Free Chance Encounters by Jenna Pizzi Page B

happen.”
    She laid her head down on the pillow next to Jacob. “What if
I told you I read some of it? Would you be mad?”
    He rolled on his side and propped his head on his hand so
that he was facing her. “I don’t know who caused you to be so guarded and have
to question everything that you do, but it is fine. My life is an open book. I
don’t pretend to be something I am not, and I live every day to the fullest. My
journals are my way of documenting those moments. So that someday I’ll be able
to look back and know that I lived. The only disadvantage is …” He ran his
finger along her neck and down her chest until he began peeling the sheet off
of her. “You know more about me than I do about you.” He began kissing her
neck, and then lowered himself onto her chest. He playfully pulled the sheet
over their heads, as he made her squeal in delight.
    A few hours later as they lay in each other’s arms, Emma
broke their silence. “What will you write about me in your journal?”
    Jacob lay with his eyes close on the pillow, and he grinned.
“Oh, I believe I may need a whole separate journal for you. I am hoping this journey
continues for a while.”
    She reached over and kissed him gently on his cheek. She had
never expected to feel this way about someone new. She still had mixed emotions
about Matt, but Jacob was so completely different from him. They were like day
and night; there just was no comparison. She wondered what would happen to them
once tomorrow came, when her car was fixed and she had to continue on to New
York to her new life. She didn’t want to think about it. For once she wanted to
enjoy the here and now. Jacob opened his eyes and watched Emma contemplating
the thoughts in her mind. “So tell me about him, this man that broke your
heart.”
    Emma quickly snapped out of her own thoughts. “What makes
you think I was thinking about that? Maybe I was thinking about what we are
going to do tomorrow.”
    His tone changed. He lost his witty bantering, and became
serious. “I sense the same sadness in your eyes that I noticed from across the
diner, the first time I saw you.”
    Emma wasn’t used to someone reading her so well. Even in all
her years with Matthew, he was never able to read her the way Jacob was. Jacob
seemed to know her every look, her eyes, her heart. She sat up and pulled the
sheet around her.
    “His name is Matthew. We were together for eight years.”
    Jacob began running his thumb up and down the length of her
arm as she spoke. “We were engaged to be married. Our wedding is, was, set for
a few weeks from now. We weren’t engaged for very long. Actually, I never
thought it would ever happen. Matthew never seemed to see the importance of a
wedding ceremony. He always stated that it was only a piece of paper, and he
never felt it was a necessity.” Jacob stopped rubbing her arm. He sat still as
she continued to tell her story.
    “I love my job. I have worked really hard to get to where I
am. So, when it all finally paid off and I got the promotion of my dreams, I
was so excited. I left work early to surprise Matt with the good news. I
couldn’t wait to share it with him. Everything was finally coming together. I
finally felt like I was going to have it all: a husband who was a successful
surgeon, the money, the prestige. I honestly thought it was everything I ever
wanted.” She wiped a tear that began to form from her eye, and felt embarrassed
for crying if front of Jacob.
    “I planned a romantic dinner for the two of us so that I
could share my good news with him. But, it was me who got the surprise when I
walked into our bedroom to find him in our bed with someone else.” Emma could
feel Jacob’s body tense up.
    “Ahh betrayal, that explains a lot about your hang-ups.” He
tried to say it facetiously, but his own voice gave him away. He was starting
to fume over the thought of someone hurting her the way that Matt did. “I hope
you squashed his arse?”
    Emma