“Mr. Pretty. Rich, successful, and good-looking,” he said, holding up a finger as he named each item on the list.
“And that’s a bad thing?”
He’d wondered the same thing when he first learned what met the requirements.
Jack previously told Leah about Lauren losing a baby and now he gave her a watered-down version about Graham Stone and what Lauren had gone through.
“Oh, that poor woman. How much heartbreak can one person take?” She brushed a tear from her cheek. “She’s probably right, you should stay away.”
What the hell?Swiveling his head, Jack stared at her with surprise. “I’m nothing like Graham. A minute ago you told me she’d be good for me!” he said, taking offense.
She placed a hand on his arm. “Jack, I have no doubt that you would never leave a woman pregnant and alone. But your track record isn’t great. If you’re not serious about Lauren, leave her alone. I’d hate for her to have to go through heartbreak again.” When he tried to speak she held out a hand to stop him. “There may be sparks flying around you two, but I can understand why she wouldn’t want to take the risk with you.” He tried to speak only to be stopped again.
“You grew up in the footy community where relationships, let’s face it, weren’t the best. Then you have women throwing themselves at you because of your money and fame. Your good looks were the icing on the cake, and you knew exactly how to use your pretty-boy looks to lure them in. I have to admit, apart from Amy, you did only go for the women who never expected happily ever after. And Lauren will want happily ever after.”
Tension pinched the back of his neck. “You don’t even know her.”
“I know her type, and she’s not someone you can fool around with. You either take this seriously or you leave her alone.”
Leah’s words rang with truth, and it wasn’t anything he hadn’t already been thinking. No, he wasn’t like the asshole Graham Stone, but had he treated women any better? Most of the time he could pick the good-time girls and no one got hurt. Then along came Amy. She wasn’t a booty call. He knew she wanted the ring on her finger and the happily ever after, and he had tried to believe he could do the relationship thing. It didn’t work, and Amy ended up getting hurt.
He never wanted to hurt Lauren, and if things were to go any further, that’s exactly what might happen. Maybe Leah, for once in her life, was right. He should leave Lauren alone. But why did stepping away feel so damn hard to do?
Chapter Nineteen
Lauren checked her watch for the third time. Belinda was twenty minutes late.
By now Lauren should know that Belinda never turned up on time. The woman got a cheap thrill out of making Lauren wait. If she was so desperate for money, the least she could do was show up on time, and yet Lauren was the one who always sat around waiting for her. Lauren would give her another ten minutes, and then what…leave? No, she couldn’t, not unless she wanted Belinda running to Graham.
After all these years, Lauren still cared about keeping the secret, even though she’d grown past being ashamed of having an affair with a married man. She’d finally realized Graham had taken advantage of a young girl starving for affection. Lauren came from a home with no love and he used it to manipulate her. The experience had changed her life, and she was the person she was today because of it—strong, independent, and ready to face what the world threw at her.
Well, all except for love. Her experience still had her believing love was a fairy tale. But now life had thrown Jack at her; a temptation of the highest degree. Whenever he glanced her way her heart skidded to a stop and her brain turned to mush. TheMr. Prettyradar shut down as soon as he entered the room and she was left to fend for herself, and she’d been doing a poor job of it.
The nineteen-year-old, battle-scarred girl still trapped inside her screamedyou’ll get your feelings crushed. Back away now and no one will get hurt!But the hot-blooded woman wanting to break free interrupted,who said anything about feelings? Have fun!
Lauren knew she couldn’t keep her body on ice forever. But could she really take Ava and Jade’s advice and only have fun with Jack? If she kept her heart detached and they both knew where they stood, then no one would get hurt, right?
This was why she was better off alone. Relationships, or even flings, were too complicated.
Once again, she checked her watch. Still no Belinda, and she didn’t have time to wait around much longer. A delivery had arrived at Jack’s office and she told him she’d come by soon to go through the boxes. A delivery dropped off by Stacey, who’d been doing a lot of them
lately. Lauren had no doubt that Stacey had purposely kept boxes back so she could make extra trips. The woman still flirted with Jack, but he’d only smile and thank her for the delivery. Deep down it pleased Lauren to watch Stacey try to turn up the heat with Jack only to walk away empty-handed.
Lauren had chosen to meet Belinda at Mandy’s, a coffee shop across the street from Jack’s office, so she could run straight over after this unpleasant meeting.
The last of the deliveries had arrived, and her time with Jack was coming to an end. Once the final lot of boxes were unpacked and the items sorted through, her job was complete. That meant she had no reason to see him anymore. And she wouldn’t have to worry about trying to control herself around him; didn’t have to worry about whether she was going to take her friends’ advice and let go and get naked with him, because he wouldn’t be in her life anymore.
That should have made her happy. She could move on with her life and not have to deal with the turmoil that coursed through her body and mind every time Jack was near. So why did her belly sink and her throat tighten at the thought of never seeing him again? Clearing her throat, she took a sip of the cooling latté and tried to pretend she didn’t care so much.
But she couldn’t resist glancing out the coffee shop window toward Jack’s office. The sun reflected off the office windows, making visibility inside impossible. Lauren’s days turning up to work at Jack’s had always gotten her excited. And to be honest, it wasn’t the job that made her heart race when she got there, it was Jack. But all things must come to an end, and the sooner it did, the better off she’d be. Like ripping off a Band-Aid, it would only hurt for a second, and then she could get back to her normalMr. Prettyfree life, free of complications. He’d been nothing more than a job, so she’d have to let her Mr. Pretty go. She shook her head. It was a somber thought; he wasn’ther Mr. Pretty, and never would be.
Lauren was lost in thought when Belinda finally arrived. She blew into the café on a cloud of cigarette smoke and cheap perfume. Belinda pulled out the chair opposite Lauren, and the timber chair creaked as she sat down hard. Clicking her fingers at a nearby waitress, she demanded coffee.
Belinda was dressed in a pair of faded black frayed shorts that looked two sizes too small and did nothing to hide her chunky legs. The purple t-shirt she’d squeezed into, that readI’m your princess, strained to cover her flabby middle. Her dirty blonde hair hung in a limp mess at her shoulders. Lines cracked the sides of her mouth, and red blemishes marked her puffy skin.
Years of smoking and drinking hadn’t been kind, and she looked a lot more than two years older than Lauren.
“So have ya got the money?” Belinda never bothered pretending to be nice.