mom doesn’t need to worry about this.”
I lean toward him, keeping my voice soft. “And you’re not at all curious about what your dad would have to say? You don’t want to hear his apology?”
“Hell no!” His face turns red. “He only wants to do it to make himself feel better. I don’t care. I don’t want to hear it. I hope his guilt rots him.”
I draw back, not sure what to say. I want to be supportive, but it’s a lot harder to do when I disagree with him.
Regret flashes on his face at his harsh words. “I’m sorry. It’s a sensitive topic. I’m trying to do right by my mom this time around. I won’t repeat what I did to her before.”
“Jax, you did nothing wrong. You don’t need to fix anything.”
“You weren’t there.” He shakes his head. “I need to do this for her.”
Swallowing down any argument I have, I rub his back gently. “Then I’ll do my best to support you. If you ever change your mind and decide you want to tell your mom about the letter, I’ll support you in that too.”
“Thank you.”
Silence washes over us for a little while. Bella takes it as her sign to nuzzle her head under Jax’s palm to get more pets. He grants her wish, and I watch him soften before my eyes. I wasn’t kidding earlier when I called her a therapy dog.
Bella crawls all the way into Jax’s lap as he says, “That’s enough difficult conversations forone night, don’t you think? Finish your ice cream and we can just sit on the couch together while you read.”
“That sounds lovely, but I want you to do something you enjoy too. We came here this weekend so you could do something for you.”
He nuzzles into me. “I’ve already told you being with you makes me happy.”
“Grinchie.” I do my best to sound stern.
“Fine. How about I play some music in the background, maybe a little John Michael Montgomery?”
I roll my eyes at his predictability, but a smile crosses my face.
Jax, Bella, and I lie on the couch like nesting dolls. Jax’s back is pressed against the armrest with me propped between his outstretched legs as I read. Bella’s happily curled up between my knees, breathing deeply.
I revel in the feeling of Jax’s arms wrapped tightly around me as he leans his head back against a pillow. His eyes are closed, but I can tell he’s still awake because he’s been softly humming along to the music.
Normally any kind of noise while I’m reading would be a distraction, but I’m not bothered. It might also help that the character in my book is about to walk in on his best friend making out with his sister, and I’m very emotionally invested in what happens next.
