|29| Agnolotti-2

"Sorry," Jess said with a grimace. "My fault. I didn't realise you were preparing all this." Jack sighed, his hand coming to rest on the small of her back. "More for the rest of us, then." As he pressed his lips to her forehead, Jess' eyes fluttered shut and the edge of her lips curled upwards. I hoped that whatever she'd felt this morning would be lessened somewhat by Jack's sensitive actions. He was a good guy. She deserved that. Nathan certainly ate two people's share of the food when he moseyed in twenty minutes later. Then again, eating was all he could do when he struggled to get a word in edgeways during what appeared to be a very one-sided conversation with Jack. That flat started to empty out shortly after breakfast, with everyone having planes to catch. Nathan and I lounged on Jack's sofa, passing the time until our own flights. "Marie messaged me last night." The admission hung in the air between us, yet Jess' earlier question still held the top spot in terms of unexpected conversation starters. "Saying what?" I asked. "Wishing me a happy Valentine's Day." I scoffed, shaking my head to myself. "She's got no shame." "I got it this morning. She sent it late. Probably drunk." I didn't appreciate how he seemed to be defending her, but I let it slide. At least Nathan had told me about it, which was a step in the right direction after the pre-Christmas drama. "Did you reply?" I said instead. "Of course not." "I think you should. She needs to know it's not acceptable. And you also need to make it very clear you're not interested." "She knows I'm not interested, Bella. I don't want to rock the boat and make things awkward at work." Sitting upright, I disengaged myself from under his arm to look at him. Nathan shuffled, running a hand through his hair as he eyed me cautiously. "Do you know what will rock the boat? If you don't say anything to her and then you get accused of leading her on. If you're not going to stand up to her for my sake, then at least do it for your job's." "Don't be annoyed. I'm trying to be open with you." "I'm not annoyed with you, Nathan. You've not done anything wrong. But at the same time, being open shouldn't be a chore. It shouldn't be something you need to try to do. We need to get to a place where it comes naturally. And if we're still not there yet, then that's fine. But after everything we've been through, we've really got to fight any obstacles that threaten to get in the way. No matter how hard it is." Sighing, he tousled his hand within my hair, fingers massaging me. We sat in silence for several moments, gazing at each other. What was he thinking? Did he think I was being unreasonable or melodramatic? "We spoke last night about how we'd moved on from the Marie thing," Nathan said, "and that's why I was nervous to bring it up. I didn't want to upset you all over again." I smiled. "I love you for wanting to protect me. But you can't protect me from everything. If something is going on, I'd rather know about it and feel involved in your life." "Understood and noted." Leaning forwards, he pecked me on the lips. "Save that for in your own flat." Jack smacked Nathan around the head as he passed us. "Better yet, make yourselves useful and help me tidy up." Nathan squeezed my hand as he rose to his feet. "You make the most of your time with Jess. I'll help Jack." Finding Jess didn't take long. Kneeling on the floor in Jack's bedroom, she folded clothes into her suitcase, lifting her head as she heard me enter. "Sad to be leaving?" I asked. She shrugged but smiled. "Been a bit of a whirlwind weekend, hasn't it?" "Yeah. Makes you feel like you haven't had a weekend at all." I perched on the edge of the bed and she rose to join me, crossing her legs and folding her hands in her lap. "Everything okay with Nathan? You seemed to be having an intense discussion when I stuck my head around the corner just now." "Yeah. Marie messaged him last night. Wishing him a Happy Valentine's Day." Jess scrunched her face. "What is wrong with the girl? Is she delusional or just vindictive?" "I'm leaning towards vindictive given how she spoke to me at their Christmas party. She made it clear she wasn't going to stop pursuing him." "I hope Nathan told her to piss off." "He doesn't want to make things awkward at work." "But receiving messages with romantic connotations won't make things awkward?" I shrugged. "I get where he's coming from and I don't want to sound like I need his reassurance... But I don't want this turning into the same thing it did before, where he doesn't know where to draw the line for fear of hurting her or ruffling feathers." "This isn't the same, Izzy. She knows where she stands now and she's still chasing him. If she gets hurt, it's her own fault. She doesn't give a damn about hurting you, does she?" That was a good point, one I hadn't considered. Jess had a way of doing that. She could offer a fresh perspective on any situation. "I've only got four more months of this. The end is in sight." Stretching out her leg, Jess kicked her suitcase lid shut. "Don't wish the time away. Your year abroad is a once-in-a-lifetime experience." I smirked. "My boyfriend's family live in Italy. I've got a lifetime of trips to Italy ahead of me." ♥♥♥