He watched me.
“This presentation…is it a big deal?”
He nodded. “It’s the best international conference that discusses new research and advancements in science and medicine. People invited to present are usually selected for Nobel Prizes years into the future, once their evidence becomes concrete. It’s a great way to put your work into the public eye.”
“Wow…I wish I could go with you.”
“Why can’t you?”
“Well…my job. Derek.”
“The nanny could watch him, right?”
“Yeah, but we wouldn’t know her that well, and a week is a long time…”
“My mother would watch him if I asked.”
“I know, but I’m not sure if I could get the time off.”
“Do you not get a lot of vacation time?”
I shook my head. “We’re so understaffed as it is that it’s pretty difficult. I move things around for doctor appointments and stuff like that, but taking time off…it’s not really a thing.”
He looked disappointed but didn’t issue a single complaint. “I’m going to be working a lot, so I wouldn’t have much time to take you sight-seeing or anything like that anyway. The conference takes place every day, and then there are events at night. You’d probably be bored.”
I was never bored with Deacon. I would try to understand what was important to him just to know him better. “Who are you going with?”
“Right now, it’s me, Dr. Jeffries, Dr. Solomon, and Dr. Hawthorne. So, four of us.”
I had a feeling that bitch would be there. “Well, that’s great that you’re doing that. I think it’s best if Derek stays with me anyway. It’ll make things seem normal. With his mother gone, you gone, it’s a lot of change for someone so young.”
He nodded but continued to watch me, like he could see the unease I worked so hard to hide. “What?”
“What?” I repeated back.
“There’s something bothering you.”
I could never tell him. It would make it seem like I didn’t trust him, which wasn’t true. I was just jealous, just annoyed with that blonde bombshell and her stupid, big fat brain. “No.”
“You’re lying to me.” He made the accusation without a hint of doubt.
Goddammit. “I guess…I’m not too happy about Dr. Hawthorne accompanying you.” I didn’t expect anything to ever happen between them because Deacon was so committed, but I didn’t like the idea of her spending time with him, lusting after him, wishing I were out of the picture. I knew that was exactly what she thought, because that’s what I’d be thinking if the situations were reversed. Until he was married, I’d be waiting, hoping, praying for an opportunity.
He watched me for a few seconds, and instead of getting angry, he just sat there, like he didn’t know how to respond to that.
“It’s not that I don’t trust you. I guess I just get jealous thinking about her wanting you, spending that much time with you…”
“It bothered me when you saw your ex-husband.”
Deacon being bothered by that conversation never crossed my mind. He just didn’t seem like the kind of person that would care. “Really?”
He nodded. “I guess I was jealous? I don’t know.”
“I went there to tell him that you made me realize what love really is.”
“I know. I told myself that and got over it. But…I understand where you’re coming from with Dr. Hawthorne. I guess that’s what I’m trying to say.”
I was terrified he would scream at me since this was such a sore subject for us. He could have fucked her when we were apart, and he didn’t, so there was no reason to be jealous now, when we were living together. But I knew how big her tits were and how nice her ass was…like I could ever forget.
“But she’s a valued colleague who deserves to be there, and our relationship is nothing but professional. So…I don’t know what you expect me to do about that. She made a pass at me, and I said no.”
“I know, Deacon…”
“You’re the only woman I want to be with. There’s nothing else I can say. I’ve already proven my fidelity.”
“You have. It’s my problem, not yours. I just hate imagining her checking you out, waiting for this relationship to fall apart so she can try again. You’re the perfect man, and she knows it as well as I do. How can she not want you? Not want you more after spending a week with you?”
He was quiet for a long time, like he didn’t know how to respond to that. “When Jake got you dismissed, it made me realize he still wants to be with you, that he’s petty because he can’t have you. That bothers me. It bothers me that you’re clearly mine and another man still wants you.”
It was another surprise, because I didn’t think he could make those conclusions on his own. He’d gotten better at reading people, developing intuition, reading between the lines.