Under Different Circumstances

Chapter 19

Chapter 19

Jay had been wrong when he'd said that he'd be back sooner than I'd know. The last day and a half before he returned, were the worst. They dragged on and on and just didn't want to end.

I spent the first half of the day on Wednesday teaching my mother and Zoe accounting and for the second half, I waited tables.

Unlike my dad who had nearly ruined the restaurant a few years ago with his terrible bookkeeping and unwillingness to learn, my mum and Zoe were eager learners and picked everything I taught them up quickly. But even though the training was going well and the customers at the restaurant were friendly and lovely, I just wanted to be done with all of it.

Since I had taken up work again on Saturday, every day at the restaurant had been excruciatingly mundane. I had resumed the daily routine that I'd followed before I'd met Jay and witnessed him and his team work. But because I had caught a glimpse at my ideal private and work life, my former life just wasn't good enough anymore.

I knew that Jay would be back in just a few hours and that I'd be starting at the police academy the following week, but until then, I was stuck in my old life and it became so dreadfully apparent to me that I'd spent years in a daily grind that had brought me no happiness, no fulfilment.

On Thursday, after training a new waiter whom my parents had hired earlier that week, I went home in the afternoon to spend the evening with Jay.

We had made plans to have dinner at my place before meeting the rest of his unit at Molly's. I had invited Will and Zoe too, and both had said that they would come by.

When I left the restaurant, I got a text from Jay telling me that they'd started their trip down to Chicago which meant that I had a little over two hours to kill. I was overflowing with excited energy which made sitting still while waiting for him impossible. So I turned on some loud music when I got home and began cleaning.

After I had vacuumed my entire house and cleaned the kitchen, I took a long shower and got ready for the night out. I got dressed, put on a little bit of makeup, and added some curls to my shiny blonde hair.

I was combing my fingers through the curls to loosen them up when the doorbell rang. My breath hitched, and my heart jumped with joy. Beaming from ear to ear, I raced down the stairs, taking two steps at a time, and skipped through my kitchen to the front door, feeling light as a feather. Without losing any momentum, I threw the door open and flung myself at Jay, wrapping my arms around his neck and my legs around his hips. The impact thrust him back a step, but he caught me securely and enveloped me in his embrace. I buried my face in his neck and held on to him tightly, silently vowing to never let go.

When he'd left Chicago, he had taken a part of me with him and left me behind feeling empty and incomplete. By locking him securely in my embrace, sensing both of our heartbeats hammering in our chests, and inhaling his scent, I was slowly becoming whole again. He held on to me so firmly that he stifled my breathing, but it only made me hug him tighter in return.

We stayed on my doorstep for a few minutes, not speaking, not moving, just relishing the moment and our reunion. Eventually, Jay stepped into my house. While I reached out and closed the door, he carried me through the hallway and up the two steps to the kitchen, kicking off his shoes while walking. He set me down onto the kitchen island, and we loosened our embrace just enough to look at each other. Jay ran his hands over the sides of my face slowly, and the touch sent tingles up and down my body. I studied his face closely while my hands held on to his lean waist. He looked different. He'd let his beard grow out over the past one and a half weeks, and slight dark circles hung under his eyes. However, his expression when looking at me had remained unaltered. Sincere and boundless affection glowed in his green eyes as they bore into mine. He inched his face closer while maintaining eye contact until I closed my eyes and felt his lips on mine. The kiss wasn't passionate. It was slow and tender, soft and gentle, but it held all the intensity and profundity of our emotional connection. We lingered in the simple touch, taking our time to experience the sensation to the fullest.