What The Heart Wants

“Yes, I forgive you,” Paula chuckled as her her fingers traveled over the contours of his chest. They both exhaled a sigh of relief as if a burden had been lifted off of their shoulders. She could feel it. They were finally free of Jackson’s past and it was a feeling she enjoyed.

“So, what’s next for you, Jackson Davis?” Paula asked.

“Well, the shop I work at will need somebody to run it soon. It may be in another year or two, but I’m willing to put the time in and do things the right way for a change. I still have my community service hours to complete, but the place I’m assigned to has me excited to get started,” he smiled.

“Oh yeah, where’s that at?”

“It’s for a youth center. I get to speak to the kids about what I did and how not to get caught up in that life. I never thought of myself as a role model, but having you in my life has changed my perspective on a lot of things. I don’t know where I would be right now, or what I’d be doing to survive, but I know I wouldn’t be this happy doing it. The constant looking over my shoulder to wonder if the cops were closing in. Or the constant paranoia of my clients sending a team after me to make sure I keep quiet, it was all too much. I didn’t realize that until it had stopped and I got out of that.” Jackson opened up about everything he’d gone through emotionally over the last few weeks.

Paula couldn’t to be just as happy for him as he was for himself. They had come a long way in such a long period of time.

“So, what about you?” he asked her as his fingers played with the curls on her head.

“What about me?” she giggled.

“What’s next?” he nudged her playfully.

“Well if you must know, this will be my last month at Clementine. Rebecca and I have decided to start our own firm and really do it. I took your advice and stopped being so scared of who would or wouldn’t come with me and as it turns out the partners were okay with it. Of course, they don’t want us poaching their clients, but they gave us a few leads that we could sink our teeth into from the competition. It feels good and I believe I have you to thank for that,” Paula admitted graciously.

“No, that’s all you, my love,” he nodded.

“Your love?” she questioned. Paula sat up to look him in the eyes. He returned her gaze with a quizzical one of his own.

“Don’t act like you didn’t know!” he stammered as his eyes grew wide.

“Don’t act like I didn’t know what?” She wanted him to say it to her not just haphazardly in conversation.

“Don’t act like you didn’t know that I love you. I love you, Paula Maxwell.” Jackson stared at her awaiting the response he’d thought about every day of every week that passed by when they weren’t together.

“I know,” she quipped with a devilish smirk. “I love you too, Jackson Davis.”

The end.