The Chase

Chapter 14

JASPER

    "Isn't she a bit young for you?" Eric places his sandwich and chips down on my desk before sitting in the chair. Maybe he'd be in better shape if he ate better.

    "I wouldn't say she's too young!" Ass. I take a bite out of the chicken Caesar salad I had gotten for lunch.

    "C'mon man! 10 years is a bit of a gap.." Was it really 10 years? I hadn't really thought about how young Cecilia was and 34 is hardly considered old. Age had never really been a problem. I mean at least she was of legal drinking age.

    "She's an adult! Don't make it seem like I'm robbing the cradle!" I bite down on a cherry tomato and flash him a smirk. Eric throws his head back laughing at the innuendo.

    "I mean... If the shoe fits right?" Eric throws his hands up as a sign of peace to couple with his sarcastic remark.

    Does the shoe fit? She wasn't a child. Yes she did act mildly childish on occasion. This is exactly why she hadn't met Eric yet. I make a mental note to talk to her about behaving in front of company tonight.

    "The shoe doesn't fit" My tone was flat as I steal a chip off of Eric's plate. Suddenly regretting my choice of bland salad.

    "C'mon! You aren't actually taking her seriously?" Eric laughed at the idea of me in a committed relationship. 

    Was I really in a serious relationship? We had definitely moved passed casual. She basically lived at my apartment. Hell she was there now. I liked knowing where she was. I know she is safe. 

    "And what if I am? She's good looking and fun!" Yes I liked her more than I wanted Eric to know. It wasn't his business and it was a true statement. She was fun. We always had a good time and no one could dispute her beauty.

    "Oh please! Only a matter of time before you're bored and on to the next" Eric looked at me with admiration in his eyes. 

    I feel sort of bad for him. I wander if he ever gets bored of the same women every night for years. Probably why he is always so interested in my life. It was nice feeling like his ideal. Wouldn't have it any other way.

    "Makes me sound like an ass when you say it like that. She is different." I catch myself smiling at the thought of her. Her smile. Her laugh. Even the way she walk lit a fire in the pit of my stomach.

    "Different? Finally find the one to tame the beast?" Eric arches an eyebrow and fakes a surprised look. He doesn't believe I'm taking her seriously. Doesn't matter.

    'Tame the beast'? Ha Is that how he saw me. An animal constantly on the hunt. Amusing and offensive at the same time. 

    "Yeah she's on her way to being my girlfriend." It sort of just slipped without thought. It did have good ring to it. Girlfriend. I wanted to take her off market. Mark my territory. Let ever other man out there know she was taken. 

*****

    I walk into my apartment and find her sprawled out on the couch on her phone, of course. A habit I will break even if it meant I had to take he phone and hide it from her.

    "You know it's bad for your eyes to stare at a screen to long?" I chuckle lightly.

    "Don't you stare at a computer screen all day? I'm basically preparing for the job you want me to take at your office." Smart ass doesn't look up or greet me.

    Curiosity leads me to my office where I could check up on our little 'Lucas' problem. I return to the living room, laptop in hand and settle into a chair. Can't have her sneaking up on me in my office.

    There was something exciting about sitting across from her with my little secret. My little glimpse into all things 'Cece'. It helped me feel closer to her in a twisted way. I got to see her unfiltered. It had become a part of my daily routine to check in on her. However, it wasn't always my favorite part of the day.

    I begin with her emails, nothing. Then her social media accounts, nothing. Call log, nothing. Texts, the twerp texted her again. But this time she responded. Why would she respond to that asshole. I glance up at her, still glued to her device and have to physically fight the urge to jump across the coffee table and rip her phone from her delicate little hands.

    They had been in constant contact since I had left for the office this morning. What the f**k! While I'm busting my ass all day, she was at MY apartment texting another guy. 

    Anger flared in my core. I had to avoid eye contact out of fear I would snap. Instead I start from the beginning dissecting their entire conversation. She hadn't said anything particularly inappropriate. They had talked about basically nothing apart from general greetings and casual updates on everyday life. 

    They apparently dated in high school and had somehow reconnected through f*******:. My mind filled with questions I didn't want to know the answers to. Had they gone far enough to have s*x?

    The idea that another man had touched her made my blood boil. It didn't matter if it was before me. She was mine now and I didn't plan on letting her go. It was even more upsetting that she was just laying there. Kicking her feet like a child, blissfully unaware that she had been caught red handed. I wanted to scream at her. Shake her. Beg her for some sort of explanation. 

    But I don't, instead I dropped it for now. I would need to find a way to bring it up without outing myself. Cecilia had justified my privacy violation. I had to keep watching her closely. I couldn't let her destroy us when we were just getting somewhere. She hadn't crossed the line yet. But Lucas will most likely pose a problem later on. 

    "Have you talked to Tabitha about the new job?" I try to pry at something might have actual control over.

    "Not yet.." She locks her phone and tosses it onto the cushion next to her. She chews on her bottom lip, a clear sign that she is nervous and this topic makes her uncomfortable.

    "Why not? I thought you were excited at the prospect of the new job?" She did seem excited last night. It was a good job and she should be excited to tell her so-called friend. 

    "I am excited about the job. I'm just not excited about talking to Tabitha about it.." Cece was avoiding eye contact, looking at the arm rest of my chair instead of at me.

        "She'll understand. If she's really a good friend, she'll be excited for you!" I try to stress the fact that this is good for her. I only want what's good for her. Tabitha would not be standing in the way of that.

    "She IS a good friend." She looks directly at me, eyes filled with confusion.

    "You shouldn't be afraid to talk to your friend." I give her an empathetic look.

    Someone needed to say it. Their friend dynamic was odd. Tabitha ran the show and Cecilia followed along for the ride. I saw more in her. She could be confident if she would get out from under Tabitha's oppressive thumb.

    "I'm not afraid of her!" Cecilia was getting defensive. Which meant it was a touchy topic and that I had successfully planted a little seed of doubt. Cecilia knew she could be more. I would just help her find her way.