Filed to story: Breathe Story (Sadie White & Jax Stone)
I slipped my hand into his, and he shook it. “Sadie White.”
He nodded, still grinning, and reached for his tray, “I saw your brave performance yesterday as you secured your job here. It amazed me how your eyes went from nervous to determined in less than a second.” He picked up the tray in front of him, and I smiled and lifted the tray set before me.
“You will follow me…since I will be serving Mrs. Stone’s food.” He gave me a wink before turning and heading for the entrance to the dining room.
The large room wasn’t new to me. I’d scrubbed the floors in there that morning. Marcus took his place behind Mrs. Stone, who sat with her back to the entrance. The natural alarm in my body alerted me as I walked around to stand behind Jax, who sat at the head of the table. I looked to Marcus to guide me. He nodded, and we set the salads down at the exact same time. I stepped back. Marcus nodded his head for me to stand beside him, so I did.
“I still don’t see why Dad is making Jason go to the interview at Yale if he doesn’t want to go there.” Jax voice sounded so smooth it seemed almost unreal.
I felt as if I’d walked into a movie, and I stood watching the scene before me.
“Your brother doesn’t know what is best for him. He has the brains to be more than just Jax Stone’s younger brother. He can make a name for himself if he will just focus on it instead of spending so much time fiddling with the stock market. His head for numbers is being wasted.”
Jax’s eyes gazed up at me and seemed to smile before directing them back down at his mother. “You both are going to push him away. You’re right, he is smart and doesn’t need you to think for him.”
Mrs. Stone let out a short, hard laugh. “And you wouldn’t be where you are today if I hadn’t pushed you so hard. All you wanted to do was play baseball with your buddies and play in a silly garage band with absolutely no talent other than yourself.”
Jax sighed, took a drink of his ice water, and turned to his mother. “Enough, Mom, don’t start talking bad about the only real friends I ever had.”
Mrs. Stone leaned back, and Marcus touched my hand to draw my attention back to him and the reason we were in here. We stepped forward and, at the same time, removed the salad plates from in front of the Stones.
“May we get you something other than water to drink with your meal?” Marcus asked with a charming southern drawl.
I found eyes once again watching me. I fought the urge to allow my eyes to shift back in Jax’s direction and to those eyes.
Mrs. Stone sighed. “I suppose one glass of Merlot won’t hurt me.” She glanced over at her son and straightened her napkin in her lap as if trying to decide. “Bring me a glass of the best Merlot we have in the cellar.”
Jax leaned back, and I could see he still watched me. So, I took a calming breath and looked at him.
“If I could have a glass of Ms. Mary’s sweet iced tea please.”
I nodded and kept myself from returning his smile.
“Yes, sir,” Marcus replied. He stepped back and waved his hand so I would lead the way back to the kitchen.
I exited the large dining room and immediately took a deep breath. I hadn’t realized how nerve wracking this would be. As soon as we entered the kitchen, Marcus smiled at me.
“What? Did I screw up?”
Marcus shook his head, and a blond lock of hair fell into his eyes. “No, you were great. Now let’s get the crab bisque out there before Ms. Mary has a fit.” He turned toward the housekeeper. “Ms. Mary, we need Merlot from the cellar.”
Ms. Mary handed him the already opened bottle along with a glass. “I already figured as much, and here’s Jax’s sweet tea.”
“I’ll deal with the drinks,” Marcus said.
I was too grateful to ask why. I just nodded and followed him back down the hall toward the dining room. Right before we reentered, Marcus glanced back at me. “Ignore his watching you. You’re a treat to the eyes. I can’t blame him, but if you want to keep this job, try to become invisible.” He winked then opened the door.
My goal in life was to become invisible. I thought I’d been attempting to do just that. Apparently, I needed to try harder.
“I intend to get in a lot of time just relaxing on the beach. I like the private beach access we have here and the thought of being able to chill on the beach with no one wanting to speak to me, meet me, or get me to sign an autograph is what I’ve been craving all year. I need a break. I know Gregory hates the idea of my being unavailable for three months, but I need this for my sanity.” Jax glanced up at me as I sat the bowl of bisque in front of him. “Thank you,” he whispered.