JUST WHEN I NEEDED YOU
Chapter Three
Rose awoke, confused as to where she was.
Realizing her head was laying on someone's chest, she looked up. It all came
rushing back to her, and she had to smile. Both she and Jack had kept their
promise. In the three years, where everyone their age, it seemed, was involved
in sexual activities, they had managed to stay true to each other. The event
that had transpired between them had been magical. Jack had been so gentle,
always making sure she was okay, that he wasn't hurting her. Now they lay upon
Jack's bed, bodies entwined, and fully content. Rose reached up and brushed a
lock of blonde hair out of Jack's face. He hadn't changed much since he left.
He was a little bit taller and more muscular, but he was still Jack. He groaned
slightly and opened his eyes, unbelievably happy to see that the moment he and
Rose had shared wasn't just a dream.
"Hey, sleepyhead," Rose teased,
scooting up closer so she could kiss him.
Jack grinned and brought his mouth down to
hers. The moment they met, their passion overtook them and wouldn't let go.
Jack moaned and pulled away. "This isn't
the last time this is going to happen, is it?"
It was more of a statement than a question,
and Rose shook her head. "No. This is just the beginning."
Jack grinned and glanced at the clock.
"We better get up and get dressed. I've got a birthday dinner to make for
you."
Rose's mouth dropped. "You? Make me
dinner?" she exclaimed, obviously amused by the thought of Jack doing
something as domesticated as cooking.
Jack chuckled. "I can cook, honest. I
learned quite a bit on the road," he said, sitting up and putting his
boxers back on. "Now, come on. Get up."
Rose sighed and sat up. "You're not
going to poison me, are you?" she asked, teasingly.
Jack leaned over to give her a quick kiss.
"I promise you'll be fine. Now, come on. Up!" he said, pulling her
out of the bed.
"Okay, okay. I'm up. Let me get
dressed," she replied, wrapping the sheet around her.
Jack studied her for a moment. "Hmm...I
think I like you better just like that," he announced, winking.
"Jack!" she exclaimed. "What
would the neighbors say?"
Jack rolled his eyes. "Seeing that
there's two acres of land separating me from both of my neighbors, I don't
think they'd be saying much."
Rose grabbed her clothes from the floor and
headed out to the bathroom, mumbling something about Jack and his sex drive.
Smiling to himself, Jack jogged downstairs to
the kitchen.
*****
Once she was dressed and her hair brushed,
Rose went downstairs to find Jack moving around the kitchen like the most
experienced of chefs.
"You'd look hot in an apron," Rose
commented, sitting down at the table.
Jack glanced over his shoulder and grinned.
"Just an apron?"
Rose's eyes glittered. "Even
better."
Jack chuckled and started mixing some stuff
together. "You still like Italian, right?"
Rose sighed. "I love Italian. Mother
won't let me have it, though. Says it'll make me fat or something. I haven't
even had spaghetti since...well...you know."
Jack turned around and looked at her sadly.
"She's really changed, hasn't she?"
Rose nodded. "For the worse. Ever since
Daddy died, she's been hounding me to be the perfect image of what a society
girl should be. It's like I don't even know her anymore."
Jack gave her a quick kiss on the head before
returning to his food. "Well, forget about her tonight. I'm going to feed
you like an Italian queen."
"You're so good to me...how long have
you been back, exactly?" Rose asked, changing the subject.
Jack put the pan in the oven, and sat down
next to her. "I got in Wednesday night." He paused, catching the hurt
look on her face. "Now, before you get mad at me for not coming to see
you, let me explain."
Rose nodded for him to go ahead.
"I got here around eleven Wednesday
night, worn out from the drive. San Francisco isn't exactly next door. Anyway,
I wasn't even sure if I was going to stay. I just had a feeling I was needed
here, so I came back to make sure things were okay. I stayed at Lucy's Bed and
Breakfast that night, and came here Thursday afternoon to check things out.
Imagine my surprise when I came in and found the electricity and water still
on." He paused. "Do you know anything about that?"
Rose nodded. "After you left, Daddy
thought it would be a good idea to have those things kept on. Just in case you
came home. So he talked to the companies and set it up that every month, the
amount due would be taken directly from your parents' account. It wasn't much,
since nobody was here to use it."
Jack sat, shocked. "Your dad was the
best."
Rose smiled. "Yeah, he was. You're
getting off track, though. Keep going."
"Oh, yeah. Anyway, since I had electric
working, I decided to come stay here. It is my house, after all. So Thursday I
spent the day fixing the place up and thinking about you. Friday I went into
town to buy some food and ran into Ryan. We came back here and chatted about the
old days. I asked about you, if you still lived here and all that. He tried to
avoid the topic, but said you were still here but he wasn't sure for how much
longer. After he left, I sat and thought about you when I realized today was
your birthday. I was afraid to come see you, though, afraid you had moved on
and forgotten about me. I figured since it was your birthday, you probably had
something planned. So I went down to the lake. That way I could still be with
you somewhat. The rest you know."
Rose had tears in her eyes when she took his
hand into hers. "Moved on? Hardly, Jack, I've thought about you every day
for the past three years."
Jack gave her a small smile. "I know
that now. But the way Ryan was talking, it sounded like you had. I imagine he got
that from you and Hockley being engaged, though."
"Probably. Everyone thinks I'm nuts for
holding onto you when I'm engaged to marry the great Caledon Hockley,"
Rose said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Even Katie said I was a fool.
Nobody gets it."
"Aw, don't worry about it now. I'm here,
and we're going to end that engagement," Jack said, before kissing her.
"You're not going anywhere?"
"Hell no, Rose. I left you once. There
is no way I could do it again. Especially..." He stopped, blushing slightly.
"...especially after what happened this afternoon."
Rose felt her cheeks flush. "Good. How
are we going to do this, though? Cal isn't going to take a simple no. What
about a place to live, and college? I'm afraid to even think about all
that."
Jack squeezed her hand. "We'll figure it
out. Just don't tell anyone I'm back yet. I'll keep a low profile. That way,
Cal won't know, for the time being. See if maybe Katie or Gina can help you
sneak over here. I know your mom isn't going to let you just leave without
telling her where you're going. And about having a place to live...well, you
could always move in here."
Rose's eyes lit up. "Serious?"
"Of course. I wouldn't let the woman I
love live on the streets." Jack laughed.
Rose threw her arms around his neck, kissing
him softly. "Thank you, Jack. Thank you for everything."
Jack just grinned. "I love you."