“Now,” Jack ordered.
Dad’s eyes went wide before he recklessly commented, “You’re young enough to be my son.”
“True, but barely,” Jack replied. “However, this is my table and you’re sitting at it. Rachel was not kidding when she said you don’t embarrass Belle. Since you didn’t listen to her, I’ll repeat it and you better listen to me. You don’t embarrass Belle. If you do, you’ll find yourself not welcome at this table. Understood?”
Instead of getting angry or embarrassed, Belle watched as her father’s eyes lit. They swung to Belle and he remarked, “I love it, little girl, you caught yourself a live one!”
Jack called Dad’s attention back to him when he repeated, “Jensen, I asked if I was understood.”
Dad grinned at Jack and said, “Dude. Sure. No embarrassing Belle. I’m not stupid. I got it.” Then, like an adolescent with attention deficit disorder (in other words, per usual), his eyes focused on the pots of jam and he asked, “Can someone pass me that marmalade? It’s the shit. Who said English food is crap? These sausages are f**kin’ great!”
As Belle watched Jack’s jaw get hard (again), Belle felt it welling up inside her and, even though she tried to hold it back, she couldn’t. Therefore, she leaned forward and grabbed his fisted hand which was resting on the table right when he opened his mouth to speak or, possibly, explode.
His head turned to her and she was softly giggling when she squeezed his hand and shook her head.
Through her giggles, she said quietly for his ears only, “Let it go, honey. Trust me, it isn’t worth it.”
At her words, for some reason the air instantly went velvet, his eyes grew soft and tender and his hand unclenched, twisted, caught hers and gave a squeeze before he let her go, let his irritation go and calmly poured them coffee.
Yes, Belle thought, watching him pour his coffee after he’d poured hers, the feeling was back.
Head over heels in love.
And that empty feeling that settled inside her in a way she thought it would never leave after the baby died started, slowly, but surely, to fade away.
“Now that the entertainment portion of the morning is over,” Gram announced. “Perhaps we can discuss more pertinent issues.”
“Yeesh,” Dad muttered. “How long ya’ll been here? Lila’s talking all English.”
“’Pertinent’, Jenny, means ‘important’,” Mom whispered back.
“Whatever,” Dad mumbled.
Yasmin snorted.
Belle ignored this because she watched Jack’s serious eyes lock on Angus before he announced, “Olive and I have work and so do you and Cassandra. Let’s do this now.”
“You got it, lad,” Angus agreed.
Jack looked to Lila. “How much does Belle know?”
Belle stopped reaching for the toast when Gram answered, “She knows Myrtle and Lewis were there when she fell, she knows they’ve disappeared and she knows all the readings have come back negative.”
Belle’s eyes scanned the table and she asked, “Is there more to know?”
Everyone, including her father but not Jack, looked uncomfortable.
Jack looked annoyed.
His eyes caught hers and he explained, “Apparently, poppet, you and I are Joshua and Brenna reincarnated.”
At his announcement and what it might mean that he knew, Belle felt her own eyes grow wide, her heart skipped a beat and her gaze flew to her grandmother.
Lila gave her a quick, negative shake of the head.
Belle swallowed and looked back to Jack, asking, “We are?”
“Not reincarnated reincarnated,” Angus put in. “You see –”