Lauren watched as Ava threaded her way through the exercise equipment toward Craig, the extremely buff fitness trainer Ava had been flirting with during their last two visits.
“Poor guy,” Jade said as she stretched her arm across her chest and watched Ava work her magic. “He’s smitten with Ava and she’s going to chew him up and spit him out. You know we’re going to have to change gyms again.” She blew out a frustrated breath. “I wish she’d stop sleeping with the trainers. I liked it here.”
Lauren copied Jade’s stretch and sighed. “Good thing we didn’t buy a membership.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
It was six o’clock when Jack finished sorting through the box of paperwork which had been saved from Claire’s destruction. He unpacked and put away the delivery of office supplies he had tried to convince Lauren he needed help with. Leaning back in the new, soft leather chair, he put his feet up on the shiny mahogany desk and admired the great job she’d done with the space. Amongst the office furniture and equipment, which she had styled with a warm and modern touch, were the more personal items that gave the room character.
She had a wall dedicated to football memorabilia and awards. His 2012 grand final winning jersey hung proudly next to his Australian captaincy one. He was glad he’d kept those in storage or Claire would have destroyed them too.
The adjacent wall was kept more personal. She’d displayed photos of different stages of construction of Henderson’s. She’d found photos of his father, wearing a hard hat, inspecting the site and talking to the builders. Another showed the grand opening of Henderson’s Sports. His beaming father, with a full head of dark hair, stood proudly with his arm wrapped around his mother’s shoulders. She looked exactly like Leah did now. His mother held Leah in her arms, and Jack stood shyly next to his father with his arm around the man’s leg.
Lauren had included pictures from his first game of footy, no doubt provided by his mother, with his grubby uniform and skinned knees. His messy hair stood up in spikes, and his smile was huge as he sat on his father’s shoulders. His mother stood close, her attention on her son’s injured knees.
Jack’s throat grew tight. Lauren never experienced the love of a real family, but she knew exactly what it should look like—she displayed it perfectly on his walls. She understood what family should be about but wouldn’t reach out and grab it for herself.
With the office now finished she had no reason to keep coming back. Especially after the trouble Claire caused.
He thought he’d finally pushed through her insecurities. Thought he’d gotten her to trust again...trust him. But the mess with Claire had her running as fast as she could and once again building up walls and shutting him out.
Jack wanted to be the person she could turn to when times were hard, not someone who
caused the trouble. He wanted to protect her from every Graham, Belinda, and Claire in the world.
His football lifestyle had once kept him from believing there could be such a thing as a strong, healthy relationship, but now, because of Lauren, he knew better. She had opened his eyes to the possibility of more.
He loved her.
Damn, he never thought he’d ever fall in love. In the past, the idea would have scared the hell out of him. But not anymore; not when Lauren’s sweet, beautiful face came to mind.
She never would have opened up to him if she didn’t feel something for him too. What did he need to do to convince Lauren to see they were great together and they were strong enough to cope with the drama Claire, or anyone else could bring?
Then it hit him. He may not be able to stop Claire on her rampage of destruction; could only hope the cops found her. Nor could he stop the tabloids from printing false stories about him. But there was one thing he could do to make Lauren’s life easier. Deal with her money-hungry sister and give her one less problem in her life.
Dropping his feet from the desk, he opened his laptop. After a few clicks of the keyboard he found the information he needed. It was time to pay Belinda a visit.
* * * *
Jack parked in front of Belinda’s apartment block in the seediest part of Brimland Point. Old, run-down, red-brick apartments in need of repair lined the street. Graffiti was scrawled on the walls of the lower units, and the lawn was overgrown. Broken TVs, shredded lounges, and all sorts of debris lay in piles along the footpath.
Jack checked the dark surroundings, and for a moment, he considered leaving the death zone neighborhood. But he came there for a reason, and he wouldn’t turn back now.
He got out of the car, careful not to step on something that could potentially kill him, and moved around a rusted bicycle with missing tires. He made his way up the cracked, uneven pathway that led to the dilapidated apartments. Thank God Belinda’s apartment was situated on the ground floor. He didn’t have to go inside the death trap.
He knocked on a graffiti-covered door and heard a TV blaring from somewhere beyond it. He hoped if Belinda was inside, she didn’t leave him waiting too long. Thankfully, the door swung open before he had the chance to knock again.
A small, disheveled woman, with dirty blonde hair and clothes that had seen better days, stood in the doorway. A harsh frown appeared on her creased face. His fists clenched by his sides at the thought of Lauren having to deal with this mean-looking woman. When he finished with Belinda, Lauren would never have to see her again.
She squinted and trailed her bloodshot eyes up and down him. When recognition hit, her eyes widened and she smiled, showing stained, yellow teeth. “I know you.”
She tucked a greasy strand of hair behind her ear, puffed out her chest, and leaned her shoulder against the doorjamb. The seductive pose she tried to pull off made Jack’s skin crawl.
There were no similarities between Lauren and Belinda except for the hazel color of their eyes, although Lauren’s sparkled with health and happiness while Belinda’s looked washed out and dull.
Belinda put a hand on her hip. If she thought anything about her was sexy, she was hugely mistaken. “You’re Jack Henderson.”
“Yes, I am. I want to talk to you about your sister Lauren.” He got straight to the point, and her attempt at seduction dropped and turned to disgust. He preferred her hostility. The way she examined him a moment ago made him want to go home and take a long, hot shower.
