Mistakes

Chapter 7: The Friends We Can't Lose

As for her job, Clary had never felt better. Jace had been right, her freezing with their first client was just a result of cold feet. She loved the level of control having big shot clients gave her, she loved travelling in order to do what she liked, and most of all, she loved bragging about it to her father.

Valentine had always been her biggest supporter, even though he always made jokes about how she was 'yet another soulless salesperson'; and no matter how much it made her sound like a daddy's girl, she liked knowing that her father was proud of her and looking forward to seeing what she would do next.

And contrary to what she had expected, working with Jace was anything but awkward. On the contrary, it had many advantages that she liked to claim at the end of the day. Professionally speaking, Jace was always keen to teach her tricks he had acquired in different companies or to let her shine before a customer.

A sort of unspoken rule came between them, stating that they would always use their team in their advantage. According to the customer they had, one would take the lead, knowing that they could relate more to that person. Whether it was empathising to their personal life, and simply flirting with the idea of a flirt. Which was Clary's favourite part. She loved having old men as customers because even though they flirted, it was simply for the game of it, which she found cute and sweet.

And when they were alone, Jace turned out to be ... not so much of the cliché of the cheating husband that Clary had expected.

In fact, if she hadn't known about his marital status, she wouldn't be able to tell. He never wore his ring when he was with her. He always treated her more like a girlfriend, not a mistress. Even when they weren't together, he would sometimes text her, something as simple as asking how her day was.

Of course, he still delivered when in bed. More than once, they simply slept next to one another, without anything sexual before or after sleep. And though she knew she shouldn't, she still appreciated those moments. The cuddles that showed the sweet side of Jace she was getting too acquainted with. She knew that those cute little things were by definition against the fundamental of a simple carnal relationship, but ... she liked to think it was a problem for another day.

During the first couple of months after they started their relationship, Clary learnt that Jace's biggest quality was how much he respected people. No matter where they went, no matter what they did, he always gave his utmost attention to the invisible people. The waiter, the stewardess, the receptionist, the garbageman. All those people no one ever paid attention to, Jace always listened as if they were the Queen of England themselves.

He was also generous, though Clary took it as a logical ensuite to his respectfulness. But most importantly, he paid attention. When she was talking to him, she knew she was talking to him. She knew he wasn't thinking of something else or just waiting for her to shut up so he could get her on her back.

Still, no matter how nice of a person he was, there was a couple of things that made Clary sure she would never fall for him. First, he was a smoker. And sure, despite the fact that she never said anything to him about it, Jace quit smoking in front of her, or when he was with her, but the fact was that he still smoked, and Clary couldn't see herself falling for someone passively killing themselves.

And second, Jace was stiff. No matter how attentive and nice he was. He rarely let go of his professionalism, and she never saw him act silly. Sure, she knew he was already in his thirties, and that society pressured guys to appear tougher than they were, but Jace was ... a bit of a stick in the mud. He might be a freak in the sheets, but as soon as they were finished, he would go back to his rigidness.

She could understand how it could turn some women on, how someone being stoic could translate to someone being there for you, and always reliable, to strength and support. But that wasn't her. Which was why she didn't care. She knew that she wouldn't fall for Jace and that what they were doing was just a phase in her life. A messed up phase that she never thought would be in, but something that wouldn't last forever.