The Neighbour

Chapter 9

*Unedited*

Jackson held on tightly to Brianna's hand as he fumbled with the door to his house. Finally pulling it open as she laughed at him, he motioned for her to enter before him. He watched her as she studied his home with a pleasant smile on her face and felt relief wash through him. She liked it.

"Wow, it's beautiful," she gasped as she looked around.

"I'm glad that you like it," he was more than glad.

"But of course, it could use a woman's touch," she teased and he faked a pout.

"Well feel free to do as you please," he remarked and watched her grow uncomfortable. He chuckled at her reaction and walked around her, "Come on, have you eaten yet?"

"Not really," she told him.

They ended up in the kitchen cooking a late dinner together, though Brianna did most of the cooking because Jackson had a limited number of meals he could prepare. She was turning off the stove when she felt his presence behind her as he pressed a kiss behind her ear.

"I really like the image of you cooking in my kitchen," he whispered hotly against her ear and she blushed wildly.

"Dinner's ready," she announced and spun around to face him. She caught the wicked gleam in his eyes that told her he wasn't thinking about dinner right now but that he was hungry for something else. Knowing she wasn't quite ready for that yet, she pulled away the best she could without get burnt, "Jack."

He pulled away and let her share their dinner onto plates. He opened his refrigerator and retrieved an already open bottle of wine and then got two wine glasses from the cupboard. He poured the wine into the glasses and carried them out to the coffee table in his living room where they had decided to eat instead.

Everything felt so domestic to Brianna as she watched Jack join her on the couch and reached for his plate, his shoulder brushing against hers. Though she was always scared of relationships, especially with men who weren't her brother, she felt comfortable with Jackson. She could see herself settle into this kind of lifestyle with him and be happy.

"So how was prom?" Jackson asked her, already halfway through his meal.

"It was really great. Brittany did a great job in decorating the place and the pictures we got were amazing. Brittany won prom queen," she responded, still excited by her sister's win.

"Sounds like you had fun."

"I mean, it was work for me," Brianna shrugged.

"I remember my prom, the decoration was awful. The gym still smelt like a gym but the music was good. The punch was definitely spiked but my date was my first love. I rented a limo and everything, so it was a good night," Jackson told her as he leaned back in the couch to observe her, "What about you? What was your prom like?"

"I don't know..."

"I bet you were prom queen too," he teased and she pushed her plate away from her uncomfortably. He froze immediately as he took in her discomfort, "Brianna what's wrong?"

"I didn't go to prom."

"What? Why not?" he asked shocked.

"Because we were so poor back then, prom was the least of my worries. I had just wanted to graduate and finish university so that I could help out financially," she confessed for the second time that night, "I know you think I put my family aside all the time, but everything I do, everything I have done is for them. I sacrificed my experiences so that they could have their own and I don't regret it."