23. Without Words

23

WITHOUT WORDS

" I 'm starving," Andi said the next morning.

She didn't normally sleep that late, but bythe timethey made it to bed and fell asleep it was close to two.

She wasn't sure the last time she attacked a man the way she had Jarrett. Or that it felt so right.

Even the fact she'd told him she was on the pill when she'd only had sex without a condom with one other person in her life. Most times she always was double protected.

The pill was more to regulate her, not birth control.

But the love she'd been feeling for him for weeks was her driving force.

The fear she'd had voicing those words flew out the window when he'd said it first. Like they were just soulmates who knew what the other wanted and needed without words.

"Me too," Jarrett said. "I can cook. You always do."

"I want more than eggs," she said, as they made their way to the kitchen. "That is what you make."

He grinned at her. "How about I make bacon while you do something else? I saw it in there."

"Works for me," she said. "I was thinking French Toast."

She got a pan out for him to start the bacon and then the milk and eggs and bread for the rest of their meal.

"So you're a natural blonde?" he asked her out of the blue.

She laughed. She wasn't sure if he'd noticed that or not. She'd been shaving herself bare for a while. He'd never said anything about the fact that her eyebrows were light. Not blonde, but a light brown. That didn't mean much for people. Even the light hair on her body either.

But pubic hair normally told the real story. Guess subconsciously she was ready to be more open with Jarrett.

"I am," she said. "Most stylists have different hair colors than what is natural."

"They do," he said. "And it's usually obvious, but yours isn't. It's such a natural color that I had no idea."

"I touch up my roots every few weeks so that it's not obvious. I didn't want to have it look like I was trying but wanted it more natural."

"Have you always been this color?" he asked.

She sighed and knew where this was going. "I've been this dark for a few years."

"Since you moved from Denver?" he asked.

"Yes," she said. "I've been a lot of colors so don't read more into it. I've always been in lots of shades of blonde and brown. I've had pink and red and even blue in my hair before. This was a fresh start and I wanted something that didn't make me stand out. I wasn't sure where I was going or how people would react to something out there. Here, on the island, a nice natural well-cared-for color is drawing more people in."

She wasn't lying when she said that. Bold vibrant colors weren't necessarily part of the clientele on the island though she had a few of them. She liked to be able to appeal to the masses and showcased her work on her profile that way too.

"Okay," he said.

"It's nothing more than that," she said. "Do you believe it?"

"I do," he said.

Andi wasn't sure she believed him, but she wasn't in the mood to argue.

She bumped her shoulder into his. "Let's start this year off right."

"Meaning what?" he asked.

"Meaning I think what we've got is good and strong. I want you to ask me things. Ireallydo. And just know I'm being honest with you."

Which was why she stopped shaving. She wanted to see if he would notice and say anything and his reaction to it.

It was exactly what she thought and was glad to get it out of the way.

"I do know you are," he said. "And I get having no condoms was another step. A step I want to take with us."

Her face paled. "You aren't asking me for a kid, are you?"

"No," he said. "I want kids. I always did. I'm getting up there in age, but I'm a traditional person. I guess it's not a conversation we've had before. Do you want kids?"

"I do," she said.

"Good," he said.

"And since we love each other, it's nice to have some conversations like this too." They ended it there and cooked breakfast together, then sat and ate. "I've got a light day tomorrow. Just one appointment in the morning."

"If I've got time or a break, do you want to get lunch?"

"Sure," she said.

They finished breakfast and she went to the kitchen to clean up with him.

When her doorbell went off, she frowned, but her hands were full of soap and water.

"I'll go see who it is," he said.

"Thanks," she said.

A minute later she heard her name shouted. "Andrea!"

Shit, it was Jack.

She ran to the living room and saw Jack standing there livid and looking between Jarrett and her.

Jarrett had his arms crossed in front of him. The fact it was nine in the morning and he answered her door easily explained why he was there.

"What are you doing here, Jack?" she asked.

"I thought I'd surprise you. I came in on the last ferry last night and just went to my hotel and crashed. Maybe I should have let you know then I was on the island."

"I'm trying to figure out why you're heretobegin with," she said.

"I think you're the one that has more explaining to do," Jack said.

"Don't take that tone with her," Jarrett said. "This is my island. You're on my turf."

Jack growled and she jumped in between the two men. "Enough. I don't need two egos bumping up against each other. Jack, you go to that chair, Jarrett to the other one."

Both men lifted their eyebrows at her. She didn't expect them to give in, but the minute Jarrett moved first, Jack did too.

She knew her boyfriend only gave in to help her and she'd remember that.

"How long has this been going on?" Jack asked.

"I'm not answerable to you," she said.

"I believe that you are," Jack said.

"I want some fucking answers if that is the case," Jarrett said quietly. "Because I'm being told otherwise and have been good about not looking into more."

Andi let out a sigh. "Stop. Both of you. Jack, Jarrett knows where I'm from. The last two moves and what I do for a living and have always done. He knows my father was a US Marshal killed in the line of fire and you were his partner."

"Damn it, Andi," Jack said. "He knows they'd never put family members as partners."

"That's right," she said. "He's not stupid." And she hoped that was enough for them both to see where her head had been from the beginning.

"I've known from the minute you stepped foot in the hospital that Andi isn't her name. You know it and I know it," Jarrett said. "What I hope and believe is that when Andi answers my questions she's telling me the truth. I'm not pushing her because she says she's not in danger and there is nothing going on."

"There isn't," Jack said.

"Exactly," she said.

"Then why are you here?" he asked.

"Because I haven't seen her since her accident and thought she was having a hard time with the holidays and being alone. She isn't emailing me as much either. Maybe if I knew she wasn't alone I wouldn't have done this," Jack said.

That secret email address she and Jack used. She'd been sending him less and less on it. She should have realized he might be concerned.

"Bullshit," she said. Andi rarely swore, but she was livid right now. She felt like she finally got things under control with Jarrett and that he wasn't nervousaboutanything and now he was going to get even more wound up. "If I told you I was seeing anyone, you'd do a deep dive on them. If I said it was Jarrett you'd talk me out of it and you know why."

"That's right," Jack said. "And if you know that then why are you seeing him?"

"That is none of your damn business," Jarrett said. "She's not anything more than an obligation to you."

"Stop," she said. "Both of you." She didn't want Jack to know she felt that way, even if she did. "We've got to come to some understanding here. Jarrett is in law enforcement. He can be trusted. I know you, Jack. You looked into Jarrett and his brother and his father. Probably most of the family. Didn't you?"

She could see Jarrett was all but growling. "I did," Jack said.

"Did you find anything to worry you? Anything to make you think he was dirty or not able to do his job? Because if you did, I'm sure you would have told me right away," she said, her hands on her hips.

Both guys were sitting and she was standing between them.

"No," Jack said.

"Asshole," Jarrett said. "Even I respected Andi and didn't look into you any more than what is on the surface of where you're stationed. You want to know why?"

Jack's shoulders slumped. "Because you would have figured out who her father was and worried you were alerting people of where you were and looking into things in another state."

"That's right," Jarrett said. "Looking into you, and trust me when I tell you I've got resources to find out more than you ever think, would have told me Andi's father's name."

She felt her face pale. "Don't," she said. "We can say everything, right, Jack? I want it coming from me."

"Andi, this is a mistake."

"It's not a mistake," she said. "I know the rules. But I also know that you can tell other law enforcement. You can do that to protect me if you feel there is a need to."

"There is no need," Jack said.

"Let's say there is," Jarrett said. "Mac and I told you before we want to know what is going on to be able to watch out for not just Andi but anything coming to this island."

"You never told me that," she said, looking at Jarrett.

"It was before we were dating. It was at the ER."

"Then why didn't you tell me that?" she asked Jack.

"It didn't matter at that point. You fell. It was an accident. Unlike the other one you tried to tell me about."

She ground her teeth. "If you don't want Jarrett to know what is going on, you're doing a shitty job of it by making those snide comments."

"Then maybe you should be doing the talking," Jack said, sighing. "From your mouth."

"Seriously?" she asked. "We are going to do this? You're going to let me tell him everything?"

Jack looked unsure of things. "I'm not sure everything needs to be told, but I can see in your eyes this is serious with him."

"It is. Let's just start small," Jarrett said. "What's your name? Your real name?"

"Colleen Andrea Huntington. My father's name was US Marshal Luke Huntington. A hit was made on him and he was killed when Jack was home with food poisoning and he feels guilty that he wasn't with my father when it happened."

"Were you set up to not be with Luke?" Jarrett asked.

It was the first she'd heard that or even thought of it.

"That was the suspicion afterward, but no one knows for sure."

"Who set you up?" she asked. "It's not like you'd take food from a stranger. Though you eat out all the time. My father told me you guys were out the night before like you normally were. He didn't get sick. He'd texted me hours before he died."

She watched Jarrett staring at Jack. "Luke set you up to be out of the picture, didn't he?"

"No," she said, shaking her head. "My father wouldn't do that."

"Andi," Jack said. "We don't need to talk about this."

"Yes," she said. "We do. And having Jarrett here is going to help me get the real truth out of you. I think I deserve it."