Bloodline [h.s.]

eighteen.

As I heard the key on the other side of the door, I knew I had less than ten seconds to disappear. The space between the bed and the floor was too narrow. The best exit was the window Nate had left open for a breeze.

"Just a minute, Cara. I'm coming." Nate said to stall her.

I swung one leg out the window before he looked at me with wide eyes, "You're going to fall."

"This, brother, is where my training comes in." I said, before smoothly making my exit.

It was dark enough outside for me to not worry about being seen. The roof was slightly slanted but flat enough for me to stand my ground. I leaned back against the stone bricks for stability as I debated whether it was safer to climb down the house or wait for the girls to leave before reentering. I wasn't able to hear inside the room enough, so I proceeded to strategise my descent.

There was a strip a grass that seemed better to land on than the driveway. I slowly moved forward from the bricks. As I reached the edge of the roof, I looked down to prepare to jump. I was at least four metres from the ground, so I knew not to land on my feet unless I wanted to break both my legs. I took a breath before jumping.

"Fuck," I groaned. Most of the force went into my shoulder. I heard someone shriek as they heard me hit the ground.  I quickly scrambled to my knees, hoping to pass this off as a stumble rather than a fall from the roof.

"Oh my god, Jacob?" Bridget turned around to my direction, "You scared the life out of me."

Shit. She ran over to me. At least, she didn't see the fall.

"What did you... how... what just happened?" She asked. I had to think fast.

"I... tripped over my feet." She took my hands to help me up with a smirk on her face as she tried not to laugh.

"I didn't even see you. I just heard a loud thump. Are you okay?" She chuckled before laughing at my expense when she saw that I was okay.

"Yeah, yeah, it's very funny." I laughed with her, relieved I didn't have to explain why I was jumping off the roof. I wiped off the dirt and grass.

"What are you doing here?" She asked.

"I just dropped off some work stuff that Nick wanted. About to head home. What are you doing here?"

"Wine night with Cara. I needed a break from my dad. He's on a rampage because this big potential investor pulled out last minute. He's blaming me, per usual." She said, rolling her eyes.

Compliments of Nick and I. I bit my tongue.

"I'm sorry. You're good at what you do. Sometimes it's just easier to have someone to be angry at. Why are you out here?" I wondered.

"Cara and I got into a stupid argument, and I didn't drive here. I was about to call Peter to pick me up."

"I can drive you home, or... you could come over." I offered. She nodded. I opened the car door for her and came around to the other side. Bridget was looking down at her hands.

BRIDGET GALLAGHER

"What did you and Cara fight about?" Jacob asked as he pulled out of the driveway.

"When I told her what happened with work, she said I let my family turn me into an 'etiquette robot' that only cares about work and my parents' approval. Then, she said... some other things that just pissed me off."

"What other things?" He pressed.

The last thing I wanted to do was share with him Cara's unsolicited criticisms of my sex life. But I didn't want to make something up. Part of me wanted to know what he would say. I knew I shouldn't take what she said seriously, especially when she said after five glasses, but it still bothered me a little.