Page 3 of Unwrapped
Chapter Two
Jack
Jack’s brows drew down when he heard the front door close and turned to peek out of the kitchen door, wondering who would be visiting him and Adam so early.He’d barely gotten home himself, and Jack wanted to cook Adam breakfast as one of the many ways to apologize for their first night out together going horribly because of him.
A group of contributors had cornered him and wanted to talk about funding a new children’s cancer wing that had been a dream for several years.Not wanting to miss the opportunity, Jack had invited them to his office and they worked out the details into the early morning hours, finally coming to an agreement.
Expecting to see Adam walking into the kitchen, his eyes widened as his assistant appeared in the same dress from the night before.
“Where’s Adam?”Jack demanded.
“The one with the dark brown hair and chocolate eyes?”
Jack nodded.
“He picked up a suitcase and left after he told me where you were.”
Everything inside Jack froze at her words.
Adam left.
Adam left him.
Jack knew he pushed Adam away the last few weeks, not even wanting to acknowledge to himself that he’d been waiting for the exact same thing, but it stunned him all the same.He had no idea why he’d gone but cringed as he thought about the last twenty-four hours.
They planned on arriving together at the charity event, but Jack had a meeting that had run late and he had to call Adam and ask if he could meet him there.When Jack arrived, he allowed himself to be pulled into one conversation after another with people he didn’t even know, and he never stopped to talk to Adam.
Although they were separated by the entire ballroom, he’d known where Adam was every moment of the night.His body seemed to sense his movements, and more times than not, his eyes were drawn to Adam in a suit that fit him like a glove and made him the most handsome man in the room.
But each time he wanted to break away and pull Adam onto the dance floor, something inside him froze.He couldn’t bring himself to talk to Adam, from kissing him the way he wanted.The people he’d spoken to didn’t truly know him, and he couldn’t have cared less who they were, but Jack allowed his fear to control his actions.Adam was the one who meant everything to him, and yet he’d acted like a bastard and ignored him.
“Are you going to pull your head out of your ass sometime tonight?”Ronan growled the question at him, and even the underlying threat hadn’t worked with Jack.
Adam had left the party without having Jack acknowledge him or their relationship.
Why would he stick around, you arrogant prick?
He didn’t know how to fix this monumental fuck-up and in the back of his mind, he wondered if he even could.
His assistant cleared her throat bringing him back to the present.That was when he noticed his jacket draped over her shoulders and the cufflinks in her outstretched hand.
“Fuck.”
Adam had opened the door to this image and must’ve thought Jack had been with her the night before.And his early morning arrival could only emphasize Adam’s suspicions.But Jack remembered she said he grabbed his suitcase.So he’d already planned to leave.
“Can I be blunt, boss?”
Jack nodded.
“Adam looked devastated when he opened the door and I asked for you.It’s the same look you have on your face now.If you love him, truly love him, you will make an effort to get him back.I remember him from last night.He sat in the corner and nursed a drink the whole time while his eyes never left you.You ignored him, which is pretty shitty if you ask me.”
She glared at him and he nodded his agreement.
“You have to win him back.And I don’t mean with expensive gifts.”
“No gifts?”
“You could send him every flower or box of chocolate in the city, but it would never prove that you’re serious about getting him back.”
