SECRETS OF THE PAST
Chapter Nine

When Jack left France, he didn't see Rose again. He kept in touch with his newfound interest, Monique. He loved Rose, truly. He really did, but now that she was with Jason, things had all changed. He could sense the passion and the heat of Rose's lustful looks, and he did. He just didn't act on it, until she had made it up to him, at least.

Over the following weeks he flew to Italy, Chicago, Canada, and Japan. He loved all the cities that he traveled to, but one city kept calling him. Paris, France. One hot and muggy day, he came upon a flight to Paris. He called Monique, and assured her that he would meet her at the airport once he was there. Monique gave him a welcome back present. He spent the night with her there, at her penthouse. She had given up her old life, and was now working as a waitress at a new restaurant. Monique had to work at least full time to pay for what she had. She wasn't about to slip into her old life, as she knew she would not have the riches that she once had.

Jack had made an honest woman of her. He was now engaged. One day he was walking down the street. He had to run an errand and mail a letter at the local post office. He wrote to his father daily. He had kept in touch with him almost every day. He saw a girl with red hair on the street. She had short hair, and he felt sorry for her, so he dug into his pockets and pulled out a few hundreds. He threw them into the tray that she held for donations. She saw the bills go into her tray. She got up, knowing she was an honest woman. She tagged down the stranger that had given her the money.

"Hello, sir. Excuse me, but you dropped these into my tray. I think you made a mistake." Rose almost fainted when the stranger turned around.

"Rose! What in the hell are you doing begging on the street? Where's Jason?" Jack was in shock.

"He dumped me, Jack, and threw me out. I had nowhere to go." Rose left to turn back to her spot on the ground.

"Wait, Rose. Hold on. You're coming home with me." Jack took Rose under his wing and brought her back to his home.

Monique and Jack had moved into a nice home. He had made so much money from his career that he had gone on his own, and he now owned a small, private aeronautical company. He only catered to celebrities.

Rose knew she had made a mistake in leaving Jack. He was successful in all the ways possible. Lovely house, lots of money, and the only thing she saw that was missing was a wife and kids. The minute Rose stepped into the house, she was astonished at all the furnishings. A Monet posted above the fireplace. She noticed several paintings in the house. She knew Jack was a great artist, so they must have been his.

"Honey, I'm home," he announced.

"Gosh. What did you do? Fly home?" Monique joked.

"Monique, I brought an old friend home. You remember Rose DeWitt-Bukater, don't you?" he asked.

"Yeah, I do." Monique could almost hear trouble brewing. "Oh, Rose. Let me help you. Come with me." Monique and Rose went upstairs into one of the bedrooms. The room seemed empty, and the furniture was so fancy, Rose didn't even want to sit down on the chair nearby.

"I am so sorry for imposing on you two. I should leave." Rose stood before Monique.

"I won't hear of it, Rose. Jack wants you here, and whatever he says goes. There are some clothes here, so if you see anything in your size, please don't worry yourself about it, and there are towels over there." Monique pointed to a cupboard.

Rose took off the clothes she had worn for a week. The break-up of Jason and herself had taken a toll on her. She had found Jason asleep with another woman. She had thrown all that he had ever given her back in his face.

Rose took off her clothes and stared at her body. Jack walked in without even knocking.

She glanced up at him and covered herself.

"I am so sorry, Rose." He turned around.

She put back on the old dress.

"Okay, Jack. You can turn around now." She felt embarrassed, for some reason.

He turned.

"I was just gonna ask you if you were hungry." He looked at her. She looked thin and dirty.

"Yeah. Starved, actually." She was famished.

"All right. Dinner is almost ready. As soon as you take a bath, it should be done." He felt sorry for her.

"All right. Thank you for your hospitality, Jack." She smiled.

"It's my honor, Rose." He wanted to hug her, but he didn't.

Jack went downstairs with Monique.

Monique sat down at a table, chopping celery stalks.

"Hey, beautiful." He kissed her.

"Hello, handsome," she said as she chopped.

"Do you know I ask myself every day, do you know how lucky you are, Frank Abagnale?" He held her closely.

"No. I didn't know that." Monique felt loved, for once in her life.

"Well, now you do." He kissed her passionately.

When he let her go to read the newspaper, he spanked her.

"Ouch! Jack!" She looked at him.

He smiled back at her.

She threw an oven mitt at him.

He grabbed her, threw her on the couch, and kissed her again.

Monique tried to pull herself up, but under Jack's heavy weight, she was no match to take him on.

"Shh." Jack put a finger to Monique's lips. "I love you, Monique."

"I love you, too, Jack." She kissed him. "Jack, let me up. I have to check the oven." She remembered her casserole.

"Hot damn. I almost had you," he said, then remembered that Rose was in the house.

"Maybe tonight, captain." Monique walked to the oven, smiling.

Jack sat down on the couch, reading stocks.

Monique checked her beef Wellington casserole.

"Almost done." She sniffed it.

"Good. I am starved," Jack said.

"You're always hungry," Monique said.

"Well, it depends upon the entrée, darling." Jack gave her a wicked smile.

*****

Rose got out of the bathtub and put on a dress that fit her just perfectly. She brushed her hair, and looked at the final product. She was hot and sexy again, and a little thinner.

Rose went downstairs.

"Ah…Rose. You look nice," Monique complimented her.

Jack looked up, and saw a raging beauty.

Too nice, Jack thought.

Monique took all the preparations, and set them out.

"All right. It's time, Jack, Rose," she said, still wearing her apron.

They all sat at the table. Monique lay a fine setting for dinner.

Rose sat down, feeling that she was imposing.

"Thank you both for letting me stay here. I will leave tomorrow." Rose smiled.

"Rose, stay here as long as you like." Jack passed her the potatoes.

They ate rather good, healthy portions. Rose helped Monique with the dishes after supper. She felt she owed them that, at least. Then she helped set out dessert, Jack's favorite lemon meringue pie with sorbet.

Rose looked at Jack, and at how happy he was. She felt awful, disgusted with herself, for doing all the mean things she had done to him.

After dessert, they sat by the fire and started a conversation.

"So, are you two married yet?" Rose asked.

"Not yet, but we are engaged," Monique answered her.

"Jack, I must apologize for all the inconvenience I have caused you." She felt ashamed.

"Nonsense, Rose." He sat with Monique.

"I don't mean what you have done for me today. I mean for everything I have done to you in the past." She felt guilty.

"Rose, you didn't do anything to me that I don't take responsibility for myself." He didn't want to make her feel like she had to do anything to make him like her again.

"But, Jack, I did. I lied to you. I made you believe Jason and I were together, you know, but we never had sex, because I was still in love with you, and when I did want to take our relationship further, he had already supplied his mate. I still love you to this day. I am such a fool." She stormed out the door, crying.

Jack told Monique he understood. He went after her.

"Rose?" he called.

Jack went after Rose. He found her shortly afterwards in the field.

"Rose?" he called.

"Over here, Jack." She was still crying.

Jack found her sitting on a rock near the lake.

"Rose, are you okay?" He sat by her.

"Yes, Jack. I am okay." She wiped the tears from her eyes.

"You know, this is my favorite spot. I come here to think sometimes." He changed the subject to get her mind off of things.

"Jack, I am sorry for the way I acted. It was childish of me." She felt she owed him her life.

"No, Rose. For a long time, I was wishing you would come back to me. I missed you so much." He looked at her, wanting to touch her.

He loved Monique. He really did. But Rose was always there in his mind, whether he was out with Monique or not. She was always with him. Everywhere, and every place.

He sat over on the rock with her. She grabbed a few pebbles from the ground and threw them into the lake, one by one, watching the flutter of the water glimmering at sundown.

Jack joined her.

"You know, Rose, if we had never split up, I don't think I would be where I am today. You changed me, Rose. When you left me, I was so heartbroken, and then when I found out you were leaving me, I couldn't bear to stay home and be in all the places we were together. That's why I became a pilot. To see the world, and to rid myself…to let you go. You looked fine when I last left you here. What happened?" He saw that her eyes were red.

"Jason noticed the way I had been looking at you over dinner. He asked me if I still loved you. I told him yes. From then on, it was never the same. He didn't sleep with me. He didn't even converse with me. I knew I had hurt him by saying I loved you, Jack, but I couldn't lie to my heart. So, one day, I took a stroll, wondering if I should end the relationship or not. When I came back…that's when I got my answer. Luckily, you came back, or I would have been on that street forever." She looked at him.

"Don't think of it, Rose. I would never have let you be there forever." He patted her leg.

"How's my mom? Jack, is she okay?" Rose asked.

"Rose, I am sorry, but she died three months ago." He had hated to tell her this way.

Rose wept for a long time. Jack held her, smelling that familiar scent he loved so well.

Things had gone from bad to worse for Rose. She found that the only person she had in her life was Jack, the only man who had ever truly cared for her.

Rose looked at all the mistakes she had made. She couldn't fix them. She glanced at him, got up, and looked into his eyes. She grabbed his face and kissed his lips hard, bruising her own.

Jack had not expected this at all. He couldn't believe this was happening. He kissed her back lovingly, not able to fight his passion. He made love to Rose, taking her into the night, and making her squirm like he never had before.

After thirty minutes, Jack carried her to bed, as she had fallen asleep outside. Monique was still awake, waiting for him. When he lay Rose down, she smiled at him and kissed him good night. Jack thought about his actions after he closed Rose's door. Jack had never been a cheater. He couldn't believe how he had lost control like that.

Monique waited in bed for him. She was awake.

"How is she, Jack?" Monique asked.

"She's fine. She fell asleep in my arms out there." He didn't look her in the eye.

"I was gonna go see what happened, but I decided you could take care of it. You know her better than I do, anyway." Monique put her magazine down.

Jack lay next to Monique. She climbed on top of him and kissed him.

"Jack, make love to me," she whispered into his ear.

Jack couldn't tell Monique that he had just slept with Rose. It was all way too much to let it be spoiled now.

*****

Over the next few weeks, Jack juggled both women, and satisfying them both was a hard job. He was not a player but for the two women he loved the most. He just couldn't bear to tell Monique the truth, or Rose, for that matter.

He knew his conscience would get the better of him, so he confessed.

"Monique, I can't anymore." He got up off the bed.

"You can't what, Jack?" She looked at him with a confused stare.

"I can't live with both of you. My heart only belongs to one. Monique, I love Rose." He backed away.

"You what?" Monique was furious.

"I have been trying my best to satisfy you both, but it's becoming more of a hassle." He didn't like saying this to her.

"You're sleeping with Rose?" Monique got up off the bed.

"Yeah." He looked down.

"How dare you?" She slapped him hard across the face. "All those times you could have said it, and you lied. Get out of here!" She started throwing stuff at him, and he walked out.

He went to Rose's room.

"Jack, what happened?" Rose heard Monique cussing at him.

"I finally told Monique I was sleeping with you, and she hit me." He rubbed his face.

"You mean you never told her?" Rose had thought he had told her.

"I couldn't, Rose. I couldn't bear to break her heart. I love her just as much as I love you." He touched her face.

Monique walked by Rose's room and saw them together.

"You two can have each other. I'm leaving, and Jack, you can keep everything. I don't want anything," Monique said, holding a suitcase.

"Monique, please wait. I'm sorry." He ran to her.

"It's all right, Jack. I knew she would get you, because I couldn't have children. You deserve more than me. Have a nice life." She walked out on him, leaving him with his guilt.

Jack should have been sad, but he wasn't. He was not proud that he had cheated on Monique. He had finally gotten Rose back, his one true love of all in the world.

Chapter Ten
Stories