Prelude to kisses

Chapter 46

When they returned home and he'd dropped her off before driving to his own place, she threw herself on the couch to catch her breath. It couldn't have been more than three minutes before the phone rang. She fished it out of the back pocket of her jeans. James's name flashed on her phones screen. She felt the panic in his voice instantly and fear ran through her spine. A fire had started from the diner next to the Skyee Estates apartment buildings. Luckily no one was hurt, everyone in both buildings had been evacuated safely, but a lot of damage had been done to one side of the buildings.

When she arrived at the scene, her mind worked fast to calculate that it would cost a lot to have the place fixed again. She pinched the bridge of her nose out of exasperation. The owner of the diner came to her, he looked frantic and approached Jackie in long strides. He apologized, his expression weary. In minutes they were driving to the police station for an official investigation.

It was concluded that the fire had started because of a gas leakage. One of the employees had warned the owner of the diner of this but he'd ignored it. Jackie felt angry, she wanted to sue him for damages but over the few years she'd come to know the man on a personal level. She knew that getting the problem checked out was probably the least of his worries. His wife had been in and out of the hospital for over a year and his daughter was in university. Between that, he barely had enough left to spent on anything else other than food and rent. He was sitting in a chair, his head cast downwards, her heart tugged at the sight. She sighed, there was nothing to be done here; she told herself before exiting the building.

Luckily, she had insurance, and the insurance company was going to cover eighty percent of the damages. Now she had to worry about how she'd help her tenants and how she could compensate for their belongings that had been burned and damaged in the fire. She took all the profits from the printing businesses of the last two years and used that to cover for damages and with what was left she helped the diner owner get his place fixed again, "Do you want me to tell him who the check is from?" James asked as he took the check from Jackie.

"No, tell him it's from someone who wishes him well".

"Yes ma'am", He said before leaving for the door.

It had been weeks now since the fire incident took place, back then she was frustrated and angry and now the situation was simmering down, and everything was coming back to the way it was. She took a lung full of air and went to look out the glass window in her office. It was a beautiful life, she concluded. Full of surprises and moments one often asked themselves if they will get through it. She loved it. Jackie didn't know if she was happy yet, but she knew she loved how fast it sometimes gets. Working was what made her feel good and human and whole. Without the crazy nights, construction visits, long drives to see stands and shaking hands it would mean nothing. It wouldn't be meaningful to exist.

Over the past few days, she hadn't had time to see her friends, she hadn't visited her mom and had only been at Loura's place once. As for her boyfriend, they tried to squeeze whatever time they had left out of their days for each other. He'd been her rock during this crazy time and now she wanted to see him so badly that she grabbed her bag and car keys and ran out of the office.

She usually sends him a quick text to let him know she was coming but today she didn't. She drove herself to his place. When he opened the door and saw her standing there, a smile stretched across his face. He picked her up and she giggled like a schoolgirl, "Why didn't you tell me you were coming. I would have come pick you up", He said, putting her back down.

She shrugged before walking into the kitchen. He had his laptop out and a few paperwork spread out on the kitchen counter, "You were working", She noted.

"Yeah, I'm almost done. Do you want something to drink?"

"No, I'm okay. Come sit, I want to watch you work", He chuckled and sat back down next to her.

"I haven't had dinner yet. Pizza pie?"

"Yes please".

He ordered the pizza pies, and she made herself comfortable next to him. For the entire time that he was working, she just watched him. He pretended not to notice but as soon as he had saved his work and closed his laptop, she was the first thing he grabbed, sitting her on his lap and not allowing her to move until their delivery arrived. He was just as clingy as she was, it was a relief to be with someone that wanted to touch her and be touched as much as she did. Someone who gave as much as she did. It felt good to be with someone that liked her as a person and a woman. There was no abuse, no gaslighting and dishonesty. As much as he loved he wanted to be loved, and she respected him for being upfront about that. He didn't just want to give, and he'd made that clear from the start.

She knew that he'd made that clear because of what he'd been through in the past. She could tell he'd been somewhat uncared for and had not been catered to. He'd had his own share of hurt and had been neglected by someone who didn't want to be neglected, that's why he emphasized that she was a caring girlfriend whenever she asked him if he took his jacket with, if he'd gotten home okay and every time, she called to check up on him.

As she caressed his hair and he lay his head on her lap later on the couch, she knew she couldn't do anything about his past just as he couldn't go back to the time she'd been involved with Mathew and tell her she didn't talk too much and wasn't annoying. He couldn't erase that part of her life just as she couldn't erase any part of her life. They could only care for the versions of each other in this moment for the time they were together. She watched their pain die slowly in that moment. He was healing her in a way he would never understand.

"Should we go to bed?".

"Huh?" She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn't realize he was now sitting up looking at her with that smile that reminded her of the sound of his laughter. She suddenly wanted to hear it. But tomorrow; she'd make him laugh tomorrow because right now she wanted to be lying next to him under the covers with no sound but their quiet breathing.