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Jack raked his hands through his hair, messing up his polished look.
I sat with my back at the window, arms crossed, giving myself some space.
“I returned to Haver’s Creek abruptly. I didn’t expect the career-ending injury, but in some ways, I was grateful for it. I wanted to come back home, begin my new career, establish the winery.” He stopped, and I watched as his brow pinched. “Start a family.”
My stomach bottomed out.
“It was great to be near Savannah again. It felt like I had a little piece of you here. But it wasn’t enough.” His eyes pleaded with me. “It took me a long time to realize that what I was missing wasyou.”
My breath hitched, but my eyes remained as steely as ever.
“During college, or when I played pro ball, it was always somewhere else. I missed you, but it was nothing compared to coming back here and thinking I saw you everywhere I went.” He took a breath. “I felt like I was going crazy. The ghost of you haunted me everywhere.”
Jack looked down at his lap before returning his eyes to me. I could see a storm brewing there. I pulled my head back, feeling the sting of the freezing glass behind me.
It felt good. Kept me alert.
“How did you get with Katie then?”
His thigh brushed against mine as he turned to get a better angle. That little touch sent a wave of awareness between my legs. One I didn’t want to acknowledge.
“It started off innocent enough. I had just moved back to town and needed a realtor to find me find land for the vineyard. She negotiated that deal for me and then helped me buy my house. She was always flirting here and there, even when she was in a relationship with someone else.”
I huffed.
Typical.
“But then one day we met up for coffee. We’d kept in touch after everything had gone through with the purchases. I had no good reason to say no. She confided that her ex had gotten physical with her. He was furious when she ended things between them.”
I bowed my head. “Fuck.”
Jack clenched his jaw. While I wasn’t sure about the rest of the story, I knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that I would be feeling bad for Katie. Nobody deserved to be hurt by the people who were supposed to care for them. Nobody deserved to have that kind of violence put upon them.
Jack continued. “I just wanted to help. And honestly, I wanted to get over you. To try and give someone a real chance.”
My fingernails dug into the leather seat beneath me. “What happened next?”
He laughed, but it held no mirth. “I moved Katie in right away, wanting to protect her. I secured a restraining order and tried to make it work with us. She made her intentions very clear, and I decided you weren’t coming home, so I gave it a shot.”
I vibrated discomfort, my body wanting to flee even as I wanted to learn more.
Jack swallowed hard. “I proposed on a whim, the words spilling out of my mouth before I could help myself.” He shook his head like he couldn’t believe it himself.
“I take it by the broken engagement that it didn’t work out.”
“Forcing the relationship backfired completely. My savior complex locked us into a relationship that should never have happened. I knew all along her feelings for me were stronger than mine for hers. I just kept comparing her to you. And when I did that, it became very easy to see there just is no comparison. You made me laugh harder than anyone else. You smiled at me in a way nobody else had. Yougotme in a way nobody had. Every single person I’ve been out with has paled in comparison to you.”
I pinched my eyes shut. Loosed a shaky breath.
“I tried to get over you, but I never could. I could never get over this thing between us.”
“Jack—”
“Her ex ended up leaving town right away, embarrassed by his actions and wanting to start fresh elsewhere. I found an apology letter in the trash. I don’t think Katie wanted me to see it. She didn’t want that to stop us from being together.”
It was my turn to shake my head. I couldn’t blame Katie for not wanting to jeopardize their relationship.
He kept talking as all these thoughts flowed through my head. I wasn’t thinking about Jack and Katie now. I was thinking aboutus.
