Embarrassment and mortification

Jack

Jack sat in his study on Monday morning with Jake. Jake had been his best friend for over fifteen years and the only person he was comfortable showing himself to. Not like he had gotten any say in that area though. When he had the accident, Jake had been at his side until recovery and till he was discharged.

The first time he had seen himself in the mirror and had immediately banned everyone from visiting, Jake had thrown protocols to the wind and had barged into his house the next day demanding to see him. 

He had waited a week before Jack had finally come out of the room. Jake hadn’t flinched or expressed disgust when he saw his face and from that moment the two had become inseparable. Mostly because Jack had refused to show his face to the world and needed a representative.

Jack hadn’t shown his face to the public apart from the month of his accident in five years and the job offer was a suggestion made by Jake as a way to reintroduce himself to the outside world one person at a time. If a total stranger who had no idea would see his face first, then they would gauge how people who knew him before would react when they saw him.

Not that his face was as horribly scarred as it had been five years ago but Jack was very skeptical. Turned out, even people who never knew him were taken aback because each one of them had formed an opinion of him in their minds.

“Do you think she will show up?” Jake asked.

“Probably. She saw my face but didn’t recoil in horror. She just stood in shock. She even had a lot of spit fire retort when I asked her if she was disgusted” Jack replied, a small smile playing on his lips as he recalled the way her eyes had blazed with anger as she replied him.

“Well, I hope she comes back. It would be bad to lose a good one.”

“I told her she would have to stay over for the duration of the job. I trust that we can provide her a room at the left wing to stay in. The suite with the windows overlooking the garden should be perfect. Martha came in to clean it last week”

Jake looked surprised.

“Why would you want her to stay? You would have to see her frequently if she stays here. I don’t think you thought about that before you told her”

“I didn’t think about that, true. I merely thought she would provide the suitable entertainment that has been lacking for years. Not to worry though, I will stay out of her way as much as I can. I do not want her to have nightmares instead of erotic dreams” he replied with a smirk.

“I might have to bash you over your head if you insist on calling yourself a nightmare. Although, I will admit I’m rather intrigued with this idea of yours. You’ve been a bore for five years and I would be immensely glad to have lively company.” Jake said.

“Do you have designs on my employee, Jake?” Jack asked his friend with a serious gaze that would have made anyone cower.

But not Jake.

“Well, she isn’t hard on the eyes. I also find her refreshing, a break from the females I encounter”

“You have your fair pick of women, Jake. What more do you want? At least they don’t recoil from you in disgust” Jack replied with a sneer.

“You do have women over, Jack. Do not paint me out to be the bad guy here. I know you secretly love guilt tripping me” Jake said shaking his head at his friend

“Women who come in the dead of the night and are not allowed to touch me as I fuck them from behind? Is that really a fair pick?” Jack said and then sighed. “I do secretly enjoy guilt tripping you though.”

“I thought as much” 

The doorbell rang and Jake got to his feet.

“Well, that should be our firecracker. I’ll go get the door while you brood and prepare your intimidating scowl.”

Jack waved his hand. “Go play the role of the chivalrous gentleman, it suits you. But tell her I am not to be disturbed, okay?”

“Fine, brooder”

Meghan

Meg walked into the room Jake led her to which was at the other side of the house and could not hold back a gasp. The room was beautiful.

The bed was three times the size she had back home and the drapes were a dark shade of purple with a burgundy rug covering the rug. There was a door that probably led to the bathroom. The room had a large wardrobe and vanity table that looked as though it had been made from the finest wood one could find, it seemed to shine.

She turned back to Jake with a smile on her face.

‘I love it, thanks. I’m sure I’ll be very comfortable here. Please give Mr. Grayson my thanks.”

Jake smiled at her, a warm inviting smile that made her comfortable. He still looked handsome as ever but she realized that she wasn’t even in the least bit sexually attracted to him, which was really weird considering all he had to offer in appearance. But she was too in love with the room to dwell much on the thought.

“I will do that. If you need anything though, you can call me using the telephone by your bedside. My number is on speed dial” he said.

“I really appreciate”

“I will come and check on you later to see how well you have settled in.” Jake said and turned to go.

“Where is he, is he by any chance around? He told me he would be unavailable” Meg called after his retreating figure.

A small smile played on his lips as Jake turned back to look at her.

“Oh, he is very much around. He just wishes not to be disturbed”

“Oh” was the only thing Meg could say as he walked away.

When Jake left, Meg removed her shoes to sink her feet in the plush rug and let out a sigh of pleasure. Her feet were aching from the crazy heels Juliet had practically forced on her legs and the rug just felt so good.

She rubbed her feet while she contemplated what Jake had told her. Her boss, or employer or formidable being was around but requested no company. He had also told her previously that he would not be available and she had implied that it meant he would not be around. Had he purposely given a vague reply or he truly didn’t care? Well, it didn’t matter. She was here to read letters written by people in love two hundred years ago and write their story. Nowhere in that clause was speculating about her employer’s reply, words or actions implied. So, she would do exactly what was stated.

First, she had to unpack and take a shower. She had taken the bus because her car had gotten faulty again and she did not have the wherewithal to repair it. When she was paid her fee, which if was exactly what was stated in the bio, then she should be able to repair it, pay up her lease, make some future down payments, pay other bills and have some left. 

She walked out of the bathroom minutes later smelling like lavender and something she couldn’t quite place. Apparently, Juliet had added bathing stuffs that smelt of a sensual woman, according to her, for luck. Not that she needed to use it, her boss apparently didn’t even want to see her.

Meg mentally slapped herself. Why was she thinking about smelling nice and looking good for her boss? It was just absurd, absolutely absurd.

She wore a loose cotton gown that had straps instead of sleeves and walked out of her room. She wanted to get a feel of the house before she began anything. She made a mental note to ask him just how old the house was. Maybe one of the people whose story she was to write had lived in the house at some point or the other.

She imagined that a young woman lived with a strict father, who her current boss might have gotten his scowling nature from and had fallen in love with someone she shouldn’t have fallen in love with. From the look of the house and the size, Meg felt it was safe to assume that the young woman was from a financially comfortable family.

Maybe she had fallen in love with a common man who has no wealth or connections. She must have been frightened of her father who had a bad temper and hid the affair from him, Meg reasoned.

Maybe her father had arranged a marriage for her with a friend’s son. The friend had wealth and the son would inherit it when he died. 

Meg pictured herself as the young woman and imagined the distress she would have felt if her father had suddenly called her one day and introduced her to the person she was to marry when she was in love with someone else. She felt her heart break a little as she pictured the woman.

Then maybe she had told her father that she loved someone else and the person was a gardener of theirs. The father must have sent the young man far away and hastened the marriage between the daughter and the son of his friend.

Meg shook herself when her heart grew a little heavy. It’s only mere speculation, she told herself. You haven’t seen the letters and it may not be a tragic love story. It might not even be a love story after all.

“Why are you roaming the hallway with that faraway look on you face?” a voice said.

Meg turned and stopped in her tracks. Jack stood in front of her and was watching her with a curious look.

“How long have you been staring at me?” she asked him.

“Long enough to see tears fall down your face and to notice you have nothing on your feet” he replied, brusquely.

Meg wiped her eyes quickly, terribly embarrassed. How did she manage to make a fool of herself the first day she got here? 

“I thought I’d take a look around the house and my feet are killing me.” she looked at him pointedly “I thought you said you would be unavailable? Why are you around? Not that you cannot be because obviously this is your house, but I did not expect you to be around”

“I said, unavailable not absent. I had things to attend to today and did not want to be disturbed.” Jack replied, his eyes still studying her.

“Yes, I got that from your butler” Meg replied.

The sudden laughter from Jack had her surprised. What did she say that was funny? Was she about to go on a spree of constant embarrassment today?

“Why the hell are you laughing? Did I say something funny?” she asked angrily.

Jack looked at her with a serious look after he had composed himself.

“Jake is not my butler, he is my best friend”

At that moment, Meg wished that the ground would open and swallow her. How could she had concluded that the human being she saw was the butler? He looked too…what was the word? Polished, finessed.

And the day she came, he didn’t knock on the door of the study before he entered. He pushed opened the door with an air of familiarity.

She raked her hands through her hair.

“I’m so sorry I made that mistake, I just assumed…”

Jack waved his hand.

“It’s okay. It’s actually a relief that you didn’t ogle him or act like every other female would. I’m still shocked though. I thought you would have taken him to be me”

 Well, I did. Meg thought. I didn’t just let my initial disappointment show.

“I feel so embarrassed” she said instead.

Jack smiled at her reassuringly and Meg took that moment to study his face. He did not look like a brooding male or a tyrant when he smiled, and even the lines that crisscrossed his face seemed to soften with the widening of his lips. 

She let her gaze travel to his lips and somehow found herself wondering if those pale lips would taste any different than the others she had kissed in the past. Would they be cold or was it pale to hide the heat that would flare up if she by any chance kissed him?

“I’ll leave you to continue exploring, I have business to attend to” Jack’s brisk voice brought her back and she saw that his laughing eyes had suddenly turned serious. Dear heavens, what had she done wrong again?

Without waiting for her to reply, he strode away quickly as though he needed to put so much distance between them as possible.

Jack

“How’s our resident?”

Jack looked at his friend and shrugged. “How would I know? I’ve been here all day”

“Alright, fine. I’ll go check on her and make sure she’s comfortable. Maybe grab something for her to eat. Martha kept some food in the fridge” Jake said and made to leave the study.

“She’s probably not in her room, so maybe you shouldn’t bother” Jack said and then mentally slapped himself. Why did he have to answer? It wasn’t like it was his business if she was back in her room or not.

Jake turned to look at his friend, a very inquisitive look on his face. “How do you know she might not be there? I thought you had been here all day?”

Might as well talk now if he had already started. Besides, Jake wasn’t going to let the matter be if he refused to talk.

“I met her in the hallway just down her room earlier on. I was going to get something and saw her. She said she wanted to have a look around the house. I talked to her for a little bit and came back here”

“Huh. Might I know what contents were expressed in the little bit of conversation that you had?” Jake asked.

Jack glared at him

“And why again, does it concern you?”

With a lazy smile playing on his lips, Jake sat across from Jack and folded his arms.

“Just plain curiosity. And if you remember, she’s the only sort of live entertainment we have here. I also happen to know that you my friend, have a knack for avoiding conversations.

So, the fact that you happen to have one, even for a little bit makes me curious. So, spill.”

Well, he makes a pretty good point, Jack thought.

“Most days, I forget you have a very smart brain. With your good looks I wonder how that is possible.”

Jake tssked. “You now result to stereotypes and clichés, my friend? Spill.”

“She asked me why I was around when I said I would be unavailable and I told her that unavailable did not mean absent. She also thought you were my butler” 

“Your butler?” Jake asked, clutching his stomach in laughter.

With a roll of his eyes, Jack said.

“It was quite surprising. I had expected her to assume you were the boss but she thought you were the butler. Grand demotion, right there”

“Did you tell her that fancy doesn’t run in your blood and that only fancy people had butlers?”

“Well, she was mortified and sorely embarrassed already so I said nothing” Jack answered.

“She is really something, you know. “ Jake said with a smile.

“Do not seduce my employee, Jake. Keep your roving eye and your honey coated words to your other women” Jack said with a growl.

“She won’t be your employee forever now, will she?” Jake replied with a gleam in his eyes.

Jack wanted to blurt out, “Even when she isn’t” but held back himself in time. What was it about Jake’s statement that got him riled up? And what was it about Meghan that made him so fiercely protective and territorial? He had known her for less than a week and he felt this way already? He wouldn’t have batted an eyelid if it were some other woman, he would have told his friend to go for it.

But somehow, it felt as though he wanted to keep her for himself and that wouldn’t not do. Getting attracted to her or forming an attachment was wrong and besides did she even want him? Who would want someone as hideous as him when they could have their pick of princes? He was a beast meant to remain forever in the shadows.

He turned to his friend,

“I think you should go keep her company, offer her food or whatever. You definitely know how to make a person feel welcome.”

“Well, if you say so” Jake said and stood up to go.

“Show her the library. That’s where I kept the letters. She can do all her work there”

“Aye aye, captain”