"I've been busy," he mutters.
"Doing what?"
"My girlfriend is here from interstate."
"Girlfriend," she gasps. "Since when?"
What the fuck? He's getting picked up at the store now… ugh, I bet the women around here would all be in love with him.
I hobble to the clothes rack and pick up a shirt as I eavesdrop. Oh God, it's hideous. I put it back on the hanger in a rush. I pick up a pair of pants and hold them up. What kind of fucking pants are these? I put them back on the hanger. He'll never touch me again in this crap.
"Who is this girlfriend. Anyone I know?" she asks.
"Nope," he replies curtly, and I can tell he has no patience with her. I get the feeling that Jack gets hit on a lot.
And why wouldn’t he, he's fucking gorgeous.
Ugg.
I pick up a white t-shirt. I could tie it up in a knot at the front to make it fit. Now this… I can work with. I hang it over my arm. I glance over to the men's section…. hmm, that stuff looks better. I hobble over to investigate. I find a pair of black track pants meant for teenage boys. I like those, so I hang them over my arm. Some flannel pyjamas. A black nightdress that I could wear as a dress. I'm getting in the groove now.
Jack ambles up behind me. "How is it going?" he asks as he puts his hand on my behind.
"Who's your friend?" I ask.
He rolls his eyes.
"She likes you."
"Don’t even."
I give him a playful smile and bat my lashes. "I wouldn’t dare."
The girl walks up the aisle and stops dead in her tracks when she sees me. Her eyes drop to Jack’s hand on my behind. "Hello," she says flatly as she looks me up and down.
Oh…she likes him alright.
"Do you need any help?" she asks.
I fake a smile. "Do you have any wedding dresses?"
Jack drops his head to hide his smile.
Her eyes widen. "What?"
I smile sweetly. "Is that a no?"
"No," she snaps. "We don’t."
"Hmm, pity." I shrug and I go back to looking through the rack while she storms off.
Jack takes me in his arms from behind. "Not nice," he whispers in my ear.
I giggle. "She asked for it when she looked me up and down."
He slaps me on the behind. "Behave." He ambles off to look at something.
I find a few things, enough to get me through the week and I make my way to the counter.
The pretty girl gives me the death stare. "Is that all?"
"Aha," I smile.
She begins to ring the things up. "Where did you two meet?"
"Online."
She scans the pants. "How long have you been seeing each other?"
I glance around the shop, where is he? "About eighteen months." I lie, I can hardly keep the smile from my face, it's fun playing this game.
"Where are you from?" she asks.
"New York."
She rolls her eyes. "Ha, Jack would never move to New York. This won't last."
My heart sinks, because I know she's right. I nod, "I know." I smile as I act like she hasn’t just hit a nerve.
"You don’t know shit about us," Jack snaps.
Our eyes flick to him.
"I mean…. I just," she stammers as she rings up the last item.
"Just don’t, Michelle," Jack cuts her off. He puts his arm around my shoulders. "Let's go, babe," he says.
I pay and he leads me out of the shop and back to the car. He helps me in on my side and gets in and starts the car with a loud rev. He seems agitated as he pulls out onto the road.
I look between him and the road. "What?" I ask.
"Nothing."
We sit in silence for a while. "So, I take it you are hot property around here?" I ask.
He rolls his lips and stays silent.
"Well, you better tell your bitches to back off," I tease.
He breaks into a broad smile and reaches over and squeezes my thigh. "Well, with you out looking for wedding dresses, I don’t think that will be a problem, sweetheart."
I laugh, "I'm sorry. But her face though."
He chuckles, too. "I know."
He picks up my hand and kisses my fingertips and I watch him in a detached state.
His dark hair hangs over his face, his chiselled jaw and big red lips only add to his handsomeness. He really is a beautiful man.
She's right though, this isn’t real. It won't last….and he needs to stop being so damn perfect.
"What do you want for dinner?" he asks, interrupting my thoughts.
"I don’t know. Maybe...," my eyes flick over to him, "a bit of Jack Stevens sounds good."
He smiles darkly as he watches the road. "I hope you're hungry."
I unclip my seatbelt and lean over and unzip his jeans. He inhales sharply as I kiss his cock. "I'm fucking starving."
* * *
I sip my tea and pull the blanket around my shoulders. I'm out on the veranda and it's late at night. I can hear the animals in the forest and the mist is rolling over the hills.