To my shock, Jackson was there when I arrived. He was wearing a grey suit that matched the color of his eyes perfectly. As I walked closer, he stood up from his seat at the bar and smiled coldly.
“Hi, Belle,” Jackson said. He slid his eyes down my body and my cheeks flushed red as his gaze lingered at my bust. “Glad you could make it.”
I swallowed. “I didn’t really have a choice,” I said stiffly.
Jackson chuckled. “Come now, of course you did,” he replied in a light tone. “What do you think is going to happen, Belle? Why are you so afraid of me?”
I bit my tongue. Because you’ve made every effort to ruin my life and ignore me, I thought tartly. But before I could speak, a waiter showed Jackson and me to our table. When I was left alone with him, I sat up as straight as I could and reached for the menu.
The prices were enough to make me gasp. I realized that even if I ordered the most frugal thing possible, I’d still be walking out of Le Bateau Ivre a good sixty dollars lighter than I’d walked in.
“What’s wrong?” Jackson leaned over the table and pulled the menu out of my hands. “Something the matter, Belle?”
I blushed. “This place is….expensive,” I said quietly. “I’m not sure I can afford to eat here.”
Jackson snickered. “You’re not paying,” he said. “Don’t worry, Belle. Everything’s fine.”
I stared at him. “I don’t believe you.”
Jackson made wide eyes. “What, you think I’m kind of guy who lies?” He cocked his head to the side. “When have I ever lied to you?”
“That time you tricked me into showing a roomful of strangers that I’d gotten my period,” I hissed. “How about then?”
“God, Belle, that was years ago,” Jackson said mildly. He smirked, making me blush. “You really think I haven’t changed at all since that happened?”
I blinked. “I don’t know what to think,” I said softly. “I don’t know you.”
Jackson cleared his throat. The waiter approached the table and before I could stop him, Jackson had ordered two tasting course meals for both of us. I couldn’t help but gasp – I’d seen the price of those, and I knew they didn’t come cheaply.
“So,” Jackson said. He lifted his mimosa and clinked the glass against mine, where it rested on the table. “Why did you come looking for me at work?”
I bit my lip. “You know why,” I said steadily. My stomach was churning but I forced myself to take a sip of the mimosa anyway. The orange juice and champagne was a delicious combination in my mouth, but I knew that I couldn’t keep drinking – my stomach wouldn’t be able to handle it.
Jackson chuckled. “Because of my dad’s will,” he said calmly. “That’s why, right?”
I nodded and sighed. “I don’t know why he didn’t leave anything to my mother, but please. Jackson, you’re her only hope.” I forced myself to look into his steel-grey eyes. They were so beautiful, so cold – I could feel myself getting lost in them with every second that passed.
Jackson shrugged. “My father’s wishes should be respected,” he said. “I don’t know why he did that, either, but don’t you think we should honor what he wanted?”
“No,” I said softly. “No, I don’t think that way at all. Jackson, my mother is alone. And she’s going to be homeless and broke unless you help. Please, she doesn’t need much. Just enough to get a small apartment and live for a while until she’s able to find a job.”
Jackson shrugged again. “I don’t know that I can do that,” he said. “After all, that money is marked for me. It would be a lot of legal trouble if I decided to argue my father’s will, especially that it’s in my favor like this.” He raised his eyebrows at me and I felt my stomach plummet once more. “Don’t you agree, Belle?”
“I don’t,” I said softly.
Jackson smiled. “Well, I’m sure Anne doesn’t like the idea of working, but she should be able to get a job. She worked before she married my father, right?”
“Your father was the one who made her quit,” I hissed through gritted teeth. “She would have kept working the whole time, but he said it looked unseemly!”
Jackson frowned. “I don’t know why he would have said that,” he said. “My father has always respected drive and hard work in others. I doubt he said that,” he added, in a calm tone of voice that made me seethe with anger. “You’re probably misremembering.”
I knew that I had to stay calm, but this was too much. I couldn’t just sit here, across the table from Jackson, and listen to him berate my mother and call her lazy.
“I mean, really, Belle,” Jackson continued. “You’re going to have to be a little more self aware now that you’re what, twenty?” He smirked at me. “These are things we all have to learn,” he added in a smug voice. “So don’t get upset with me for telling you the truth about your mother.”
Every ounce of calm that I’d managed to summon in the past thirty seconds flew out of my body. Standing up, I pushed the chair back from the table so forcefully that it fell open and clattered against the floor with a loud bang. Jackson looked up in surprise. I wanted to slap him again, but that’s when my eye caught my mimosa flute. Grabbing it, I threw it in his face.
“I hate you,” I snarled loudly. “I never want to see you again!”