Giving In

Chapter 6

"Jackson..." Kay breathed out.

"Don't say anything, Kay. I honestly don't want to hear anything right now. I said what I've been dying to say, but I know that it doesn't matter. I love you, but I don't want to be with you. I can't be with someone who can push me away and hook up with someone else. Besides, you already told me that you didn't want me. There's nothing I want to hear from you right now. I will schedule our times at the restaurant so they don't overlap. You're a great manager, and I told you that whatever happened between us wouldn't affect your job, and I intend to make good on that promise." He poured his coffee and started to walk away.

"Jackson, wait." Kay stood to her feet and tried to go to him, but he cut her off.

"No Kay, I'm done waiting. Please, just leave me alone." With that, he walked outside to sit on the porch.

Kay started crying even harder than she already was and it caused her to fall to the floor. She curled herself up right there in the middle of the kitchen floor and sobbed her heart out. She stayed there until Lillie came out to make coffee. Lillie found her in the middle of the floor and crouched down to her side.

"What happened sweetie?" Lillie whispered while brushing the hair out of Kay's face.

"I messed up and now Jackson doesn't want anything to do with me." Kay cried out.

"Whatever it is, he will be able to forgive you. I know him Kay, and he doesn't give up easily." Lillie tried to reassure her.

"No Lillie, you don't understand. He gave up. He basically told me to stay away from him." She wiped the fresh tears from her face. "I deserved it."

Lillie didn't know what to say. Lillie was going to ask for more details, but before she could, James walked into the kitchen and joined them. He looked from Lillie to Kay and back to Lillie with a questioning look on his face. Lillie just shook her head, as if to tell him that she wasn't sure. Kay was the first to speak.

"James, you might want to go find your brother on the porch. He more than likely needs you right now." She tried to be strong while saying the words, but she broke down again. She tried to stand to walk away, but she fell. James caught her and carried her down to her room, with Lillie following close behind.

Lillie decided to stay with her friend, and her husband agreed to get the baby monitor and go outside to check on his brother. He was kicking himself because he knew that having both Jackson and Kay there when they had been drinking was a really bad idea. He couldn't even begin to imagine what happened between them. He knew the only way to find out was to go talk to Jackson and find out. He took a deep breath and opened the door.

"Hey big brother, what are you doing sitting out here?" James sat down in the chair next to Jackson's.

"I just needed some time to think. I told Kay I loved her, but I also told her that I couldn't be with her. I told her to leave me alone." Jackson said sadly.

"What the hell happened that you would do that?" His brother asked confusedly.

"She came home with some other guy from the bar. They were all over each other when they came in. The sight of her touching someone else made me sick to my stomach. She couldn't let me in, but she could sleep with a complete stranger? I don't get it. It doesn't matter anyway, she had already told me that she didn't want me. What the hell is so wrong with me that she couldn't bring herself to get close to me? I know she has feelings for me, but she chose to push me away and run into the arms of a complete stranger instead, and that is something that I cannot forgive." Jackson hung his head. He was willing himself not to cry again.

"I'm so sorry, Jackson. I didn't know that Kay would ever do something like that." James was instantly mad at his wife's best friend for breaking his brother's heart. He knew that Jackson was going to go back to being the quiet, cold shell of a man that he was after Deanna hurt him. He couldn't stand to see his brother that way.

The two men sat on the porch watching the sun rise in the sky. They didn't speak to each other about anything, just sipped their coffee and stared into the sky. They sat that way until Avariella's cries spilled out of the monitor. James stood, patted his brother on the shoulder, and walked back into the house. He knew that he had to let his anger towards Kay go, because they shared a house, and she was Lillie's best friend. He hoped that Lillie didn't condone what she had done to his brother though, because that would cause problems between them.

Lillie joined James in the nursery to feed Ava. She sat in the rocking chair, and James leaned himself against the dresser. He looked at her, and she couldn't tell what emotions were in that look. She could see the love he had for her and their daughter, but she also saw sadness and anger.

"What's the matter James?" She asked quietly.

"I'm pissed off right now. I can't believe Kay could behave the way she did. My brother is so broken right now, and it's her fault." He said with a very matter of fact tone to his voice.

"She couldn't stop crying long enough to tell me what happened, so you need to fill me in on just what it was she did that you are pissed about." Lillie was lost. She had sat in the basement with Kay, but Kay wouldn't say a word about what happened.

James took a deep breath, trying to clear his mind before talking. He didn't want to upset his wife by saying something that he would later regret. After a minute of silence, he explained everything to Lillie. He told her about the guy that Kay brought back to the house, told her about how broken Jackson was, and explained to her that Jackson no longer wanted anything to do with Kay.

"Oh my goodness Jamie, I don't know what the hell is going on with her. She is self sabotaging, and there is absolutely nothing I can say to her right now. I can't believe that she would do something like that. She's not usually that heartless." Lillie felt disappointed.

After Lillie fed Ava, she handed the baby to her husband. She walked out to find Jackson, but he was gone. She checked the driveway, and his car was gone. Lillie allowed herself to sink down in the chair outside and take a deep breath of fresh air. Her brother-in-law was a big boy, and she knew that he could take care of himself. She just felt bad for anyone that had to come in contact with him, because she knew that he was going to be biting some heads off because of his mood. She was hoping that he just went home to sulk and sleep.