Take a Breath(96)

My heart felt overwhelmed by her words. “I’m delighted about that, Jessie. That’s great news. I miss you all, too. Jessie, do me a favour and thank everyone for the flowers. You too of course. They were beautiful.”

“Of course I will. Can I come see you at the weekend?” she asks.

“Yes, I’d like nothing more. Not Friday night though as we have company.”

“Oh, who’s that then?”

I tell her about Cindy coming over for dinner, so she can meet Jake, properly for the first time. We all want to become more acquainted seeing as she is now part of Matthew’s life. She tells me that her and Jerry are still going strong and are going out to dinner again tonight. I’m really happy for her. Both our lives seem to be going in a good direction now. We make arrangements for her to come over on Sunday afternoon before hanging up the phone.

I have a shower, noticing how nicely all the cuts seem to be healing. They look like they’re fading now and some have disappeared all together. The bruises on my neck are still there, so I decide to wear the other polar neck dress that Jake bought me. It’s not nice as a constant reminder for Jake and Matthew to look at all the time. It’s better to hide it away and forgotten about. I just want them gone, as they are a constant reminder of Tony and what he did. He may be dead, but his finger marks are still evident on my flesh. I feel nauseated by the thought.

To keep my mind off things I decide to go back outside and watch Jake and Matthew play ball. Jake’s bare torso is a welcome distraction. I watch his muscle flex, as he runs and kicks the ball. He looks over to me every now and then to make sure I’m okay. I just nod my head, transfixed on every pore of his glistening skin. He amazes me just how perfect he is in every way.

After an hour or so, they both admit defeat and take a well-earned break. Jake sits by me and holds my hand.

“Dad, I’m going back in the pool to cool off,” Matthew shouts.

Jake nods. “Ok son. I’ll join you in a bit.”

Matthew takes a sprint back to the pool and dives in.

“Are you okay?” he asks.

“I’m fine. Just a bit worried that’s all. You’re not going to get into trouble over this Tony thing are you?”

He waves me off dismissively. “No, of course not. Like everything, it will all blow over soon. It always does.”

I wasn’t satisfied. “Jake, I don’t need protecting. If there is something going on you can tell me. I’ll only find out when I go back to work on Monday anyway.”

“Ana, I don’t think that’s a good idea,” he scoffs.

“Why not?” I ask baffled.

“You need your rest. You’ve been to hell and back and need to recuperate.”

I shake my head. “I’m fine. Stop fussing.”

“Ana, I think you’re taking this whole thing a bit too well. You don’t talk about it at all. You just seem to be acting normal. It unnerves me.”

“I can’t let him win, Jake,” I find myself saying. “If I’m a mess, it means all that he’s done was worth taking to the grave with him. I’m not letting him win. I refuse to give him the satisfaction.”

A sudden tear wells up in my eye. Jake quickly moves across to my chair and wraps his arms around me.

“I need this, Jake. I need to be normal. I need to get back to work and back to living my life.”

Jake strokes my hair trying to calm me. “I know. It’s just the press are sniffing around at the moment trying to get your name. I would hate to think you went back to work and somehow they found you. I thought it would be a good idea if you just stayed at home a bit, rested and then hopefully the press will get bored and go away. I don’t want anything to hurt you, Ana. You know that, don’t you?”

I nod my head in his shoulder. “I know. That’s one of the reasons why I love you.”

He pulls me away to look at me. “Just one of the reasons?” he asks. “What other reasons are there?”

He gives me that mischievous smile, which soon lights up my heart.

“I’m not really sure I should tell you. I know how big your head is, and it will only make it harder for me to get you back inside the house.” I smirk at him suddenly feeling better.

“Ha, ha, again with the big head joke. I’m going for a dip before my head explodes all over your lovely new dress. I wouldn’t want to spoil that in a million years. You look simply good enough to eat in it, but then, you always do.”

He winks at me and heads off, always knowing how to make me feel special and cherished.





The rest of the week was very pleasant. Jake and I spent the mornings in bed together whilst our afternoons and evenings were spent with Matthew. Jake was a constant fussy bugger, but he let it slip how guilty he felt for not being with me when it all went down. He said that he had promised to keep me safe and that he didn’t hold down that promise. I kept trying to tell him that it wasn’t his fault and that he couldn’t have known what was going on. I told him that I was safe. I was a little shaken still, but I was happy. Although he wasn’t content, it seemed to ease him a bit.