Anxious Jeopardies

Chapter Fifteen

It was late by the time they got to his house, and she was asleep in the car. He parked, and then picked her up and brought her inside, lying her in his bed. He was glad she'd decided not to take the cab. He grabbed some clothes before beginning to head out, but she murmured, "Jake..."

"Yes?" He turned around.

"You can stay with me, if you want."

He blinked. He wasn't expecting that. "I... Not tonight, Ana. I'll see you in the morning." Without waiting to hear her response, he left and made up the couch.

When he woke up, Jake smelled bacon cooking in the kitchen. His eyes opened and he stood up slowly adjusting the blankets on Sophie.

"Ana?"

"Hmm?" Her voice came from the kitchen like he had suspected.

"What are you doing, walking around?"

"Why shouldn't I be?"

"You just got out of the hospital yesterday."

"I'm fine now. It's been a week." He walked into the kitchen, rubbing his neck. She smiled at him from the stove. She had changed into some of her own clothes; she was wearing a black tank top now and some dark denim shorts.

"You shouldn't be up yet. It's early. And your ribs are still fragile." She rolled her eyes.

"Yeah. I'm really gonna hurt myself by making breakfast."

"I don't doubt you've done it before, knowing you." She laughed.

"I'm a tough girl, Jake." She paused, staring down at the stove and looking away from him. "I'm sorry about yesterday."

"No, don't worry about it." He poured himself a cup of coffee. "I missed you." Her eyebrows went up.

"What?"

"Yeah, I know. But you just... I don't know." He sat down at the kitchen table and rubbed the back of his neck again anxiously.

"I'm sorry about that." He looked up at her.

"What?"

"Well, I mean, I'm leaving. I can't stay here hiding forever. I have to go off on my own sometime."

His eyebrows furrowed. "Hiding?"

"Yes. Are you surprised? I used to hide for a living."

"No. You protect people for a living. And, I men, you're not still working there anymore, right? So you shouldn't even need to worry now." He stood up and walked over to her. Her gaze remained low and she didn't answer. "There isn't a reason to worry, is there?"

"No." She looked away.

"Really?"

"Nothing's going to happen."

"Why don't I believe you?" He crossed his arms and she turned her head further away from him, tending to the stove gently. "Ana," he started.

"Jake."

"Tell me."

"Tell you what?"

"I want to know if you're in danger." She shrugged him off.

"There's nothing you can do about it. I don't know if there's anything anyone can do about it. Like you said, there's nothing to be worried about."

"If anything comes up, will you tell me?"

"I don't want to put you in danger. The less you know the better. And the chances that anything's going to happen at this point are next to nothing."

The blond turned her gently and put his hands on her shoulders. She briefly looked at him before removing his hands and walking around to the other side of the kitchen. "I didn't want to upset you."

"Then stop talking about this."

"I can't. I need to know you're okay first."

"I'm fine."

They were silent for a while. She finished cooking and set things on the table. He took her wrist and Ana looked up at him. Her clear blue eyes shone in the blue daylight, and his brown ones stared back at her unrelentingly.

"Stay here."

"I can't."

"You haven't left yet." She looked down at the table.

"Yes, well..." He walked back over and lifted her chin up with his hand. "I'm afraid I don't take charity," she said evenly.

"Then what was Derek?"

"He brought me in kicking and screaming."

"Then I just might have to do the same." Jake kissed her. He held her waist gently, being careful around her ribs, and her hands found his shoulders. They wound themselves around his neck and he drew her closer.

"Or not," she whispered onto his lips. He pulled her in again. His hands tangled in her hair, but she moved her face to the side a bit, hesitating. "But I..."

"Please, don't go." She laughed and he pulled away, his hands on her shoulders in all seriousness. "I don't..."

"I was going to say that I burned the rest of breakfast and I needed to go turn the stove off."

"Oh." He smiled and kissed her again before she returned to the stove to flip the second batch of hopelessly burnt bacon. He followed behind her and kissed her neck.

"Jake..." He pulled away.

"I know, I know."

Ana started cleaning up and Jake helped. "What about Sophie?" She asked.

"What about her?"

"She needs a mom, or at least a motherly figure."

"What are you getting at?"

"I was just thinking that maybe, for her sake, of course, I could maybe, possibly, stay for just a little bit longer."

"Maybe you should. She needs a mom, after all."

"Yes."

"She needs someone to bond with. Someone who can take care of her and understand her better than I ever could."

"Yes."

"Someone who loves her."

"Of course." He pulled her gently away from the stove and kissed her a little more passionately than before, his fingers once again tangled in her long red hair. "Jake," she whispered.

"Too much?"

"No, I just... No." But he stepped back anyway with a sheepish smile.

"I got a little carried away."

"No, you were fine. I'm just not used to it, that's all." She was flustered. He thought it was adorable.

"I don't want you to be uncomfortable," he added.

"I'm not. It's okay." He smiled. "But you are single, right?" It had only just occurred to her that he was, in fact, still in college, and that because of his looks and build and apparent intelligence, he must have had dated.

"Yes," he laughed. "There's no time to date."

"Oh, right, I didn't mean-"

"Ana, it's fine. It's just how it is. I'm okay with it, so there's no reason you shouldn't be."

"Okay." Sophie wandered in and exclaimed happily when she saw the food. Ana grinned at the small girl and Jake marveled at both of them. He was so lucky.