“I don’t like leaving you,” he said, softly. He sat on the edge of the bed and caressed her hair. She hummed slightly, leaning into him.
“I’ll be fine,” she promised. “Honestly, I just want to lay in bed, drink the ginger tea you got me, and watch horrible, trashy TV. There’s a new episode.”
Jackson rolled his eyes and then narrowed them. “You aren’t hyping the morning sickness so you can stay home and watch the new episode are you?”
“Me?” Emma’s eyes got big and innocent as she held up a hand to her chest. “I would never.”
“You so would,” he accused.
She smiled. “Possibly,” she admitted. Then she froze and turned a little green. The playfulness went out of her eyes and she reached for the bowl.
“You okay?” Jackson asked. He knew that it was just the baby hormones, but he still hated to see her like this.
She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Yeah. Just got too confident.” She smiled up at him. “Go to the party. Have fun. I’ll be more comfortable here. Besides, I’ve been looking forward to this show all week.”
“Seriously?” he asked. The show was garbage. He couldn’t understand what she saw it in. No sane person would w
ant to watch it unless they were being tortured.
“Yes. It’s my guilty pleasure,” she replied. “You are welcome to make fun of me for it, but I am watching it and enjoying every trashy, mascara-streaked moment.”
He didn’t rise from the bed. It felt like he was cheating on her. He was off to an amazing dinner party with wine, food, and entertainment while she was stuck here in bed puking her guts out.
“Go,” she said, giving him a gentle push. “My show comes on in five minutes and I know you hate it. If you’re still here, not only will you miss out on your party, but you will have to watch my show.”
He shivered. Reality television was like nails on a chalkboard for Jackson. He would literally rather stare at a blank screen for an hour than listen to people whine about their made-for-TV love lives.
“You’re sure?” he asked, one more time. He stood up slowly. “I’ll stay and we can watch action movies?”
“I’m watching this in three minutes,” she told him. She took the remote and tucked it under her pillow. “You’re going to go have a nice time. If you don’t leave soon, you’re going to be late.”
“I’ll be home soon,” he promised, giving her one last kiss on the forehead.
She looked up at him, her eyes soft and full of love. “You look nice in the new suit,” she told him. “You’re going to break all the girls’ hearts.”
“As long as it’s not yours. I’ll break them all and come home to you.”
She smiled, her eyes stealing his breath with the amount of love in them. His heart forgot how to beat it was so full for a moment. The protective instinct nearly overwhelmed him, but he knew if he stayed he would regret it. He had been looking forward to this dinner party probably as much as she had been looking forward to her new show.
She looked up as he reached the bedroom door and waved to him, still clutching the bowl like it was the only thing keeping her upright in bed. She smiled and blew him a kiss before going back to the TV. The intro music started and he darted out before he had to suffer through a second of the show.
Jackson enjoyed the party immensely. He wished that Emma could be there, but even without her, he was enjoying himself. The food and drink were delicious and he’d found a college friend he hadn’t seen in years. He’d spent the majority of the evening catching up and reminiscing.
The best part to him, was that despite remembering the “good old days” with a different girl every night, he had no desire to repeat them. He was glad that he got to go home to Emma at the end of the night tonight.
It took the pressure off. He was no longer hunting the crowd for the best girl to bring home. He wasn’t distracted by previous conquests, and no jealous husbands threatened to punch his lights out. Jackson was sure that his security team appreciated the change of pace as well.
Jackson stepped outside onto a porch overlooking the water. The party was held at the yacht club clubhouse, so the view was amazing. The second story porch jutted out over the docks where million dollar boats bobbed in the cool night air.
Most everyone was inside enjoying the party, but Jackson wanted a moment to himself to check in with Emma. He could see her Facebook status was active, so he knew she was awake.
“How’s your show?” he asked when she picked up the phone.
“The new guy is a total jerk, and I hate him,” she replied.
“Maybe he’ll get voted off next week,” he consoled.
“What? No! That would be terrible,” she replied. “I like that I hate him. It makes the show so much more interesting.”