Love Won't Let You Get Away

When Olivia stepped out of the car she immediately felt at home. She was not sure if it was the familiar sight of the SUV that belonged to Jacob’s mother or if it simply was the fact that she knew what was waiting for her behind the front door of the house she was standing in front of. She knew that as soon as she stepped into that house she would be greeted by the people who had brought her in and welcomed her to become a part of their tight-knit family. They were her family and that gave her the wonderful feeling of comfort and safety.

The sound of the car being locked behind her brought Olivia out of her thoughts. She turned around to see Jacob making his way over to her; effortlessly carrying his luggage as well as a few plastic bags filled with gifts.

“You ready?” Jacob smiled as he draped his right arm over Olivia’s shoulders.

Olivia nodded and shifted her luggage to her right hand to place her left hand on Jacob’s lower back. As they were making their way to the house she discretely glanced back at the couple walking behind them. Jacob’s aunt, Jocelyn, and her new fiancé, Roger, had picked them up at the airport and together they had shared a pleasant car ride to the Hamilton residence in a suburb just north of New York City. Olivia had eagerly listened to the story of Roger’s proposal and now her heart warmed at the sight of their happy faces and how they almost blushed whenever their eyes met.

Olivia was not sure as to why Jocelyn had not married sooner in her life. When she had questioned Jacob on the subject his only reply was that he had once heard a story of an engagement that had ended in heartbreak many years ago. But he did not know exactly why it had not lead to a marriage. The thought of Jocelyn ever being unhappy made Olivia feel bad. She could not remember meeting a more caring and kind-hearted person than Jocelyn in her entire life. Olivia comforted herself with the thought that perhaps Jocelyn had to go through that heartbreak earlier so that she could truly appreciate something wonderful later in life. Perhaps Jocelyn’s reward for suffering was that she had found her perfect match in Roger.

“Since when does my family lock their doors,” Jacob chuckled as he rang the door bell. “I wish they had started doing that while I was still living at home.”

Olivia and Jacob looked at each other and broke out in laughter when they knew that they were both thinking of the same thing. Jacob had often humorously told Olivia of the traumatising experience of walking in on his parents having sex when he was younger.

“My darlings!”

Olivia had barely registered that the door had been flung open before both her and Jacob were tightly enveloped in the arms of his mother, Amanda.

“We’ve waited for you. Paul will be down in a minute. Are you hungry? You’re finally here!” Amanda hurried to speak excitedly; not giving either of them a chance to reply properly.

As Amanda let the two of them out of her hug, to welcome the other two guests in the same fashion, Olivia noticed Jacob’s father coming down the stairs with a kind smile on his face. Olivia stood back for a moment to let father and son reunite after a long time spent apart. She smiled at the sight before quickly running her fingers in her hair to make sure her hair was alright after Amanda’s greeting.

“Well, if it isn’t the golden oldie!” Olivia grinned as she greeted Paul with a hug. “You look well! Is that a bald spot I spy with my little eye?”

“Why did I ever find you to be a suitable candidate to be my future daughter-in-law?” Paul questioned sarcastically.

“Beats me,” she replied with a smirk.

Paul moved his arms to hold Olivia’s arms as he pulled back to smile widely at her while shaking his head.

“Happy birthday,” Olivia smiled gently.

“Thank you, dear,” Paul smiled as he pulled her back in for a short hug. “It’s lovely to see you. We miss you around here, you know.”

“I miss you too,” she replied as she stepped back. “It’s just so difficult to sched-.”

Olivia stopped midsentence; interrupted by the sound of Amanda’s loud voice.

“Family meeting in the living room!” Amanda called out loudly into the house.

“Who are you yelling at?” Paul questioned; humoured by his wife’s somewhat strange behaviour. “We’re all right here.”

“Oh, right,” she shook her head at her own confusion. “I call for a family meeting in the living room.”

Everybody hurried into the living room; leaving the luggage sitting on the hallway floor. Amanda sat down next to her daughter, Grace, on the floor by the coffee table. Olivia bent down to greet Jacob’s younger sister, by kissing each other’s cheeks, as she passed her by. As Paul, Jocelyn and Roger sat down together in one of the room’s two couches, Jacob and Olivia could comfortably occupy the other couch.

“First things first,” Amanda spoke with a faked pomposity. “Roger, state your full name, age, your reason for being at this meeting and what you think you can contribute in order to improve this already well-functioning family.”

“Well… My name is Roger Alan Johnson. I’m 47 years old,” Roger paused to think for a moment and when he went to continue he had a bright smile on his face. “I’m here because I’m in love with Jocelyn Hamilton. I will happily contribute my best efforts to make her the happiest woman in the world and therefore, by extension, making all of you a little bit happier.”

Jocelyn, touched by Roger’s words, leaned in to kiss his cheek lovingly. The room stayed silent as Paul looked at everybody around the table giving him their nods of approval before turning his attention back to Roger.

“A little cheesy, but we’ll take it,” Paul grinned at his future brother-in-law. “You are now officially, but not yet legally, a member of the Hamilton family.”

“Welcome Roger,” the group spoke solemnly together before breaking into fits of giggles.

“Is this a longstanding tradition? Passed down through generations?” Roger smirked.

“Oh, not at all,” Amanda answered nonchalantly. “Liv is the only one before you.”

“Is that so? I’m curious,” Roger smiled as he turned to Olivia. “What did you offer as your contribution to the family?”

“I make a mean macaroni and cheese,” Olivia shrugged.

“Clearly we love all kinds of cheesiness in this family,” Jacob chuckled while he absentmindedly ran his fingers up and down the skin of Olivia’s left forearm.

“I don’t know whether I think that comment was clever or not,” Amanda spoke quietly to herself.

“It doesn’t matter, Mom. Let’s get on with it, shall we?” Grace suggested.

“Take it away, sis,” Jacob pointed to Grace before reaching to grab an apple out of the fruit bowl on the coffee table.

“Alright! This is our schedule for the weekend,” Grace began enthusiastically. “Arrivals, check! Family meeting, almost check! After some free time we will go on to the family celebration of our father’s 50th birthday with an awesome barbecue followed by cake, presents and game night.”

Olivia turned to admire Jacob and was stunned to find that he was watching her with a loving smile. She brought his right hand to her lips for a kiss before placing their joined hands in her lap.

“That’s about everything, people. Tomorrow’s big surprise party will of course be the social highlight of the weekend. My father obviously knows nothing about this party, so I would appreciate if everybody can make sure that it remains a surprise,” Grace sarcastically winked at Paul who returned it exaggeratedly.

“Remember that we need to discuss our summer vacation some time during the weekend,” Amanda reminded the family.

“Maybe we can do that during the brunch on Sunday?” Roger suggested.

“Perfect,” Grace smiled as she wrote it down on her notepad.

“Are the Hollywood divas having trouble clearing their important schedules to go on a luxury vacation?” Jocelyn smiled teasingly at Jacob and Olivia.

“I’m happy to let you know that both of our schedules have been cleared for this little trip for months,” Jacob retorted cockily before taking a large first bite out of the able in his hand.

“Are there any other subjects to discuss under the formality of this meeting? None? Well, then… Meeting adjourned,” Amanda said as she slammed her hand on the table before getting up from the floor. “I’m going to put some final touches on some of the presents.”

“Oh! I’ll come with you,” Jacob exclaimed as he jumped out of his seat. “We haven’t been able to wrap one of our presents.”

“I’m so excited about going to Hawaii, Ollie!” Grace smiled giddily as she moved into the seat her brother had just been vacating. “I hope that I’ll get a really awesome tan so that I can look really sexy and fuckable when I go back to school as a senior in the fall!”

“Keep talking like that and you’re not coming with us!” Paul scolded from across the room; only half-jokingly.

Roger chuckled as he patted Paul’s shoulder while Jocelyn hurried them out of the room; eager to show her older brother the new laptop she had just bought.

“Ugh! Dad just doesn’t understand me,” Grace rolled her eyes as she got up and tugged on Olivia’s hand. “Come on. I need to show you the bikinis I’ve bought for the trip.”

Their hands remained locked together as they hurried up the stairs, down the hallway and into Grace’s bedroom. Grace picked up a bright pink bikini from her bed and handed it to Olivia before going to get another bikini that was drying in the bathroom down the hall. Olivia dropped the bikini back onto the bed and went to the desk to inspect the Facebook profile that had been left open in the browser of Grace’s laptop. She bent over to take a closer look at the profile picture of a young man with blue eyes and curly, black hair.

“Hey Gracie?” she called out with a smirk on her face. “Who is Adam Greenberg?”

Olivia laughed as Grace hurried back into her bedroom and shut the door behind her before slamming her laptop shut.

“Geez, Olivia. Do you have to be so loud?” Grace hissed as a red tint instantly appeared on her cheeks. “You can’t tell anyone, but he’s a guy I met at a party a couple of weeks ago.”

“Is he also going to be a senior this year?” Olivia questioned.

“Yes.”

“Does he go to your school?”

“No. He’s going to a senior in college, Ollie,” Grace admitted sheepishly.

“Oooh! Is he able to grow a moustache?” Olivia asked as she sat down on the bed. “That’s really sexy on old m-.”

“Olivia!” Grace interrupted furiously. “He’s not that old! Besides, there is like two years between you and Jake. That’s almo-.”

“I was only teasing you, Gracie. You were acting like the age was such a big deal when it’s not,” Olivia rolled her eyes. “Tell me about this Adam.”

Grace hesitated slightly before breaking into a happy grin and sitting down beside Olivia.

“He’s going to be a senior in college, like I said,” Grace giggled causing Olivia to smile widely. “He’s Jewish and an only child. He wants to be an architect and I… I only want to be with him… He has beautiful hands and his lips taste like coffee. When he smil-.”

Olivia scrunched up her face as she suddenly remembered Carl Smith; the guy Grace had been dating casually for the last nine months.

“What happened to Carl?”

“He’s still around,” Grace sighed as she was pulled out of her daydreams. “Does that make me a horrible person?”

“I don’t know,” Olivia sighed as her own mind started to cloud with guilt. “I suppose so.”

“Oh, I’m in agony, Ollie! Have you ever been so fucking mesmerised by a guy that you can’t think of anything else?” Grace rambled dramatically as she reached out to hold Olivia’s hands in her own. “Carl is so unbelievably wonderful and I know I should be with him right now. I don’t even know Adam, but I still can’t think of anything else but the taste of his lips. I see him in my dreams and long for him when I’m awake. Have you ever felt like this about a guy when you were in a relationship with somebody else?”

“Yes,” Olivia’s quiet voice wavered at her admission.

“Oh, thank God I’m not the only one! Was it back when you dated that Timothy?” Grace questioned eagerly as she left the bed to pace her room.

Olivia closed her eyes as she tried to find her way out of her emotional agony. She searched desperately within herself to find the strength to push her thoughts aside and keep her mouth shut. But the heavy feeling in her chest quickly won over her head.

“Was Jake your Adam? No. That can’t be right. You broke up with Timothy before you even met Jake, right? So it must have been someone before that. Was it th-?”

“Just shut up!”

Before Olivia could stop herself her voice had angrily interrupted Grace’s excited ramble. Grace came to a stop in the middle of the room to stare at Olivia; shocked by her sudden increase of volume and the newfound sternness in her voice.

“Gracie…” Olivia lowered her voice to a whisper as she stared at her feet in shame. “I’ve cheated on your brother.”

“What?”

Grace’s mouth hung open as she was unable to immediately process the information she had just been given.

“I mean… I haven’t slept with someone else,” Olivia explained. “But I’ve kissed someone… More than once… And I just can’t stop thinking about him, Gracie.”

“You are a heartless slut!” Grace wheezed.

“Excuse me? Please, explain to me how you’re not as awful as I am!” Olivia demanded furiously as she stood up. “You have a boyfriend just like I do and yet you shamelessly go around kissing other guys.”

“But it’s differe-!” Grace tried to shout back.

“How?!”

“You’re supposed to get married!”

Grace stalled to swallow back a sob that was threatening to escape as tears began to roll down her cheeks. Olivia quickly wiped at the wetness that had appeared at her own eyes.

“You and Jake, I mean…” Grace continued. “I’m just dating Carl… I let him take me to a dinner or a movie and sometimes I even let him touch my breasts when we make out.”

Olivia couldn’t help the light giggle that bubbled out of her at the absurdity of hearing Grace described her current dating rituals so matter-of-factly.

“Carl is great, but when we’re done with high school it’ll be over between us. It won’t lead anywhere and we both know that,” Grace admitted. “But you and Jake are supposed to be so much more.”

Olivia collapsed onto the floor in tears as she finally let her emotions take over.

“You’re supposed to get married,” Grace repeated sadly as she sunk down onto the floor in front of Olivia. “You’re supposed to stay together forever and you’re supposed to be my sister.”

“I know… I know,” Olivia nodded as she gulped for air. “I’m sorry. I really am. I just… I’m sorry…”

“We’re supposed to go to Hawaii…”

“I know…”

“Please, don’t leave my brother,” Grace cried. “He loves you so much.”

“I love him too,” Olivia stated honestly. “I really do.”

“Who is he?” Grace whispered heartbrokenly after a moment of silence. “Who’s the guy you can’t stop thinking about? You still think about him, don’t you? This is something that’s happened recently, isn’t it?”

“Gracie…” Olivia whined. “Come on…”

“Who is he?” Grace repeated more forcefully.

“You don’t know him.”

“Please, just tell me what his name is,” Grace begged.

“It doesn’t matter,” Olivia said sternly.

“What doesn’t matter?”

The girls jumped at the sound of a third voice and turned their heads to find Jacob smiling at them from the doorway. Olivia could not believe that they had not heard the door open. She nervously wondered how long he had been standing there.

“Are you guys crying?” Jacob’s smiled faltered as he stepped into the room.

Grace explained that they had been discussing a recent episode of Grey’s Anatomy as she got up from the floor and hurried out of the room. Olivia was grateful that Grace had not shared her secret, but deep down she knew that it had not been done in order to protect her. She knew that Grace wanted to protect her brother’s feelings as well as not wanting to ruin her father’s birthday. Olivia’s heart sank when the thought of being shut out of the Hamilton family entered her mind.

Jacob moved across the room to squat down in front of Olivia. He gently folded his hands into her blonde hair and tilted her head to him to place a chaste kiss on her lips. Jacob carefully kissed away the tears that had stained her cheeks and Olivia moaned softly when his lips returned to her mouth. She placed her hands on the middle of his back to pull him closer.

“Since when do you watch Grey’s Anatomy?” Jacob chuckled as he looked down at Olivia in his arms. “That’s not you at all.”

“Willow forced me to watch it with her a couple of weeks ago and I was sucked in,” Olivia shrugged.

“Hm,” he smirked playfully. “Who would have thought?”

Olivia forced a small smile before tearing her eyes away from Jacob. She hated how effortlessly the lie had slipped off her tongue. She closed her eyes as she rested her head on his chest to listen to his steady heartbeat.

“Do you want to hear what I think about sometimes when I need something to cheer me up?” Jacob questioned quietly.

Olivia nodded against his chest and Jacob took a moment to collect his thoughts. They held each other in silence for a while as Jacob inhaled the scent of her hair.

“I like to imagine what the future will be like,” Jacob finally spoke carefully. “What it will be like when we have children.”

Olivia immediately tensed up at the mention of having children; an action that did not go unnoticed by Jacob. He took a shaky breath as he contemplated how he would react if she rejected his fantasies.

“The thought of having babies with you makes me so happy,” Jacob breathed. “But you don’t want to have children with me, do y-?”

“No, no. I do!” Olivia hurried to interrupt him as she pulled back slightly in his arms to look into his eyes. “Of course I do! I want to have children with you. I just got a little nervous…”

Jacob studied Olivia with a concerned look as he tried to figure out if her reassurance was genuine or if she was simply trying to protect his feelings.

“We’ll bring them here, won’t we?” Jacob finally questioned as he broke into a wide grin. “To visit my parents, I mean.”

“Yes,” Olivia giggled softly. “Of course we will.”

”We’re going to have the most beautiful children,” Jacob hummed happily.

Olivia hugged him closer for a short moment as she tried to rein in her feelings before looking into his eyes again.

“We will,” she nodded with a bright smile.

A single tear escaped her right eye and Jacob was quick to gently wipe it away with his thumb. The beautiful smile on Jacob’s face made Olivia’s heart sore and she could not resist the urge to place a loving kiss on his lips.