Page 405 of Seasons of Love
Jake sat on one of the two armchairs that faced the glass door to the balcony.
“What made you want to work in this industry?”
The question was one that I’d been asked so many times before that I didn’t need to think before the words came out. From my first work placement to every interview for all the jobs I’d applied for, it was always the first question to come up. It was as if my answer to that particular question dictated how suited I was to the job.
My mouth opened, but those familiar words refused to come out. I placed both coffees on the small table between the two chairs and sat down.
Jake looked at me with those big blue eyes, lighter than mine, full of youth, life, energy, and passion. In some ways, he was so similar to Griff. Was that why I felt so drawn to him?
“My mom was a maid at a resort on the coast of Maine. That’s where I grew up.”
“You’re a long way from Maine,” he said, taking a sip of his coffee.
I added sugar to mine and stirred it. “Sometimes I’m not sure if I’m in a different state, country, or lifetime from those days.”
“Why’s that? Do you not go back there?”
“No, I don’t have any family there. My dad died when I was a baby, and we moved to Maine for my mom’s job. She had no help, but she was the nicest person you could ever meet. I remember she always had friends from work over for coffee or dinner. I used to think she was very sociable, but I think it was her way of connecting to people and having a support network. Let’s put it this way, she never struggled to get a free babysitter for me.”
“Why don’t you think she was sociable?”
“Because when it was just the two of us, she was always quiet. The TV was turned off, we didn’t play music. To this day, I’m not sure if she was an introvert and the quiet times were when she recharged or if she struggled with depression. I never had a chance to find out.”
Jake reached out with his hand to take mine.
“I’m sorry, Mal.” He squeezed my hand and then let go. I missed his touch as soon as it was gone.
I never talked about my past or my mom. Why was I opening up to Jake?
“Why do I get the feeling you know exactly how I feel?” I asked.
Jake smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes, and the dimple on the side of his chin didn’t show up. I met his gaze and waited for his answer.
The lights flickered and then went out.
“What the—” was all I managed to say as I felt the ground shaking.
Jake grabbed my hand again, and in the semi-darkness of the room, I saw he was pulling me toward the door.
“Won’t it be worse outside?” I asked.
“It’s ok. We’re only standing in the doorway because it’s the safest place.”
I wasn’t sure how long the tremor lasted. I was still holding on to Jake’s hand when the backup lights came on.
“Sorry,” I said, letting go.
He took my hand again. “It’s okay. We’ll be okay.”
How did he know? We’d just been in a freakin’ earthquake.
Other guests who’d been in their rooms had done the same thing. I did a quick count to see how easy it would be to take them all to safety if we needed to get out of the building.
“I need to go to my room to get my phone,” Jake said.
“No, it’s not safe. What if there’s more?”
How was he as calm as a cucumber, while I was on the verge of a panic attack?
