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Miss you,
Zara
I am infuriated and embarrassed, and I want to spank the kids, even though I don't believe in hitting a child, or anyone, for that matter. I have never felt so humiliated in my life. And I’m also confused. What the hell had Jackson been going on about? Does he think I’m stalking him because of one night of sex? His rude comments about me not getting an Oscar are laughable. I’ve never, in my life, wanted to be an actress. And what the hell had he been talking about when he mentioned getting his story? What story? The guy is crazy.
"Come on," I say through gritted teeth while looking down at Charlotte and Luke. I cannot believe they ran around, throwing magazines on the ground.
"Sorry, Aunty Zara." Charlotte looks up at me with her wide, innocent eyes. "We were hungry and bored, and…"
"It's fine," I say, taking a deep breath and heading toward the elevator. I can see the HR ladies staring at me, and I avert my eyes. I have nothing to say to them.
"That man is so annoying," I mutter as I think about Jackson.
"What did you say, Aunty Zara?" Luke asks me. I can’t answer him right now in any way, so I shake my head as we wait for the elevator to arrive.
"Can we go to Shake Shack? I really want a cheeseburger and fries."
"With what money, Luke?" I ask him in a sharp tone. I watch his face crumple at the harshness in my tone, and I immediately feel guilty. I don't want to be that aunt. I don't want to be the person who constantly complains that they don't have enough money to buy anything. "Sorry, darling. Not today. Okay?" I smile at him. "And I'm sorry that I brought you guys here. I know it was boring."
"It's okay." He offers me a smile. "Where's Mommy?" he asks, tilting his head to the side, and my heart aches for him.
"She's just following a possible job lead," I lie, because it's not like I can tell him that his mom met some random guy at a play and has gone off doing who knows what with him.
"Oh, cool," he says. I'm grateful he's young enough not to question what I say too much.
We head down to the lobby, and I take a couple of deep breaths as disappointment fills me. So, this was not the big break I thought it was going to be—back to the drawing board: no job, no money, no interviews, no possibilities. I'm about to cry and know I can't do that in front of the kids. I can't let them see how nervous and worried I am. I can't let them feel my desperation, but I'm nervous. I don't know what I'm going to do.
I know my parents don't have money to send me. Dad still works at a used car dealership; my mom has never worked. She stayed home to raise us, and now she spends her days watching The Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful. If push comes to shove, they'll go into their retirement savings, but I didn't want to take that money, especially not knowing when or if I'll ever be able to pay it back.
"Oh, look, there's a fountain," Luke says as he pulls away from me. "Can I go and see it?" He looks eagerly at a large water fountain in the lobby that I hadn’t even noticed when we first arrived.
"Sure," I say, releasing his hand from my grip. He might as well enjoy something in this building before we leave. It's not like we have anywhere to go or anything to do. Maybe I'll take them to the park, let them swing for a bit before we go home, and have PB and J sandwiches and milk.
I watch as he runs to the fountain and immediately know that I’ve made a mistake. I see him splashing the water around and take a deep breath. I feel Charlotte squeezing my hand and look down to see her smiling. "I love you, Aunty Zara," she says out of nowhere, and I feel my heart surge.
"I love you too, Charlotte. Come on, let's go and get your brother before he gets us into more trouble," I say. I watch as Luke runs back and forth and continues splashing, then I freeze as I see that Jackson Pruitt has somehow also entered the lobby, though he's on the other side of the space. How did he get here without us seeing him?
Why is he in the lobby? Has he come to tell the security guards to never let me back into the building? I don't know why he's so suspicious of me. I have no idea why he kept telling me I wouldn’t win an Oscar. I don't know why he thought I knew who he was. Like I care about who he is. Like I care that he has money. Does he believe I slept with him because I thought he had money? I hadn't asked him for a penny, and I never would. I’m not that sort of person. I don't sleep with men for money. I’m not a prostitute or an escort. It's not like I’m going to start an OnlyFans account either. That’s just not who I am.
Jackson walks toward Luke, and I stop for a moment. I don't want to interact with Jackson.
"Luke, honey," I call out to him. "Come on, let's go." Luke looks at me, and he's about to head over when he sees Jackson about five feet away from him. I watch his little face scrunch, and then my heart stills as he bends down and starts splashing the water harder and harder.
"Oh my gosh, no," I mumble and proceeded to run toward him, but I'm too late. Before I know what's happening, Luke has splashed a tremendous amount of water over Jackson Pruitt, and Jackson is standing there glaring, his face and suit wet.
"Oh shit. I am so sorry," I say to Jackson. Even though I hate apologizing to him. "Luke!"
"Yes, Aunty Zara?" Luke responds to me with big, innocent eyes.
"You need to discipline your kids," Jackson says as he shakes his head.
I stare into his glaring aquamarine-green eyes, and I can't believe that I slept with this arrogant, pompous man. "You need to get your head out of your ass," I say. I hear the giggling from Luke and Charlotte and realize they’ve heard me say words that they’ve been admonished to never use. I grab both of their hands, look back over my shoulder at Jackson, and stick my tongue out at him. I know I'm also acting like a little kid, but I don't care.
"Luke, that was naughty," I say, telling him off as we exit the building. "You can’t go into fountains splashing people, and you're certainly not meant to get other people wet." I let out a deep sigh. "What you did was wrong."
"I'm sorry, Aunty Zara," he says in his soft little voice. "But I wanted to splash him because he was mean to you. He told you you're not getting the job and you deserve the job because you're the best. And now we can’t get ice cream."
I stare at his innocent, sweet face as we exit the building. I can't help but think he is a little warrior for defending me. I bend down, hug him, and kiss him on the cheek. "Now, what you did was still wrong, but I understand your reason," I say, rubbing the top of his head. "Thank you for taking care of the big bad wolf for me, Luke."
