by Avery James
"Can't Greta cook this for us?" Caroline asked.
"I gave Greta the day off," Angela reminded her. "I wanted to spend this time with my children."
"I'll get it started," Whit said. "Charlotte. maybe you can help. It'll give my brother and sister a minute to wrap up their discussion. Mom, can you help me find the stock pot?"
"I was thinking of sticking around here and making sure all my children make it through to dinner," Angela said.
"We're fine, Mom," Jack said.
"Yeah," Caroline added.
"I'll be the judge of that. No arguing with me, it's my birthday," Angela said. She raised the back of her wrist to her forehead. "You wouldn't want to upset your poor, old, fragile mother."
"Something tells me you'll outlive us all," Caroline said. The room fell silent. Caroline bit her lip and stared down at the ground. "You know I didn't mean anything by that."
Whit held out his hand. "This could take a while. If we wait for them to finish, we'll die of hunger."
Charlotte followed him into the kitchen.
"Can you grab a pot?" he asked. "I asked Greta to leave one out this morning, but I don't see it around. There are six lobsters."
Charlotte rummaged through the cupboard until she found a stock pot large enough to accommodate the lobsters. She carried it over to the sink.
"There's a pot filler over the stove," Whit said.
"Oh," Charlotte said with a laugh. "I'm used to the kitchen in my apartment, though the kitchen in my parents' house doesn't have anything like that either." She placed the pot down on the stove and swung the faucet over it, turning the knob and starting the water.
"I'm used to the tiny sink and single burner on my boat. We weren't always like this, you know."
"Wealthy?" Charlotte asked. She started the stove and watched the flame glow blue.
"No, I mean we weren't always miserable like this. There was a time when we were the happiest family in the world. Our days were sunny and our summers were long. Caroline and Jack have been at each other's throats since our father died, but that's far from the root of all of this. Did Jack ever tell you about Peter?"
"Who?" Charlotte asked.
"Our brother," Whit said.
"I didn't know you had another sibling," Charlotte replied.
"He died before Jack was born. I was twelve, and Caroline was ten." Whit placed the lobsters down on the counter and stared out the window. "I feel like you should know this. Peter was eight. He had bright blue eyes. He was smart. I remember everyone thought he was special the same way everyone thinks Jack is special. He was this tiny little kid. He couldn't have been four feet tall. He was trying to follow me out to the deeper water, and he got caught in a current. He got pulled way out and slipped under before I could get to him.
"We've spent over thirty years trying to forget what happened that day, but I don't think any of us have ever been the same. My father was out of town working, and we were down at the beach. My mother was watching us for the day. We usually had nannies and tutors and a whole gaggle of people following us around, but on that day it was just our mother. It was one of those perfect, cloudless days. I can still see the water. Peter and I were swimming, and Caroline was back on the beach.
"When our mother went up to the house, she had three children. When she came back, she had only two.
"My father blamed my mother for what happened. My mother blamed herself, and I've spent the rest of my life wondering if I could have saved him."
"I had no idea," Charlotte said. Her hand had been over her mouth the whole time, she realized.
"Jack doesn't like to talk about it. He was born a little over a year later, but things were different for him. Caroline and I had always been free to do our own thing. My mother hovered over Jack for every minute of his childhood. He never had a chance to just be a kid. It's just I think anyone entering the family deserves to know the truth about why we're so dysfunctional. When my father died a few years back, it dredged up a lot of emotions we had buried long ago. Whatever happens at dinner, I thought you should at least know the truth." As Whit looked over to her, the water started to boil, and the pot rumbled to life on the range.
"You didn't hear this from me," Whit continued, "but my sister thinks it's strange that our brother ended up with someone who isn't from the same country club circuit. Jack had a string of girlfriends over the years who were beautiful, high-maintenance and more interested in his potential as a Coburn than in his personality. It makes complete sense to me. The rest of us ask so much of him. I'm mentioning this now because I don't think I'll have a chance later. There's a blowout brewing between the two of them, and everyone here knows it. So before everything goes to hell, I thought you should know that he's got the weight of the world on his shoulders, and I think you help lighten that load."
"Thank you," Charlotte said. She wasn't sure what to say.
"That's enough of my ramblings for tonight," Whit said. "Here's to you and Jack and new beginnings." He picked up a lobster like he was making a toast and tipped it into the pot. He slipped the others into the boiling water one by one.
***
By the time dinner was ready, tensions between Jack and Caroline had reached a critical mass. Charlotte peeked in through the doorway.
"Can I steal Jack for just one minute?" she asked.
"You might want to take him for a few more than that," Angela said.
As soon as they were out of the room, Charlotte turned to Jack. The familiar warmth in his eyes was gone, and the anger across his face was a look she wasn't used to. The way he gritted his teeth to bulge out the muscles at the side of his jaw and the way his face set in determination made him seem tough and hard. There was something undeniably attractive about it.
"What's going on?"
"Nothing, it's just Caroline. She's so frustrating sometimes."
"You realize that this is what she wants, right? The best way to win whatever argument you're having is to stop having it."
"You don't understand," he said. "You don't even know what we're fighting about."
"I have a sister," Charlotte said. She watched him pace back and forth down the hallway, and she hated to see him this upset, even if he was surprisingly attractive all worked up. "Trust me when I say I understand. Half of it is whatever you think you're fighting about, and the other half is every unresolved issue you've had since each of you were born."
Jack snorted a laugh and shook his head. "Yeah? So what am I supposed to do?"
Charlotte motioned for him with one finger. "Step one. Forget about the fight for a minute."
"How am I supposed to do that?" Jack asked. He either missed her signal or had chosen to ignore it. He stood with his fists balled at his sides.
"I'm trying to show you, but you have to come over here first," Charlotte said.
Jack stepped in front of her. "There, are you happy?"
"Not yet," Charlotte said.
"Why not?" Jack asked.
"Because you're still thinking about how annoyed you are."
"I thought you were going to tell me how to fix that."
"There's a trick to it. How about I fix it for you instead?"
Charlotte smiled as Jack's scowl quickly changed into a look of confusion. She stepped up on the tips of her toes and wrapped her arms around him, kissing him quickly.
The moment her lips met his, she pressed all her weight into him. It was the first time she had taken the initiative to kiss Jack, she realized, and it felt great. His face was still frozen in surprise as she moved her hands to his face and smoothed her fingers through his hair.
Jack took a half step back before he realized what was happening. As soon as he had his arms around her too, he held her tight and returned her kiss. He ran his hands up and down her back as he deepened the kiss, and Charlotte felt that wonderful pull that made her wish he'd scoop her up and carry her upstairs. If she went much longer before stopping things, dinner would be unbearable.
Charlotte kissed Jack's cheek and his ear.
"Are you feeling better?" she asked.
"Yes," Jack said. He turned and tried to kiss her again, but Charlotte pressed her finger to her lips.
"Good. Maybe if you can get through dinner without getting in a fight, I'll be inclined to keep kissing you later." She slipped out of Jack's arms and turned down the hall.
"That was your plan for getting me to behave?" Jack asked.
"Seems to be working so far," Charlotte said.
Jack laughed again. "Next moment we're alone, I'm finishing what you just started."
Charlotte gave him a wink. "Just remember you have to get through dinner first."
When Charlotte and Jack returned to the dining room, it was clear that Whit and Angela had had a very different but equally effective chat with Caroline. She seemed to be on her best behavior.
More importantly, the lobster was perfect. It was sweet and succulent, and it gave Jack a constructive outlet for ripping something apart with his bare hands. The sky outside had taken the color of dusk and was nearly as red as the lobsters.
Mostly, the dinner seemed like it would never end. Each Coburn picked a lobster, from the tray, going in order of seniority. Jack's mother spent about five minutes sizing them up before making her pick. When she finally did, she tapped Charlotte on the shoulder and told her that, as a guest, it was her turn. Charlotte grabbed the nearest one and put it on her plate. When Caroline picked hers, she looked at each remaining lobster and then back at Charlotte's as if she had been robbed of the one suitable crustacean in the world.
None of it would have been irritating if Charlotte hadn't been completely caught up on that kiss in the hall. She couldn't get it out of her mind. It had been a ploy to get Jack through dinner, and instead it was making her wish that anything would bring the meal to an end so she could grab his hand and drag him up to the bedroom.
After the meal itself came the cake. It was evident to Charlotte from the pain in Angela's eyes how much Jack's mother loved her children and hated to see them fight. And it was nice to help Jack and his siblings bring the sheet cake into the room after clearing the dinner plates. When Caroline wasn't giving Charlotte suspicious glances over the candles and when Whit wasn't staring down into his drink looking like he'd rather be anywhere other than the table where his brother and sister were so obviously straining to be civil, everything almost felt like Charlotte was already family.
The entire time, Charlotte struggled to keep her mind from wandering back to the promise she had made to Jack. The cake was finished quickly, and Caroline and Whit said their good nights soon after. Charlotte was afraid of making a faux pas by leaving too early, but Angela excused herself as well.
"Off to bed. I'm older than you'd think from looking at me," Angela said with a smile, "and I find the more of these birthday candles I blow out, the earlier my bedtime comes. Thank you so much for a wonderful night, both of you." She kissed Jack on the cheek before kissing Charlotte on the forehead.
Charlotte and Jack walked back to the living room to watch the silver of the moon spreading across the peaks and valleys of the ocean swells. Jack wrapped his arm around Charlotte and she leaned into him as they admired the view.
"Thank you for tonight," Jack said.
"You're the one who brought me to your family dinner. I should be thanking you," Charlotte replied.
"You kept it from becoming yet another family fight. I know my mother and brother were happy to have you calm the waters."
"It wasn't a big deal. I know you'd do the same for me."
"Honestly, I spent half the meal thinking about the way you kissed me in the hallway. I was too surprised to stay mad."
"Is that right?" Charlotte asked.
"That's right," Jack said. "How about you let me keep that promise and come with me to continue that kiss upstairs?"
Chapter 17
As soon as Jack had led Charlotte upstairs to his bedroom, she launched herself at him. Her body collided into his so suddenly that they fell against the bedroom door, closing it with an unexpected slam. To Charlotte's surprise, Jack stepped back from her kiss.
"Before we do anything, there's something I've been meaning to tell you all day. It's about my family and why we're all the way we are. I think maybe it would help explain some of the tension between everyone," Jack said.
"Whit told me about what happened to Peter," Charlotte said. "I didn't know."
"It was before I was born," Jack said. "As far as I can tell, it was one of the things that set this family down our path. This is all secondhand information, but my mother decided she wanted another baby. My father was dead set against it."
Jack held out his hands.
"Well, here I am. For my entire childhood, I never had a moment to myself. If I left this room, there was always a nanny watching over me, if not my mother. It's like she thought she could make up for what had happened by being as overbearing as possible.
"I've tried too. I really have, but nothing I've done has ever made things better. Every personal and professional success just seems to drive everyone further apart. I feel like I'm always trying to be there for people who don't want me.
"But that actually wasn't what I was going to say. When my father died, he left me in charge of the family trust. Caroline doesn't think that's fair."
"Do you?" Charlotte asked.
"I've tried to explain to her that it's a responsibility I don't really want, but one that I will keep as long as it's in the best interest of the family. If I thought it would make anything better, I'd give away control in a heartbeat, but it's never enough. Nothing I do is ever enough. It's like I'm to blame for everyone else's choices."
Charlotte reached out and grabbed Jack's hand, squeezing his palm as she looked into his eyes.
"They don't know how lucky they are to have you," she said softly.
As she looked into Jack's eyes, she saw something that hadn't been there before. Tonight he had been angry, hurt, upset and frustrated, but this was something else. He needed her. She had looked into his eyes before and seen desire. She had seen attraction, but she had never seen this vulnerability.
Jack needed her, and she needed him. She tried to kiss him on the cheek, but Jack turned to meet her lips, pressing firmly against her, holding his mouth against hers like they could live off each other's breath.
"You don't know how lucky I am to have you," he said. "I don't know where I'd be without you."
He kissed her again and ran his hands down her sides. With each motion, Charlotte's desire grew stronger. She could hear the excitement rising in Jack's hurried breaths.
"I believe I promised you I was going to finish what you started earlier tonight," Jack teased, leaning Charlotte backward in his arms to nibble at the soft skin of her throat. "Are you sure this is something you want to do?"
"I wouldn't have started it if I didn't know what I was in for," she replied. She rolled her head to the side to let Jack continue planting kisses in a row down her shoulder. His hands found their way under her shirt to squeeze at the top of her hips.
Jack unbuttoned the front of Charlotte's blouse with one hand and slid it over her bra, cupping her breast in his hand as he kissed her neck. Each tiny motion of his tongue against her skin made her want him more. While his mouth moved its way to her collarbone, Jack unhooked her bra and slid the straps off her shoulders.
Charlotte gasped as Jack's lips worked their way down her bare breast and found the sensitive skin of her nipple.
"You're a little too good at that," she said. She tried to laugh at her own excitement, but a quick motion of Jack's hands around her waist sent another wave of bliss through her body and she gasped again.
"Would you rather I stop?" Jack asked.
"God, no," Charlotte moaned.
"Good. I'm glad that this didn't turn out to be a one-time thing. Charlotte, everything about you is exactly what I need right now."
She needed him too. She slid her
hand beneath his boxers and wrapped her hand around his length. As she stroked, she didn't know if she could wait another second before throwing herself on top of him, but Jack took his time running his hand over her thigh and between her legs. As he rubbed, Charlotte closed her eyes and whimpered softly. She felt like her legs were going to give out from under her. Then, with another quick motion, she felt like the floor dropped away.
Charlotte squeaked in surprise as she felt Jack lift her off the ground and carry her over to his bed. He slipped his fingers beneath the straps of her panties and pulled them down around her knees. He sat down on the edge of the mattress and leaned back, pulling her to him. He held Charlotte's hips and helped guide her into position above. She could feel the heat of his erection pressed against her. She was delirious with anticipation.
"Oh, Jack," Charlotte said.
She trembled as he pressed himself against her and slid inside. That first wonderful motion made her heart lose its rhythm for a second, and a pulse of excitement crashed through her body. She flexed her hips and pushed Jack deeper. The pleasure took her breath away, and she barely managed to let another cry of delight pass her lips.
As Jack worked against her, he passed his hands up and down her back, caressing her shoulders, then smoothing his hands back down until they roamed over her thighs and legs. It was like he wanted to possess her, like he wanted to touch every last inch of her in this moment.
She felt radiant, powerful and desired, but most of all, she felt the overwhelming, mind-numbing excitement that wracked her body with every thrust. She knew she couldn't last much longer. Her breaths echoed through the room, and hair stuck to her face as she clenched her eyes shut and tried to hold on for just another moment. She pulled herself tight against Jack, and he kissed her neck again as the pleasure grew too incredible to bear.
Charlotte stifled her cry as climax surged sweet and strong through her body. A thin layer of sweat clung to her skin, and she felt the dazed contentment of having everything she wanted. She kissed him, savoring the way he pulled her body down against him as he returned her kiss. She could still feel him inside her, and his slow thrust of his hips sent new tremors of pleasure from her toes to her chest.
