I can’t breathe.
I need space.
I need to stop what’s happening between us.
Jackson isn’t part of my plan, and this isn’t some fucking romance novel. I know all too well how the real world works, and people like me don’t get the happily ever after. I thought I could play pretend this week and just go back afterward. But I fucked up. This thing between us is too real.
I have to regain control. I have to protect my heart, at whatever cost, though maybe it’s already too late for that.Fuck.
20
JACKSON
The slamof a car door jolts me from sleep. I squint, the morning sun filtering brightly through the blinds of my bedroom. It takes a second longer for my brain to wake up. To remember why I’m in my bed and not on the downstairs couch. What day it is, and why I’m not already at work on the ranch.
Because I took the day off.
Because I fell asleep with Rosalie.
A smile teases my lips as I roll over, expecting to find her snoozing next to me. Only she’s not here. I’m alone in this bed.
Alarm claws at my mind as I roll off the bed and yank on a pair of shorts. Another car door shuts; there’s someone outside my house either comin’ or goin’, and either way that can’t be good.
I don’t waste a second racing down the stairs toward the front door. I don’t stop to consider there’s a perfectly rational explanation for the lack of books in my living room or the absence of wine bottles on my counter. At the door, I don’t stop to put on shoes.
At the sight of Rosalie packing her bags into the back of her vehicle, I practically sprint, closing the distance between us.
“Rosalie?”
“Oh, hey.” She barely lifts her gaze at my approach. Her mirrored sunglasses make it impossible for me to get a read on the situation, but there’s something about the way she won’t give me her full attention that has warning bells going off in my head and panic clawing its way up my throat.
“What are you doing?” I cover her hands with mine, halting her movement as she reaches down to lift her ice chest.
She yanks her hands back, almost as if she can’t stand my touch.
“Hey.” I soften my tone, though my gut twists with concern. “Where are you going?”
“I decided to take a drive up to Ember Ridge. Maybe do some shopping. Grab lunch.”
Her words are so nonchalant. No hint of distress or apprehension. I wonder if I’ve completely misjudged the situation.
“Oh.” I’m filled with relief, though it’s temporary. I lift the cooler into her vehicle. “Give me a few minutes to get ready and I’ll join you.”
“No.” Her tone is hard and forceful.
“No?” I frown. “What do you mean, no?”
“Jackson.” Her sigh is filled with annoyance. As if my presence is that of a petulant child. It’s so far from the woman I spent last night with that I find myself looking around for hidden cameras. This has got to be a fucking prank.
“What’s happening here? Please.” I cross my arms and level her with a stare. “Explain it to me like I’m five.”
“We already knew this had an expiration date. We planned for this to end.” She shrugs. “There’s no reason to drag it out or pretend it was more than just sex.”
“Just sex.” She’s got to be fucking kidding.
“Look, it’s okay, Jackson. We both got what we wanted. I was leaving tomorrow anyway. Now, I’m out of your hair a day early. You can go back to your roster and I can go back to my life. We can both pretend this never happened.”
“Pretend this never happened?” I don’t know why I can’t seem todo anything more than parrot her words. My shocked expression reflects back in her damn sunglasses. I’m about ready to rip them off!
