A/N: Part two in my Be the One AU series originally called Closer to the Heart on Tumblr. Drake has been avoiding fulfilling his promise to tell Liam about his relationship with Jaclyn and she’s fed up with waiting.
It had been weeks since their drunken tryst by the pool where Drake had promised Jaclyn that they would come clean to Liam. She desperately wanted to and was growing increasingly frustrated with Drake’s excuses as to why they had to wait just a little bit longer. They were back to stolen moments with each other away from prying eyes and a seed of doubt planted itself inside Jaclyn that Drake would never be able to bring himself to tell Liam about them.
Each moment she shared privately with Liam made her sick knowing that this was eventually going to end with her breaking Liam’s heart. She had tried in vain to give him hints that she didn’t return his affections, but Drake had made her swear that she wouldn’t be too obvious about it. Liam wasn’t taking the hints and before she knew it the end of the engagement tour was creeping up on them. Maxwell had given her the news today that they had a small list of locations where Tariq could be and they would all be flying to LA after the United Nations ball in New York.
Jaclyn let out a frustrated sigh throwing her gowns into her luggage.
“Good morning, m’lady.” Drake smiled at her from the bed. “You okay?”
Jaclyn’s eyes narrowed as she looked at him. “No. I’m really not.” She snapped. “I… I’m sorry I don’t mean to snap it’s just… the wedding shower is soon and Liam still doesn’t know and you promised me we would tell him weeks ago, Drake.”
“Come here.” He said gently, patting the empty spot on the bed beside him.
“Don’t think for a minute that dragging me into that bed will get you out of this conversation.” Jaclyn cocked an eyebrow at him. “I’ve been more than patient and understanding with you and I’m done waiting, Drake. We’re telling him today before we leave for New York.”
“Jac… babe, we can’t. Not yet. I told you –”
She faltered a little when she looked over and saw the pain in his eyes. Here was a man that just wanted to spare his best friend the pain of being rejected. Liam had been through so much already.
“No!” She interrupted. She wasn’t going to let him put this off any longer. She had to be strong for both of them in this moment. “Enough with the excuses. The time is now. There will never be a good time to tell Liam that we went behind his back. The longer we wait the more it will hurt him.” Jaclyn said firmly.
The room fell silent for what felt like an eternity. Jaclyn dropped down on the couch waiting for him to concede when she noticed he was balling his fists tightly at his sides.
“You don’t know what you’re asking me to do, Jaclyn.” His harsh tone surprised her. “Liam is the only person who did not abandon me. He is my brother and I betrayed him. I can’t… You’re the one bright spot in his world right now. This is too close to his heart. It’s one thing for him to lose you, it’s another for him to lose you to me. You don’t understand.”
Jaclyn could feel the anger bubbling in her throat. “I’m sorry Drake,” she scoffed. “I don’t understand?! Liam is my friend too. I want to see him spared pain just as much as you but-”
“But nothing, Jaclyn!” Drake barked, cutting her off. “The timing isn’t right and until it is we’re not saying a word. Understood?”
“How the hell do you think this makes me feel Drake? It’s torture lying to him – leading him to believe that there’s something more between him and I than there is. You ask me to carry on like everything is normal with him but you’re the one who sleeps in my bed every night. Don’t you see, Drake? You have this so backwards. Soon my name will be cleared and Liam will want an actual relationship with me. Then what? Do you expect me to keep him happy in a blissful lie forever while you and I steal moments wherever we can on the side?” Emotion overwhelmed her and tears spilled from her eyes as her voice broke. “I chose you, Drake. I want to be with you.”
Drake sighed, his eyes softening as he walked over to join her on the couch. He knew how hard this was on her. He felt horribly guilty that he was asking her to wait, but no matter how hard he tried to gather the courage to talk to Liam, he couldn’t find it in himself. Wrapping her in a warm embrace and wiping away her tears, he whispered in her ear, “You are with me, Rowan. Always.”
His touch and his words brought her comfort, but she knew better than to leave this alone. If it were left up to him, Drake would put this off eternally to spare his friend until it would rip them apart and that terrified her. “But only in secret, right? Since we’re going to placate Liam for eternity.” She whispered sarcastically against his chest. Drake dropped his arms and sat back feeling his resentment at the situation take over.
“Fuck, Rowan. I don’t know what the hell else to do. I told you we will tell him when he’s ready to hear it. Why can’t you just get that through your head?!”
“Ugh, you are infuriating, Drake Walker!” Jaclyn shouted, forcefully shoving his chest with both hands to the other side of the couch. She didn’t want this to turn into a shouting match, but here she was letting her emotions get the best of her. They’d had this argument dozens of times now and it never ended well. She wasn’t sure why she had thought this time might be different. “When will the time be right, hm? Do you want to wait until Liam is on one knee before you think it’s the right time you self centered, pig headed, idiot! You keep going on and on about how this will break Liam but we can’t hide it forever, so it’s tell him or we’re fucking done. I will not resign myself to a secret relationship with you. Understood?” Jaclyn strained, spitting his own words back at him.
They sat across from one another nostrils flared, breathing heavy, glaring into each other’s eyes. Drake gritted his teeth and took a deep breath, swallowing what he really wanted to say in favour of something that would possibly settle their argument.
“I’m sorry, Rowan. We can tell him right after New York, okay? Before the wedding shower. I know this is hard on you… I just need a little more time to figure the right words to say to him.”
As backwards as his feelings were, Jaclyn could see he was trying to compromise with her. She wanted to take him back to the bed and lay wrapped in his arms and forget this whole thing, but that pesky seed of doubt told her that if she wanted Liam to know, she had to be the one to tell him herself. “I’m sorry, Drake…” she crawled across the couch to press her forehead to his. “No more waiting.”
Before he could even respond, Jaclyn darted toward the door and into the hall. She walked quickly as she could to Liam’s room, nodding to Bastien who was standing outside it before she knocked. Taking a deep breath, Jaclyn replayed in her head what she was going to say.
“Lady Jaclyn! This is a lovely surprise.” Liam greeted her with his trademark warm smile ushering her inside the room.
“Liam, we need to talk.”
“Of course, my love.” Liam took her hand and sat them down at the edge of the bed. Jaclyn cringed at his words my love. Knowing what was about to be said, she suddenly felt the need to vomit.
“It’s about… us.”