Chapter 417

• Our departure from the boat this morning is tense as Marissa calls several times. She and Jake have heated arguments over his refusal to meet with lawyers until she agrees to his new terms instead of him agreeing to her original demands. His emotions are on edge with the topic of the baby, and Marissa seems to know exactly how to push his buttons. Every call causes Jake to hang up in irritation and throw his phone violently in various directions, cursing and going off in a full Italian rant. Surprised that his phone hasn’t shattered into pieces yet, I watch with my breath held until he calms down, unsure what to say to help bring him back to a simmer instead. There isn’t much to calm that hot temper, and I know to let it run its course.
• The flight home is silent, so I listen to music while he dashes emails back and forth to his legal advisors about the meeting over paternity rights. He’s tense and agitated and very much like the Jake Carrero I used to work for, boyfriend-Jake on hiatus as he scowls his way through a heated typing rampage, his poor laptop taking a beating. The Carrero glare stuck firmly in place as I watch him hit the keyboard several times. His fiery Italian temper always seems at odds with his normal, cool, calm demeanor, the most laid-back Carrero alive, and I smile despite the look on his face. I had even missed this part of him when he’d sent me away; his monumental asshole moods and dangerous glares never phased me at all. I watch him pull out his phone, give the screen the most hateful look I’ve ever seen, then reject the call before returning to pounding on his keyboard again.
• “I think your laptop might need medical attention when you’re done,” I say, poking him in the rib lightly, hoping to calm some of the storm.