Dealing with the Past (7 page)

They discussed things for a while then signed the appropriate paperwork. Jackson checked his schedule and found his earliest slot available was for the following Wednesday night at ten. Aiden agreed, and as they shook hands at the conclusion of the meeting, Aiden stood to leave.

Not wanting his mate to walk out the door and be unable to see him until the following week, Jackson blurted the first thing that came to mind. "If I call you, will you hang up on me again?"

Aiden looked at him a little stunned, then seemed to think about his answer. "I guess that all depends on why you're calling me in the first place. I thought we agreed I didn't like you."

"I would like the chance to change your opinion of me. If you'll let me?" Jackson asked, scared how his mate would answer.

Aiden looked thoughtful for the longest time. Jackson couldn't help but hope that was a good sign. If his mate totally hated him, the man would have just shot him down at once.

Finally, after what felt like forever, Aiden nodded. "You can call, but I can't guarantee I won't hang up on you or that you'll be successful in your endeavour."

It wasn't a resounding 'yes' but it wasn't a 'no' either. Jackson would take whatever he could get from his mate. "Thank you."

Aiden nodded and then walked out of his office. Jackson watched his mate leave with a heavy heart but resolved he would do what he could to fix his past wrongs.

That didn't mean he had a clue where to begin though.

Two days later Jackson sat in his living room, staring at his phone, still fretting. He had programed Aiden's numbers into it from the information in the file. Jackson had been tossing back and forth for the last two days on when he should call his mate. He didn't want to seem too eager and scare the man away, but he didn't want to leave it too long either. Now he'd met his mate, he needed to talk to him, see him, and touch him again—even though he knew the last thought was still a ways away.

The week between their first meeting and the phone call and subsequent meeting two days before had felt like utter hell for Jackson. Every day he would pull up the man's information on his phone and hover his thumb over the connect button. He knew, though, that he had needed to give Aiden time, otherwise he would never have gotten the opportunity to see him again.

Looking at his watch again for the millionth time in the last fifteen minutes, he realised if he didn't get his ass into gear he would be late for his first appointment of the night. Deciding to start small, he sent a text instead of calling.

Just wanted to drop you a line and say HI. Hope you had a good day at work today.

Jackson reread the message again and again. It didn't say everything he wanted it to but he also didn't think Aiden would appreciate getting a message that did. Hopefully this was a good enough start. As much as he wanted to hear his mate's voice, he really didn't want to take the chance the man would hang up on him again.

Jackson shoved his phone in his pocket and got up. He grabbed his keys and wallet and headed out the door, making sure it was locked behind him. Everything else he needed was in the car already. He never took his kit from his car; you just never knew when you would need it. Jackson got in his twin cab midnight blue Mitsubishi Triton utility and drove to the cemetery.

His first appointment arrived five minutes after he did and left satisfied less than a half an hour later. Jackson could feel the slight strain the activity left on his body but knew he would be okay for the other two appointments he had that night, grateful they were usually booked with a large gap in the middle so he could recharge his batteries.

Jackson trudged back to his truck to wait for his next client when his phone beeped. He pulled it out and checked the display only to let out a loud 'whoop!' in the middle of the silent night. Aiden had replied to his text. Jackson raced to his vehicle, dropped the tailgate like he did every night and sat in the bed. He quickly opened his messages.

Hi back. :) Work was work.

That was the entire message he got in reply. Jackson was a little disappointed but he really couldn't expect the man to start waxing poetic after a couple of days.

Thanks for replying, I was worried you weren't going to.

Jackson hit the send button before he could think better of it. He sat impatiently, bouncing his leg and staring at his phone until another message came through.

Got to admit I almost didn't. What you doing?

Jackson was happy and sad all at the same time. He really hated that he'd hurt his mate so much when they were teenagers. He would do anything to make things right between them now. The fact that Aiden had opened conversation up by asking him a question was good though.

I'm glad you did. I'm currently sitting in the bed of my truck outside Thorak cemetery waiting for my next client. U?

His phone beeped less than a minute later with another message.

You have any idea how weird what you just said sounds? LOL

Yeah but it's my life :)

I'm nowhere near as exciting as that. At home on the couch watching a re-run of
Bones
.

I know where I would much rather be right now. And it's not sitting outside a cemetery.

Jackson waited almost a full five minutes before another message finally came through. He was almost worried that Aiden wouldn't send another one. His last comment might have pushed things too far.

I can imagine. No one wants to be working this late at night after a full day. Don't work too hard. Night :)

Jackson sighed in relief when he realised he hadn't scared the other man away.

Don't worry I won't. TTYL?

K

Jackson shoved his phone in his pocket when Aiden's final message came through then lay back in the bed of his truck and stared at the stars. What he wouldn't give to be lying on a couch wrapped around Aiden at that very minute watching television. Hopefully it would happen in time, if he could somehow convince his mate to forgive him.

Chapter 7

A large bouquet of daffodils in a stunning hand-blown glass vase showed up at work for Aiden on Wednesday. When he looked at the card, it read:

I know I hurt you when we were kids and no matter what I do I can never change that fact. I have to live with the consequences of my actions every day. Please accept these flowers as a small gesture of how sorry I am for all the pain I caused you.

Forever yours, Jackson

Surprise flowed through Aiden, He and Jackson had spoken on the phone several times this week and usually messaged each other at night while Jackson was between clients at the cemetery, but the flowers were unexpected. He wasn't sure if he should feel happy about them or not.

The next day, handmade chocolates from his favourite shop in the mall arrived with another card detailing how sorry Jackson was for what he had put Aiden through in high school.

On Friday, a white box with a blue ribbon was gently placed on his desk. He opened it to find a dozen of the most delicious smelling and eye watering cupcakes he'd ever seen. They looked like individual flowers with the way the icing had been piped on top, and after tasting them, Aiden had been hard pressed to share them with his colleagues. Instead, he swiped himself another one and placed it on his desk for later and walked around the office handing out the others, making sure his bosses Noah and Harrison both received one.

Aiden called Jackson to thank the man as soon as he got back to his office with the empty box. He asked where Jackson had got his hands on the delicious creations and wanted to know if he could get more. Jackson laughed at him and assured him a friend had gone to the trouble of baking them for him. And anytime Aiden wanted one of the sweet treats, Jackson was more than happy to arrange it.

As much as Aiden liked the gifts, they weren't necessary. Aiden said as much to Jackson after he'd received the flowers. He didn't agree to talk to Jackson so the man could buy him things as a way to try and repay for the past. Jackson told him that he knew that already as Aiden wasn't that type of person and would never be. But he said it was something he had to do so Aiden should just get used to it.

He wasn't sure how he felt about that. Hell, he wasn't sure how he felt about Jackson either. The man was starting to get under his skin. His thoughts were forever going back to the man, no matter the time of day or night. His body ached with want after their phone calls most times. They hadn't yet seen each other since the meeting four days ago and Aiden was a little worried about how his body was going to react when he finally was around the other man.

Saturday afternoon finally came around, giving Aiden the first time in forever to relax. He was in his kitchen putting his weekly groceries away. As always seemed to be the case recently, his thoughts turned to Jackson and the way the man had been acting towards him recently.

Aiden didn't think he'd ever be able to forget the hell he went through in high school, but he also knew he couldn't hold onto his anger his entire life. They were kids, barely fourteen when it all started. No one at that age was expected to have good judgment. Aiden didn't want to continue to hold something against Jackson that happened so long ago. He felt it would be easier to forgive than to hold all his anger inside for the rest of his life.

He had just finished putting away the last of his shopping when a loud crash of glass breaking and clattering to the floor scared the life out of him. Aiden looked out of the kitchen into his living room to see the front window smashed, glass shards everywhere, covering his couch and floor. Sitting in the middle of the room was a brick with a piece of paper wrapped around it.

What the hell?

Aiden gingerly stepped over to the brick as he pulled his phone out of his pocket and snapped a quick picture of the brick, his window and the glass everywhere. He unwrapped the paper from the brick and read the message inside then immediately called the police.

The dead are best left alone. Next time won't be so nice.

The police officer on the line said not to touch anything else and wait for the officers to arrive. Aiden agreed then hung up. He immediately called Jackson.

"Do all your clients get threatened or am I just the lucky one?" he asked quickly as soon as the phone connected.

"Excuse me?"

"I want to know if all your clients get bricks thrown through their front windows or if it's just me?" Aiden said again, getting a little hysterical.

"Someone threw a brick through your front window?" Jackson growled down the phone line.

"Well, seeing as how I have a brick sitting in the middle of my living room floor and I no longer have a front window, I'm going to go with yes on that one." Sarcasm dripped from Aiden's voice but he just didn't care at the moment. Who the hell would want to threaten him? He hadn't done anything.

"Don't touch anything, I'll be right there," Jackson said and hung up before Aiden had a chance to gather his thoughts and tell him not to come.

"Shit," he said as he surveyed the damage to his living room. He really wanted to talk to his dad but he was taking a cruise somewhere in the Caribbean at the moment with a group of his friends. He could have done with a sounding board about a lot of things right at this minute.

He decided to call Sammy. His best friend always knew what to do. The phone rang so many times in his ear Aiden was about to give up when the other end was finally picked up.

"This better be bloody important," Sammy said breathlessly down the line. "Craig, stop that, behave." The words were quiet but loud enough for Aiden to hear clearly. Sammy's words were followed up by a light giggle and the sound of flesh smacking flesh.

"It's one in the afternoon, don't you have anything else you two should be doing?"

"No, now what's so important that you've interrupted my afternoon delight?" Sammy gasped, quickly followed up by a moan. There was a lot of shuffling and what sounded like a hand covering the speaker in the phone before Sammy was back. "Sorry about that."

"No, you're not," Aiden replied, chuckling. Leave it to Sammy to lighten his mood by having sex while talking on the phone. "You know you could have just not answered if you were busy?"

"Nonsense, you know I'll always answer for you if I can," his friend told him. "Now how can I help you this wonderful Saturday?"

"Not so wonderful in my neck of the woods," Aiden mumbled.

"What's happened?" Sammy asked, all joking and mucking around aside, his tone hard and all business. "It better not be that bloody Jackson again. If he's hurt you, I'll string him up by his balls and stand by watching as they turn black and drop off."

Aiden paused for a minute, more than a little shocked at his friend's defence of him. "Umm… That's quite the picture you painted. Not quite sure if it's something I would want to see myself but whatever floats your boat. And no, it wasn't Jackson." Aiden was pretty positive by the way the man had reacted to his earlier phone call that this incident had nothing to do with Jackson, at least not directly.

"What wasn't Jackson?" Sammy inquired. Aiden had wondered if his friend would pick up on the way he phrased that. He wasn't disappointed.

"The brick through my window." Aiden looked up from the floor littered with glass to see blue and red flashing lights pulling up outside his little unit.

"Excuse me, what did you just say?" Sammy screeched in his ear.

"Sorry, Sammy, gotta go. The cops are here." Aiden hung up to the spluttered curses and threats of bodily harm if he even contemplated such an act when a knock sounded at his door.

Aiden answered, letting the two police officers into the mess that was his home. Officer Marks, a lovely looking woman in her early to mid-thirties with light blond hair that was just starting to turn grey at the edges, and Officer Davies, an older gentleman in his late forties who seemed to still have a full head of thick black hair despite his age.

He answered their questions as best he could but Aiden really didn't know anything.