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Jack wanted to yell at Amelia that she was being unreasonable, but that wasn’t fair. Her feelings were what they were. He had no right to tell her they were wrong.
But he wasn’t sure he’d communicated his situation very well.
Asking for another chance, even to his own ears, sounded like just an excuse.
How could he prove to her that he was a man worth trusting? Was trust earned? Or was it a given until destroyed?
It was an age-old question, but one Jack thought he knew the answer to. It depended on who you were and your life experiences.
Jack trusted.
He’d never had any reason not to trust people—not blindly.
His parents had been fair and kind. His wife was loyal until they realized they weren’t right for each other. His friends were reliable and supportive.
Whereas Amelia had shared with him that her former partners had cheated. Even her father had broken a level of trust by not standing by her and being a kind and supportive father.
His actions, while they’d taken place before they’d met, had triggered her.
The problem was Jack’s understanding changed nothing. Amelia may never be willing or capable of trusting him and putting her heart on the line to be with him.
Jack returned to his room, did a few hours’ work, and then hit the beach. Swimming was an excellent way to clear away the lingering hangover and lack of sleep.
But he found no answers in the ocean. So he lay on the beach staring at the palm tree-filled sky and waiting for inspiration.
It didn’t come.
Jack wondered if it would.
Or if Amelia would message.
Or if he should message her.
By the next afternoon, he found himself sitting on the beach again, his dark glasses over his eyes and a cap twisted backwards, wondering if he should become a surfer. Maybe throw in his job, move to Hawaii, and live the simple life.
It didn’t matter what he chose to do. He still wanted Amelia beside him.
Her sexy smile.
Her joyful laugh.
Her warm body leaning into his as his arm draped around her.
The wedding was today, and he had no idea when she was returning or if she was flying home directly to Philadelphia. Had she thought about him, or was she moving on and forgetting about him right at this moment?
He thought about calling Steve or Kellen and getting some man advice, but both of them had already told him what he’d done was a poor decision.
Good friends did that, even if it was hard to hear.
They didn’t know about Amelia, and he felt the best thing to do was keep it to himself.
His phone buzzed, and Jack pulled it out way too fast. By the time he held his hand over it to block the sun's glare, he knew he’d been stupid to expect it would be Amelia.
It was his mom.
“Hey, Mom,” Jack answered. “Everything okay?”
“Yes. I was just checking up on you now that things have smoothed out.”
