What?
Tears begin to sting her eyes, as she tries to hide her emotions. Anger grips me. I hate seeing him fuck with her like this. I lunge for him, but Jill stops me.
“Don’t, Eli,” she whispers. “It’s not worth it.”
“Get the fuck out of my office, Jamie. And if you so much as see Jill walking toward you, you walk the other fucking way,” I growl.
“Or what?” Jamie challenges. “You forget that I hold all the cards here. How ’bout I tell you what I want and you stop threatening me?” He sticks his chest out, narrowing his eyes at me.
“Fine,” I say, gritting my teeth. “Tell me what the fuck you want and then get the fuck out of my office.”
“You’ve got a lot of attitude for someone who has his balls firmly in my hands, sir.” His eyes narrow as he wets his lips. “Tell you what: you give me an A in history, and provide me answers of the final exam, and your dirty little secret will remain just that.”
That’s it? I almost laugh, because I was expecting so much worse. This kid really is an idiot. He has no idea I would’ve agreed to just about anything.
“Fine,” I say through clenched teeth. “Not a fucking word, okay? Now get out.”
“But I just got here,” he protests, laughing. “It’s so much fun catching up with you guys.”
I glower at him and he holds his hands up.
“Okay, I’m leaving.”
As soon as he’s gone, I race over to the door and clip the lock, and then fall to my knees in front of Jill. Jamie is the last thing on my mind because I know this news about her mother will be driving her crazy.
“Are you okay?” I whisper, stroking her hair.
She looks up, her eyes meeting mine, full of hurt and confusion. “It can’t be true.”
“It probably isn’t, baby. Jamie is not exactly the most reliable source of information,” I say, trying to make her feel better.
“I know, but why make that up?” She has me there. I have no answer to that. “If you want me to back off for a while, until this thing with Jamie blows over, I will.”
“No,” I say, kissing her forehead. There’s no way in hell I’m deserting her now. “Things can’t get much worse, right?” I add with a grin.
She manages a smile as she gets to her feet. “I have to go. I need to speak to Mom.”
“Okay, but Jill? Whatever she’s done, just remember she loves you. It’s okay to be angry at her, but don’t let it consume you.”
“You’re telling me to forgive her,” she says, offering me a small smile. “Like you’ve done with your dad?”
I have no comeback for that.
Time alone does funny things to someone. It gives our minds a chance to really take in events and think about what’s going on around us. To say I’m really fucking nervous is an understatement. Jill’s mom is suspicious, Jamie knows, and Dad’s not stupid enough to realize I wouldn’t have stopped seeing Jill. The secrets, the lies—they’re all getting too much. I feel like I’m losing control and it scares me.
But, it will all work out in the end, right?
It has to.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Jill
Barreling into the house, I let the front door slam into the wall with a bang.
“Mom, wake up,” I yell from the bottom of the stairs. I need to hear it from her. I need to see the words come from her lips.
It takes a few minutes, but she rushes out of her room. She stands at the top of the stairs, her face creased with worry.