CHAPTER THREE
JAKE
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There are three reasonswhy I let Caylee walk away from me the night of the wedding and didn’t pursue her.
One: the room was filled with SEALs, Marines, Delta Force, captains and...her brother.At six-foot-five and two hundred and sixty pounds, I hold my own around the forces, but I’m also smart enough to know when to bide my time.
Two: these men are my new colleagues.Most of them have accepted me with open arms, but upsetting Cole’s sister is a surefire way to reverse that quick-smart.
Three: Caylee.
She’s right, I did have months to connect with her again and explain to her what is going on in my life and who the phone calls were from, and I didn’t.
I can’t.
It’s not possible.This burden is mine to carry with me in this life and a shame so deep that I could never share it with a romantic partner.
Not to mention our family is very private about our business.
She thought my mother was another woman, and I understand that.It’s not a stretch, so I don’t blame Caylee for jumping to that conclusion.
She’s not the first woman to do so.
She is, however, the first one that I regret letting go.
No relationship I have can progress further, so I hold myself back.Eventually the calls, and me having to leave, pisses them off, and it’s easier to just meet someone else.
With Caylee, there was something more.
The way our bodies moved together, the way her dark lashes flickered on her soft skin as she began falling asleep.How her fingers would press into me, feeling for me while I lay beside her, waiting for the phone to buzz.
I wanted to stay.
I wanted to grab her hand, kiss it and tell her I was here, and she could rely on me.
But she couldn’t.
She still can’t.
Which is a problem.I’m thirty-one and not getting any younger.I want a wife.I want a family.
I want to change history and not have to deal with the responsibilities I have.The shame I have.
The family I have.
Fuck.
