Love Left Behind (53 page)

Jackson shook his head
sadly. "Emma, I had no idea I would bump into you at Andrews. And I have
no idea what Claire is doing here. Should I send her away?"

"By all means,
invite her up," I replied acidly. "Let's see what the bitch
wants."

Jackson sighed heavily,
not moving to take Sam off hold. "I don't want to do anything to hurt you.
I can tell Sam not to let her up."

I laughed, not caring
about the note of hysteria I heard in my voice. "It's a little too late
for that. It'll be interesting to see you two together. We can have a happy
little reunion."

Jackson watched me for
a few moments, and then leaned down to press the button taking Sam off hold.
"Send her up." He pressed the button to disconnect the call and
walked towards me. Despite my anger, I had to resist the urge to take a step
back. I had a feeling that whatever pain I had felt these past couple of months
was nothing compared to the pain I was going to feel in a few moments. It was
masochistic of me, but now I had a driving need to see them together. To
confirm their betrayal with my own eyes.

"Emma,"
Jackson urged quietly. "I don't know why Claire is here. After we fought,
I texted her and told her that I wasn't going to meet up with her and for her
to never contact me again. I swear it."

I stared at Jackson's
earnest expression, calling myself a million kinds of fool for wanting to
believe him. I pressed my lips together, not responding, and Jackson just
sighed, running his hand through his hair. He grimaced when he heard the knock
at the door and stalked towards it. I was out of view in the living room when
he opened the door but I could clearly hear their conversation.

"Claire, what are
you doing here?"

"Jackson, I'm
sorry to bother you but I had to talk to you." The sound of Claire's voice
set my teeth on edge and my hands curled into fists. Hearing her say Jackson's
name made me want to tear her hair out.

"How did you even
know I was in town?"

"Mia told me.
Don't be mad at her. I told her I had something important to say to you, and
that I had to say it in person."

"So say it."
I was surprised at how cold Jackson's voice sounded. I had a niggling feeling
that he had been telling the truth, that he hadn't seen Claire in years. Their
conversation certainly sounded like they hadn't seen each other in a while.

"Can I come
in?" Claire asked hesitantly. There was a heavy pause and I tensed as I
heard the door close and footsteps coming closer into the living room. I held
my ground, my head held high as I saw Jackson appear with Claire trailing
behind him. She looked as gorgeous as ever, her blonde hair shorter now,
reaching just below her shoulders. She was wearing grey pants with a slim black
belt and a black blouse. With her long black coat and heels, she looked like
the matching pair to Jackson's tall good looks showcased in his suit tailored
just for his body. It made me feel even sicker.

Claire's eyes widened
comically when she saw me, her step faltering. Jackson continued walking into
the living room, standing beside me. I couldn't help feeling satisfaction that
he had aligned himself with me, facing Claire.

Claire opened her
mouth, and then shut it again without speaking. Her gaze flitted from me to
Jackson, and then back again to me.

"Surprised?"
I asked with derision.

"I...I didn't
expect to see you here," Claire said, sounding strained. She looked back
at Jackson. "You should have told me Emma was here."

"Why would I want
to do that? I have nothing to hide." Jackson was watching Claire appraisingly.

Claire took a step
back, looking like a trapped animal. "I can come back."

"No." Jackson
and Claire both looked at me at my emphatic protest. "Why leave now when
things are just getting interesting?" I smiled and cocked my head, knowing
that my smile looked more like a grimace. My taunting tone seemed to get a rise
out of Claire, her eyes narrowing.

"Don't blame me
because you weren't able to keep Jackson's interest." I wanted to slap the
self-satisfied smirk off Claire's face, but Jackson's voice stopped me.

"Don't piss me
off, Claire. Just tell me what was so important that you had to weasel my
whereabouts from Mia and come over here today."

Claire took a deep
breath, taking a step towards Jackson and clearly dismissing me. "Fine.
I've waited long enough to say this, and
she's
not going to stop me from saying it." Claire paused, clenching her hands
into fists, before continuing. "Jackson, I love you. I've always loved
you. I've been waiting patiently for you to return my feelings. And I thought
you did five years ago, but then you just pushed me away. Just give me a
chance, Jackson. I know I can make you happy."

Jackson frowned as he
watched Claire make her confession. "Claire," he said gently, no
longer looking at her derisively. "We were just friends. I'm sorry if you
wanted more, but it just wasn't going to happen. We weren't right for each
other."

"What the
fuck?" Jackson and Claire both turned towards me at my harsh epithet. I
was in disbelief over what I was witnessing. "I'm sorry to interrupt your
little scene, but I'm not standing here like a moron while you two play out
some unrequited love shit in front of me." I grabbed my purse that I had
dropped on the couch and stalked towards the hallway leading to the front door,
determined to leave this crazy dysfunctional situation behind me. I couldn't
stop myself from pausing in front of Claire before I stormed out, feeling
hatred ooze out of every pore of my body as I glared at her. I didn't miss the
flicker of fear in Claire's eyes as she stared back at me. "I never
thanked you for fucking Jackson behind my back. I trusted you, I told you how
much I loved Jackson, and all along you were screwing him." I smiled
bitterly. "Hopefully one day he can screw around on you, so you know
exactly what it feels like."

I marched past her,
intending to leave with my dignity intact, when Jackson's voice stopped me.

"Don't move."
He didn't raise his voice, but his tone told me I would be foolish to disobey.
He sounded as if he was trying to control his fury, which made it all the more
frightening.

I felt a hand on my arm
and was whipped around. I looked up at Jackson's face mutinously, despite
feeling a little afraid by his fierce expression. I glanced at Claire behind
him and she looked pale, her eyes glazed in fear. I didn't know why Jackson was
so angry, and I was apprehensive about it, but Claire looked like she was
terrified.

Jackson's voice was
quiet when he spoke, despite its intensity. "What are you talking
about?"

My apprehension over
his anger dissipated in a haze of my own fury. "I don't have time for
this. Let me go." I tugged on my arm, but it was useless against Jackson's
iron grip. His jaw looked as hard as granite as his eyes narrowed.

"Indulge me,"
he barked and I rolled my eyes at his domineering tone. "Repeat what you
just said."

"Why? So I can
relive my humiliation? Wasn't cheating on me with Claire throughout our whole
relationship humiliation enough? Now you want to talk about it in detail?"

Jackson's grip on my
arm tightened painfully, his eyes burning into me. "Emma, I slept with her
once. Once! It was about a week after we broke up. I was rip-roaring drunk,
drowning my pain in alcohol, and she just appeared out of nowhere. I had no
idea what she was doing in L.A. but she was a friend and I trusted her to take
me home. I was in no shape to drive. I don't remember the rest. I just know I
woke up the next morning in bed with her, and I knew what we had done even
though I didn't remember it. I was sick over it. I felt as if I had betrayed
you, even though you had broken up with me."

I started to tremble at
Jackson's words, not wanting to believe him yet wanting to believe him at the
same time. It couldn't be true that Jackson hadn't cheated on me. That he had
slept with Claire just once when he was drunk out of his mind. It was too
painful to believe that we had been separated for years because of a
misunderstanding.

I shook my head,
telling myself that it was impossible. I looked at Claire, but I saw the truth
written all over her face. She looked paralyzed with fear, rooted to the spot
as her web of lies started to unravel.

"But Claire told
me you two were sleeping together the entire time. I called you to tell you I
had made a huge mistake. To beg you to take me back. But she answered your phone.
She said you two had been sleeping together throughout our relationship and had
realized you were in love when I was out of the picture." I paused, my
voice shaking. "I didn't believe it and demanded to speak to you. I heard
your voice in the background. It was you. I'd know your voice anywhere. She
told me you didn't want to speak to me, that everything had already been
said." I was shaking, remembering that I hadn't actually understood what
Jackson had said because his voice was too far away and faint. I hadn't
actually heard him say he didn't want to talk to me.

Jackson's eyes had
closed during my explanation, and when they opened again they were ravaged with
pain. "Sweetheart, it must have been the night I was drunk into oblivion.
When I made the stupid mistake with Claire. I swear I don't remember your call.
If I had known-" His voice broke, his body shuddering with emotion.
"If I had known you wanted to talk to me, that you wanted me
back...nothing would have stopped me." Jackson's expression suddenly grew
enraged and he turned around abruptly, dropping his grip on my arm. He stalked
towards Claire, his hands clenched into fists at his side, and she fearfully
scrambled back until she hit the wall.

"Jackson,"
she squeaked, looking terrified. "I can explain-"

"You better
fucking explain." Jackson's voice was low but thick with fury. He was
heaving and I could see he was trying to control himself.

"I was doing it
for you!" Claire cried, her words tripping over each other as she rushed
to explain. "Emma was no good for you. We were meant to be together. When
we first met, I knew you were the one for me. But you insisted we were better
off as friends. I agreed because I wanted to stay close to you. But I knew one
day you would realize that we belonged together. That we were soul mates.
That's why you never became serious with any girl you dated." Claire's
expression darkened and she looked at me spitefully over Jackson's shoulder.
Her tone turned from pleading to caustic as her eyes bored into me. "Until
Emma came along. Sweet little Emma, with her big brown eyes and innocent act.
It made me sick to see you fawning all over her. I had to listen to her moans
while you fucked her, knowing it should've been me! She had everything and I
had nothing! Even messing up her presentation and getting her fired from her
stupid job worked in her favor because she was free to go to L.A. with you. She
doesn't deserve you, she's not good enough for you."

I was stunned by
Claire's revelation that she had been the one to sabotage my work, but that
paled in comparison to the realization that she had completely fabricated their
affair.

Jackson slammed his
fist against the wall next to Claire's head, shocking her attention back to
him. "Shut up! You're nothing compared to Emma. I trusted you and you
screwed me over. Why the hell did you tell me she married Sean?"

I didn't think it was
possible, but Claire's complexion became even more ashen at Jackson's question.
"I...I wanted you to forget her. She rejected you, yet you were still pining
away for her. I knew you needed some closure. That's why I told you she married
Sean." Claire's voice grew frantic as she continued. "Everything I
did, I did for you! I love you, Jackson. Please, just give me a chance."

"You didn't do
anything for me. Everything was for you. What exactly happened the night Emma
called?" Jackson's eyes were glittering, his expression dangerous.

"She wanted to
talk to you. I knew I needed to convince her to leave you alone. To let go of
you. So I told her we had been having an affair. That we loved each
other." Claire grimaced, having the gall to look irritated. "But she
wouldn't believe me. She demanded to talk to you. I told you Emma was on the
phone, but you were just talking gibberish. So I told her you didn't want to
talk to her." Claire finished her sentence with a shrug, not seeming to
care that she had ruined two lives with those lies.

"I was fucking out
of my mind!" Jackson yelled, fury etched on every line of his face.
"I doubt I was even fully conscious at that point!"

"Jackson,"
Claire implored, lifting her hand to touch his face.

"Get out,"
Jackson bit out, his voice strained. "Get out, or so help me God, I'm
going to do something I regret."

Claire's hand dropped
and she inched against the wall away from Jackson, her eyes wide with fear as
she scurried away. She gave me one hateful glare before she left, but she was
too petrified to say anything to me. When the door slammed behind her, Jackson
and I were left staring at each other. I had watched the exchange between
Jackson and Claire with shock, feeling detached from the situation. As if I
were a spectator, and Jackson and Claire were back on stage performing a play.

I tried to process
everything that happened but my mind rebelled against the notion that everything
I had believed in all these years was a lie. That Jackson had never betrayed
me. It was too painful to believe everything had been built on a sick lie from
a disturbed individual bent on possessing Jackson.

"Emma,"
Jackson whispered as he walked back to me, his eyes full of regret and longing.
"I never cheated on you. You were my world. I could never do that to
you."

"I don't know what
to say. I spent all these years thinking you had been unfaithful. Now that I
know the truth..." I shook my head, unable to continue.