Broken & Beautiful

Chapter 30

Jake and I sit on my sofa, and he's staring at me intently. He's bound and determined to convince me to talk about what Cody said to me at the club, and I'm not exactly being cooperative. "Baby, come on. Just tell me. He must have said something to piss you off. I mean, I know you. You wouldn't just slap someone if you didn't have a reason."

I let out an exasperated sigh and stand up, turning to look down at him. "Jake, will you please just let it go? I don't want to talk about it," I announce, hoping he'll leave me alone if I retreat to the bathroom. No such luck. He follows me down the hallway and doesn't let up, even when I close the door on him. He pesters me some more, and I pull the door open far enough to peek out at him. I take my toothbrush out of my mouth and use it to gesture at him. "Look, Jake. I'm exhausted. I just want to go to bed and forget this night ever happened."

I close the door on him again and turn back to the sink, brushing my teeth some more. He falls silent, and I am 98% certain that he's finally given up. I know he can be stubborn, but even he should know when to admit defeat. I rinse off my toothbrush and put it back in the container, rinsing out my mouth as well. After removing my makeup and jewelry, I open the door and peek into the hallway. No sign of Jake. Good! Maybe he really did give up.

Wrong! It starts up again as soon as I pass by him on my way to the bedroom. My annoyance is building as I push the curtain aside, and the urge to snap at him is growing. "Jake, just let it go." I pull my sleepwear out of my dresser drawer and begin to change, hanging up Ari's clothes to air dry and tossing my dirty items into the hamper.

"I just don't understand why you won't tell me." This time, he sounds annoyed.

I finish tugging on my top and narrow my eyes at him, my irritation spilling over. "You really want to know, Jake?" He nods, and I pull on my shorts as I scowl at him. "It was about you and Simone."

"What about me and Simone?" he asks, sitting down on my bed.

I calm down a little, but I'm still not happy about any of this. I sink down in the chair by the window, leaning forward and folding my hands together. "Well, for starters ... he suggested that while you were in France, you and Simone ..." I can't even say the words, and so I just settle for giving him a suggestive look.

Jake stares at me for a while, and there's a moment when I think he won't get it. Realization crosses his handsome but beat-up features, and he lets out a disbelieving scoff. "Are you serious? Wait. Lilah, you don't believe that. Do you?" Now he looks worried, and he closes the distance between us. He sits on the floor so he can be a little closer to my level, and I glance over at him. "Lilah, I would never do that to you. You know that. Right?"

I nod, looking down at the floor again. "Yeah. I know that," I answer softly. I heave out a tired breath and reveal "There's more." He tilts his head to the side. "He said that years ago, back when you two were roommates ... there was an older woman who would visit you every now and then."

"And?" he prods.

I brace myself, not knowing how he'll react. "He said that this woman was beautiful and sophisticated, and that when she came to visit ... you two did more than just talk. Much more. And this woman ... He says that she's Simone." I take a chance and look at him, taking note of his neutral expression.

He reaches out and touches my knee, gently rubbing the skin with the pad of his thumb. "Baby, he was just messing with you. Trying to get inside your head. I don't know why, but --"

Well, I suppose it's confession time. If I want Jake to be honest with me, I should come forward about what happened that night with Cody. I let out a shaky breath, fidgeting. "I do. I know why. He wants me. Or, at least, he did until ..."