Sorry for the delay and also, sorry that this chapter isn't nearly as long as the previous one. Just a little something to move us along the coast.
As always, I don't own any of this and no harm is meant by this work of fiction. Please don't sue.
As always, feedback is welcomed and appreciated. Now, on with the show...
Chapter Three
"Do you need to stop for anything?"
Jack's voice pulled her thoughts from the night of the fundraiser back to their present trip along the coast. They had already been on the road for nearly two hours, but she was fine especially given that there was little more than an hour before they reached their destination. She told him as much and Jack must not have seen any need to stop either as he accelerated past the exit and continued along the coast.
She looked over the man next to her, contemplating their compatibility once again. They actually shouldn't be compatible given how different they both were. He was a decade older than her, widowed with a grown daughter. Well through the establishing part of his adult years, Jack seemed to be well entrenched in what most would consider his middle-age. Whereas she seemed to still be getting herself and her life sorted. Certainly, her career was well-established and just two years earlier, she had bought her own home. Although her career and home made her feel very much on a set path, she still felt as though her life wasn't established. Unmarried with no prospects, Kate felt as though she had never succeeded in the personal area of her life and wondered if she ever might. She had never so much as shared a drawer with another man although she had dated often. Jack had been married, for many years, sharing his home, his life with another person for whom he loved deeply, had shared a connection. She had never shared a connection.
Would this time be different? She felt that it was, but maybe she had felt this way before. Hindsight in relationships always seemed to be so eye-opening. Would she look back on the early weeks of this time with Jack and just shake her head, wondering how she had been so blind? She didn't think so.
As though he somehow read her mind, Jack brought her hand up to his lips and pressed a kiss against her palm before returning it to the armrest between them. He glanced over with a slight grin and she smiled fully back at him. His eyes turned back to the road and she turned her head back to passing scenery. Inevitably, her mind trailed back to the recent past.
Kate hastened through her shower, knowing that she was running behind schedule, but unwilling to skip the gym for the second day in a row and therefore unable to skip her shower now. She quickly rinsed the last of the conditioner from her hair and turned off the water, grabbing a towel as she did. She had less than half an hour to dress, dry her hair and, hopefully, to put on a touch of make-up to disguise the evidence of her lack of sleep from the night before.
She dried herself and then wrapped the towel around her, grabbing another to rub against her hair. The worst of the moisture absorbed, she dropped the towel and opened her vanity drawer and retrieved her toothbrush. As she brushed with one hand, the other picked up the towel again and began rubbing at her hair once again. Between her workout, shower and now her rush to get ready, her body was over-heated and she couldn't imagine dressing until at least she had finished with her hair dryer. She finished brushing her teeth and pulled out the dryer, knowing there would be little point with make-up if it melted off by the time she was finished getting ready.
Her hair was nearly dry when she heard the doorbell. "Shit," she said aloud, wondering how long it was acceptable to make him wait and knowing that it was likely not long enough for her to do much more than to make her way to the front door.
She glanced out the side window to confirm it was Jack; she had glanced at the clock on the way to the door and had noted that if it was Jack, he was ten minutes early. Even through the textured glass, she could easily tell that Jack stood on her porch, a paper bag containing what she assumed was dinner in one arm and a small bouquet of flowers clutched in his free hand. She smiled in spite of herself and standing fully behind the door, she released the deadbolt before pulling the door open. Keeping the door in front of her, she looked around the edge of the door to greet him. He smiled as he entered even if she knew he must wonder why she hadn't opened the door completely. She closed the door behind him, keeping one hand on the top of the towel wrapped around her.
"I'm early," he said, a look of chagrin on his features. "Sorry, I thought it would take longer at the restaurant."
"No, no, it's okay," she assured him. "I'm running behind schedule myself. Why don't we, uh, head into the kitchen?"
He nodded and she led the way down the hallway into the kitchen, feeling the flush on her skin as she padded ahead of him. She walked behind the island and he stopped on the other side of it, depositing the bag of food on its countertop.
"These are for you," he said and she came around the island to stand before him.
"Thank you," she said softly, taking the bouquet from him. His eyes held hers for moment and then dropped down to her attire, or lack thereof and then, seeming to catch himself, brought his gaze back up to meet hers again.
"I, uh, I had better go and get changed," she said, feeling the flush intensify on her heated flesh. She went back behind the island and retrieved a bottle of wine, along with an opener and two glasses. "I won't be long. Maybe you could pour us a glass of wine while you're waiting."
She left then and quickly made her way down the hallway and into her bedroom. Dropping the towel, she pulled open drawers and quickly donned her under clothes and then pulled on a pair of jeans and a thin sweater. She popped into the bathroom and checked her appearance, noting the slight smudges beneath her eyes. There wouldn't be time to address this in any real way, so she ran a brush over her hair, smoothing it down and tucking it behind her ears. She then applied a bit of tinted moisturizer and a touch of mascara and then put the implements away. She gave a final glance at her appearance and then returned to the kitchen.
Jack was seated on one of the chairs at the island, a glass of wine in front of him and a second in front of the chair beside him. Takeout containers sat on the other side of the island. She took down a pair of plates and then brought out some utensils and napkins.
"Why don't we move to the table?" she asked, bringing the dishes she had gathered with her as she walked over to the dining room. She laid out the place settings, putting one at the head of the table and the other at the seat to the right of the head. Jack had followed behind with both glasses of wine and he placed them at the settings. She returned to the kitchen and retrieved the takeout containers, removing the lids from the aluminum base to reveal pasta, chicken parmesan, salad and bread. Jack came in behind her and the two of them brought the food to the table.
"This smells amazing," she said. "Let me just get another set of plates for the salad."
She quickly retrieved the plates along with serving utensils and joined Jack at the table. He took the utensils from her and began serving food onto the plates. She took her seat and waited for him to finish and take his seat as well.
"Thank you for dinner," she said, holding her glass up toward his and he tapped his glass against hers.
"You should be more thankful that I brought takeout. Other than eggs, there's not much that I can actually cook."
"You? I can't believe there is anything that you're not good at."
"Believe me, there are many things," he countered.
"I doubt that," she said.
They both laughed and then began eating. The dinner passed with easy conversation and even a few more laughs. Once the meal was finished, they cleared the table and Kate refilled their wine glasses, inviting Jack to sit with her in the living room where they would be more comfortable. The conversation continued and before she realized how much time had passed, she glanced at her watch and noticed that it was nearing midnight. Jack must have noticed her reaction to the time because he looked at his own watch, seeming almost as surprised as she at the time.
"I should let you get to bed," he said.
"Oh, don't leave on my account," she answered. "I took the morning off today so I slept in this morning. I'm not that tired." She realized that maybe he might be tired and using her need for sleep as a reason to leave. "I mean, you can stay longer if you want, but I understand if you want to head home."
"Me, no, I'm fine."
She ducked her head and he tucked her hair behind her ear. She looked up and met his eyes, the smile had disappeared from his face. He leaned forward and she closed the distance between them, meeting his lips in a kiss. He pulled her closer, deepening the kiss, his tongue tangling with her own. His mouth moved over hers as his hands stroked her back and tangled in her hair. She ran her fingers through the hair at the back of his head. Eventually, they parted, both a little breathless. He brushed her lower lip with his thumb.
"Kate, I really like you," he said, his eyes looking intently into her own. He kissed her again and her entire body responded to the intensity of his kiss. His hands roamed freely and she found herself exploring his body as well. Suddenly, he pulled away from her.
"I should go."
"Jack, please stay."
"Are you sure?"
Kate moved until she shifted on the couch and then climbed onto his lap, straddling his waist. "I've never been more sure about anything in my life."
The memory warmed Kate and she felt the statement was still valid. She looked over to Jack as the breeze from the open window ruffled his hair. Her fingers itched to run through it but instead she reached over and traced the shell of his ear before recapturing his hand in hers. He looked down at their clasped hands and then over to her and flashed her a warm grin before turning his eyes back to the road. She looked at his profile for a few moments and then turned her attention back to the racing coastline.
She was mature enough to recognize that six weeks into a relationship was not nearly enough time to determine if something was going to last. It was a time to enjoy the newness of the relationship, the moments where butterflies tickled your stomach, the nights when the stars seem to shine brighter than ever before. Still, she was sure that she had made the right decision. To take a chance on a relationship with Jack. That, no matter how long they lasted, no matter what the future might bring, she would never second guess or take back her statement from that night. She wanted to take a chance on Jack. Life was too short to end up with any "what ifs" or "I wish I had's". She had been certain that she wanted to make love to Jack and even if times were difficult, she would never regret it.
Her mind wandered to their date from two weeks earlier. Jack had made a reservation for them at Spagos and they planned to meet first at the bar in the lobby of the Four Seasons where they had booked a room for the night. It was certainly a splurge, but Jack had insisted despite her protests. It had been her birthday the Wednesday prior but they had both been busy with work and couldn't see each other that night. That weekend was meant to make up for their busyness from that night.
She had waited in the lobby for about an hour before finally calling his cell phone. He hadn't answered. She waited another hour before calling CTU. One of his newer analysts, Chloe, had answered and had simply said that he was unavailable before hanging up on her. Michelle had called her not long after that phone call and told her that he was busy with work and that she would have Jack call once he could. She spent the night alone in their room at the hotel.
He had called her the next morning and apologized for missing their date but hadn't had much more time to talk. She had ordered room service for breakfast and then had headed home alone. Jack hadn't called her the rest of that day and she tried to remind herself that she knew what some of Jack's days could be like. He called her the day after that and she hadn't been able to hide the relief from her voice. He had tried to apologize but she had cut him off quickly. Of course, she had been looking forward to their special evening, but she also knew firsthand what kind of emergencies could keep him away. She was just happy that he was safe.
She could tell that he hadn't believed at first that she wasn't angry with him. It had been a part of the reason he had suggested this weekend away. Although now, she was sure that he knew that she hadn't been upset. Worried, disappointed even but never angry, never mad. He hadn't been able to tell her what had kept him away that weekend and the first few times they had met up together, he had seemed a little different. But not now. Now, it was just as it was before and the connection between them returned.
They had arrived at the beach house and had chosen to stay in and order pizza instead of following their original plan to eat out in town. The house was as she had remembered it. The walls were a soft grey with well-worn dark wooden floors and decades old wicker furniture filled the living space. It was a single level with three small bedrooms, a single bath and an open space that served as kitchen, eating and living areas. Small and cozy although it had become a little more of the shabby part of shabby chic. Expected after years of her family's absence. Still, she was so happy that she had remembered it.
They shared a glass of wine and watched the sunset from the wide deck that spanned the beachfront side of the bungalow. The waves crashed and a gentle breeze twinkled windchimes in the distance. Kate leaned against Jack and rested her head against his shoulder, her eyes growing a little heavy. Jack must have recognized her tiredness because soon he was whispering in her ear that they should go to bed.
I know that not much has happened in this chapter, but I still feel there's a little more story to tell. Also, I hope the flashbacks in this (and the previous chapters) flowed well and didn't seem too forced. Thank you for reading. Scarlet.