Unsound Devotion

XIX

Jess hurried over to the building site and assessed the state of the foundations herself. She had Ethan secure everything. The idea, after all, was to do it right and get good feedback.... the fact that it was Eva's house didn't matter.... at least Jess was deluding herself that way.

"Jess. You here?" Eva asked suddenly appearing in the front doorway.

"Eva." Jess greeted briefly, turning to Ethan. There was dust all around and the rest of the team were working with hammers and drills tearing up old floors. The house was shaking a little and plaster was falling off. Jess finished explaining to Ethan what to do next and turned towards Eva, who was looking around curiously. Jess sighed loudly as she saw that Eva didn't have a helmet on. She hastily removed hers and approached the woman, placing it on her head.

"You shouldn't come in here unprotected." She growled angrily. At that moment, plaster sprinkled from the ceiling and Jess, instinctively pulled Eva towards her, protecting her from the falling pieces. "We should get out of here." She muttered, ignoring Eva's big brown eyes looking at her with adoration and sadness. She led them outside to the garden, which had become a repository for building materials. Rubble was being dumped on the driveway.

"How long will it take?" Eva asked with a grunt and stepped away from Jess, handing her her helmet.

"Six months minimum. Ethan pointed out that the foundations need to be secured, so the cost will go up a bit." Jess said.

"Okey. Just not too much. Please keep an eye on it. I don't need to finish the whole house, but it needs a place to sleep and I'm on a tight budget."

"Ben didn't leave you anything?" Jess asked before she could stop herself.

"Ben?" Eva snorted. "His new wife wouldn't allow it. He took everything from me. I bought the house with money from my inheritance from m

I bought the house with money from my grandmother's inheritance."

"What about Ashton ... and your other son?" Jess asked after a moment.

"We were supposed to be talking about house issues, Jess." Eva remarked with a sigh. Looking at Jess longingly.

"I think so... I just wanted to know... if it was worth leaving me like that, just to get divorced a few years later."

"Yes." Eva replied simply. "He didn't take my kids away from me. I took the time to prove that he was notoriously cheating on me. The court awarded me full custody."

"I'm glad." Jess caught herself speaking frankly. "You've achieved what you wanted, although you'd probably rather still be with your husband."

"You're so stupid Jess... really? Do you really think so? That I would choose cheating husband over you? No... I missed you every day."

"Elle said something different about your reconciliation." Jess snorted, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Elle knows almost nothing about what happened. Her father fed her lies about me."

"You know... I regret asking. I don't want to be dragged into this shit. I already have too much on my plate."

"Okay Jess. It'll be whatever you want it to be." Eva sighed, turning away from her. "I want the house ready for me and my sons according to the deadline. You can cut back a little on the finishing touches. The bathroom, kitchen and room will be enough to start with."

"Understood" Jess replied.

Over the next few days, Jess cursed herself in spirit for her stupidity. Why was she even talking to Eva? Why did the woman continue to influence her? Why did she care about her? Would she have behaved the same way if she had someone, a girlfriend maybe? Even trying to imagine herself with someone else, Jess saw only Eva before her eyes.