Rich People Problems

xxxviii | nothing gold can stay

KIMBERLY

I WAS A sworn believer that your body had a way of knowing when things were going to go wrong.

In my life, there were rarely moments where staying happy was an option. Something always found a way to fuck shit up. It's been a week since the kiss. And, for the first time, I didn't shut Jace out the way I was expecting myself to.

Dinner with his family was successful, if I say so myself. Alex was the happiest I've seen him in a while, Effie felt touched that Jace made an effort to get to know her, and the twins were excited to finally have a decent conversation with their brother.

I didn't miss the glances they were all sending, looking between us.

Jace had a carefree aura after the kiss. We didn't do anything but kiss, which was more enjoyable than I could've ever anticipated. I would never get over the feeling of his lips on mine, smiling every five seconds, telling me how beautiful I was.

Throughout the dinner, he kept his hand wrapped around mine, rubbing the back of my hand with his thumb, scared that I would pull back the way I always do.

Not even a second after the Kingstons left, Jace pushed me against the door, kissing me with the same wonderment he did earlier.

That night—and every night since—I woke up to the smell of him cocooning me against his black, silk bed sheets as his warmth filled me up with unprecedented euphoria.

This is precisely how I knew shit was going to hit the fan.

Life never stayed happy for me.

"Are you sure you don't want to come in for a few hours?" Jace asked me from the foot of the bed, buttoning his shirt.

I could get used to the sight of him getting ready forever. This was wrong.

He deserves better.

"Yeah," I reluctantly admitted. "I don't feel too well." He came up to me and placed the back of his hand against my forehead. "Not that kind of sick, dumbass," I muttered, rolling my eyes, causing him to tug at my hair.

"Don't roll your eyes at me," he half-heartedly warned. "Do you want me to stay home?"

"I'll be fine," I sighed. "Plus, you have a lot of work to do."

"Yeah, thanks to a certain somebody." He leaned down to press his lips against mine in a small kiss.

Why does my heart hurt so much?

It felt so heavy and so impossible to carry in my own body. There were no words to describe how lost I was feeling, but I didn't want to tell him. I didn't want to burden Jace with the complexities of my emotions, knowing that he wasn't the one at fault.

I was.

So I kept the smile on my face as he pulled away, taking the remains of the contentment he gave me with him.

It was nighttime and definitely late for him to be going to work, but Van called him about an emergency he needed to mediate. Ever since the news about Laurent broke out, many companies have backed out of their support for the company, causing a scramble in the business world.

There was a part of me that felt guilty for this uproar, but it was worth it.

I'd do it a million times if it met that those assholes got the punishment they deserve.

So far, Nathan Laurent hasn't come out with any statements about his father's actions. There was still confusion as to what his stance was, but I wasn't holding my breath over it.