Chapter 23

It was Monday morning, one of the busiest days in Jack's week. But he managed to take out time and call Ana that morning. Their "relationship" or whatever one would call it, was developing slowly but surely.

They had spoken to each other during the weekend but Jack was too busy for them to meet up. He was going to fix that soon.

Jack found himself feeling things he didn't know he'd ever feel for someone, and not after such a short while. He was protective of Ana. Sometimes the only thoughts running through his mind were questions about her wellbeing.

Was she okay? Had she gotten something to eat? How had her day looked like?

But that was not all. He found himself getting jealous too. Take Saturday for example, when he called her.

***

"So you finally decided to pick up, huh?" Jack said as Ana picked up the phone. Ana laughed, her loud laugh that made him feel strangely content.

"Wait, you called me at seven am on a Saturday morning. Did you expect me to be up?" she asked, a teasing note in her voice.

"Yeah and what about yesterday?" he asked.

"I slept kind of late yesterday," Ana admitted and Jack imagined her biting her lip. That did things to him and his member.

"What time?" he asked. His tone had suddenly gotten serious. He needed to know she was getting enough sleep.

There was a little pause and Jack knew Ana was thinking about lying. "Don't try lying, I'd know."

"Okay. I slept at three am," she finally admitted.

As soon as Jack was about to talk, he heard someone else start talking.

"Three am?! Mel, what the hell is wrong with you? And in your condition? You need to get enough sleep," the person said and the voice was distinctly male.

"Shut up Landon!" Jack heard Ana say and he frowned a little. "I'm sorry about that," she said after a little pause.

"Who was that?" Jack couldn't even hide the jealousy from his tone even if he tried.

"That was Landon," Ana replied absent-mindedly.

"And who's this Landon and what did he mean by your condition?"

"He's my– wait, Jack, are you jealous?" Ana asked and it was obvious from her tone that she wanted to laugh.

"I'm not jealous," he said and his voice cracked, betraying him a little.

"Sure you aren't," Ana teased...

***

Jack shook his head a little. He had to admit he had been jealous. He still was. Even after Ana had admitted the Landon was her best friend. He had wanted to demand her to stop talking with him or something, but he couldn't. He knew it would have been a major turn off for Ana.

Jack sighed and picked up a file. Just as he was about to open it and start with his workload, there was knock on the door of his office. Jack muttered an audible come in then went back to the file.

There was no sound. Just a pair of heels clicking. It meant one thing. It was his mother. Jack looked up and confirmed it. There she was, in all her glory, Dorothy Knight.

But her expression was not smiley and the tabloid in her hand already made Jack have an idea of what she was about to give him reprimands for.

Jack stood up and walked around the desk to his mother. "Hello, Mother," he said and kissed her cheek.

Dorothy didn't say a word, but led her to the sofa in his office. Both of them sat down and Dorothy finally looked at Jack.

"What is this I'm hearing?" she asked. Dorothy Knight was an imposing woman. She knew when to put enough authority in her voice and mannerisms so that she could be heard. Jack was not scared of her, unlike most people. But he respected her.

"What do you mean, Mother?" Jack asked. He knew he hadn't asked the right question as soon as her nostrils flared.

"This! Jack, this!" Dorothy exclaimed and threw the tabloid in his face. Jack didn't say a word, just picked it up and looked at it. On the cover was him and Ana, looking really close. He could tell it was Friday night.

The camera quality was not good. So it was probably another patron who had taken the picture with a cellphone or something.

"This, Mother, is me on a date," Jack answered, after keeping the tabloid away.

Dorothy's expression got crisp. Jack did not mind. He was used to her. She was his mother anyways.

"On a date," Dorothy scoffed. "Who's that Jack?" she asked.

"My date," Jack replied levelly. Dorothy squinted and sighed. She knew it was Jack's life, he was an adult but she had always been involved with it. And it was hurting her not to know a damn thing about her son's love life.

"Mom, right now I have work. What if we had dinner this evening? And I promise I'll tell your everything about her," Jack said. He knew it was going to work. Dorothy wasn't a mean person. She was not as firm as most people thought. She just wanted respect and that was what Jack made sure he always have her.

"Jack, you know I hate not being in the know about your life. And to see something like that in a tabloid hurt me. You told me you weren't seeing anyone the last time I asked," she said, and it was obvious that she was a bit hurt. Not even a bit. She was hurt.

"Mom that was over a month ago. And I'm sorry for keeping something as important as that from you." Jack didn't see the big deal about it. But he knew he needed to make her feel reassured.

"You're saying that now. So tell me, how is she? When do I get to meet her?" Dorothy asked with a smile. This was the side of her only her kid, Jack saw. And it was going to stay like that.

Jack chuckled. "Mom soon. Don't be in such a haste. I told you we're going for dinner tonight," he said and she smiled.

"The next time you pull something like this, I won't care if you are the CEO of this company and world's sexiest man, or whatsoever, I'll beat your ass," Dorothy said and Jack burst into laughter.

"I hear you Mother. I won't. You have my word," he promised and she nodded. Then she stood and clutched at her purse.

"Till tonight, my son," she said and placed a kiss on his cheek. Then she walked out. Jack smiled. His mother was a hard and impenetrable person to others but she was his mother. And she was the first woman in his life.