Ch 16
1041 Words
"Excuse me?" Allie stopped eating and stared at him. She could not have heard him right.
"I am not going to settle for just visitation here and there."
Allie set down her fork and glared at Jake. "I know you do not think that you are going to come in and take him away from me. I know that you honestly do not think that you have any right to dictate when you are going to see my son. I have one hell of a lawyer and I will fight you tooth and nail. I will bury your ass before I let you try and take my son from me."
Jake started laughing which infuriated Allie. "Listen,-"
"No, you listen to me. I will not let you just waltz into the picture and think that you are going to take my son from me. You are mistaken."
"Whoa, whoa. Calm down."
"I will not calm down."
"You need to calm down and listen to what I am actually saying and what I mean. Just because I said that I was not going to settle for visitation did not mean that I was going to try and take Dominic away from you. I would never EVER do that to you or our son."
"Then what did you mean?" Allie leaned back in the chair, waiting to hear what Jake had to say. Her nerves were all over the place. Her mind was swirling, not being able to hold a train of thought. She needed to focus on the matter in front of her.
"What I meant is that why would I need visitation? Do you honestly think that I am going to lose you again? I lost you once and it nearly killed me."
That was not the response that Allie was expecting from him. She stared blankly at him, trying to comprehend what he had just said. She had to have misheard him. There was no way that he said what she thought she heard. They hadn't spoken or seen each other in years. She had to be wrong. Her mind was definitely playing tricks on her. "Huh?"
"I am not letting you go, Allie. I want us. I want us as a family. All three of us, together."
"You need to take time and think about this. This is not a decision that can be made on a whim. We are not the same people we were. We are not teenagers any more. We are not stupidly in love and have some fantasy idea of what the perfect life is. We have both changed."
"I know what I want. I want you. I am not going to let you get away from me again. I was stupid and messed up all those years ago. I never should have reacted the way that I did."
"Jake, you need to take a step back and really think about this. We just showed up here and it is alot to take in all at once."
"Do you think that I haven't thought about you over the years? I have always thought how things could have been between us. You have always been in the back of my mind and in my heart. Always. And nothing is going to change that."
"I am not letting you rush in to anything. We have just now talked for a few minutes after not speaking for over seven years. We need to do more talking and you need to take the opportunity to get to know your son before you make any kind of decision about the future. Whatever you decide, I will respect that."
"Well, one thing has not changed, you are still stubborn as hell. Listen to me, woman, you are the one I want. I have always wanted you. Nothing was ever going to change that. And I know that I have not said it yet, so I am saying it now; I am truly sorry for what I did. I panicked and it wasn't the right thing to do."
"Jake, I am not that teenage girl any longer. We are not the same people we were back then. It is silly to think that we can just pick up where we left off and act like nothing happened. It is impossible."
"You are the one that I want. I have always wanted you."
"But this isn't about me. This isn't about you. This is about a seven-year-old boy who was just introduced to a family that he did not know existed. This is about you building a connection with him, if you want. This is about you being a part of his life, not mine. Dominic needs to be the main focus. We need to do what is best for him. That is the most important thing to me."
"Allie,-"
"Jake, you really need to stop and look at the situation in front of you. I think that you should take the time and get to know your son and see if you want to be a part of his life."
"I know that."
"Do you? All you are talking about is you and me. You have to understand something right from the start. You are either all in or all out. You cannot bounce in and out of his life when you feel like playing daddy and then disappear when things get too tough, or you are bored. Dom does not deserve that. He has been through more than any child should have to go through, and I will not subject him to an emotional roller coaster."
"I am fully aware of that. But there is nothing saying that we cannot reconnect."
"Yes, there is. There is me. I am saying it. The only reason that I am here is for Dominic. I did not come here looking to rekindle some relationship from when we were younger. I am not that girl any longer. Dominic is my life and his well being is the most important thing to me. Nothing is going to change that. I am not looking to dig up the past any more than it has been. I'm sorry but I live in the now, not in the past."
- Writer
