Chapter 186 - The Surprise

Patrick.

He is not acting like himself.

I have known Jack for too long to not know when something is bothering him. This date was a way to get him out of the house and out of his funk. Right now, he is at his lowest. I see it when he looks at me. Every morning when he wakes up when he says goodbye to me. I leave the house knowing that he is not happy and it makes me unhappy.

He finally dresses up in a pair of black pants and a navy blue shirt. His beautiful red hair is curly on top of his head. His eyes shine under the bright lights above him. Every time I look at him, I feel even more blessed. He is mine, he is all mine.

"Are you ready?'' I walk over to him and he smiles. I can see through his smile—he is happy on the outside but something is going on inside him. I grab his hands in mine and his smile widens. There is something I get when I touch him. Like some kind of chemical reaction that triggers at my heartstrings. I never knew love could feel this way. I didn't even want to love until him. We have been together for ten years and each day feels like the first.

"I hope you don't plan on proposing?'' he raises a brow, almost like he knows I have some kind of surprise for him.

I shake my head immediately as I burst into a fit of laughter. "You know I will never do that to you,'' I tell him.

I have talked about marriage with him before. It is something I have wanted to do for so long but somehow Jack is terrified of it. He doesn't want the label. He doesn't want to have to put up with all that and there is one thing he hates—surprises.

If I plan a surprise proposal, I know for a fact that I will get a no from him. He will probably walk away from me if it is in public.

"You better not mister, I already have your ring on my finger,'' he raises his hand up to show me the ring I got for him. Even though we never made things official. We still made a promise to each other. There is this silent 'I will be with you until my dying day' promise. Marriage isn't something that I am so desperate for because at the end of it all. It is just some label. Something that everyone thinks makes up your happiness.

The fact that we are on the same page just tells me how much we belong together.

I grab his hand and kiss each knuckle until I stop on the wedding finger. My lips press onto his finger and he closes his eyes, getting sucked into it. He shifts closer to me until we are pressed against each other. I feel his body heat as he rests his forehead on mine. His eyes are closed. His breathing is soft and addicting. I know what will happen if this continues. We will never make it for the date I have planned.

I know he doesn't even want to go out. He is just doing this for me and I am doing this for him. he leans even forward until his lips are pressed on mine gently. His eyes are still closed—he is testing this. He knows how much I always want him. How I can't refuse him.

"I don't want to go out right now. I just want to be with you in bed,'' he confesses, totally trying to kill the mood.

His lips are still on mine. His breath is still hot and heavy against me "I made reservations,'' I remind him.

He nods "Cancel it. We can have dinner here. In the comfort of our house. Just you and me,'' he is tempting me.

I bend my head back, detaching from him "Come on Babe, we haven't gone out in a while.''

He has become such a hermit. Apart from job interviews, he is usually home or at Lance's. I don't want him to feel like we are at that point in our lives where we don't do anything. I want him to feel like he is still in the dating stage of our relationship. I grab his hands and pull him in the direction of the door "You know you want this. Going out isn't such a bad thing.''

When we first met. Jack was the outgoing one. He had so much going for him. The man in front of me right now is far from the person I fell in love with. I plan on giving him a confidence boost tonight. I will make him see all the things that he is capable of. I want the Jack that I love back.

I lead him all the way to the front door of the house and he helps me lock up as I grab the keys from my pocket "Come on,'' I shout to him with a smile on my face. His expression is stoic, there is a hint of amusement in that faint smile he has on but I haven't completely won him over. There is still enough time to make this the perfect night.

I just hope he appreciates what I planned for him and doesn't think of it as an insult.

****************************

We get to the restaurant and he groans loudly. "You have become so anti-social lately,'' I accuse him jokingly.

He rolls his eyes "I am old.''

This gets a laugh out of me. "You are just twenty-eight, how is that old?''

"It is for me. Going out seems like such a fucking chore.''

I roll my eyes as we get out of the car and walk into the front door. He walks by my side and the uninterested expression remains plastered on his face. I dragged him here but I don't have any regrets. I wanted him out of the house when I told him the good news.

I watch him all through the night. My eyes were on him like glue. At some point, he was enjoying the food but I never get him really enjoying himself. "You have been staring at me all night,'' he raises a brow "Is there something on my face?''

I smile. "Can't I just admire the most beautiful man in the room?'' I am teasing him and he likes it when I do.

"Get to the point. I know you have something to say, so why don't you?''

I roll my eyes "When did you stop being romantic, what happened to you?''

He leans forward, shifting the plate in front of him. His eyes are bright again. They seem to always shine whenever I look at him. The glow has my heart thudding.

"I am the most romantic motherfucker you have ever been with.'' he retorts with an amused smile on his face.

"Oh really."

He grabs my hand under the table and pulls me forward "Think about it. Who has done the romantic shit out of us?''

He is being competitive right now. Trying to challenge me. I have a smile on my face because even though it is for just one second, I am a little glad that he isn't thinking about the interview this morning. Even if it just a few words out of his mind, then I will distract him from it.

"Okay, you are the most romantic one...HAPPY?''

He giggles and let's go of my hand "I am stuffed. You don't seem to be eating, what do you think about taking this home?'' he asks me hopefully. As I said, he will do anything to get me home and naked. It's not that I don't want that but I have some good news for him and I need to tell him first.

"You win, time for the surprise.''

He opens his eyes wide, the curiosity in the depths of his eyes "Tell me already,'' He blurts out, showing off his impatience.

"You have to take this with a grain of salt…okay?''

He nods.

"I was talking to Adeline and we might have a job for you,'' I tell him blatantly. There is no point sugarcoating it.

This job didn't just come about. I asked her to help me with it.

I watch his expression to see how he is taking it. His face is blank. There is a shift from the smile that was there earlier.

"Really?''

I nod, keeping my smile on "Her husband's firm. The accounting department. He has a spot for you.''

"Really?'' he repeats.

I kinda expected excitement or at least some form of joy but right now, I don't know if I like the look he has on. "Yeah. You can start on Monday. If you are interested. I put in a good word and Mike thinks you would be a good addition to the team.''

He nods "As an accountant?''

I nod.

He stands up from the chair and I follow him immediately. I know he is pissed. I have been with him long enough to know when I have screwed up and it seems like I have now.

Fuck.