Page 34 of Never Finished

He shook his head. "But something is bothering you. Is it the guy you've been meeting with? Is he making you uncomfortable?" He questioned, and I look up at him, confused.

I'd mentioned Andrew could get a little handsy, but left it at that. "Why would you think that?"

"My employees see things in The Lounge and they talk. One server said he's a sleazeball, flirting with the female staff, and making them feel uneasy. He flirts with guests too. I’m just worried about you having to meet with him so frequently. You know, if he takes things too far, you just have to call. And if I’m not there, Charlie will gladly put him in his place."

I laughed. "Jaime, I appreciate the offer, but I'm a grown woman and I can handle Andrew. I don't need to be rescued." I reminded him.

"I know," he said. "That doesn't mean I won’t want to."

I smiled and leaned in to kiss him. It was nice to have somebody who wanted to rescue you, even if you didn't need it.

After I kissed him softly, I pulled back and said, "Thank you for wanting to take care of me, Jaime. It means a lot."

He wasn’t ready to let go of the subject just yet. "Emma? What's the nature of this deal? I understand if you can't tell me, but why does this guy think it's okay to be so aggressive, and why on earth is your father allowing it?"

I barked out a laugh. "I can't begin to comprehend why my father does anything. Just when I think I’ve figured him out, he surprises me," I said bitterly.

"Surprises you? Or disappoints you?" Jaime said, hitting the nail on the head because deep down his behavior really wasn't surprising to me.

He threatened to take away the most important person in my life if I didn’t break off all communication with Jaime all those years ago. And my best friends have been warning me for years that my father was only out for himself and wouldn’t hesitate to throw me under if it suited him.

But I haven't wanted to believe it. I’m his only child—the only family he has left. I couldn’t believe he would be so cold and calculating.

I pulled away from Jaime, and he was quick to come after me. "Hey, I'm not trying to bring up old stuff. I’m just worried," he clarified.

I shook my head. "No, you have every right to feel the way you do about my father. I just haven't decided how I feel about him yet," I said wryly. "Kind of pathetic, huh? I’m a master of getting to know people, finding out what makes them tick so I can close the deal and yet the person I’m supposed to know better than anyone, I couldn't see. Considering your history with him, you must think I'm an idiot and I couldn't blame you for it. "

Jaime reached out his hand, cupping my cheek, running the pad of his thumb over my skin, and I lean into his touch. "I've never thought you're an idiot. You’re intensely loyal, and that's something that I've always loved about you. But I would be lying if I said I didn’t wonder what life would've been like if…" He trailed off.

"If what?" I asked, knowing the answer would probably hurt, but needing to hear it anyway.

He averted his eyes. "If your loyalty extended to those outside your immediate family," he admitted, and it felt like a punch to the gut. "I don’t blame you for having an intense loyalty to your family."

"You sure about that?" I asked, desperate to know.

"No, Emma, I don't. I just… it's hard to see those closest to you for who they are, no matter how brilliant you are. Instinctively, we want to give our family members the benefit of the doubt. I watched how your father treated his family, only to have you forgive him for his misdeeds time and time again. And I resented the hell out of him. But never you. I knew you were in an impossible position."

Sadly, Jaime didn't know the half of it. He had no idea my father threatened to keep my mother away from me. She had just gotten sick, and he was going to send her away under the guise of getting her the best treatment money could buy. I couldn’t stand the thought of being separated from her, especially as she fought her first bout with cancer.

If I she hadn’t gotten sick, maybe I would have been with Jaime this whole time—I would have had the courage to choose him, but that wasn’t the choice I was given.

Jaime was an intelligent man, an old soul who innately understood life was full of challenges and heartache. I guess I hoped his understanding would keep him from feeling hurt. He was so angry with me back then and it occurs to me now that was his way of expressing his heartbreak.

"Emma?" He prodded gently.

I smiled at him sadly. "I hate that his actions have affected you," I admitted to him. It was hard to get the words out after all these years. "I just figured it was better to make a clean break, that you were better off without all the drama," I whispered, unable to say the words any louder.

Even in the dark, I could see Jaime shaking his head, a wry twist to his lips. "Seriously? You thought I would be better off without you?"

I hesitated, before I said, "Well, no, I guess I thought you would be better off without the mess that is… my family."

"You mean your father," he clarified, and I nodded, even though there was no point.

My mother embraced just about everybody she met and she always liked Jaime. But she also felt obligated to stand by her husband and his wishes. Still, I wonder what she would've thought if she'd known how her husband leveraged my love for her to get me away from Jaime.

"I would have taken you any way I could, mess and all," he said with a grin. "Besides, every family is a mess. You would've had to deal with my hotheaded Hispanic family."

We watched each other for a long moment. "Look," he finally said, "we can rehash the past, but it doesn't change any of it. The only thing we have control over is what's in front of us, and I’m pretty excited about what’s in front of me," he said, closing his arms around me from behind and nuzzling my neck.

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