Page 57 of Forbidden Fruit
His face is flushed, his hair disheveled, and his eyes wild as he spots me. He's wearing the same wrinkled and stained clothes from yesterday.
"Becca!" he shouts, ignoring the stares of everyone around us. "Thank God I found you."
Holly mutters, "Speak of the devil," as Jack reaches our table.
"Jack, what are you doing here?" I ask, keeping my voice steady despite my racing heart.
"I've been calling you for days. I’ve bought multiple burners to reach you, and you’ve ignored every call," Jack says, slurring slightly. I catch the unmistakable scent of whiskey. It's barely past noon. "Why haven't you answered?"
"I think I made myself pretty clear in Cozumel," I say quietly. "We're done, Jack. And "
"Because of him?" Jack's face contorts with rage. "Because of Clive? My own stepfather?"
People are openly staring now. I feel my cheeks burning with embarrassment.
"This isn't the place to discuss this," I say firmly. "And you're clearly drunk."
"Please, Becca." His tone shifts abruptly, his eyes filling with tears. "I love you. I'll change, I swear. Whatever you want."
Holly snorts beside me. "That's rich."
Jack glares at her. "Stay out of this, Holly. This is between me and my girlfriend."
"Ex-girlfriend," I correct him, my voice stronger than I feel. "Jack, you need to leave."
"Not until you hear me out." He lurches forward, gripping the edge of our table. "I know I messed up. I took you for granted. But I can fix this—we can fix this."
The restaurant has become uncomfortably quiet. Holly catches the eye of a waiter, who starts moving toward us.
"There's nothing to fix," I say, trying to keep my voice level. "Please don't make this harder than it needs to be."
"Is it the ring?" Jack fumbles in his pocket, nearly knocking over Holly's wine glass. "You wanted a ring, right? That's what Mom said."
To my horror, he drops to one knee beside our table, producing a small velvet box. The elderly couple at a nearby table audibly gasps.
"Jack, get up. This is embarrassing," I hiss.
"Rebecca Jamison," he slurs, opening the box to reveal a massive diamond that looks suspiciously like the one his mother wears. "Will you marry me?"
Holly mutters, "Oh, for Christ's sake."
"No," I say firmly. "I will not marry you. Not now, not ever."
His face darkens. "It's because of him, isn't it? How could you, Becca? My own father?"
"Stepfather," Holly corrects, earning a venomous glare from Jack.
"He's using you," Jack continues, rising unsteadily to his feet. "He's just trying to hurt me and my mother. That's what this is about."
The waiter has arrived with the manager in tow. "Sir, I will have to ask you to leave."
Jack ignores them, his attention fixed on me. "How long, Becca? How long were you fucking him behind my back?"
The elderly woman at the next table makes a choking sound.
"That's enough," I stand up, throwing my napkin on the table. "I never cheated on you, Jack. But I'm not explaining myself to you anymore. We're done. Please respect that and move on."
"Move on?" He laughs bitterly. "To where? Clive had a VP fire me this morning! He called me into his office and said my 'services were no longer required.' My own stepfather told him to do it!"
