Page 7 of The Secret of Pain

“You all packed and ready to go, babe?” Jack pops his head around the corner into the bedroom where I’m throwing the last few things into my bag.

“Yeah, I’ll just be two minutes. You good to go?” I smile at him as he wraps his arms around me.

“I’m ready for anything as long as it’s just us two.”

“I’m sorry it’s not the break you wanted.” I sigh as he kisses my neck, but smile. Last night might have been a disaster, but today we’re going away for the weekend. Just the two of us. It’s not an escape to paradise, but he’s been working so hard, and between studying and dancing, I’ve been all over the place too. Plus, after last night, I just want to shake it off. Knowing how much tension there is between the most important people in my life sucks. I just hope that they all love me enough to accept my decisions, and to accept that I know what will make me happy.

“Babe, as long as it’s you and me, we could be in a goddamn igloo and I’d be happy.” He kisses me again before moving backward so I can spin in his arms. I place my hands on his chest and smile up at him. It’s something I’ve always loved, that he’s that bit taller than me. Shallow maybe, but I’m not a short girl, it’s nice to feel small sometimes.

“You and me forever.” I smile wider before I lift up onto my tiptoes and kiss him again.

“Now then, no more distractions otherwise we’ll never leave.” He laughs but holds me tighter.

“I don’t see any problems with that, everyone thinks we’re gone anyway. We could just hole up in here for the whole weekend. No phones, no outside world.”

“That sounds like heaven, but I might just have a surprise waiting for you.”

I laugh at him, because of course he does.

“You shouldn’t have.”

“It’s your twenty-first birthday, babe. Only happens once. We’re doing it in style.”

“What does that mean exactly?” I ask skeptically.

“It means get your ass in gear so we’re not late!” He laughs and smacks my ass before hightailing it out of the room. I can’t help but laugh back. This week is usually the worst week of the year for me, but Jack is really trying, so this year, I’m going to try too. Mom wouldn’t have wanted me to be miserable. She’d have probably kicked my ass for being this sad for this long. My heart pulls a little, but I know the smile on my face is meant to be there, so I grab my bag and head down to find Jack.

He’s already outside, so I grab my keys and lock up before I jump in his car.

“Ready?” he asks with a huge smile.

“Always.”

I lose track of time as we drive, staring out the window while Jack sings along to the radio. The scenery passes me by without me really paying much attention, because while I’m excited about whatever he has planned, I’m also a little apprehensive. We’ve not been away like this, just the two of us, since he proposed. We don’t live together and we’re so busy all the time that we’re not really on top of each other, but this weekend, just us, nothing else… They say stuff like this is what makes or breaks relationships, and things lately haven’t exactly been sunshines and rainbows..

Stuffing down the worry that’s got me chewing at my lip until it’s raw, I finally pay attention to where we are, and my heart stutters. My jaw drops at the sight in front of me. “What the…”

“Surprise!” Jack exclaims as we pull up to a private jet.

“Surprise?” My eyes dart between him and the plane, half-excited, half-wincing at how much money he’s spent on me again.

“I know how much you’ve been wanting to go to New York, and I know you always had plans to go with your mom on your twenty-first, so I wanted to do something special for you. My dad’s plane is going to take us there, and we’ll do a city flyby since it’ll be dark when we arrive. I’ve got us booked into a hotel for the weekend, and so many other things planned. I know you hate it when I spend my money, but it’s mine to spend and I can’t think of anything better to spend it on than making you happy.”

My mouth opens and closes, and for the first time in a while, I’m almost speechless.

“Jack, you shouldn’t… I mean… holy fucking shitballs. New York?” The words fall from my mouth, my eyes widening as it sinks in. “This is amazing, thank you so much!”

I wrap my arms around his neck and kiss him, trying to pour every single emotion into it. He pulls back, his eyes dark with heat. “More of that in a bit, let’s get on board so we can get in the air!”

* * *

A private car brings us from the airport to our hotel, hours later, and I have no words for today. It has been one of the best days of my life. I’ve never even flown, let alone like that. It was just… magical and a whole new type of terrifying. To be here now, in the one place I’ve always wanted to see, the lights eating the darkness around us… It looks like everything I ever imagined it would be, and I can fully understand why it was my mom’s favorite city on Earth to visit.

“Mr. Crawford, so lovely to have you staying with us.” A man with white hair opens the door to the car for us. “It’s lovely to see you again, sir. Everything has been organized as you requested. Your room is the penthouse, as always, your room cards are here and if you need anything at all, please do not hesitate to call down to the concierge.” He leads us inside, across the lobby to a door marked private, and swipes the plastic in his hand. The door opens to a small hall and an elevator which takes us up to the top floor, directly into the room. He leads the way down a short hall inside the hotel room into a small space with coat hooks. Jack takes my jacket with a smile and the man opens another door, leading us into what looks like a freaking apartment, not a hotel room.

“We hope you enjoy your stay,” he says with a smile, and his footsteps echo down the hall until the swish of a door closing lets us know he’s gone.

“Jack, this is… I have no words.”

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