I did not do that, however.
I wanted to, but I couldn't.
The conversation between my family and Preston was so cordial and continual that I could never find the right opportunity to interrupt. My face got red and flaming hot and my voice lost function every time I started to interject with the old—"I need to talk to you," bit.
I kept putting it off until, finally about thirty minutes after I arrived, I worked up the nerve.
I knew Jake would be there soon, and I was desperate to have Preston gone by that time.
I could see him giving my family conspiratorial smiles, and I knew they knew about the bracelet. I had to go ahead and say something before he gave it to me in front of them.
"Can we go outside?" I whispered it so quietly that Preston had to get me to repeat it.
"Why?" he said when he finally heard me. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah, I mean, no, I mean… everything's fine. I’m fine. I just need to talk to you outside. Out by the cars."
Preston could tell by my expression that something was bothering me, so he wore a concerned expression as he located his shoes and followed me outside.
We began walking down the driveway.
I had to set the pace very slow because I was so nervous that I was winded.
"Preston, I'm just going to be honest with you," I said once we were far enough from the house that I knew there was no chance of anyone overhearing us. He glanced at me with a sober expression. "I know we hadn't really talked about seeing each other exclusively or anything, but—"
"But we are, aren't we?"
"I mean, yeah, I guess. I haven't been seeing anyone else or anything, but that's not what I'm—"
"Neither have I," he said.
"Preston, listen," I slowed to almost a stop as we neared his car.
Preston made a face like he was debating saying something. He scanned my face seriously, taking a little step closer to me. "Kristen, I forgive you for last night," he whispered.
I pulled back, grimacing at him. "What?"
"I thought you were trying to be honest with me and tell me you went and hooked up with Jake last night after I dropped you off. I just wanted you to know I forgive you. We all make mistakes."
"That wasn't a mistake," I said, my heart pounding as I stared at him.
So many things had been wrong with his statement. I didn't even know which part to think about.
"You can't tell me you believe a moment of weakness with Bill's nephew would ever amount to anything."
I was so flustered and embarrassed by his words that it took several seconds for it to hit me that it was wrong that he knew I had been with Jake in the first place. A sense of fear and dread washed over me. I was already scared and reluctant, but that feeling was getting worse by the second. I took a deep breath, staring at Preston with caution.
"Preston. How do you know I saw Jake last night?"
"I saw you at the beach with him, Kristen. That's what I'm saying. We're not perfect. We all have moments of misjudgment. I forgive you." He smiled. "I want to move forward and forget all that. I came over here to give you something I bought for you. You're really gonna love it."
"You can't give me that," I said.
He smiled. "You don't even know what it is."
"Yes, I do. It's a bracelet. I saw you buy it at Dan Keeling's jewelry store."
(Obviously I hadn't seen him buy it, but I was thrown-off and a little frightened by him saying he had seen me, and I got some satisfaction to saying that back to him.)
"You shouldn't have spent that money," I added before he could say anything.
"Just wait till you see it."
"I can't," I said, shaking my head. "I can't take it. I've had fun getting to know you and everything, Preston, but we can't do it. We can't see each other, anymore."
He stared at me with a regretful sigh, seeming to contemplate his next words. "Would you please just look at the bracelet?" he asked hopefully.
"Sure." I said the word, "sure," but it came out really reluctant sounding.
Preston opened the driver's side door so he could reach in and get the bracelet. My eyes followed the motion of him reaching inside, and I focused immediately on the gun he had resting on the passenger's seat. His windows were darkly tinted and his interior was dark, but enough light shone inside for me to get a good look at the firearm.
It was a sleek looking pistol with a big scope attached to the top of it and what looked like a silencer on the end of the barrel. I was so taken aback by seeing it that it took me several seconds to appreciate what I had just laid eyes on.
In the meantime, Preston had grabbed the long jewelry box out of the side pocket. He turned and handed it to me. It was giftwrapped in gold paper with a beautiful plaid ribbon and bow.
"I’m not going to open it like a gift," I said.
"It is a gift," he said, still smiling and completely ignoring the huge gun that was resting on the seat.
"I know, but I already told you I can't accept it. I thought you were just going to show it to me real quick. I can't stand here and unwrap it. I shouldn't do that."
Then, in a moment of bravery as a result of seeing that gun, I added, "My heart belongs to someone else, Preston. It always has and it always will. I'm sorry if it feels like I led you on in any way."
"Oh, you're sorry?" he asked, nodding at me with a serious but unreadable expression.
"Yes, I'm sorry," I said. "These things happen between people. People date and then stop dating all the time."
The more I thought about it, the more I realized I was scared of him. He shouldn't have known I was with Jake the night before, and he shouldn't have known how to get to my parents' house. Those two things were alarming enough, but the gun in the passenger seat was just too much. I felt another surge of bravery. I couldn’t stand the thought of ignoring the weapon that was staring me in the face. It was like he wanted me to see it.
"Why do you have that gun in your car?" I asked.
He shrugged slowly, giving me that same overly calm smile. "Because I always have a gun in my car," he said. "I have a permit. I give lessons at the shooting range."
"Why do you need to have it sitting out in the middle of the seat?"
Again, he shot me a slow, crooked smile. "Because I never know when I'll need it. The world's a crazy place. There are some real wack-o's out there."
Before I had the chance to say anything else, I heard Jake's truck pulling into the driveway. "I'm sorry, but you probably need to go," I said, feeling desperate for him to just go ahead and leave.
"Is this Jake coming over here?" he asked, staring straight at me rather than the truck that was pulling into a spot by my sister's car.
Preston had handed me the gift box a minute before, and I had been unable to get him to take it back.
"Yes, that's Jake," I whispered, thrusting the box in his direction again.
Preston didn't take it from me, instead, he turned to stare at Jake.
Jake parked his truck and climbed out of it, wasting no time whatsoever. It seemed like the vehicle had barely stopped moving when I heard his door slam shut. Maybe it wasn't a slam, but he wasn't messing around.
"You okay?" he asked, looking straight at me as he walked our way. He moved with a long, focused stride. I could see how concerned he was, and I nodded.
"I'm the one who should be asking her if she's okay," Preston said. "You're the one who's lying to her."
Jake leveled Preston with a scowl as he continued to walk toward us. "I didn't expect you to come here," Jake said to Preston. "And I don't think Kristen did, either."
"Would you please just be honest with Kristen?" Preston asked, drawing another scowl from Jake. "Don't treat her like those other women. She's better than that."
"This is not about me, chief," Jake said.
"It should be," Preston said. "Unless she thinks it's normal for a guy to have a girlfriend and still see other women."
"You have no id
ea what you're talking about," Jake said.
"Is that so?" Preston asked, nodding. "So, you're gonna just stand here with a straight face and tell Kristen you're not seeing that ballerina and the lawyer in addition to your Cuban lady-lover."
Jake looked stunned for a few seconds before he spoke. I didn't know what was going to come out of his mouth.
"One, you're ridiculous. You seriously are. I can't believe I just stood here and listened to you say the words lady-lover. Two, you have no clue what you're talking about." Jake stood there, looking Preston in the eyes.
"I happen to have a picture of you and that lawyer together—one that was taken not even two weeks ago."
"You happen to have a what?" Jake asked, his expression one of utter disbelief.
"Please just do yourself… do all of us a favor. Tell Ms. Hall that you're not good enough for her. Tell her you're a womanizer who could never be loyal to one woman. Tell her she should get on with her life with someone who deserves her."
Jake took a step back, looking Preston over with disbelief and disapproval. He opened his mouth to say something to Preston, but then he changed his mind and shifted to focus on me. We just stood there for a few seconds, Preston and me both waiting to hear what Jake would say.
"I don't deserve you," he said, finally. "He's right about that. I really don't deserve you. But he's wrong about the most important thing. I can and I will be loyal to you, K.K. I was not being disloyal with anyone else, and I certainly won't be with you. I don't know what he's talking about with pictures, but I don't have anything to hide. Look at me and know that I'm telling you the truth."
I believed Jake. I could look at him and see that he was being honest with me. His eyes begged me to see the truth in his statement.
I let out a resigned sigh before focusing on Preston. He had to leave. I was so uncomfortable with him there. I felt creeped out, which was a fairly unusual feeling for me, seeing as how I usually kept myself in a happy little bubble where I didn't dwell on too many unsavory things. I was wary of Preston, and it was a feeling I didn't enjoy.
Again, I thrust the box in his direction, but when he wouldn't reach out for it right away, I leaned to the side, gently placing the bracelet on the top of his car, right above the driver's door.
"I'm sorry, but you need to go," I said, putting my palms out as if to make sure the box was balanced in its place and let him know that I was no longer responsible for it.
Chapter 18
I thought Preston might be inspired to leave when I came right out and told him he needed to, but he just stood by his car, looking at us like he wasn't planning on going anywhere. He was still smiling like a salesman. He looked confident as if he actually believed Jake might just say, "Okay, yeah, you're right. What was I thinking?" …like he thought I might suddenly see things his way and ask Jake to leave.
I regarded Jake with an overly calm expression, barely widening my eyes. He gave me a tiny patient grin. Both of us regretted the drama and just wished Preston would leave. I thought of the weird things—the way he found my parents' house, the supposed pictures of Jake, knowing that I was with Jake the night before, the gun.
"He's got a gun," I said, seemingly out of nowhere. I was as shocked at myself for saying it as Jake was at hearing it. I wasn't scared, though, and I knew I'd regret it if I didn't mention it in front of Jake. I wanted to see how he'd react.
"Did you just say he showed you a gun?" Jake asked, looking straight at me. His expression was intense. He was visibly on high-alert, looking ready to pounce on Preston for any reason.
"He didn't show it to me. He didn't hold it up for me to see or anything, but he's got a big gun in his car with a scope on it." I couldn’t believe I was saying these words out loud. I regretted saying them the instant they came out of my mouth. Preston let out a laugh.
"That gun's not even loaded. I was just using the scope."
I glanced at Jake dubiously.
"I’m not the one who should be on trial right now," Preston said, causing us both to look at him. His eyes met mine, begging me to see things his way. "I'm the one who loves you, Kristen. I’m the one who cares about you, the one who doesn't want you to get hurt—the one who's looking after you."
"You mean the one who's sneaking around, following her," Jake said.
"The one who tries to protect her from guys like you," Preston returned, looking straight at Jake.
Jake took a deep breath as he stepped even closer to Preston. "Let me be clear with you," Jake said, looking straight at Preston. "I never want to see you again, and neither does Kristen."
Jake paused when Preston glanced at me. I shook my head a little at Preston, letting him know that I didn't, in fact, ever want to see him again.
"You need to apologize to the lady and tell her she'll never see you again," Jake said.
"Or what?" Preston asked.
"I really don't think you know who you're dealing with," Jake said. "I'm on a first name basis with the best lawyers in the city. I go to their weddings and bar mitzvahs; I go to their daughters' sweet sixteen parties. I'm friends with detectives and judges. I play golf with the governor, Preston. I made a phone call on my way over here, and just like you think you've done your homework on me, I'm doing mine on you. You're now being watched, Preston Gentry. One false move in Miami, one misstep, and you'll be arrested and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. I will bring the law down on you. You can trust me on that." Jake shifted, trying to look into Preston's car but it was no use because the windows were tinted too darkly. "If I ever catch you anywhere near Kristen or any member of her family, gun or no gun, I won't wait for the law. I'll take care of it myself."
"Is that a threat?" Preston asked.
Jake smiled but with no humor. "I'm one-hundred-percent threatening you."
Preston looked directly at me. "You can speak for yourself," he said to me.
"You should go," I said. I felt a little scared of him still, so I found myself wanting to be nice. "Thank you for trying to look out for me," I added. "But I can do it myself. I really don't care for you knowing where I was last night and everything."
"What do you mean he knew where you were?" Jake asked, looking even more angry than before.
For some reason, I had forgotten he didn't already know about that. "He knew we hung out last night," I said.
I paused, tilting my head, wondering if that was only last night. I was sleep deprived and it felt like much longer ago than that.
"Yeah, I guess he followed me over there or something."
Jake took a step even closer to Preston. Staring at him like he was a predator who was barely refraining from devouring his prey. "Please tell me this isn't true," Jake said in a slow, measured tone.
"It's not true." Preston said instantly and with a straight face.
"He's lying," I said. "He knew I hung out with you last night even though I hadn't told him."
"I'm not the one you should be afraid of," Preston repeated leveling me with a stare.
"You need to apologize to the lady for following her," Jake said. "And then, you need to take your little box and get in your car. And you can consider yourself warned. I already have people watching you, waiting for you to come anywhere near her." Jake took his phone out of his pocket, and read something on the screen. "Seems I have some information already. Born and raised in Gwinnett, Georgia. Son to Richard and Pamela Gentry." Jake smiled slightly at the way Preston scowled at him when he said that. "And I didn't even open the text. That was just what was written on the first line." Jake regarded Preston for several long seconds. "Please don't make me become obsessed with ruining your life, Preston. I will absolutely do it if you push me, but I would rather not. I have better things to do with my time. I promise you, the best option you have is to apologize to the lady and then get in your car and go. And, just so we're straight, Kristen never wants to see you again."
"I don't," I said, glancing down shyly. "I'm sorry, but I need you to go. You'r
e a nice guy, and I hate that it has to come to this, but I need you to leave. I want you to leave. I can't and I don't want to see you anymore. Thank you for the baseball game and for all the dinners and everything, but there aren't going to be anymore. I have been in love with Jake since… I've always loved him. It's no offense to you."
Preston finally went for his door handle. Jake snapped photos of him with his phone when he opened the door. Jake was smooth and athletic, and he managed to look slick and not-at-all awkward when he took out his phone and took pictures of Preston as he opened his car door.
Preston sat in the seat, and quickly grabbed the door handle to close the door, but Jake reached out, holding the door and preventing Preston from closing it. The whole exchange made my heart beat a thousand miles an hour. I just knew they were about to fight.
"Hang on," Jake said, reaching in and snapping a photograph of Preston's face from close range.
Preston looked the other way, yanking on the door again to try to get it to close. Jake had leverage and easily held it open. Preston was not pleased.
"You forgot your box," Jake said, holding the door open.
Preston shook his head. "It's worthless." There was a strong profanity interjected between the two words, and I cringed since he had never really acted like that with me before. I thought about what Beverly said about the price of that bracelet. I thought of the many things I could do with that kind of money—what the Hope Center could do with it. I wondered why he would lie about something like that.
Jake let go of the door, stepping back and pulling me with him to stand off to the side. Preston stared at me with a disapproving expression for a good long while through the crack in the door before he finally closed it. It seemed to take forever, but eventually, he took off. He started the car, and backed out of the parking spot before heading down our driveway.
I was numb as I watched him drive away.
There had been so many things wrong with that whole episode, yet all I could look at or think about in that moment was the small box on the roof of the car. I stared at it in awestruck wonder, sitting on top of the car as he drove. I had already pictured what would happen to the box if he left it on there, and in my mind, it would be gracefully flung to the ground as soon as he executed a three-point turn in the driveway. We would easily retrieve it from the driveway and then figure out what to do with it. The box did not get flung to the ground in my yard, however. It stayed on Preston's car as he backed out, and I could do nothing but stare at it in amazement.
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