Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 105756 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105756 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
The next few days passed by, and after the quiz night there was a newfound comfort between Jonathan and me. I finally managed to scrape enough money together to get my car fixed, but it was bittersweet. I’d become accustomed to sharing journeys with him. My heart panged sadly, but I knew it wasn’t a good idea to keep relying on Jonathan so heavily. Besides, he employed a driver so he could work on his way to the office, and I could tell he was getting way less work done with me around.
Late on Sunday evening, I sent him a text.
Ada: Good news! I finally got my new battery installed, so I won’t need any more lifts. I’m sure you’ll be happy to see the back of me, lol. Thank you so much for taking me to and from work these last few weeks. It’s been a Godsend.
I waited for a responding text, but none came. Then, just I was getting ready to take a bath before bed, there was an abrupt knock on my apartment door. Tightening the tie around my bathrobe, I went to answer it, spying Jonathan through the peephole. He wore lounge pants and a long-sleeved shirt, an irritable expression that I couldn’t account for on his face. Had something happened?
“Jonathan? Is everything all right?” I asked as I opened the door.
“No, everything is not all right,” he replied, stepping by me and into the apartment.
17.
Ada
“What’s wrong?” I asked in concern. Jonathan was emitting an intense energy that put me on edge.
“Your car’s been fixed?” he responded.
“Yes. I told you so in my text. You didn’t have to—”
“You should still let Ben drive you. I don’t like your chances in such an old car. I’d feel better if you kept coming with us.”
I stared at him, sensing there was something more going on than he was saying. He ran his hand through his hair before gripping the back of his neck as though to dispel his agitation. Speaking of his hair, it was normally styled to perfection, but right now, it was all messed up, sticking in various directions.
“Jonathan, there’s nothing wrong with my car,” I said gently because he was clearly worked up. “I get it serviced every year, and it’s been reliable so far. Cars get dead batteries all the time. It doesn’t mean they’re destined for the scrap heap.”
“I’m not so sure about that,” he muttered under his breath, and the comment got my back up.
“Hey, just because you like to be driven around in a Porsche doesn’t mean the rest of us have to do the same. I enjoy the independence my car gives me, even if it is a little old.”
“At least let me get you something better,” he blurted, and I blinked at him. Get me something better? As in, buy me a car? It was official; he’d lost his mind.
There was something desperate in his eyes, and I didn’t understand why he was being so unhinged about this. To be perfectly honest, I often got the sense that my presence on his morning and evening commute was an annoyance he simply put up with. He should be delighted that the arrangement was coming to an end, not panicking as he appeared to be.
“Pardon?”
“Let me buy you a new car. You work hard. You deserve one. Your birthday’s coming up, right?”
I stared at him aghast. “What?”
“You heard me. I’ll get you a car. Any model you like.”
My heart raced anew. “Y-you’re being ridiculous. Friends don’t just buy each other cars for their birthdays.” No, that was something a loving and generous boyfriend or husband did. The very notion had my insides in a tailspin. I didn’t know what to say to him. In the end, I went with a simple, “Why are you acting so crazy about this?”
His expression sharpened as he stepped towards me. I suddenly became aware that I was naked beneath my robe, and Jonathan—though fully dressed—was wearing a lot less than his usual three-piece suit.
I gasped when his hands sank into my hair, his gaze, a little wild, holding mine captive. “Is it crazy not to want you stranded on the side of the road in a broken-down car?”
“Jonathan,” I whispered, my tone cautioning while my body turned to liquid under his touch, the way his fingers lightly massaged my skull and sent pleasurable shivers down my spine.
“And just so you know,” he went on, his voice a low caress as his eyes traced the line of my robe where my chest was heaving, breaths coming fast. “I would never be happy to see the back of you.”
“That doesn’t mean you need to buy me a c-car,” I countered, my voice still barely above a whisper.
“You make me feel …” he trailed off as though trying to think of the right word. “Off-kilter.”