Rain pounded against the window without any sign of letting up. It has been almost a week since my nightmare and I have been trying to avoid Jaime as much as possible since then. He's been busy with work which made it easier. I could feel myself starting to settle in here, and being with Jaime was... well, I wasn't sure. I was nervous around him, but it was a different feeling from when I first got here. That scared me.
I showered and got dressed for the day and headed to the kitchen to start breakfast, wondering what new recipe Alma was going to throw at me. But when I rounded the corner, instead of Alma, there were two men in the kitchen, one sitting at the island and the other leaning against the counter. I didn't recognize either of them, and I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion. Their conversation stopped when I entered the kitchen and both pairs of eyes landed on me. They scanned the length of my body and I crossed my arms over my chest.
"I was looking for Alma. Have either of you-"
"Who do we have here?" The man sitting interrupted me, swiveling in his seat. He raked a hand through his thinning, gray hair, combing it out of his face.
I grew uneasy under his stare, a frown forming on my face. The man smirked at my obvious discomfort. "No one. Just looking for someone."
"Aren't we all?"
As soon as I lifted my foot off the ground, he stood, towering at least half a foot above me. The other man just watched with feigned disinterest. Before he could move an inch, I felt a presence behind me.
The man's expression changed, and his smirk quickly fell away, replaced by what might be a little bit of fear. I didn't have to turn around to know who it was. I could feel the anger rolling off of him.
"Ava, could I talk to you for a minute?"
I turned around, but Jaime was already halfway down the hallway. As soon as we were out of earshot, Jaime asked through tight lips, "What were you doing with them?"
I scoffed. "Are you seriously mad at me? I didn't even know they were there until I walked in. Who are they?"
"Business partners."
"You sure know how to pick them." I rolled my eyes, about to stalk off when Jaime swiftly caught my hand.
"Listen, some of these men-most of these men- can be dangerous. Just be careful, okay?" His shoulders sagged in exhaustion and he ran a hand down his face. I glanced down at our hands and a tingle ran up my arm.
"Fine." I nodded, snatching my hand back. He stared into my eyes for a couple more seconds before walking past me into the kitchen. I decided not to stick around for the awkward conversation that was about to ensue, wandering the hallways. I think it's safe to say that I was growing bored of being stuck in this house.
Finally, Alma found me drifting through the hallways, and I joined her back into the kitchen. The men were gone and so was Jaime. Alma sensed my anxiety, probably after I almost dropped my third plate, and I told her about the encounter this morning.
"Some people walk around here like they own the place." Alma huffed, wiping her hands aggressively on a dish towel.
She removed several items from the cabinets, setting them down on the counter. I studied them; flour, sugar, eggs...
"A cake? What's the occasion?" I nodded at the ingredients.
"It's Jaime's birthday." Alma gathered some whisks and mixing bowls before getting to work.
"Jaime's birthday? Today?" I leaned across the counter, grabbing the powdered sugar and a mixing bowl. "What's planned?"
Alma's eyes lit up. "That's right. You haven't been here that long." She measured out some flour. "Well, nothing really. Jaime barely allows me to bake a cake for him."
"That's no fun." I reached across for the butter, barely hitting the bag of flour with my elbow, but it was enough to topple the bag. Flour puffed up in a cloud, staining my face and arms white. Alma burst out in laughter, throwing a towel in my direction. I wiped furiously at the powder, but it did nothing but make a bigger mess and put a stitch in my side from laughing so hard.
"I don't think this is going to work. I'll be back later." I meant to wipe the tears from my eyes before remembering that I was covered in flour. I carefully walked back to my room, trying hard not to leave a trail of flour behind me. Someone exited the room next to mine, and Jaime raised an eyebrow when he saw me.
"Not a word." I warned him.
His shoulders shook, and his laughter filled the hallway. I slapped his chest as I brushed past him, leaving a white handprint in the middle of his dark shirt. He gaped at me, mouth hanging open. Now it was my turn to laugh, and I left him standing dumbfounded in the hallway.
*****
"Happy birthday to you!"
Jaime glared down Alma as she walked into the dining room, holding a massive layered cake out in front of her, but from the way his lip quirked up on one side, I could tell it was an endearing glare. The rest of the dinner table hastily joined in, and soon everyone was belting out "Happy Birthday." Nobody at the table was a very good singer. Cole was purposely singing the loudest and the most off key. My cheeks were hurting from laughing by the end of it.
Alma set the cake down in front of Jaime. I helped with the frosting, as I was too preoccupied with washing flour off me to help with baking it. It was a simple vanilla cake with buttercream frosting and a cursive "Happy Birthday" running across it. Apparently, it was the same cake every year. I did manage to mix a little lemon juice in the frosting when Alma wasn't looking though so it wasn't totally boring.
Jaime cleared his throat, and everyone fell silent. "Thank you, Alma. Even though I tell you every year not to make a cake, you always defy me and make one anyway." Alma didn't seem the least bit bothered, and from the smile Jaime gave her, he didn't seem to be either. "And thank you everyone for all your hard work in the past year. I am grateful for the family I was given." Jaime raised his glass, everyone following suit.
"Make a wish." I gestured to the lit candles on the cake. I had managed to find some stashed in a drawer. I had a feeling Jaime wasn't turning nine, but that was all I could find.
Jaime rolled his eyes, but he leaned forward and blew them out. Cole slapped him on the shoulder. "Congratulations on turning nine years old, sprout. You are wise beyond your years." Laughter erupted around the table and this time Jaime joined in.
After everyone had their fill of birthday cake, they parted their separate ways. I pulled Jaime aside just as he was about to leave, and he looked at me in shock. I guess that was fair, I had been avoiding him the past week. "I have a birthday present for you."
I led him down the hallway, and we arrived in the music room. I walked over to the piano and sat on the bench. I looked over at Jaime standing still in the doorway, an unreadable expression on his face. I scooted down the bench and patted the spot beside me. Jaime approached slowly, and sat beside me. There wasn't a lot of room on the bench and our arms brushed against each other. That's not going to be distracting.
"Ava, you don't have to-"
"It's okay." I swallowed, pushing down my emotions. Dread, fear and maybe a little excitement. "It's okay. I've been practicing. And then Alma told me it was your birthday so..." I drifted off and before I lost the nerve, I placed my fingers against the keys of the piano.
I felt his eyes on me, but I tried to tune him out. My hands shook slightly as they moved into position, knowing exactly where to go even after all this time. I played the first note, and before I realized it, I was lost in the music. The piano vibrated with the passion that I poured into it. Everything around me faded. By the end of the song, my hands were tired, but my body was wide awake.
I opened my eyes, I'm not even sure when I had closed them, and turned on the bench to face Jaime. Our knees touched, and a surge of electricity radiated from where they touched. The room seemed about ten degrees warmer than when we walked in, and a blush crept up my neck from Jaime's fierce gaze. My eyes connected with Jaime's and he leaned forward a fraction of an inch.
"Happy Birthday, Jaime." I whispered, the rest of my breath leaving my lungs with those three words.
They barely left my mouth when Cole barged into the room. He stopped short at the sight, hastily apologizing. "Sorry to interrupt-"
Jaime's eyes didn't leave mine, but his jaw ticked in irritation. "Then why did you?"
"It's Pavlov."
A/N
Well, here it is. The first fifteen chapters, but don't worry, I'll get the rest up soon. In the meantime, let me know what you think and don't forget to vote if you're enjoying the story!