Page 52 of Kiss Marry Kill
“Yes. Love scary movies.”
They settled in to watch, sitting on opposite ends of the sofa. She glanced over at him a few times as the silence stretched between them, becoming awkward in a way it hadn’t been all day. Suddenly, Megan wasn’t sure what to talk about. Luckily he started talking first, the movie fading into the background
“So, tell me more about Dick.”
“Nothing more to tell. I mean, he’s my first real boyfriend. My parents love him. I was pretty sure we were going to get married and have kids eventually.”
He shifted, turning his full attention on her. “Seems like that’s something your folks and Dick want. What do you want?”
She shrugged, never having analyzed her life. Maybe she should have. She never realized how naïve she’d been. “Being a lawyer has always been mapped out. It’s what I have to do.”
Why?
Why did she have to do it, exactly?
And why hadn’t she ever stopped and questioned her decisions—or lack thereof?
“Says who?” he asked, as if reading her mind.
She bit the side of her lip and shifted her weight on the couch, getting more comfortable—physically, though definitely not emotionally. “I mean, if I’m not a lawyer what else am I? My parents paid for the best private schools, I’ve always gotten straight As, I . . .”
He looked utterly confused by her answer, and frankly, she was feeling confused by it too. Because damn . . . she didn’t know the answers to all the whys! She was just doing what was mapped out for her.
“What do you, Megan, like to do? Like, for fun?”
She sat back and thought about it. There was only one thing she loved to do. One thing that brought her joy and passion. The rest of her life was all mundane routine crap she had to do.
“Can I have a sip of that beer?” He looked at the bottle in his hand and then handed it over. She took a big gulp and made a disgusted face before handing it back. “Okay, so, there’s this thing I do and no one knows. Not anyone. My parents would have a fit and Richard—I don’t even know what Richard would think.”
He leaned forward, “Now I have to know what it is.”
“You smile a lot. It’s nice,” she said, veering off topic. “Tell me more about yourself.”
“Like I said, I grew up in Miami. My parents—they were always great. When my dad died, that was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to go through but he always taught me to have fun and live your life doing what you love.”
“You have such a great outlook, Jax.”
He shrugged. “Dad wouldn’t want me moping around thinking of all the what-ifs or sad times. I miss him so much, but I try to think of all the good things. My parents always did a bunch of things with me—camping, fishing, movie nights when I was younger. All they ever wanted was for me to be happy. That was all they ever talked about.”
“God, I wish I had that. I don’t think my parents have ever asked me if I was happy.” That was a tough pill to swallow.
“That sucks, Megan. Really. Your parents should be your biggest supporters and it sucks that they aren’t. How about your friends?”
“Most of them went away to college and we sort of drifted apart. I have some friends through Richard, but not many. You?”
“I have great friends. I guess life is good to me, Megan. For me—well, there’s nothing for me not to smile about. But what I want to know is what makes you smile.”
“God.” She threw her head back on the couch. “I always thought my life was pretty great too. My parents gave me everything I ever needed, my boyfriend was faithful, I got a full scholarship to law school at UM.”
“Don’t take this the wrong way, Megan, but that all sounds boring and cold. Your parents always gave you what you needed? How about what you wanted? Your standards in men are super low if the fact he’s faithful is his good quality. A man should just be faithful, he doesn’t get rewarded for that. He just is.” Her ideas of the world were titling with each passing hour.
How can someone so wealthy, so worldly, so educated, be so closed-minded, sheltered, and wrong? All of these thoughts were flying around in her mind as he continued to talk. “How did you even hook up with Dick? Did your parents pick him out for you?”
She bit her lip.
“Jesus, Megan.”
“What am I supposed to do, Jax? I mean, the few times I ever tried to rebel, and trust me, it’s not a juicy story, like at all, my parents cut me off. I don’t have a job or any real skills. Richard wasn’t that bad. I just kind of . . . go with the flow.”
