I'll Come Running - R.C. - Chapter 23

I'll Come Running - R.C. - Chapter 23

Jessie didn't get much sleep last night, but she knew she would have to get up to make her flight, so she did just that. As she got ready and packed up her stuff she wondered what Rafe was thinking. Would he even say goodbye? Jessie knew better than to get her hopes up on that one. She would just be setting herself up for disappointment.

Jessie texted everyone to let them know that she would be flying home that day. After everyone was updated, she finally made her way out of her room. Although, the fear of impending doom almost kept her from leaving. She felt that Rafe was so mad that night that if she stuck her head out of her door she would see flaming arrows shooting down the hall. Despite the fear, she managed to make her way through the hall and down the long flight of stairs. The stairs felt like it took hours for her to reach the bottom, mainly due to her racing thoughts as she didn't see Rafe waiting for her. She didn't really expect him to be there, and yet it hurt her still.

Jessie stood awkwardly in the entry way, waiting for her cab to arrive. She looked around the beautiful house one last time, wondering if she was making the right decision. Maybe she should stay? After all, she didn't technically have the money yet. When would she be getting that? Is the deal off now that Rafe is pissed? Jessie felt she left too many questions unanswered, but she was suddenly pulled out of her train wreck of thoughts when she heard footsteps.

Rafe stomped in the entry way, two duffel bags in hand and not a trace of a smile or even a glance in his wife's direction. He plopped the heavy bags onto the large entry way table rather carelessly. He clearly seemed annoyed and a little angry. He wiped his nose and cleared his throat as he put his hands on his hips and looked anywhere except for Jessie's eyes.

"200 mil. Cash. Just like you wanted. I've called TSA. They won't have any questions for you when you run those through at the airport." Rafe plainly said. Jessie could tell he wanted to leave the room right after he said that, yet his body didn't seem to move. Rafe felt as if his body was planted right where he stood. Why couldn't he just let go already?

Jessie stood there with shame as she clutched onto her luggage even tighter. She dipped her head down looking at her dirty white converse and then back up at Rafe with guilty eyes.

"Thank you." Was all she could muster. "I-I have something to give you too."

Rafe was confused, what could Jessie possibly have to give him? He watched as Jessie reached in her shorts pocket. She pulled out a beautiful silver ring with a thin band of square diamonds and one large four prong princess cut on the top. Rafe recognized it immediately. It was the ring he gave Jessie a couple weeks after they had gotten married. Where Rafe got it from, Jessie never knew. However, Rafe couldn't forget.

***

"Yeah, come in here I've got something very special." Rafe persuaded a young lady with long blonde hair to come downstairs at a party at Toppers house. Jessie wasn't there of course, she hated kook parties. Rafe took this opportunity to push more product to get more money for himself and Jessie. At least that's what he told himself.

Rafe sat down on the basement couch as he displayed what he had to the potential buyer. The girl seemed oddly flirty with Rafe but he was clearly not interested, despite all the drugs and alcohol in his system, he was very aware that she wasn't his Jessie. He remained professional.

"I don't have any money." The young lady said as she leaned a little closer to Rafe and started rubbing his back. "Think you could spare me? Just this once?" She flirted. Rafe sat there motionless, all of a sudden he noticed the blazing silver rock on her finger.

"That ring looks pretty nice." Rafe smirked. "That should cover it."

The girl scoffed. "As if." She said as she clung to her ring clearly with disgust on her face.

"This is business, sweetheart. Either you want it or you don't." Rafe simply stated with a half smile. He was making too much money off of everyone tonight to care.

After a moment of pause the girl finally made up her mind, slipping the ring off her finger and handing it to Rafe.

"Have as much as you want all night." Rafe replied as he walked off.

"She overpaid." Rafe laughed with Barry as he exited up the stairs.

Rafe was leaving the party as he took the ring out of his pocket, admiring its beauty. As he sat up against his bike he couldn't help but think that Jessie deserved a ring like this. Ah, Jessie! Perfect! Rafe considered trading the ring in to see how much money he would get out of it, but why do that when he could just give it to her tonight? He knew she would love it, as long as she didn't know where he got it from.

With Rafe being so excited to finally put a real ring on Jessie's finger, he drove right over to her house, hoping she would be as excited as he was.

He knocked on Jessie's window like he always did. He really had hopes on spending the night at her house anyways. Jessie appeared shortly after with a smile on her face to let Rafe in.

"Hey!" Rafe said as he planted a kiss on Jessie's lips.

"Hey babe, what's got you so happy?" She asked apprehensively. Rafe just held Jessie in his arms as he looked at her and exhaled.

"I have something for you... it's a present." Rafe said with a childlike innocence.

"Oh yeah?" Jessie played along.

"Yeah... close your eyes." Rafe whispered. Jessie giggled a little, finding it funny and cute that Rafe made a little game out of whatever this was. She fully expected her favorite candy or something, but then she felt Rafe take her left hand and she felt a ring slide on her finger. She knew immediately and instinctively opened her eyes. Jessie looked down and gasped.

"Oh my gosh, Rafe! I-It's beautiful!" Jessie beamed. "H-How did you? Wha-? Did you kill someone for this or?"

Rafe just laughed and held Jessie closer. "Of course not, babe. I promise." Rafe answered as he put his hand over his heart.

"How did you get this?" Jessie couldn't let that question go unanswered. "I mean it's... it's huge!"

"Don't worry about it." Was all Rafe said with a smirk on his face. Jessie's face contorted to a sincere look of concern.

"You really didn't kill someone for this did you?" Jessie asked with a serious tone in her voice.

"No I didn't! I promise baby!" Rafe replied through laughter. Jessie believed him. For the first time in weeks it seemed like Rafe was actually clear headed, not mumbling and not strung out on coke. It felt nice, and Jessie didn't want to ask too many questions. She'd rather just enjoy the moment.

After Jessie stopped gawking at the rock on her left hand, she took Rafe's face in her hands and kissed him gently and yet with so much passion. She pulled away and connected her forehead to his.

"Thank you." Jessie whispered sincerely.

Rafe could tell she was truly grateful, and Jessie could tell that Rafe felt fulfilled by doing this for her.

***

Rafe took the ring from Jessie's hand and just admired it.

"Y-you kept it? After all these years... you kept it?" Rafe asked with his eyes brimming with tears.

Jessie just shrugged. "I'm your wife." She said plainly as if it was obvious. That's not the reason Jessie kept the ring, and she knew that. Deep down, she kept the ring because she felt it was her only connection to Rafe all these years.

Rafe wanted to say so much more, starting with the fact that Jessie needed to stop looking at him like that. He couldn't be upset when she looked like she wanted to cry and fall into his arms. It took everything in him to simply nod and walk out of the room, the ring getting lost in his fist.

And with that, Jessie realized that it really was the end. Rafe really wasn't going to fight for Jessie anymore, and she really wasn't going to fight for him. But the mission was complete right? Jessie thought she should be happy considering that's exactly what she came here for. She swore she wouldn't get involved past that... but here she was.

Jessie sighed and walked out of the house, having the concierge help her with her two new bags. She was then whisked away to the airport.

Rafe watched secretly from a kitchen window as the car drove away, a single tear rolling down his numbed face. He couldn't believe it. After years of dreaming of having Jessie back in his grasp, he blew it. No- she blew it. This was her fault. Rafe wondered if she meant what she said about the money. Was she really not taking any of it? Did she really mean it when she said that it turned into something more?

Rafe still wanted to ask many more questions about his daughter. When's her birthday? What did she look like? Does she know anything about her father? Rafe couldn't handle all the unanswered questions in his head. He shook his head as his lips quivered. He then put his hands on his head and began to hit himself repeatedly out of frustration. He couldn't believe he just let her go like that... and his daughter. That idea was still hard for him to wrap his head around, and yet despite the fact that he'd never even met Charlotte— didn't even know what she looked like— he couldn't help but feel like he was abandoning her by letting her mother slip away.

Rafe couldn't handle his own brain, he knew what he would've done in this situation before Jessie entered back into the picture... but Jessie wasn't here anymore.

Rafe rushed straight to his room and to his bedside table for that coveted bag of white powder. He stared at it for a moment, with tear soaked eyes, contemplating if he really wanted to do this or not. Of course he did. He may have promised himself years ago to quit if he ever had a shot at Jessie again, but that ship has sailed, and Jessie was the captain once again.

Rafe began to form a little white line that he was so familiar with. He did this through sobs as he just stared at the cocaine in front of him. He sat there for what felt like hours, playing with his fingers and letting the tears flow. His hands began to shake as he couldn't handle the urge anymore. Just as he was about to give in, he noticed the ring sitting on his desk. It was still in perfect condition, not a scratch, not even a speck of dust or cloudiness on the ring. Jessie must have put it away somewhere safe where nobody could find it... where she wouldn't remember it. Yet she still managed to know exactly where it was and take it to the Bahamas with her. Rafe wondered why? In his heart, he knew why. Jessie said earlier that it was because she was his wife, but that wouldn't have mattered to Jessie if she didn't still love him. God, she still loved him. He knew it too.

Through tears he hit the desk and stood up and cleared it off with one quick angry sweep. His lamp, his book, his coke, the ring, it all went flying as he cried uncontrollably. He couldn't do this. He couldn't go back to the life he once had. He had done life without Jessie before, and he wouldn't able to survive if he tried to do it again. Rafe knew what he had to do.

I'll Come Running - R.C. - Chapter 37

Jessie had woken up the next morning to the sun peeking through the window. Well, not peeking... there were no blinds or curtains on the window so the sun was blazing through the window. She figured John B didn't see the point in buying either of those things for a room he didn't sleep in. Jessie could also smell freshly cooked bacon, and it made her hungry immediately. She then realized that her daughter was nowhere to be found in the bed... or even in the room. As her senses started coming to her she realized she heard rustling in the kitchen, she swore she heard JJ cuss and Charley giggle.

Jessie went to get out of bed when a pair of strong arms wrapped around her even tighter and kept her there. Jessie heard Rafe groan and shimmy closer to his wife.

"Don't go." Rafe pleaded groggily. Him and Charley shared the same disdain for waking up.

"I think JJ is trying to make our daughter breakfast." Jessie giggled as she looked over her shoulder in Rafe's direction.

"Good," Rafe said as he suddenly popped his head up and rolled Jessie on her back. "That gives us some time to ourselves." He whispered in a low seductive voice as he went in for a kiss. Jessie kissed him back but quickly put her hands to his bare chest.

"No, no, no..." Jessie retorted playfully. "There are tooooo many people in this house and this bed is wayyyyy too squeaky." Jessie joked. Rafe just whined and leaned his head back onto his pillow, letting go of Jessie to rub the sleep out of his eyes.

Jessie took the opportunity to get up and as she was about to open the door she heard Rafe whistle behind her to get her attention. She quickly looked back at him to see his hands propped behind his head with a smirk. It was really hard to resist him when he looked that good.

"So you just gonna walk around in nothing but some underwear and my shirt?"

Jessie immediately looked down, dumbfounded.

"Oh..." she said as she began to undress. She threw the shirt over to Rafe and he caught it.

"And just out of curiosity... what did you expect me to wear?" Rafe joked. Jessie was glad to see he had managed some humor. She just scoffed with a smile and rolled her eyes knowing he was right.

Both Jessie and Rafe put on their clothes from last night, undoubtedly wishing they had something comfier. They walked out of the room and into the kitchen to see breakfast had been made. The sight before them was priceless: JJ made Charley a plate and was cutting up her pancakes for her as she sat on the kitchen counter waiting patiently and looking at her uncle with so much love. JJ looked very concentrated.

"Good morning." Jessie interrupted, trying not to scare either one of them as she slowly walked closer to the kitchen with Rafe following behind. JJ and Charley both jolted their heads up in response.

"Mornin." JJ replied wide eyed still trying to focus as he looked back down at the breakfast.

"Mommy! Look what uncle JJ did!" Charley exclaimed happily.

"I see that, baby. It looks yummy!" Jessie replied with a smile as both her and Rafe sat down at the island in front of them.

"I'm a little rusty... we don't normally have this kinda breakfast around here." JJ stated as he finally let Charley eat what was beside her.

"Beer is not breakfast." Jessie joked with a hint of judgement in her tone as she smirked at her brother.

"Woah, woah, why we so hostile this early in the morning?" JJ fired back as he scrunched his brows together and threw his hands up in surrender.

"Char Char binks, why don't you go eat your breakfast outside on the porch and watch the waves. Don't go past the screen door okay? Uncle JJ's watching you!" JJ exclaimed with a serious tone as he widened his eyes at the toddler and pointed two fingers at his eyes and then back to hers. Charley giggled and scurried off with breakfast in hand. JJ turned to look back at the two adults in front of him as he leaned his arms on the counter.

"You two are unbelievable." JJ remarked with a half joking and half judgmental tone.

"What're you talking about?" Jessie asked, genuinely confused.

"Oh don't act all innocent. You two can't keep your hands off each other even with your own daughter in the bed?! Charley told me you guys were "playing" last night." JJ replied as he threw up air quotes. Rafe and Jessie looked at each other and laughed.

"That was not what we were doing." Jessie laughed. "We were just... enjoying each other's company." Jessie shrugged, knowing that didn't make it sound any better. Rafe just chuckled and looked down at the floor. JJ looked disgusted as he made a gagging face.

"Alright well regardless, next time you wanna "play", stick the kid in my bed." JJ scoffed.

"Hey you ain't gotta tell me twice." Rafe joked. Jessie couldn't help but laugh. JJ was not as amused.

"Oh god." JJ replied with a grossed out look. He closed his eyes as if to physically erase the thoughts in his head. He quickly went back to the breakfast he was fixing on the other side of the kitchen. Jessie turned her attention back to Rafe.

"So are we going back to the house to get the rest of our stuff today?" Jessie asked with a gentleness to her voice, knowing Rafe was probably still sensitive about last night. Who wouldn't be? Rafe looked down at his hands and began to fiddle with his fingers.

"Yeah, I think we should do that. The sooner we move out the sooner we move on." Rafe replied half heartedly.

"Speaking of moving on, where are we going? Cuz we can't stay here." JJ asked, suddenly more interested in the conversation as he turned his body back towards Rafe and Jessie.

"Well, I don't know, I mean, we could stay here if we didn't have to worry about Rose and Wheezie, they have to know where we are right?" Jessie asked.

"Yeah, but, who knows what all Wheezie knows." Rafe answered. Before the conversation could continue, footsteps were heard coming down the hall. John B and Sarah had appeared, stumbling into the kitchen and rubbing their eyes.

"What does Wheezie know?" Sarah inquired through a yawn as she leaned her body up against the kitchen counter. John B was making his way to the fridge to grab... a beer.

"We don't know what all Ward or Rose had told Wheezie about Rafe's whereabouts, their plans, or anything like that." JJ replied.

"Well I bet you she doesn't know much, if anything. Ward and Rose never let her in on stuff way smaller than this and it always pissed her off." Rafe commented. Sarah nodded her head.

"Yeah, I agree with Rafe, I think it's really just up to Rose at this point." Sarah said.

"I still don't see why we can't dip to where nobody can find us. Ward's dead so nobody's going to go looking for him." JJ brought up the idea once more, he was nothing if not persistent.

"Except for Rose and Wheezie." Jessie reiterated, almost coming across annoyed. "They know Rafe killed Peterkin, and if they can't find Ward then they'll know exactly who did that too considering Ward came to obx to find Rafe."

With the converation getting louder by the minute, it was inevitable that Pope and Kiara eventually made it out of their rooms... room? Jessie didn't know what the sleeping arrangements were. The Chat wasn't exactly a mansion.

"We haven't even considered any other logistics like, oh, I don't know, money!" John B interrupted. "Let's say we decide to skip town and no matter what we do we're gonna need money."

"Well... we still have 400 million." JJ smirked as he looked around the room. Somehow they all collectively forgot they were millionaires. They all smiled sheepishly.

"We're going to Yukatan baby." JJ exclaimed as all the pogues laughed and began to clap and cheer... until Pope had to interfere with logic.

"But wait wait wait...guys, aren't you forgetting something?"

Jessie and Rafe were confused, what was there to forget? They were millionaires who could go anywhere anytime anyhow. Suddenly the pogues all had a look of realization.

"What am I supposed to have telekenesis?" Jessie sassed as she physically looked around the room for answers. Rafe mentally laughed at her joke, still in love with that sass she never seemed to lose.

"So... there's a cross, it's called the cross of Santo Domingo. And while you guys were gone we discovered that we might have reason to believe that it belongs to my family... like an heirloom from Denmark Tanney." Pope began to explain.

"The same Denmark Taney that possessed the 400 mil in gold." John B further explained.

"Yeah, and, we found this key that we think could lead us to the cross of Santo Domingo. We just don't know quite how to decipher everything just yet."

"Wait," Jessie began, "so this cross... you have no idea where it is?" Jessie asked looking for clarification.

"Well it sounds stupid when you say it like that." JJ retorted with a little scoff at the end.

"This key could be the thing that gets us to it, we're pretty sure it's on the island somewhere." Pope continued.

"And how do you even know about the key?" Rafe asked, suddenly just as skeptical as his wife.

"Well... so there's this woman... Carla Limbrey, and we met with her in Charleston and she was the one that told us about the key. She's looking for the cross too and she thought we had the key, but at first we had no clue what she was talking about, so then we came back home, did some investigating and-"

"And sure enough Pope's grandmother had it." Kiara butted in.

"Which only solidifies the idea that this cross has to be connected to my family somehow." Pope brought the conversation back to him. "... And I can't just leave... not without finding this cross. If we don't find it, Limbrey will, and who knows what she'll do with it."

"Yeah, and honestly, I'm gonna back Pope up on this one." JJ explained, "I mean, I wouldn't want to leave something like that behind either, especially not something worth 500 mill."

"500 million dollars?!" Jessie exclaimed, her eyes wide in disbelief.

"Yep. There's no way we can leave that dough hangin around now that we know it's here." JJ reiterated. Jessie was still hesitant.

"Guys..." Jessie sighed as she showed a look of sympathy mixed with desperation. "I understand, I really do, but, I don't know that we can afford another wild goose chase... not with the unknown variables of Rose and Wheezie most likely looking for Rafe." Jessie explained. She was not met with the same sympathetic looks, except from Rafe, who at that point was squeezing her thigh as if to silently thank her for sticking up for him.

"Well... with all due respect..." JJ started. Jessie knew whatever was about to come out of JJ's mouth most certainly was not going to be laced with respect. Jessie could feel the brother-sister love about to come out in this conversation, and it was not going to pretty... it never was. "... this isn't exactly a wild goose chase, we have some pretty good clues as to where the cross is. And also, it's not like either one of you were that involved in the goose chase before this one. And thirdly... you kinda owe us." JJ said plainly with a matter of fact look on his face. There it was, the guilt trip. Jessie couldn't let that slide, she never did.

"We... owe you?" Jessie replied immediately as she scooted her chair back and stood up, slowly walking towards JJ. JJ never wanted this to happen from his statement, but he figured the same as Jessie, that Maybank blood was about to boil.

"Yeah... you do. We got you guys back together-"

"When I never wanted to get back together with Rafe!" That one hurt a little bit, but Rafe tried to understand Jessie's argument. "You've said it yourself, the only reason you called me was to do what I had to do to get the gold, and I did. And you're gonna tell me that I owe you?" Jessie fired back with a laugh that was void of humor.

"You may not have planned on getting back together with Rafe, but regardless, you did! And you seem to be much happier for it, so I'd start saying you're welcome because now we're covering up a murder for your little project over here and-" JJ could't finish his sentence before he felt the hands of his sister push against his chest, forcing a slight shove that barely moved his feet.

"You cocky little shit! You-" Jessie began as she walked closer to JJ, clearly wanting a fight. Neither one of the siblings meant anything by their actions, it's just how they alwasy settled their differences... they learned from the best. Everyone else started getting uncomfortably close and looking around trying to see who was about to break this up. The most eager one to do it seemed to look like Rafe. He knew that even if JJ was Jessie's well meaning brother, if he laid a hand on her, all bets were off.

"Oh you wanna settle this like we used to huh?" JJ replied quickly as he stepped closer and returned the favor by giving Jessie a slight shove. The truth is, JJ could've shoved his sister way harder, but he chose not to. Was it wrong to say that both of them missed arguing like this?

"Yeah, I do! What're you gonna do about it, kid, huh?!" Jessie got louder as she regained her footing and stepped closer to her brother and shoved him again, this time with more force. The pogues and Rafe all started to circle in some more, this time with murmurs towards the two to cut it out.

"Listen, you're older, but I'm bigger and-"

"And I can still rock your shit-"

"So rock it!" JJ concluded and that was the final straw before the both of them were at each other's throats, literally. By that point Jessie had grabbed two fist fulls of JJ's shirt and JJ had began to walk Jessie backwards towards the front door. However, the interaction didn't last long before all the pogues were in between them.

Jessie felt arms wrap around her waist, but she knew they weren't Rafe's because she quickly saw her husband in between the two of them, his back towards her as he towered over her brother, making his presence known by puffing his chest. Although she couldn't see the front of him, she knew the exact look he had on his face: one of pure rage.

JJ felt a much stronger pair of hands replace where his sister's were just moments ago, as he was backed up into the kitchen sink looking into icy blue eyes. Rafe wanted to say so much, starting with the idea that JJ was not going to harm his wife. But due to the fact that JJ was her brother, and he most likely never intended on actually hurting her, he decided to let it slide just this once. After all, he was still technically trying to prove that he had changed.

Jessie kicked and flailed as she finally realized who had a hold of her.

"John B, let go of me!" Jessie demanded.

"Are you really sure you two wanna fight like this when there's a three year old little girl on the front porch that thinks the world of the both of you?" John B explained as he held Jessie back. John B and Rafe finally let go around the same time and Jessie and JJ both came to a realization.

"You two need to grow up!" Sarah exclaimed through annoyance as she looked between the two of them, both of them exchanging glances of anger but also of shame. "This isn't just kids treasure hunting anymore... there is a child involved now. You two have got to get it together and talk this out like adults. If you can't do that we're not going to get anywhere!"

Everyone knew Sarah was right, even JJ and Jessie. Even Rafe couldn't deny that he was a little disappointed in Jessie's outburst.

"Okay, okay." Jessie finally spoke up, clearly still annoyed but getting the idea that they both needed to move on.

"We'll help you find the cross." Rafe interceded for Jessie. "It's the least we could do."

That's not at all what Jessie wanted to say, and Rafe knew it. Jessie wanted to say that she was taking her family and fleeing to Yukatan or wherever they couldn't be found and she wasn't sticking around looking for buried treasure. She wanted to say that she had spent too many years only dreaming of the life she has right now, the life that she was so desperately holding onto with both hands. Instead, Rafe decided for her, and she had to trust him. She knew why he did it. He felt like he owed them... and he did.

Rafe just gave Jessie a knowing look as if to plead with her to trust him. She sighed and looked towards the porch.

"I'm going to check on Charley."

I'll Come Running - R.C. - Chapter 26

Jessie decided to get started on dinner, which was proving to be difficult considering she hadn't been to the store in a while. Regardless, she made it work with some staple items she always had on hand. She knew Charley would always be okay with eating some form of pasta.

Jessie watched as Rafe played with Charley in the living room, still not believing her eyes. Rafe already did so well with her, it was as if it was instinct for him. Charley of course loved the attention, and Rafe grew on her pretty quickly.

"I'm gonna get you!" Rafe challenged as he chased Charley on his hands and knees through the apartment. Charley ran from Rafe and giggled uncontrollably, eventually running to hide behind Jessie in the kitchen.

Jessie looked down and asked Charley "Are you running away from daddy?" In a playful tone. Jessie was going to try and start reiterating to Charley who Rafe was to her, hoping that eventually she would pick up on it. She was good with words, but this was a word she was unfamiliar with.

Jessie just laughed as she stood over the stove and watched Rafe turn the corner, still on all fours. Rafe looked up at Jessie with a cheeky grin and got up to meet Jessie at the stove.

"Do you need help?" Rafe asked as he rubbed Jessie's back.

"No I'm okay, it's almost done." Jessie smiled. Rafe went in for a quick kiss, he couldn't keep his hands off of Jessie. Jessie couldn't say no to Rafe either. What started off as a quick innocent kiss soon turned into something more as Jesie turned to face Rafe and grab his face, deepening the kiss. Rafe heard the message loud and clear as he pulled Jessie in closer and wrapped his arms around her as their lips moved in perfect harmony. Jessie quickly remembered she still had a small child standing behind her, not to mention something cooking and she put her hands on Rafe's chest trying to push him away. Rafe wouldn't hear of it as he groaned and tried grabbing Jessie again. Jessie just giggled and finally pushed Rafe off of her.

"It's almost ready so can you maybe get Charley ready to eat?" Jessie asked with her hands still laying contently on Rafe's broad chest.

Rafe sighed. "Sure... but can we continue that later." Rafe flirted as he went in for another kiss.

Jessie quickly put her finger up to Rafe's lips "Yes... much later." Jessie flirted back. Rafe understood the assignment and grabbed Charley. As he began to look around the kitchen he realized he didn't actually know what was needed to get a three year old ready to eat. Rafe just kind of stood awkwardly for a second with Charley on his hip. Eventually Jessie looked over and realized why Rafe was standing there dumbfounded.

"Oh, right, you've never done this before." Jessie laughed. "Her bibs and forks are in that drawer to your left. High chair is in the closet. And her special plates are up above that drawer." Jessie answered as she pointed everything out. Rafe felt a bit of shame for a second, as if he should know these things, but he tried to give himself grace.

By the time Rafe had gotten Charley settled, Jessie had made her way to the table with all of their food. As they ate, they sat in comfortable silence, Rafe and Jessie exchanging subtle glances of contentment at each other as if to say "we made it." Charley, of course, made a mess of herself, which only made the two of them laugh.

"I'm noticing that only half the food you give her makes it to her mouth." Rafe joked as he tried to help Charley eat, considering they were both done long before she was. "Will you let daddy help you?" Rafe asked as he picked up a piece of pasta for Charley to eat. She gladly took the pasta in her hands and ate it... kind of.

"Can you say thank you?" Jessie asked, trying to show Rafe his daughter's skills.

"Tank you!" Charley replied enthusiastically. Rafe beamed when he heard her talk. He could hear that sweet voice forever.

"Are you done eating?" Jessie asked once more.

"Yeth." Charley replied. "Clean up!" Jessie knew what that meant, Charley and her had a great routine going.

"She's used to getting a bath after dinner. You wanna help me bathe her and then we can put her to bed? Then after that we can clean up the kitchen and..." Jessie flirted as she drew shapes on Rafe's chest, looking at him with lustful eyes. Rafe knew exactly where this was going and he was more than happy to take Jessie up on the offer.

"Bring it on." Rafe whispered as he brought Jessie's face close to his for a passionate kiss.

The three of them went upstairs for bath time. Rafe started running the water as Jessie undressed Charley.

"The towels are in the hall closet. She will need two because she's a splasher." Jessie joked. Rafe laughed and went to the hall to grab the towels.

"Get the duck!" Charley demanded in her own special way of speaking. Rafe laughed but looked at Jessie confused.

"There's a yellow duck towel in the closet, it's got a hood on it, it's her favorite." Jessie explained as she put bubbles in the bath. Rafe nodded and disappeared to the hall. As he was opening up the closet he caught a glimpse of the room right next to it. With the small bed and island girl theme, Rafe knew it had to belong to Charley. He walked slowly towards it and peaked his head in, taking notice of all the toys strung out everywhere and the baskets overflowing with pillows and blankets. Rafe could tell Jessie intentionally made the room an island theme, maybe to give Charley a semblance of where she came from, or maybe just to make Jessie feel close to home.

Rafe noticed the books on the shelves and the pictures on the wall. He then noticed a document that was framed, once he got closer he realized it was Charley's birth certificate. In small letters he saw a name written at the bottom.

Charlotte Renee Cameron.

Cameron. The sight of the name made Rafe tear up. Despite the hell he'd put Jessie through, she still had the strength to give his daughter that name. He was overwhelmed, and felt truly unworthy. He was pulled from his thoughts when he heard Jessie's sweet voice.

"Rafe? You find it?" She yelled from the bathroom. Rafe quickly left the room and grabbed the towels.

"Yeah!" He said as he frantically shuffled back to the bathroom, where he saw Charlotte already in the bathtub and Jessie washing her brown hair.

"You get lost?" Jessie joked as she looked up at Rafe. Rafe sat down on the toilet and watched as Jessie bathed Charley.

"No." Rafe laughed shyly as he dipped his head.

"Can you get her toothbrush ready? It's on the sink right beside you." Jessie asked as she was now on the rinse cycle. As Rafe turned around to do that for Jessie he felt a significant splash of water hit the back of his legs. It was a small bathroom so even little Charley could fling the water across the room. Rafe turned around and looked at the back of his jeans and then looked at Charley, who was dawning a mischievous look that looked just like Jessie.

"Did you just splash daddy?" Rafe asked as he turned and crouched down by the tub.

"Yeah!" Charley laughed happily and splashed even harder out of excitement. Rafe couldn't be mad at Charley, she was perfect to him. Jessie on the other hand was happy to intervene.

"Alright now, cool it." Jessie demanded with a smile as she covered Charley's arms with her hands to indicate that she meant business. Rafe didn't dare overrule Jessie, despite him having so much fun at the moment. He stood back up to get Charley's toothbrush ready.

Jessie wrapped Charley in her favorite towel and brought her over to the sink to brush her teeth.

"Ducky!" Charley exclaimed as she clapped her hands in excitement. Rafe realized then how much she loved that towel. Rafe took a step back and propped himself on the door, admiring his... wife brushing his daughter's teeth. Rafe just realized that they technically were still married. He knew it would be hard for them to go from no contact in fours years back to this family dynamic, but it was nothing they couldn't handle. Still, the idea of calling Jessie his wife in public did fill him with a little bit of shock. This was the first time he didn't have to hide it.

Rafe noticed how good Jessie was with Charley, he wished he would've been able to be there for Jessie through it all. He began to think about all that he missed, Jessie finding out she was pregnant, her probably freaking out thinking how they were going to do it, Jessie moving away, going through nine months of pregnancy alone, having the baby alone, raising a newborn, working to provide for Charley, and everything in between. He missed Charley's first steps, first words, first hair cut, first everything... he couldn't help but tear up. Nonetheless, he admired Jessie's determination to give Charley better than what she had. He knew it couldn't have been easy for her, and yet here she was, still doing it all with a smile on her face and always with her daughter in mind.

"What're you thinking about?" Jessie asked as she finally noticed Rafe standing there with a thoughtful look on his face and wet eyes. She finished brushing Charley's teeth and grabbed the hair brush.

"What? Oh nothing." Rafe answered as he tried to play it off as if he wasn't just blown away by the sight in front of him.

"Sure... you want to brush her hair?" Jessie asked, extending the hair brush towards Rafe. Rafe looked at the hairbrush and back up at Jessie in disbelief that he had already been invited into something like this. Still, he took the brush with a smile and a hint of nerves on his face. Jessie just smiled back, knowing that Rafe probably was looking for some reassurance.

"Daddy's gonna brush your hair okay?" Jessie told Charley as she stepped out of the way, Charley still planted in the sink.

"Yaaaaaay!" Charley replied with enthusiasm. Jessie and Rafe laughed and she began to instruct him on the best way to do it.

"So it's usually better if you start brushing from the bottom up, that way you get more tangles out and it doesn't hurt as much."

"W-well I don't want to hurt her." Rafe said hesitantly. He was terrified of the very thought. Jessie didn't waver.

"Oh you'll be fine. She never gets hurt anyways and she's not gonna break, Rafe." Jessie assured as she patted his back moving closer.

"Yeah, I a big girl!" Charley butted in as she threw her hands in the air with a smile. That was all the assurance Rafe needed before he began to brush ever so slightly on the short brown hair. Jessie stepped back and propped herself on the door just like Rafe did minutes ago. She crossed her arms and admired the sight before her, wishing it would play in slow motion on repeat forever. Rafe's smile was one Jessie hadn't seen in so long, as he looked in the mirror at his beautiful daughter, who shared the same grin.

As much as Jessie wanted to just live in that moment forever, she couldn't help but remember that it wouldn't last. She dreaded the conversation she would have to have with Rafe about how they were going to do life together now that they were together again. How do you stay married and raise a child with stability when both of your lives are in different states- physically and mentally. Jessie had the promise that Rafe was done with drugs, but was he done with treasure hunting? After all, he is Ward's son and he does have an empire at his fingertips now that his father is dead. Jessie physically shook the racing thoughts away as she brought herself back to the reality in front of her. She just needed a day of this... her dream... and then she could ask the tough questions.

"All done?" Rafe asked as he looked at Charley in the mirror.

"All done!" Charley agreed as she held her arms up indicating she wanted to be picked up. Rafe understood and put Charley on his hip.

"What do we do now?" Rafe asked Charley with enthusiasm as he walked towards Jessie.

"Pick out pjs!" Charley mumbled as she pointed to the door. Rafe nodded and walked over to her room, helping her pick out a white pj set with Disney princesses on them, apparently one of her favorites Rafe was told by Charley.

Jessie and Rafe crawled into Charley's kid sized bed, a difficult task considering Rafe was quadruple the size of Charley. Although, they managed to make it work, with Charley between Jessie's legs and Jessie between Rafe's as they read the book of Charley's choosing: Llama Llama Mad at Mama of all choices. Jessie just laughed as she began to read.

As Jessie read she felt Rafe begin to play with her hair, something he used to do while she fell asleep years ago. He remembered. The intentionality behind the act made her get butterflies in her stomach, but also made her a little sleepy. She kicked her head back on Rafe's chest as she read the rest of the story.

Rafe was in heaven watching his two girls, having his whole world in his arms. He was convinced that this was all he needed for the rest of his life.

Once Jessie was done reading, they all shuffled around to get Charley comfortable in bed, with Rafe on one side of the bed and Jessie on the other, they both hugged and kissed their daughter goodnight and turned to walk out the door.

Before Rafe turned out the lights he looked back at Charley.

"If you need anything, just yell for daddy, and I'll come running, okay?" Rafe assured. Charley snuggled further into her stuffed animal and widened her smile.

"Okayyyyy" she mumbled with gladness as she drifted off to sleep.

I'll Come Running - R.C. - Chapter 28

As Jessie was getting ready to leave for the restaurant, Rafe came into the bathroom as she was brushing her hair. Rafe wrapped his arms around Jessie's waist and pulled her in close.

"Where's Charley?" Jessie asked as she looked at Rafe through the mirror.

"She's playing in her room." Rafe answered. Jessie simply nodded and went back to getting ready.

"She called me daddy this morning." Rafe said simply with a small smile on his face. Jessie stopped what she was doing once again and looked back at Rafe with a grin.

"Seriously?!" Jessie asked with wide eyes.

"Seriously." Rafe replied through a slight laugh. "She said it this morning when she woke me up wanting breakfast."

Jessie couldn't help but be filled with tears of joy. This was more confirmation that her and Charley would be just fine following Rafe back to OBX or wherever they needed to be. No matter where they went, Jessie knew she couldn't split up their family again. Jessie couldn't choke out any words, instead she opted to wrap her arms around Rafe's neck.

"I'm so glad baby, you deserve that." She whispered as she buried herself further into Rafe.

"Thank you." Was all Rafe could say as he breathed a sigh of relief. Suddenly they both heard little footsteps coming to the bathroom door.

"What we doing?" Charley asked with knitted eyebrows. She was already ready to go in her yellow sundress and high pigtails. Rafe bent down to be eye level with his daughter as Jessie went back to fixing her hair.

"We are going to find you some shoes to wear." Rafe replied as he pointed at Charley and booped her nose. She giggled and ran away to her room, clearly anxious to pick out a pair of shoes. Rafe simply followed behind her, but not before giving Jessie one last loving look.

- - -

"We ready to go?" Jessie asked as she slipped on her converse and met Rafe with Charley on his hip at the door.

"Yep." Rafe responded as they walked out the door and towards the bar downtown. Living in Manhattan everything was within walking distance, which Jessie loved. It was always a great way for Charley and her to get some fresh air and a little exercise. Plus, it saved on gas. Jessie didn't even have a car until after a year of living there, with the help of Mama and Tom getting her a job and hooked up with a friend selling one for a good price. However, she couldn't part with the small motorcycle she brought with her from OBX. That was all she had besides a few other belongings when she left. She left both her small car and motorcycle parked in the parking garage connected to their building.

The three of them had finally made it down to the small local dive bar. If Rafe would have blinked he would have missed it. He almost did, thankfully Jessie knew where it was and side stepped him just in time. Jessie had a key to the door of course but also told them she was coming and that she was bringing a friend. Considering they were stopping by before they opened she knew they wouldn't mind. They never minded having Charley there either. Many a night has been spent bartending with Mama while young Charley slept in the back room in a cot built just for her under Tom's desk.

"Hey Mama!" Jessie exclaimed enthusiastically as she let Charley down to run to her grandparents.

"Hey darlin!" Mama replied as she bent down to accept the impending bear hug from Charley. Soon after Tom rounded the corner.

"I thought I heard my favorite girls." The bearded burly man said as he came out of his office and around the counter to give Jessie a hug.

"Hey sweetheart." Tom exclaimed as he hugged Jessie and gave her a kiss on the head. Before Tom was done with the motion he eyed Rafe up and down. "Is this the guest you were talking about?" Tom asked with knitted eyebrows. At the same time Mama came walking up behind Tom with Charley in tow.

"Yes! This is Rafe. Rafe, this is Mama and PopPop. But you can call them Maci and Tom if you'd like." Jessie proclaimed as she introduced the two parties. Rafe stuck his hand out nervously with a soft smile towards Tom. Rafe couldn't belive how nervous he was. He had done billion dollar deals with gun wielding maniacs and their goons surrounding him with no nerves and yet this had him shaking.

"Nice to meet you." Rafe blurted out with his hand still extended. Tom looked down at his hand and back up at Jessie, still trying to decide if he was going to shake it or not. Tom saw the plea on Jessie's face and decided to go with it.

"Nice to meet ya Rafe." Tom said simply in his grisly tone he always has. Thankfully, Mama decided to break the very clear tension.

"Well, y'all want something to eat or drink? It's almost lunchtime!" Mama exclaimed as she made her way back behind the counter hoping everyone would follow.

"Chicken nuggets!" Charley quickly demanded as she ran alongside Mama.

"We'll just take whatever you make." Jessie answered as they sat down at the bar, Tom opted to stand alongside it beside Rafe, still unsure of the man he was looking at. For Tom, no man was good enough for Jessie. Jessie was not looking forward to telling Mama and Tom about her and Rafe's history.

"Can I get you anything to drink, baby?" Mama asked Rafe as she got Jessie started with a Moscow mule, remembering it was her all time favorite.

"Oh I'm okay, water's fine." Rafe replied, politely putting a hand up.

"What, you don't drink?" Tom asked with his eyebrows furrowed. This kid was seeming more and more peculiar to him.

"Uh... just not feeling it today, it's only lunch." Rafe joked looking at Tom for any semblance of understanding.

"Oh come on." Tom bantered as he slapped Rafe's arm with a little too much force for Jessie's liking. Thankfully, Rafe wasn't phased, his strong arms could definitely withstand the blow. "Little whiskey won't hurt ya. Put a little hair on your chest. Get him a whiskey and coke, Mama." Tom insisted. Jessie gave Rafe a look as if to silently apologize. Rafe reciprocated with a soft half smile as if to tell her it's okay. Mama gave Tom a look of disapproval but continued to make a drink for Rafe and slide it his way. Jessie tried to brush it off as best she could despite Tom's best efforts to intimidate Rafe.

"Sooooo..." Jessie began as she stretched her hands across the bar and look around bashfully. "There's a reason that I wanted to come and meet with you guys today."

"Uh oh, here we go." Tom joked as he finally took a seat at the barstool beside Rafe. Charley at that point was playing contentedly in the corner but Jessie wondered if she should redirect her to Tom's office.

"So, Rafe is actually... um... Charley's father." Jessie explained as she gripped Rafe's hand over the bar. "And we're... m-back together." Jessie didn't have the heart to tell them they were already married. She thought that would be way too much too soon. She knew eventually they'd get around to that conversation though. Mama and Tom just exchanged looks that neither Rafe nor Jessie could quite interpret. Were they angry? Confused? Surprised? Did they expect it? Probably a combination of all those things.

"This..." Tom began as he pointed at Rafe. "This is the guy you left home for? And this is the guy you had to protect from Charley?" Tom asked with a dangerous calm in his voice. Rafe couldn't let that slide.

"Hey man you don't even know me." Rafe spat as he immediately stood up from his chair and looked at Tom dead in the eyes, who had also stood up at the same moment to meet them. Despite Tom being slightly shorter, his gaze was just as fierce. Jessie didn't expect that to escalate so quickly, but she thought maybe she should have considering Rafe was never one to accept insults.

"I know enough." Tom answered with just as much vengeance in his voice. "I know that you were the reason Jessie had to leave wherever she came from. I know that you were the reason she felt she and her baby were unsafe. I know you were the reason she came here with no money and nobody to rely on." Tom continued, never breaking his death glare up towards Rafe. At this point their faces were mere inches away from each other. Rafe was trying to prove to Jessie that he had changed, but he still wasn't going to let disrespect slide.

"Yeah well that was the old me, okay?" Rafe replied. Tom just scoffed.

"You may be fooling Jessie with that but you're not fooling me alright I'll be damned if-"

"Stop it! Both of you!" Jessie interrupted, loud enough to get the point across but not loud enough to disturb Charley from across the room.

"Alright, come on now. Your daughter and your granddaughter is in the room right now." Mama spoke up as she went to grab Charley and take her to Tom's office to play with the toys they always kept in there.

"Yeah, and you're lucky she is." Tom retorted, narrowing his eyes at Rafe once more. Rafe was finding it increasingly difficult when a man was judging him so harshly without getting to know him first. Still, he had a point to prove. He remained stolid, not fuming, but he made it clear he was not afraid. Jessie decided to butt in before Rafe had a chance to say what he was really thinking.

"Tom, I promise you nobody is being more cautious about this than I am. I could never forget the reason that I came here, and I could never forget what you and Mama did for me..." Jessie trailed off as she wedged her way in between the two most important men in her life. "... but it's time for me to give Rafe another chance now that he knows about his daughter and is willing to change for us. Okay? Can you just trust me on this?" Jessie said as she looked up at Tom with hopeful eyes. Rafe had softened his look slightly and had un clinched his fist despite him still being angry deep down.

"I guess, sweetheart, whatever you want." Tom sighed as he looked at Jessie lovingly, then back up to Rafe with a hardened glare once again. "But if you step one toe out of line-"

"I'll handle it myself, like I always have, pop." Jessie interrupted with a knowing stare. Tom knew she was right, and so did Rafe. Jessie really hadn't changed that much in four years, she was still that strong, independent, snarky, know it all that was perfectly fine with taking care of herself. Rafe still appreciated that about her... that freedom she always found within herself to live life and not be afraid. Tom sighed in agreement.

"Lets eat you two!" Mama butted in, trying once again to break the tension— and the death glares— between the two men. Jessie moved from her spot back to sit at the bar, the others doing the same as Mama platted everyone's food, including Charley's, who had now re entered the room.

"So is Rafe who you were going to see last week?" Mama asked as she ate over the bar counter in front of them.

"Yeah, actually. I met him in the Bahamas to... tell him about Charley." Jessie answered. Her and Rafe both knew that was a lie, but they couldn't exactly tell the truth. How do you casually mention that you went across the world to take half of what you rightfully own as the wife of a murderer, drug addict and convicted thief of your own brother? Mama and Tom, despite how close they were to Jessie, never truly knew her history, and there was clearly a reason.

Tom put his fork down and swiveled in his chair closer to Rafe. "So what do you do for work son." Tom asked, this time a little friendlier, but not by much.

"Oh, I uh, run my dad's company. He passed away not too long ago so I'm kind of in charge of it now. Cameron Enterprises." Rafe answered, returning the same tone to Tom, friendly, but still not letting his guard down.

"Cameron? Oh! We heard about your dad a couple of weeks ago! Yeah, he was the one who..." Tom began, then realizing what he was about to say.

"Killed himself by blowing up his own boat, yeah." Rafe finished the sentence for him with a calmness in his voice that showed he was oddly un phased. To distract himself from the thought he took a sip of the whiskey and coke in front of him... well, more like a chug.

"Well, we are so sorry, honey." Mama spoke up, putting her hand on Rafe's with a sympathetic look. Jessie knew Rafe never liked pity looks, besides, he never had the best relationship with his father anyways so the loss wasn't as hard as the world may think.

"I appreciate that." Was all Rafe could muster as he pursed his lips together. He really wanted to say it was no big deal, but clearly that would raise some red flags. Instead he opted to grasp the small glass even more firmly. Jessie seemed to be the only one who noticed.

"Yeah, well, that's the main reason I needed to see Rafe. I knew his dad had just passed and as hard as it was to go back and see him, I felt it was only right that Rafe finally know what happened to me and that he had a daughter." Jessie took the moment to capitalize on her story. Truth is, as hard as it was to lie, she knew that Mama and Tom would probably never know the full story, that's just the way it goes when you're tied up with treasure hunts and ruthless tycoons like Ward Cameron.

"And I'm glad she did... she really pulled me out of the pit there." Rafe half smiled as he placed a hand on Jessie's thigh. That was the truth.

"Aw, well we're glad you two have found each other again." Mama simply stated and Tom nodded half heartedly in agreement. It was clear Tom was still fishing for information and looking for something to be wrong. Jessie didn't blame him, it was in Tom's nature just like it was in hers.

"Yeah, about that..." Jessie sighed as she grabbed Rafe's hand, she couldn't tell if it was for his support or hers. Regardless, Rafe squeezed her hand back. "I'm... well, we're... moving back home... to be with Rafe." Jessie finished, almost wincing not wanting to see the look on their faces in response.

Mama and Tom just paused in thought and looked at each other. Tom was quicker to speak than Mama of course.

"What do you mean? You can't be serious. You're gonna go back with the man who you ran away from four years ago just like that? Come on, Jessie, you know better."

"Pop... he's changed. He's not who he used to be. We're going to just try it out. What happened was four years ago. If I can see past it surely you can." Jessie insisted, this time with a hint of annoyance. Tom looked down at his plate and sighed. He finally nodded in agreement, knowing that at the end of the day it just mattered what Jessie wanted and what she felt was right for her and Charley.

"I think we're just... shocked is all. It was like one day you were perfectly fine with the life you had and now..." Mama explained.

"It's all changing. Yeah, I get it." Jessie sympathized. "And I know it's going to be hard and I know there are a lot of things we haven't thought about yet but we're just going to try. We're gonna start by visiting Outer Banks as a family... that's where I used to live." Jessie answered with a soft tone in her voice.

"You used to live steps from the beach and yet you chose to come here?" Mama joked. Jessie and Rafe just laughed.

"Yeah, this was the place I knew I could disappear. You know that, Mama."

"Yeah, I remember darling. I'm just glad you guys are getting another shot at being a family. Pop and I always wanted that for you, but we weren't quite sure it was ever going to happen." Mama ended her sentence with a giggle looking over at Tom. Tom chuckled as well.

"Of course we want the best for you, and hope everything works out, but you better come back and see us!" Tom exclaimed.

"Of course we will! I couldn't imagine a life without you guys." Jessie reassured as she went to give Tom a hug. Rafe sat there with a content smile on his face, silently thanking them for understanding.

"I promise we'll come back to visit as often as we can, and you guys are more than welcome to come see us anytime, my treat." Rafe said as Jessie went to hug Mama also.

"Oh, Tom wouldn't a vacation sound so fun?! Maybe one day we might even be invited to a wedding!" Mama hinted with excitement as she held Jessie's shoulders. Jessie just giggled nervously while looking at Rafe. Rafe smiled and hung his head down as if to prepare for the news they were both about to break.

"Hehe, yeah... about that..." Jessie started as she looked around at Mama and Tom with a clear nervous look. Mama and Tom looked confused as they narrowed their eyebrows.

"We're already married." Rafe chuckled as he threw his hands out awkwardly and slowly nodded his head.

"You got married to this man while you were gone? Thats what you were doing?!" Tom asked as he looked back at Jessie with judgement written all over his face. Oh great, this was about to be the cherry on top.

"Um, no.... We got married four years ago... before things went sour and I left." Jessie replied sheepishly, her posture showing she wanted to physically retreat into whatever shell she could find. There was an awkward pause as everyone tried to collect their thoughts, thankfully Charley was still eating her chicken nuggets happily in the corner and completely oblivious. Finally Tom slowly turned his head back to Rafe with a clear look of anger.

"You let your pregnant wife leave you and you didn't even think to go after her and make this work four years ago?!" Tom exclaimed a little louder than he should have.

"Tom!" Mama whisper-shouted, signally that he needed to keep his voice down. Tom breathed out heavily in frustration but understood.

"I didn't know she was pregnant. Jessie didn't tell me. But either way don't act like you know me, okay? You don't think I tried to find Jessie in every corner of this earth? You don't think I loved her enough to try and find her? Don't insult me like that ever again! You don't know the sleep I lost and worry I couldn't get away from when she left. Hell, that never went away! I never stopped looking for Jessie. There was never a moment when I didn't want to find her." Rafe spat as he got out of his seat and hovered over Tom with a look in his eyes that could kill. Tom didn't take that sitting down- literally- he stood up to meet Rafe with just as much fierceness.

"Well clearly you didn't look hard enough!" Tom retorted, still a little too loudly.

"It's not like I made myself easy to find, Pop! I changed my number, changed where I lived, and everything in between! I knew Rafe wouldn't have let me go that easily, that's the very reason I didn't tell him I was pregnant. I would've stayed and we wouldn't have grown up! But we're adults now and we can handle this! Rafe isn't to blame for all this. I left! This is the last time I'm going to let you fault Rafe over something that happened years ago!" Jessie demanded. Despite all that Rafe had done to Jessie and to many others, Jessie always saw something in Rafe that nobody else did. Rafe was always her Achilles heal, and that's exactly why she left years ago.

"Tom, she's right. You need to settle down." Mama said with a much more serious tone in her voice. Tom took the hint and sighed as he sat back down.

"I'm sorry, Jess, I just-"

"Don't be sorry Pop." Jessie said as she went around the counter to give Tom a hug. "You're like a father to me, you know that. I appreciate that you care so much... but you've gotta trust me on this one." Jessie assured. Tom nodded in agreement and quickly tried to change the subject to something more hopeful.

"So, when you leaving?"

I'll Come Running - R.C. - Chapter 38

"I can't believe we're actually doing this." Jessie seethed as she walked through Tanneyhill with Rafe in tow to pack up their belongings.

"I know, Jess, but... this matters to them, so it needs to matter to us." Rafe explained with pleading eyes as he followed Jessie around aimlessly, now going into the immaculate dining room. It was still clad with the fine china, Jessie wondered if that long dark table was ever not set for a dinner party of 12.

"Since when do you care about the pogues, huh? What happened to the Rafe the pogues talked about? The Rafe that was only out for himself? The Rafe with a back bone, huh?"Jessie spat as she turned to look at Rafe.

Rafe's facial expressions shifted from one of desperation to one that was unreadable. Jessie knew that expression well. After all, she knew how to get under his skin better than anybody else.

It was clear Rafe was trying to collect himself, and he was grateful Charley and the pogues were not in the room with them, although he still had every reason to try and keep his cool. Rafe clinched his firsts, broadened his chest as he took a deep breath, and pursed his lips.

"You don't mean that." Rafe simply stated with sharp eyes. The accusation hurt of course, but Rafe was more pissed off than anything in that moment.

"No, I think I do. Because although in high school you turned into a rude, condescending, strung out coke addict who hated everyone and everything, at least you had a spine! You're seriously just going to follow the pogues around like a lost puppy? You have a business, an empire, a family and you're just gonna-" Jessie couldn't continue her rant for the impending fist she watched hurl into the wall. The memory of that fateful night played in her head, and although this time Rafe didn't punch the wall inches beside Jessie's head, the feeling was the exact same: fear and disbelief.

Rafe took his hand out of the wall, watching the drywall fall the ground and the dust fly up in the air as he took a breath. He looked back over at Jessie, who had taken a step or two back from Rafe through now labored breaths. Rafe could see the fear on her face, the same look he tried so hard to erase from his memory years ago. He wanted to apologize immediately, to beg on his knees for Jessie to forget what he just did out of anger. Instead, he continued to try and prove a point. He was done being insulted, even if it was coming from Jessie. His dad never raised him to be spineless, and that's not what this situation was, and Rafe was going to prove that.

Rafe walked over to Jessie, still trying to catch his breath. Jessie's steps backwards from him only pushed her up against the wall, Rafe happily pinning her in between himself and the sage green wallpaper. Rafe grabbed Jessie's jaw with his hands and squeezed ever so slightly to get her attention. He was waging a war in his mind, half of him absolutely gutted that he was making her so scared, yet half of him feeling like this was necessary to get the point across. The room went quiet except for their labored breaths, then finally Rafe spoke through a whisper.

"What I am doing is not weakness. What I am doing is tactical, for you, and for Charley. We have strength in numbers, and strength in allies, and without the pogues we have none of that. Yes, I have a business and we have money but all that means nothing if Rose finds me." Rafe seethed, a stray tear rolling down his cheek. "You haven't seen the Rafe I was after you left. And you better thank God you won't. This isn't the Rafe you think you want to see. I'm trying to protect us, Jessie." Rafe choked out, still balancing the perfect act of terror and trembling.

Rafe knew there was a risk in reacting the way that he did, he knew Jessie scared easily, and she could just as easily pack up her things and leave all over again, but he also trusted that she would believe him, at least he hoped so anyways. Rafe finally let go of Jessie's face and backed away from her. Jessie was still frozen in fear on the wall, however, her fear suddenly turned into a much more serious face, one of anger.

Unfortunately, Jessie understood damn well what Rafe was talking about, she just needed to hear him say it. But did he have to get so physical? Jessie was positive he didn't. She felt her fight or flight mode activate the second Rafe took his hand off of her, and she felt the all too familiar feeling of wanting to flea from the trouble, just like she had done with her dad, and just like she had done with Rafe four years ago. But Jessie thought maybe she shouldn't have laid into him like she did. That was the thing about Rafe and Jessie, they were so similar that they knew exactly how to push each other's buttons, to a point of lethal toxicity to one another if left unchecked like in a moment just like this. Their whole relationship was always a dance of both of them holding the match that could set the two of them ablaze with either love or hate. They'd be lying if they didn't say they each had abused that power a time or two in the past, and this moment was certainly no exception.

"You know what's worse than the regret of leaving?" Jessie whispered with a cold sadness behind her eyes.

Rafe just looked at Jessie with an inquisitive look, imploring her to go on. Jessie being so unpredictable in situations like these always had Rafe hanging on her every word.

"The regret of staying." Jessie answered her own question, this time with a harshness to her voice.

Rafe's face fell, as he knew exactly what she meant. Jessie took the opportunity to do what she does best and capitalize on the fact that Rafe was maimed by his emotions. Jessie slowly walked closer to Rafe, her face eventually only mere inches from his as she looked into his eyes with a fierceness he hadn't seen since she first walked into that house in the Bahamas. Much like their first reunion, Jessie was on a mission to send a message.

"Don't make me regret staying." Jessie growled. Rafe swallowed the lump in his throat and managed to nod his head showing he agreed. Words were clearly too hard for him in the moment.

Jessie was still a Maybank through and through, and she'd be damned if she let any man scare her into or out of anything. Despite Rafe's explosion, Jessie still made sure she was in control, she had to, she had a daughter wrapped up in this. But who was she kidding, she was hopelessly devoted to Rafe no matter how much he did to her, and the same could be said of Rafe. They were loyal to each other to a fault, and although they might not have been together physically for the past four years, they were still always one in their hearts. 

With nothing else needing to be said, Jessie darted her eyes towards the door and escorted herself out of the room with a noticeable strut, leaving Rafe to collect his thoughts.

Rafe wanted to make things right, his first instinct was to follow Jessie and profusely apologize, but he knew she wasn't ready for that. Jessie had a stellar fight and flight response and he knew that she was acting rather flighty right now, so he better not push it.

Jessie made her way up the stairs, taking a glance at John B, JJ, and Pope all entertaining Charley on the front lawn, at least that's what Charley thought it was. Really, the boys were clearly out there to keep watch, but somebody had to watch Charley right? They had all played around with the idea of someone staying behind at the Chat with the toddler for safety, but they all knew that would probably keep them even more compromised if they didn't stay together, so, to everyone's behest, Charley was brought back to Tanneyhill with them only for a moment long enough to grab the necessities.

As Jessie walked down the upstairs hallway towards Rafe's room, she caught Sarah in her old room out of the corner of her eye. Jessie noticed she was packing a few things of her own, what looked to be like clothes and such, but she noticed she had moved onto her small cork board over her desk, the board held many different pictures that she was taking down.

Jessie slowly tiptoed into the room, careful not to intrude or startle the blonde as she knocked on the door. Sarah's head swung around and she looked sad.

"Come in." She simply said. Jessie managed a sympathetic look.

"Whatcha lookin at?" Jessie asked, amazingly being able to hide the fact that she was still on edge from the enormous fight she just had with Sarah's brother right under her feet.

"Just some pictures..." Sarah trailed off as she handed one of the pictures over to Jessie. Jessie held in her hands a photo of Rafe and Sarah when they were 16 and 14, Rafe's arms wrapped around Sarah as she was smiling.

"How times have changed right?" Sarah chuckled.

"You have no idea." Jessie said sarcastically with a slight laugh.

A hush came between them as neither one of them could think what to say next. Finally Sarah thought of something.

"You're the only one that can fix him, Jess."

That statement made Jessie's mind race with emotions and words that she couldn't say.

"Actually, Sarah, I think I'm the one that broke him." Jessie admitted as she looked at Sarah with tears in her eyes. Sarah had never seen Jessie so vulnerable, it was a little weird to her but she played it off.

"Jessie... he was broken long before you ever came into the picture." Sarah replied barely above a whisper. The idea that Jessie carried that weight on her shoulders broke Sarah's heart, and although she knew what Jessie meant, she still didn't believe it to be totally true. "Dad put way too much pressure on him from a very early age, he was always striving and never received love because dad never thought he was good enough. I know he's told you this. You're the one that set him free from that."

"And he just exchanged one vice for another. Instead of fighting for Wards love he ended up fighting for mine, and now look where we are." Jessie said, irritated with herself as she numbly looked at the cork board in front of her.

"Jessie, nobody's blaming you for doing what you did, not even Rafe. He just needs someone to stick around... for once."

Jessie couldn't respond to that, she didn't know how. Sarah just didn't even know the half of it, and that's what Jessie had to keep repeating over and over in her head. Sarah could see she had struck a nerve and she looked down at the pictures.

"I can't imagine what you and Rafe have gone through, and the decisions you've had to make, but you know Rafe better than anyone else, and I think you're the only one that can truly tell if he's genuinely trying, you're the only one that can see he's just a work in progress."

Maybe I'm tired of projects Jessie couldn't help but think to herself. Instead, she opted to give Sarah a slight smile of understanding and nod her head. She was trying to take Sarah's words into consideration, but she couldn't help but feel responsible for Rafe's behavior in more ways than one. It was one thing to be volatile while strung out, drunk, and high... but Rafe was stone cold sober downstairs.

"I'll meet you downstairs in a few minutes, just gotta grab our stuff from Rafe's room."

Jessie made her way down the hall and to the familiar gray and navy blue room, the bed still unmade from where Charley slept the night before. The glass of water still by their bed for when the toddler got thirsty. The diamond ring still on the dresser from where Jessie had taken it off before making snacks for everyone that evening.

Jessie walked over to the bed and began to grab the stuffed animals from the middle of it. As she grabbed the covers to pull them to their rightful place she saw her husband appear in the doorway with his head hung low and a face that showed he was trying to gauge what to say or if to say anything at all. Jessie gave him a glance but quickly went back to making the bed. Rafe met her on the opposite side and began to help her fold the duvet over, eventually grabbing the king size pillows and fluffing them and laying them on the bed just how Jessie liked. Jessie didn't argue, she just let him help, and Rafe was grateful for that.

"I'm sorry." Rafe choked out, his voice already shattered from the weight of the tension in the room. Jessie took a deep breath and looked at Rafe, genuinely at a loss for words, whether that was from anger, sadness, confusion, or all of the above, neither of them knew. Jessie exhaled and walked over to the opposite side of the bed where Rafe was. Jessie stopped in front of Rafe and looked behind him, Rafe wasn't quite sure why but gave her an inquisitive look.

"I need in the closet." Jessie said shortly and with a tinge of annoyance in her voice. Rafe just quickly moved to the side, not wanting to take up anymore space and annoy Jessie. His wife made her way into the walk in closet, finding the suitcases still opened and rummaged through. She began to straighten them up as she heard Rafe speak up again behind her.

"Jessie..." Rafe sighed. "I know... what I did back there was wrong... and I..." Rafe couldn't hardly get the words out without crying. Jessie didn't dare look at him, she couldn't, she knew she would break, and now was not the time. "I- I'm trying... to get better. And with last night with my dad, and this morning you just not trusting me it was all a perfect storm... and I'm-" Rafe paused to swallow the lump in his throat to get through his next sentence without bursting into sobs. "I know it's not an excuse but I need you to understand where my head is at and I'm just.... I'm sorry. Please don't leave me again."

Again. The word stung way more than Jessie anticipated. It made Jessie wonder if he reacted this way the first time she left. Rafe didn't have to wonder, he couldn't forget what happened to him after she left if he tried.

I'll Come Running - R.C. - Chapter 35

Rafe immediately pulled his gun at the same moment that he pulled Jessie behind him.

"Jessie..." Rafe whispered with labored breaths with his gun pointed right at his father, who was standing in the living room in front of them. "Grab the gun that is in that vase behind you to the right of the door. Go get Charley, and come right back down here to me." Rafe said sternly, never once taking his eyes off of Ward. Rafe wasn't completely sure he wasn't hallucinating, but he wasn't willing to take any chances. He didn't figure he was considering he could feel his wife trembling and holding onto his arm for dear life behind him. Jessie broke away and did exactly as she was told, finding the hidden Glock 43 conveniently in the large flower vase by the door.

Out of the corner of Rafe's eye he saw Jessie run up the stairs with the gun in her hands to grab their daughter. He didn't dare peel his eyes away from the man standing right in front of him, for fear of Ward taking advantage of even the slightest vulnerable moment. Ward appeared with an empathetic look on his face, the look of a master manipulator.

"Get your hands out of your pockets." Rafe snapped with anger behind his eyes as he kept the gun pointed straight out. Ward slowly pulled his hands out of his perfectly ironed khakis. Rafe noticed that Ward looked particularly cleaned up. Aside from the fact that he was even alive, it was even more shocking to see him as pristine as ever, like death had never touched him. Ward slowly raised his hands up as if to silently surrender to his son.

"Don't say a word." Rafe spat as they sat in silence waiting for Jessie to come down with Charley. As hard as it was to contain himself, Rafe refused to let anything happen with his wife and daughter in the house. After a few more moments of silence and looks that could kill, Rafe finally saw Jessie come down the stairs with Charley, clearly sleepy and disheveled from being jolted awake by her mother. Rafe figured it was a miracle she wasn't crying, she never did like being woken up. Jessie, who now had the gun in the waistband of her shorts and her child on the other hip wrapped in a blanket, stood behind Rafe waiting for further instruction.

"Jessie, I want you to grab the keys to my truck, and I want you to drive to JJ's. Before you ever step outside I want you to have JJ on the phone, and I want him to stay on the phone with you until you get there. Got it?" Rafe explained, still looking at his father with a concentration like none other.

"Got it." Was all Jessie could say. Of course, she wanted Rafe to go with them, but she completely understood that now was not the time to insist. She simply went to the kitchen, grabbed the keys while speed dialing JJ.

"What's up, buttercup?" JJ happily answered the phone, still sounding like they were in the Twinkie.

"I'm coming to the Chat right now. Charley and I are in danger and that's all I can say but Rafe is handling it and he's told me to keep you on the phone while I drive to you." Jessie simple stated as she walked back to the entry way, only to see her husband still with his arm out straight with the gun cocked at Ward.

"We're on our way back to you. Give us five minutes." Jessie heard JJ say with an attitude shift that was hard to go unnoticed. Jessie could've sworn she heard the tires squeal in the background. Still, she walked outside, but not before putting the truck keys in the chest pocket of Rafe's shirt, her only form of a goodbye to him. She assumed Rafe heard JJ, and he was too wrapped up in the sight in front of him to protest.

"You've got five minutes to tell me why you're here. The second my wife and daughter leave, all bets are off." Rafe said in a deathly hushed tone after the door closed behind him.

"Son... I-"

"Don't call me that." Rafe corrected Ward. He knew he couldn't view Ward as anything more than an intruder in his home- and his life- despite the fact that he once took the blame for his own gigantic mistake of murdering Sheriff Peterkin. He knew it would be just like Ward to try and pull the father son card to get Rafe to comply with whatever he was trying to coerce him into. Rafe was done being coerced. He was done feeling like he always had to please his father. That was what led to the second downfall of Rafe Cameron, the first being when Jessie left, of course.

"Rafe... I... came back to help." Ward whispered, with a glint in his eye and shakiness in his hands. Rafe noticed Ward was afraid of him, he liked that... he missed that. There was only a few moments in his life where he felt Ward was truly afraid of him, and right now that's exactly what he needed. "You need my help-"

"I thought you were dead." Rafe said plainly as he struggled to control his breathing, almost feeling as if he was about to cry. No wait, he was about to cry. How could he not? Despite everything, his father, whom he thought he'd never see again, was standing right in front of him. He never got the chance to thank him for taking the blame for his massive mess up. Despite the immense pressure Ward put on him from such a young age, he couldn't help but still feel grateful for what Ward had done for him, but he couldn't forget what Ward did to him with all those years of fighting for his love through various accomplishments. Conflicted was an understatement in that very moment.

"I... I staged my death... Rose and Wheezie's too."

"They're alive?" Rafe asked as he licked his lips and furrowed hushed brows, trying to remain focused and not show any sign of weakness."

"Yes, son."

"Don't call me that!" Rafe corrected, much louder this time as he jolted the gun in his hand, suddenly holding it tighter. Neither one of them realized that was possible. Nonetheless, Ward placed his hands higher as if to show even more surrender to the situation.

"I'm sorry, Rafe, I just..." Ward began as he took a sharp breath in, "I... staged my death and couldn't tell you because I needed to keep this all air tight. I needed you to run the company as if I really was gone, that way there would be no suspicion from the FBI and they would truly lay this thing to rest... for you." Ward whispered with the same sympathetic eyes that neither Rafe nor Sarah believed anymore.

Rafe sniffled and let out a sharp breath he didn't realize he was holding in. He felt old habits start to arise as he instinctually contorted his lips and nose in a way to show he was thinking about his next move- and simply trying to contain his anger.

"Why'd you come back?" Rafe asked through a shaky tone as one single tear rolled down his face. He then bit his tongue as if to tell himself to get it together.

"I was hoping to come back under different circumstances... but I came back because... I heard you were back with Jessie." Ward hushed as he slowly put his hands down, assuming he was now in Rafe's head enough to do so.

Rafe just shook his head in disbelief.

"That's what this is about?" Rafe choked out, now even more upset. "God, Ward, why can you not just let her go? She's the mother-"

"She's using you, Rafe. She always has been." Ward said a little bit louder, showing once again some gained confidence in the exchange.

"Bullshit. You don't know shit about her, or me, or us!" Rafe seethed as he walked closer to Ward with the gun still pointed straight out. It wasn't clear whether his strong arms or his pure adrenaline was keeping it extended for such a long time.

Rafe finally heard the Twinkie drive off into the distance, allowing him to confidently make his move. With that he finally took steps closer to Ward, this time connecting the cold metal straight to his father's chest. Ward didn't flinch, not even in the face. It's almost as if he expected the violence.

"You do realize I have the advantage here?" Rafe slightly chuckled as he flashed a maniacal smile. "To the world, you're dead. I could kill you right now and nobody would suspect a thing. What makes you think I won't?"

"Nothing, Rafe." Ward simply stated. "But I want to give you a proposition." He finished as he lightly pushed Rafe's gun clad hand away from his chest. Rafe surprised himself by obliging, still not backing away and still not letting his finger off the trigger.

"I don't want whatever you're offering. I've got something much better now." Rafe whispered with an oddly content smile on his face as he looked at Ward's chest, imagining where he could so easily put the bullet that would end this conversation. Ward gave a subtle chuckle in agreement.

"Children will do that to you, Rafe." Ward whispered. "But think about your daughter." He said with furrowed brows looking into Rafe's eyes. "You could give her a better life." 

"Your children did nothing for you! You were still the same heartless business man through and through, and you expected the exact same from me... and you won't get it! Not anymore!" Rafe yelled this time, with fire behind his eyes and venom in his voice. Ward still remained motionless at the chastisement.

"Rafe... I want you to continue Cameron enterprises, but I want you to cut me back in to work in Barbados. That's where Rose and Wheezie and I have been staying waiting for things to blow over. It's low key there, and we can start a new life and you don't even have to leave here-"

"Absolutely not. You're not getting one cent from me and my family." Rafe insisted through a clenched jaw as his pointer finger connected with his father's chest.

"Rafe... you don't have a choice. I could come back from the dead and tell Kildare County Sheriff's Department about all that went down on that tarmac, and Sarah and John B could testify. You have to take this deal." Ward simply stated.

"I don't have to take shit."Rafe snapped as he cocked his head with a new found confidence.

"Then your only option is to kill me... right here... right now... because that's the only way you get out of this scotch free with your own business." Ward replied as he slowly began to lift his arms up by his sides as if to say come and get me.

"What happened to not letting me go down for something I did for you?" Rafe asked, now clearly showing confusion and hurt in his words. There was a slight pause.

"That was before you went rogue, Rafe. That was before you decided to run off with Jessie Maybank and mess up your life... again. I tried to stop you from doing that once, and now you're falling back into the same patterns, and I know there's nothing I can do to stop it, so I'm protecting my family from when you crash and burn again." Ward whispered, this time with a tinge of sadness in his voice. It's almost as if he truly believed his son needed saving from this girl yet again.

"Jessie Cameron." Rafe corrected coldly with a straight face as he pulled the gun on Ward once again and took a step back. "Her name is Jessie Cameron."

With that, Rafe pulled the trigger, sending Ward out of this world once and for all with the realization that he had lost his son in more ways than one.