Nestled in a Book

“I don’t know how to go back to where we were, to what we had… to what we were supposed to be… What we are meant to be.”

Jaaaack! Okay, I just had to get that out.

Forever, Jack picks up a few months after Eversea ended. Jack has been gone and Keri Ann has been doing her best to move on. She's been accepted to art school, she's been creating lots of pieces and having success selling them, and an exhibition featuring her work is on the horizon. It's been painful but she's moving on. She's stronger. Well, everywhere except where Jack is concerned.

And then one day, Jack is back and he's determined to win her back. But she lived month after month with no word, no explanation, no closure, and seeing countless pictures of him out with different women. Keri Ann is pissed. Winning her over is easier said than done.

I knew I couldn't have Jack in moderation. I wasn't capable of it. I'd opened my whole heart to him already, and it had ended in a nightmare. All I could do now was put the deadbolt on, close the shades, and pray for daylight.

He made her fall in love with him, gave her hope and made her consider the possibilities. And then poof! The pain is compounded by the fact that she has no idea what's happened and never expects to see or talk to him again. But Jack's reasons for staying away are surprisingly understanding and respectful, no matter how hurt and angry you are on Keri Ann's behalf. However, she doesn't want to hear it and tells him that he ever really cared about her then he will leave her alone, for good.

The thing about pain, whether physical or emotional, is there's no running away. You can't escape it and you can't hide from it. Not by ignoring it, not by drugging it, not by doing a swan dive into a bottle. Sooner or later you'll have to take a breath, let the pain rush in and get to the other side like your life depends on it. Because it does.

Jack feels hopeless and broken, seeking relief from the pain in the bottom of a bottle. But his friend Devon isn't going to let him wallow. He gives Jack a pep talk that has him refusing once again the back down.

"This is as real as it gets, Keri Ann. This is Technicolor, when everything else is black and white. This ... this ... what we have ... is extra-sensory overload ... where everything else is a silent fucking movie."

The two of them go toe to toe, determined not to give in. Jack is terrified to let her go, and Keri Ann is terrified to let him have her. There's a lot of revelations, painful admissions, and self-discovery. There's also a lot of delicious sexual tension.

It occurred to me that the moment in space and time before lips touch, the small exquisite sting of wanting, a beat of thirst, of yearning, was the most underrated part of kissing. There should be sonnets and epic poems written about the space before a kiss, and the thrilling rush that comes with the moment of contact.

I absolutely adored the touching, emotional roller coaster that is Jack and Keri Ann's story. I couldn't get enough of these two. This is the end of the line for them but the author is working on Jazz and Joey's story and of course they will be featured in it, so we may get to see more of them further down the road.

Connect with Nestled in a Book
Blog | Facebook | Twitter