Gifted Connections 4

“What?” she grinned, the ghost of who she used to be showing through. “I’m just curious. So is everyone else, but they don’t have the balls to ask.”

“Girls don’t have balls,” Alex piped up.

Will shot Jemmy a pointed look while the rest of the table tried to refrain from laughing.

“I mean,” Jemmy shrugged a bit sheepishly. “You guys are obviously better, but there feels like there’s a disconnect between Lincoln and you.”

“Well, technically, they did just meet,” Remy said dryly.

I looked over at him and realized he refused to meet my eyes. Come to think of it, he had only spoken directly to me during our mission. Before then and since then, he hadn’t spoken to me except after I had my anxiety attack.

I reached out to him, and for once his barriers were down. He was hurt and angry. My eyebrows knitted, and I was confused. I thought he had understood our predicament and supported our decision. So why was he so hurt and angry?

“Are you hoping to wheedle your way back into Lincoln’s good graces?” Jaxson quipped.

“Not fair,” Jemmy stated as her eyes filled with tears. “I know I was a bitch, and I need to still talk privately with Blake, but I really am sorry for the way I’ve been behaving since Christmas. My egg donor contacted me,” she said quietly as she looked over at Drake. I felt Drake stiffen beside me. I reached out and grabbed one of his hands, gently squeezing it. “She wanted me to go visit her and play the role of her daughter.

“Apparently, there’s a huge mother/ daughter retreat coming up for her company. Someone asked her if she was bringing me.” She paused and looked over at Drake again. “I did a little bit of snooping. Did you know she still claims to have contact with us? That she’s been downloading pictures of us from Knightstown Academy, our Instagrams, and Facebook, and claiming she sent us to a prestigious boarding school?”

From the look on Gavin and Sierra’s faces, it was news to them too. Nevertheless, Gavin still leaned over and put his arm on the back of her chair in a silent show of support. Sierra took the empty seat next to Jemmy and grabbed one of her hands.

“Her news feed is covered with lies. She even created a fake account for us, and we’ve been posting on her wall for years. Proclaiming that she is the greatest mom in the world,” Jemmy continued with a tremulous smile at Gavin and Sierra.

I would be lying to myself if I said I wasn’t still upset because I was, but now I knew where the anger and need for attention were coming from.

“Do you want to talk about this at home?” I asked her as I looked at the kids.

“She wants the raise,” Ella stated as she dipped her California roll into her soy sauce. “She’s trying to find you.”

Jemmy and Drake’s mother was an ambitious business woman and always blamed her children for her lack of advancement, which meant now she realizing the error of her ways. And not in the way she should. If she was rising up in the ranks, family values would be a selling point to the CEOs. I knew there were plenty of businesses that believed a healthy family relationship was an unspoken requirement.

“What?” Megan and Jemmy asked simultaneously in surprise.

“She tried to tell you,” Kade quickly spoke up. He leaned over Ella, and if the situation weren’t so somber, I would have been touched by his protective stance.

Jemmy wiped her eyes away. “I’m sorry,” Jemmy stated. “Ella is right though. My egg donor tried to lure me home with the promises of designer clothing, credit cards, and a new car. Now that she’s up for another promotion and raise, she wants to use me to get to know her boss’s children. She wants me to become friends with them and give her another angle.”

I shook my head in astonishment. That woman was a real piece of work. I’m glad she attempted to contact Jemmy first, because she was strong enough to face her mother. Drake, on the other hand, probably would have capitulated to her and give in to some of her requests.

Ella shrugged. “It’s okay. Dr. Wong says that sometimes if we’re afraid or hurt we often lash out at those who matter the most to us. I’m sorry for the way I’ve been acting, too.”

Jemmy gave her a crooked smile. “That’s what he told me, too.”

“Want to talk later?” Drake asked Jemmy.

She nodded eagerly.

Lincoln came back into the room. “Sorry, that was my agent.”

“Everything okay?” Will asked. “We know it was a huge sacrifice to come here, and you’ve really been an asset around the base.”

Lincoln nodded. “I might have to leave next weekend,” Lincoln stated.

A part of me felt slightly angry and upset. I knew he was going to leave the moment our connection was made, but I didn’t expect it to be so soon. I didn’t know what it felt like to be a one-night stand, but I imagined this is how it would feel. Then I was upset at myself for even caring. I was happy with my men, but I would be lying if I didn’t admit that there was chemistry between the two of us.

“I got nominated for a couple of awards, and my agent insists I be there,” Lincoln explained before he looked over at me. “Want to come? We can catch the red-eye and be back by Monday morning.”

I was stunned, to say the least. I looked down at my fingers, not knowing how to respond. Was it okay to leave with him with all my responsibilities here?