Page 68 of Unleashing Chaos

It’s a photo of Jace and a beautiful blond, arms wrapped around each other, faces close . . . a definite couple’s pose. This looks like a relationship way too serious for Jace. At least the Jace I know.

I slide the photo into my back pocket while I replace the fridge, and then turn to him.

“Did you get your ring?” he asks, not looking up as he serves our food.

“Yeah. I found something else back there too,” I say, taking my seat beside him.

“I bet. Probably some spiders and dust. I may like a clean house, but even I have a little bit of sloth in me when it comes to cleaning behind appliances.”

“Dust, definitely, but . . .” I slide the picture across the counter with an impish grin. “Who’s this? Your high-school girlfriend?” I make a kissy face and give him an overexaggerated wink. “You two look very cozy.”

His jaw drops and he inches his fingers toward the image. “No, she wasn’t my high-school girlfriend.” Lifting the photo, he studies it for a moment longer before crinkling it into a ball.

“Wait!” I say, putting my hand over his. “Who was she? What happened?”

“Hannah. My ex-fiancé.” Jace sinks into his stool like the picture sucked all the life out of him and shuffles the food around his plate. “We were together when I had my accident. When they cut me out of my car with two feet of pole still lodged in me, she’s the one they called. Other than a couple of work associates, the contact list in my phone wasn’t long.”

I lift my hand in wide-eyed shock. “Wait. What about your parents? Didn’t they come to the hospital to take care of you?”

“No.” He falls silent, gnawing on the inside of his lip. “My dad died a long time ago. And my mother . . . she didn’t care enough to hang around. Left me with a ton of mommy issues to take up with a psychiatrist.”

“I’m sorry, Jace. If I’d known, I wouldn’t have brought it up.”

He shrugs. “It is what it is. Those mommy issues seemed to play out in my relationship with Hannah too. From what I could tell from the letter she left on this counter with her engagement ring, she couldn’t handle me being in a coma. The doctors were talking about spinal damage when I woke up. And just like good ’ole Mom, when shit hit the fan, she bolted. Story of my life.” He ends by shoveling a large bite of food into his mouth.

The matter-of-fact tone with which he speaks about these two life-altering events stuns me. First of all, Jace had been engaged? And to a woman who left him when he was in a coma? And his own mother abandoned him before that. No wonder the man doesn’t trust anyone anymore.

I pluck the photo out of his hand, toss it across the room into the sink, and flip on the garbage disposal with a snap of my fingers. “Damn, Jace. What a heinous bitch,” I blurt, and my face flushes. “Sorry. I just felt a wave of wrath my brother would’ve been proud of.”

A quiet chuckle comes from him. “Don’t worry about it. I thought I erased her existence from this place. Turns out it’s not so easy getting rid of your ghosts.”

I hop off the stool, all thoughts of dinner forgotten, and hurry to his side, pulling him to face me. I position myself between his legs and place my palms on his cheeks. “Listen to me, Jace. It all makes sense now, why you don’t trust people, why you don’t do relationships, don’t let yourself get attached.” I run my thumb over his bottom lip. “But I swear to you, I am here for you, and the only time I will leave is when I physically can’t stay any longer.” Tears fill my eyes at the thought of my friend lying alone in a hospital bed because his bitch of a fiancé couldn’t handle the possibility that she’d have to actually be there for more than just the fun stuff. “Do you hear me? You can trust me. Okay?”

“I hear you, Desi.”

It’s a start. I don’t expect him to let go of that fear overnight. He said himself that he’s sought professional help to deal with it. He’s been hurt in ways I don’t understand. I have both parents, and they would sever limbs for each other—and for me—if that’s what it took. My brothers and their partners are devoted until the end. Jace doesn’t have any examples of unconditional love left in his life. And it’s heartbreaking.

I lean forward and brush my lips against his. “But do you believe me?”

“I want to, but that’s going to take time. Be patient with me when it comes to trust.”

“I can do that.”

He tilts his head at the empty stool next to him. “Sit down and eat before we have to trash your masterpiece and order takeout.”

I climb onto the stool next to him and pull my plate in front of me. “Is it actually good?”

He smiles and nods. We eat in silence for a few minutes, and after I take my last bite, I ask, “What are you doing tomorrow? We should do something. I feel like I’ve been cooped up in the house a lot lately.”

“Have you ever skied before?”

I snort. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m not the most athletic person.”

“True. How about sledding?”

I grin. “That’s more my speed. If I fall, it’s a far shorter distance to the ground.” I bounce in my seat and clasp my hands to my chest. “I happened to buy cold weather clothes the other day at the mall, just in case I got to do something fun like this!”

“Oh, a trip to the mall. That’s new. If you break that closet with all your clothes, you’re not getting your deposit back,” Jace says with a laugh while gathering our dishes.

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