My Dad's Bestfriend

Chapter 49 Hearts On The Fence

Evelyn

As I walked to his room, avoiding the glances of a few other guests along the way, my mind couldn't help but dwell on the hurtful words my mother had cruelly spat at me, all in the name of "doing what's best for me." Unbelievable, she was! She had wounded me with her words, questioned the authenticity of my feelings for Jacob, and yet clung to her claim that she cared for me.

She didn't care, not even the slightest bit. If she had, she would have at least tried to understand me.

I mean, seriously, she...accused me of coming between Jacob and that Chloe, as if she hadn't already hurt me enough. Of all the wounds she had inflicted on me since childhood, this was the worst, and I would forever remember it.

I didn't bother knocking on Jacob's door; instead, I walked right in. My eyes searched for him until I spotted him sitting at the edge of the bed, his head hanging low as he stared at his hands. His phone lay by his side, the message to me still open on the screen.

Something didn't feel right already.

Dread crawled up my insides. Did my mother say something to him as well? Oh no...

"Why...why didn't you get back to my room?" I asked, my breaths quick and shallow.

He didn't answer me at first, nor did he move his gaze to me, instead he offered me silence for the first few seconds before he finally settled his gazeThis content © Nôv/elDr(a)m/a.Org.

on me.

Why was he not answering me?!

My heart beat loudly, and the restlessness within me kept increasing. I dreaded so many things; my fears gnawed at me from within, my hands trembled, and I was on the verge of breaking down. The last thing I wanted was to cry before he even said a word.

"Why didn't you tell me that Danica knows about us?"

Great! So my mom ruined it for me. She did the one thing I asked her not to.

"Jacob, I-I...." I hesitated to speak. What was I supposed to tell him? The truth? That I was afraid he'd pull away? It wouldn't please him; in fact, it would only reveal my insecurities, and that's the last thing I wanted him to see.

"Why is it that I found out about this from Chloe and not from you?"

Wait...

So Mom didn't tell him. Chloe did?

"You talked to Chloe?" My words trembled, and a sudden, sharp pain pierced my chest. I couldn't quite explain it, but it just hurt, and it hurt badly. "Right now, it's not your turn to question me, Evelyn," he spoke, his voice a bit harsh, "Just answer the damn question."

I looked at him in stupor, and opened my mouth to say something, but for some reason, not a word came out. What was wrong with me? Why couldn't I just speak instead of feeling a bunch of sobs trying to break their way through?

I had never been like this. Then what the heck was going on with me today?

"It happened yesterday only," I finally managed to say, my voice trembling, "I didn't know how to tell you."

"Didn't know how to tell me?" He looked at me in disbelief, as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing, "It was a simple thing to say, Evelyn. You just needed to tell me that Danica talked to you about it, and that would have been it. Mind telling me what mind-blowing plan you had in your mind by keeping it to yourself?" He stood up and walked over to me. "Tell me, Evelyn, what's the brilliant plan you had in mind?"

"Jacob, I wanted to tell you, but I was afraid that you'd react differently," I admitted, tears threatening to escape, "And don't get fucking mad at me. I'm just as stressed as you are right now, even more so! It's not my fault that Mom found out about us. It's your ex-girlfriend who saw us in the hall and told her. So if you want to blame anyone, blame her, not me!"

He let out a frustrated sigh. "Evelyn, I'm not blaming you. But instead of keeping it to yourself, you could have told me about it. And about Chloe, why did you hit her? Raising your hand at someone is not a solution. I thought you knew better than that."

"Hit her? She told you a lie, and you fucking believed her?!" I finally snapped, all my stress and turmoil breaking through in rage, "What's wrong with you, Jacob? If she comes to you again and says that I did some stupid shit, you'd blindly believe her? Do you still trust her that much?!"

"I...I..." Jacob, till now, composed and collected, found himself struggling to respond, "It's not like what you think."

"Of course, it's what I think. You still blindly believe her, god!" My laugh was edged with bitterness as I raked my fingers through my disheveled hair, my frustration pouring out in waves, "I knew I was going to say things I didn't want to, but it was beyond my control, "Are you even sure that you're not

in love with her deep down and not planning to go back to her? Because to me, it seems like it."

"You're way off base, Evelyn. Why do you think I'd go back to her? She's a nobody!"

"Yeah, a nobody whose words got

you to doubt me," I shot back, "Just one word from her, and you're out here interrogating me as if I've committed a crime! Your ex was talking shit about you, me, and everyone else. It was her fault that she decided to tell my mother, what she saw. And all I did was throw wine at her face to get her filthy mouth shut! If that looks like hitting her to you, then yes, I hit her, alright? I'm the immature woman here. If you don't like me, then go back to your damn ex. I'm done explaining things to everybody!" I turned around to leave, but he stopped me by grabbing my hand as he sought to bridge the widening gap between us.

"Evelyn, stop."

"No," I snatched my wrist from his grasp. "You don't even trust me. All you care about is what your damn ex tells you didn't tell you any of it because didn't want you to be as stressed as I am, and to be honest, I was equally afraid. I didn't want you to back away because I love you, have

Jacob. I didn't want whegou,

between us to end. Sorry, maybe it's my fault that I care too much. I'm extremely sorry, Mr. Jacob Adriano. My sincere apology to you and your

dear ex."

I wiped away a stray tear that finally escaped my control, my frustration and sorrow laid bare for him to see.

I swear to God I'm gouging out my eyes if these tears don't stop.

"Hey, hey-hey, I'm sorry, okay? I overreacted, I am sorry," He suddenly pulled me into his arms, "I shouldn't have spoken to you that way, but trust me, the reason wasn't Chloe. I just didn't want you to get dragged into the mess she could create. That was my only intention."

"Let go of me, Jacob," I tried to get away from his embrace, but he only pulled me closer, reluctant to let me go.

"I am sorry, baby," He murmured, kissing my temple, "I am really sorry. I didn't want to hurt you. It's just that I got mad because I found out about our personal news from someone else, and that person being Chloe made it even worse. She doesn't matter to me, nor do I plan to go back to her. All I care about is you."

I didn't want to cry. Damn it, I didn't even want to be near him at this point. But every fiber of my body spoke otherwise.

Soon, a sob broke through my

throat, and I pulled away from him,

"I... I've fought with my mom out

there because I want to be with you. I said things to her that I hadn't said until this day, and I'm ready to give,

you

elitet

up everything for you. And you... snap at me for that woman!" I pushed at his chest, hitting him, "Even last night, I didn't behave rudely with you, even though I was under a lot of stress. And even today, even after I just had an argument with my mother, I still came running to you, just because I wanted to spend time with you and forget about everything else. And you... you started an argument with me because of what your ex said," I hiccupped, hitting him again and again, "You are such a jerk! An asshole!"

He grabbed my hands, and once again, he pulled me close in his embrace, "I know I'm an asshole. I'm sorry. I didn't want to make you feel like that. I just... I just lose it sometimes, and talking with Chloe never puts me at ease. I am sorry I acted like a jerk," he hugged me tightly, placing kisses on my face and forehead, "I promise this won't happen again. Please don't cry."

"You don't care about me; all you care about is that fucking bitch!" I sobbed, unknowingly clutching onto his T-shirt.

"You know that's not true, Evelyn. I only care about you and no one else," He sighed, cupping my face in his hands and wiping my tears with his thumbs, "I love you. More than you can even think of. I indeed overreacted, but trust me, my intention was not to hurt you. I am sorry." He leaned in, pecking my lips, "This won't happen again, baby. I promise."

God, I wished I could stay mad at him for longer, but he was making it hard for me.

"You shouted at me..." I sniffled, more tears rolling down my cheeks.

"Baby, I did not shout at you. I just talked to you a bit loudly, but I am sorry if I scared you," He murmured, wiping my tears again and kissing my

eyelids, "Can you forgive me this one time?"

"I don't want to," I shook my head.

"I know, but will you?" He asked, his gaze soft, "Please?"

Say no, Evelyn. Say no.

"Okay," I found myself nodding, contrary to what my mind told me to do, "Just this one time, but if you do this again, we are done."

"I won't do it ever again," he pulled me into a hug, kissing me on the lips, once, twice, and then thrice, "I love you."

"I love you too," I whispered, burying my face into his chest. His scent calmed my nerves, helping me forget my troubled thoughts. Fuck I hated to admit it—No matter what had happened, in Jacob's arms, I always found peace.