Second Chance Ch. 04

"Jared, I don't want you to think I'm trying to get you into anything."

"I know, I'm just trying to explain."

"Is it because of your wife?"

"Yes, but I don't want to talk about it."

"Okay. So what do you want to talk about?"

"How about the strange way you acted when I started calling you 'Liv'?"

"Okay, um. My dad died when I was nine and he use to call me Liv. He hated Olivia because that was the name of my mother's mother and well I guess you could say he had a hate - hate relationship with my grandma. They both hated each other and spent as much time trying to avoid each other." She folded her arms over her chest and put her head down so her chin was resting on her chest. Jared sat down beside her and patted her knee. "My dad was always nice to me. He made sure that I was taken care of and that I had everything I needed."

"How did he die?" he asked softly.

"A car accident on the way home from work. A drunk driver swerved and hit him head on. He died instantly. I was waiting in the front window for him because we were going to go skating that night. Instead I witnessed the police pulling up and walking towards that house. When they told my mom and me, I cried and she just sat there saying nothing. A week later she moved her boyfriend in with us. She had been screwing around on dad for several months. The new boyfriend had a drinking problem and together they made my life hell. Then I met Rich -- Chloe's biological father."

"Why do I get the feeling that was not the best thing to happen to you?"

"It wasn't. He use to yell at me, threaten to beat me and stole almost everything that I had. Then I found out that I was pregnant, at first, he wanted me to get an abortion but I refused. Since he could not scare me into the abortion, he hooked up with the girl that lived across the hall from him. She didn't want kids and neither did he. They're a match made in heaven. When I told my mom I was 6 months pregnant she was so pissed that she stormed out of the house. Her boyfriend told me that he had waited a long time for this day to come. That night he raped me. My mom was downstairs passed out drunk. The next day she woke up and told me to get the hell out because she was not going to have a little, pregnant, whore trying to steal her man away from her." She took an unsteady breath in then released it. "I began living that day forward for Chloe and no one else."

"Do you not want me to call you 'Liv'? Because if you don't I understand. I don't want to cause you any hurt. I know how it feels to lose a parent, my dad died when I was 16. Talk about anger issues. Jas and I had them all. Had it not been for Dad's best friend Sam, I don't think we would have lived to see 18." He said as pulled her close to him.

"You must have drove your mom crazy!" she turned to him, "I mean with two children to deal with..."

Jared chuckled, "Four."

"FOUR? Holy crap! She should have been nominated for sainthood! Older or younger then you and Jason?"

"There is Jason, 5 minutes older then me, then Joey who is 5 years younger than us, and our sister Jeana who surprised us all 6 years after Joey. I think mom may have been more surprised about her then dad. All she kept saying is 'But Doctor, we can't have any more!' Not sure why she thought they couldn't but it was funny. Now about your name? Do you want me to go back to calling you 'Olivia'?"

"No, its fine. You can call me 'Liv'."

Jared kissed her forehead and pulled her into his arms for a hug. "I'm glad."

"Okay so now it's my turn to ask you a question."

"Alright." He replied.

"Well since you have already said your wife is off limits, I'll ask you what happens now?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that Tom doesn't know where we are but that could change. What's the plan to keep us away from him?"

"At this point, Jas is having your old cell phone sent south, away from us. It'll look like we're going to an island we own. Hopefully, that will keep him busy for awhile so Jas can get a fix on him then take care of him."

"Are Chloe and I going to be able to live? I am guessing that the 'take care of him' means kill but I don't know for sure...nor do I want to know for sure. I just want to know that in the end we are going to be alive." Jared's eyes got very hard as he sat there listening to her question. Olivia saw it and figured she better start calming him down. "It's not like I think that you will hurt us but I just don't want to be stuck in a place where I know too much." She whispered.

Jared sighed, "I can't promise that won't happen but we won't kill you. That much I do promise you. So even though I know you won't calm down much, you just need to calm down about that."

She gave him a small smile, "Thanks for understanding that I won't calm down, but it is nice to hear you say it. I may not feel completely at ease, but I feel more than I was."

Jared gave her a smile that couldn't be described as anything other then sexy. The smile even put a spark into his eyes. She looked closely at him.

"What?" he asked her a little freaked by how closely she was looking at him.

"Your eyes are...different from Jason's. It's like they are silver-blue while his is gray with flakes of blue. Uh, that's strange you know with you all being identical twins and all."

Jared cocked a grin at her, "It's also the only way that Laysea can tell us apart. Hey, do you want to watch a movie?" he asked standing up quickly.

"No thanks. It has been a pretty long day. Can you just take me to mine and Chloe's room?" She asked.

"Sure, but you are not sharing a room." He said as he held his hand out to her.

She smiled and took his hand, "I really think that she would be more comfortable with me close by."

"Does she sleep with you at home?"

"No, but..."

"Just like home, you will sleep better if you have your own room." Jared told her. He then led the way to a large bedroom.

Olivia looked around the room it was large and spacious. She had to admit to herself that he was probably right; Chloe tossed and turned most nights while swinging her arms wildly and kicking at random moments. She probably would sleep better in a separate bed.

She saw her bag on the bed and walked over to it opening it up she pulled out her clothes to put in the large dresser. As she walked to the dresser she saw that Jared was still standing in the door watching her. She smiled at him, and then walked back to the bag and looking in it feeling for her 'special' bag that she had stashed in to guarantee that she would not end up in bed with him. She felt around the bottom of the bag and she could not believe what she was feeling or more specifically what she was not feeling.

"It's not in there." He said walking over to her.

She turned and looked at him with a shocked look. "Why not?"

"Because I put it back."

"Why? You don't want me for more then a tumble in bed and I already said that I can't do that."

"Actually I haven't decided anything where you're concerned, except that I do want you. I just don't know if I can give you as much as you want. I already know you're not willing to take as little I want to give. So, just in case, we both end up frustrated until I decide." He said as he pulled her in and softly began to kiss her.

Olivia began to open her mouth to protest but his tongue slipped in and she suddenly forgot what she wanted to say.

Jared ended the kiss when he began to make excuses to himself why he should just go to bed with her right now. He stepped back from her while rubbing his hands up and down her arms trying to catch his thoughts about what he should be doing now. He seemed to recover faster than her. He gently kissed her on the forehead and whispered into her ear, "Goodnight and pleasant dreams Liv."

She watched him turn and start to walk out of the room. He was closing the door when he stopped, "Chloe is right across the hall and I will be the room next to yours. That way, if someone comes down the hall they pass me before they get to either of you." With that he was gone.

Olivia sat down very fast, still trying to recover from the kiss. When she finally could form a thought it was, that man can kiss! It's going to be a very long couple of days!