Giving In

Chapter 3

Kay pulled away from the kiss and took a step back out of Jackson's arms. Her face was bright red, and she was confused and flustered. She stood just staring at him for what seemed like forever. Kay could not figure out what to say to Jackson, and once she thought of the words, she couldn't seem to get her voice to work at first. Part of her wanted to pull him back in and kiss him silly and the other part of her wanted to slap him and stomp her feet like a petulant child.

"Jackson, why do you keep doing this? I thought we had decided that we wouldn't be taking it any farther?" She glared at him for a minute, then her face softened, and she glanced away.

"Kay, I told you how I feel. I don't know if I can stay away from you. I have liked you since you started working for me, and every time I see you with my brother and sister-in-law, it makes me like you even more. I told you that I don't care if you have a past, I just want to be with you." Jackson stepped closer to Kay and put his arms around her. "Please don't push me away."

"Jackson, please respect my wishes." She whispered before turning out of his arms and making her way out of his office.

Once Kay had left; Jackson slammed his office door shut and plopped down hard into his chair. He turned on his computer to do some of his office responsibilities, but he could not think clearly. After a half hour of just sitting in his office, he wandered out to check on his employees. He knew he wasn't going to get anything done in his office because he couldn't concentrate on anything.

"Carter, you need to clean up this mess!" He yelled at the dish washer.

"Lexi, how many times do I need to tell you to write your orders more clearly? If the cooks can't read the tickets, they won't know what to cook for the customers!" He yelled at one of the waitresses.

"Cassidy, you better clean up this bar! I am not going to have my establishment looking like shit!" He yelled at the bartender.

Jackson knew that he was not in the mood to be there. He mixed himself a strong drink, and then went to find his lead cook and lead waitress that were working. He needed someone to keep an eye on the place, because he knew he had to get out of there before he fired everyone. It wasn't their fault that he was in a foul mood, and he knew that he needed to go somewhere to relax before his blood pressure went through the roof.

"Jessica, Jared, I need you guys to run the place for me tonight. I need to get out of here. I promise you both that you will not have jobs tomorrow if this place isn't spotless when I get here in the morning. Do you hear me?" He asked. After they both nodded in agreement, he finished his drink and left the building.

Jackson wanted to talk to his brother but knew that Kay would be there. He wanted to get Lillie's opinion on the situation with Kay, but he didn't dare go to their house. He went home, took a long, hot shower, and made himself a stiff drink. He decided to just call Lillie and hope that he wasn't interrupting her.

"Lillie, Is Kay near you or can you talk?"

"She's down in the basement. What the hell happened between you two, Jackson? Kay came home from work in a really bad mood, refused to eat dinner, didn't want to talk to anyone, and just ran downstairs." Lillie sighed loudly.

"I told her how I felt. She's pushing me away. I was really stupid Lil, knowing that she didn't want to be with me, I kissed her." Jackson confessed. He took a deep breath and told Lillie the whole story.

"She has been through a lot in her life, and she is scared of getting close to someone. She has built her walls around her heart, and you will need to break them down." Lillie advised.

"How do I do that when she wants nothing to do with me?" He asked quietly.

"Well, I don't see you as someone who gives up very easily. You need to figure out a plan and stick with it. If you want her, you will have to show her how you feel. You will have to be patient with her and let her tell you all of the gory details of her past." Lillie really wanted her best friend and her brother-in-law to get together, because she knew that they both had things happen in their lives that they needed to overcome.

"Can I make a suggestion, Jackson? I think you need to tell Kay about Deanna. Tell her about what you have done in your life, and the mistakes that you made and overcame."

"I cannot believe that James told you about Deanna! What else did he tell you?" Jackson had never told anyone, aside from his brother, about the horrible things he did after Deanna left him.

"I am not judging you Jackson; besides I am Jamie's wife. He tells me things. Don't be mad at him. Please just consider telling Kay, I think it would ease her mind to know that you both have a past."

"Do you think I could come over? If she doesn't want to see me, then at least I will be able to spend time with that beautiful niece of mine." Jackson sounded like he was pleading with Lillie to allow him to come over.

"Jackson, you are our family. You never have to ask permission to come over and you know that." Lillie informed him. "I have to let you go, your beautiful niece is awake and needs to be fed, just come on over." With that, Lillie hung up the phone.

Jackson got dressed and ready to go over to his brother's house. He knew Lillie was right. He needed to tell Kay about his past, and maybe she would be more open to allowing him to be a part of her future. He made his way out to the car and took his time driving across town. The whole drive there, he thought about what he would say to her.

Once Jackson arrived, he let himself into the house. He hugged Lillie and kissed her on the cheek, hugged his brother, and kissed Avariella on the forehead. Without saying anything, he walked into the kitchen and got himself a soda from the fridge. He decided that if he didn't get downstairs and talk to Kay, he would lose his nerve and run back home with his tail between his legs.

"Kay, I am sorry about what happened earlier. I would really like to talk to you about a few things if you don't mind listening." He sat down next to her on the sofa.

"I don't know what you could possibly have to say, but I am willing to listen." She whispered.

"I want to tell you about a few things from my past." He turned at looked her in the eyes.

"I don't know what it has to do with me." She said before looking away.

"My senior year in high school, I met this girl, Deanna. I thought she was perfect. We dated half of our senior year and continued to see each other when I went to college. After being together for three years, I proposed to her, and she agreed to marry me. We decided that we would plan the wedding slowly, and we would get married after I graduated from school. A year after I asked her to marry me, she got pregnant. I was still in school, but only had a few terms left before I graduated. I did everything I could for her to keep her happy and make sure she was healthy. I remember the day she went into labor. I was freaking out. I stood by her side through her entire labor, and I watched as that little boy entered this world. I was so happy to be a daddy, but that was taken away from me very quickly." He paused to wipe the tear from his eye.

"The baby wasn't mine. Deanna had been seeing someone else for a good part of our relationship. She said that I was too busy studying to pay attention to her, so she found someone who would. I found out when the baby was only a couple days old that he wasn't my son. I lost it. Deanna moved out of our apartment and moved straight in with the guy that she had been cheating on me with. I was lonely, and I was angry. I never thought I would ever have feelings for someone again. I started drinking a lot, and every weekend I ended up with a different girl. I was like that for a couple months until James sat me down and talked some sense into me." He looked over at Kay to see her watching him with a tear glistening in her eye.

"I am sorry that happened to you. That must have been difficult." She whispered. She leaned over and wrapped her arms around him.

"I had to put my child up for adoption, Jackson. I was homeless, I didn't know who the father of the baby was, and I couldn't take care of a child at sixteen." She cried.

"After I had him, he went to a nice family from upstate. After that, I really felt empty. I didn't know who I was anymore. I started drinking a lot, and I got addicted to cocaine. As soon as I turned eighteen, I started working at a strip club. I needed money to feed my habit. Jackson, I slept with random men for money." She said with the shame evident in her voice.

"I am sorry Kay; it seems we both turned to habits to numb our pain and made choices that we probably wouldn't have normally made under other circumstances." He wrapped his arms around her tight and held her while sobbed.