by Jamilia Fair
Love, Honor &
Protect
Addicted To You
Part Two
A Novel by
Jamilia Fair
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Copyright © 2017
Published by Major Key Publishing
www.majorkeypublishing.com
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Any unauthorized reprint or use of the material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage without express permission by the publisher.
This is an original work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead is entirely coincidental.
Contains explicit language & adult themes suitable for ages 16+
Present
Jeremiah
(1)
I don’t think I’ve ever been so annoyed and excited all at once in my life. I’m annoyed that she’s not here yet excited that, in less than thirty minutes, I will be marrying the woman of my dreams—the love of my life. There are not very many men who get to do this. They don’t get the privilege of marrying the one: the woman who makes them laugh, who makes them want to be a better man, a woman who can accept a child, or children, that are not her own, or who can love them with everything in her.
I’m not one of those men, and I thank God every day for it. She’s the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with, the woman I want to have another child with, and the woman I want to spend the rest of my years waking up next to.
“Jeremiah.” The sound of Jason’s voice drags me down from my thoughts.
I hold up my hand to stop him from saying anything else. I already know what he’s going to say, and I don’t really care. I’m not in the mood to hear a lecture from him right now. He goes to say something else, but I glare at him, and he concedes.
“Can I ask you something, Jason?”
“Sure,” he grumbles.
“Had it been Amber that was poisoned, almost raped, and almost hit by a car—” his lips set in a hard line. “—what would you do?”
“Jer—”
“Answer the question, Jason,” I growl quite loudly.
He doesn’t say anything for a long moment. I guess he’s either trying to put himself in my shoes, or he’s trying to push out the images. He just stares at me with open, unblinking eyes before he finally speaks.
“I’d make them pay for what they did,” he growls darkly from under hooded eyes.
“Exactly, so don’t try and talk me out of making that bitch pay for what she did and tried to do to my wife.”
He stares at me for a moment before his gaze drifts behind me. I turn around and come face to face with my father. He has this grave look on his face. His mouth is set in a hard line, his nostrils are flared, and his eyebrows are narrowed.
“Dad, what is it?” I close the distance between us. “Are Mom and the kids alright?”
My heart is pounding in my chest, and my stomach jumps into my throat at the thought of something having happened to my family and not being there to do anything about it.
“Calm down, son.” He raises a hand to silence me. “Your mother and children are fine.”
“Then why do you look so serious?” Jason voices.
My father throws him a quick glance then looks at me. “I hear Jessica has escaped.”
I kiss my teeth and try not to glare at my father. “That bitch stabbed one of the twins.” I run a frustrated hand through my hair. “When I get my hands on her, I am going to choke the life out of her.”
“I’m not understanding something, so explain it to me.” My father takes a step forward. “Why didn’t you take care of her the first time you caught her?”
“I was going to. I had the gun pointed right at her head, ready to pull the trigger, but Tabitha begged me not to.” I take a big breath. “As bad as I wanted to kill that bitch on the spot, I couldn’t go against her wishes.”
“So, you let her go?” Dad inquires.
“No. I had the twins take her to a warehouse to watch her until I could figure out what to do with her next,” I growl loudly. “But she had a knife on her and was able to get away from them.”
“She’s a resourceful little thing, isn’t she?” he laughs humorlessly.
“She’s going to be a dead little thing if she shows her face ever again,” I hiss.
“Does my daughter-in-law know that she’s escaped?” My father casts Jason a quick glance then looks to me once again.
I shake my head.
“Why have you not told her?” he scolds me. “She has a right to know that the woman who has been making her life a living hell has escaped and is nowhere to be found.”
I move past my father. “I know that, but I can’t.”
“Why the hell not?” Jason questions.
I turn around to face my brother and father. Right now, the two have never looked more alike than they do now. Not only do they share the same height, but they both have the same light-blue eyes, dark hair, and body structure—my father being maybe a few inches wider in the shoulder area. Their facial expressions are the same: grave and pissed.
“Today is supposed to be the happiest day of her life. The only thing she’s supposed to be worried about is not falling as she walks down the aisle to me.” I look between the two. “If I had told her about Jessica, she would have called off the wedding until we could find her, and I couldn’t have that. I can’t go another day without making her my wife.”
They share a look before turning to me. My father goes to speak but is interrupted by someone calling my name.
“Jeremiah!”
I turn around to see Remy running at me full speed. Something’s wrong.
“What is it?”
He stops in front of me, a look of panic etched across his face, but he doesn’t say anything.
“Damn it, Remy! What the fuck aren’t you telling me?”
“It’s Jessica. She’s been spotted.”
“Here?” Jason gasps.
My blood runs cold, yet I can feel it boiling beneath my skin. That bitch is here. She has the guts to show up here when she knows I have this place surrounded.
“Where?”
“She was spotted on the east side of the church,” Remy says, and I start walking. “Kyle saw her, and she saw him and took off, but she can’t be far.”
“What was she wearing?”
“Kyle said she’s wearing a dark-blue cocktail dress and black heels.”
“Anything else?”
“She looked crazy.”
We turn a corner and go through a set of double doors that lead outside. We walk through a field of flowers, doing our best not to step on any of them, and cross the lawn to where Kyle, Sammy, and Danny stood, waiting.
“Talk to me.” I stop in front of them, Jason and my father behind me.
Kyle steps forward. “I was over there,” he says as he points in the direction of a large fountain that was maybe twenty feet from where we are standing, “when I saw her. I took off in her direction, but she spotted me and ran. That bitch can run in heels,” he praises.
I take a deep breath. “So, we’re back to square one.”
I feel someone’s hand on my shoulder. “We will find her, son.”
“Dad’s right, Jeremiah.” Jason squeezes my other shoulder. “We will find her. Nothing is going
to happen to Tabitha or your children.”
“Dad!” I turn around to see Melissa heading toward me.
“What is it, honey?” I run my hand over her hair once she’s in front of me. “Where’s your brother?”
“With Aunty Amber,” she says with a smile. “Her and Aunty Barbara and Mom just arrived. Everyone’s getting ready.”
“Alright.” I glance at my men over my shoulder. “I want all of you inside for the wedding. Tabitha will kill me if she finds out I had you all standing outside during the duration of our wedding.”
“Thanks, boss,” Kyle says.
I nod then turn to Jason and my father. “Ready?”
They both smile.
“I’ve been ready since the day you were born,” my father says.
“Come on, Dad,” Melissa says, pulling on my hand.
“Alright, let’s go.”
Past
Jeremiah
(2)
The day of the charity event has arrived, and Tabitha and I aren’t seeing eye to eye. She wants to go, but I don’t want her to. I’ve offered to stay home with her so she doesn’t have to be all alone. Hell, I even told her I would call Angela and ask if Jake and Melissa could spend the night, but she’s hellbent on going.
“Jeremiah, I will not spend the rest of my days hiding out in this damn house.” She glares at me, her arms crossed over her full chest. “I am a grown ass woman, who will not be scared into staying inside.”
I run a frustrated hand through my hair and take a big breath. “Listen, you stubborn ass woman, I will not give whoever poisoned you another opportunity to do it again and be successful,” I growl softly.
Her head drops back as she sighs loudly. “Christ sakes, Jer!” She groans and lifts her head back up to stare at me. “I get that you’re worried sick about me.”
“Out of my fucking mind,” I add.
“But I can take care of myself. I’ve learned my lesson: don’t accept gifts unless confirmed by you. Okay? You have to let me breathe, Jer.”
I stare at her, and the longer I do that, the more images of her falling unconscious in my arms, her being on that gurney, and her heart stopping flood my mind. My heart starts beating erratically in my chest. It feels like I’m about to have a heart attack.
“Jeremiah?”
I watch her reach out and place her hand on my arm. I feel her, but the touch feels distant. She feels distant.
“I won’t risk losing you again,” I say.
Her gaze softens, and she takes a step forward. The smell of her lavender scented lotion envelops me, and I’m nearly rendered dizzy. It doesn’t help that the dress she’s in—a long, white and black cocktail dress with conveniently padded bust cups, a deep V-neck, and provocative open back, a seamed design that enhances her curves, and a thigh-high slit with an elegant train finish—can and will make any man or woman drool on sight. And she’s swept her curls into a loose bun and accented it with a white silk flower and feather hairpin. She looks breathtaking.
This woman will be the death of me, surely.
She takes my face in her hands. “Hey, are you alright?” She slowly moves her fingers through my hair and gently massages my scalp. “You look a bit pale.”
I force back a growl of pleasure that threatens to spring free from her scalp massage and shake my head. “No.”
“No? What is it then?” She places her hand on my forehead. “You don’t seem to have a fever.”
I shake my head before reaching up and wrapping my fingers around her wrists and pulling her hands to my lips, kissing the backs of them. “I’m not sick. I’m just…I can’t stop thinking about that day in the office,” I admit. “Whenever you’re not around me, images of that day come flooding around me, and I find myself assuming the worst whenever I don’t hear your voice or see your face. I just want you safe.”
“And I will be. I’m safer with you than I am with anyone else,” she says softly.
I stare at her for a moment or two before sighing. I know I’ve lost this battle. This woman is far too stubborn for her own good.
“Fine, but I am going to stick to you like glue.”
She smiles. “I love that song.”
“What?”
“Sugarland’s ‘Stuck Like Glue’. It’s an American country music duo. I love their music,” she chuckles.
I raise a shocked brow. “You like country music?”
Even I can hear the bewilderment and astonishment in my voice.
She laughs but nods. “Yes, I do. You know, contrary to widespread belief, we black people don’t just listen to R&B, soul, and rap music,” she says then leans forward to kiss my lips. “There are quite a few of us who enjoy all kinds of music. I’m a lover of pop, country, rock, and classical music.”
I wrap my arms around her middle and pull her closer until she’s flush against me. “I learn something new about you every day.”
I lower my mouth to hers for a kiss, but she draws back. “We have a charity event to get to,” she says.
I glare at her. “You’re so lucky that I l—”
Oh, shit! I almost said I love you! Fuck! It’s not that I’m ashamed to say it or that I’m not ready. I’m just not sure she’s ready for that just yet. Tabitha doesn’t seem like the type of woman who falls in love easily or fast, and I don’t want to scare her with the big ‘L’ word before I’ve even found out how she really feels about me. Tabitha’s not very big on expressing how she feels. Well, that is, unless she’s angry.
She smiles at me then lifts her arms and wraps them around my neck. “That you what? Huh?”
I swallow.
“That I like you so much.”
She rolls her eyes then kisses my lips. “The feeling is mutual.”
Oh, I wish.
The moment we step out of the car, flashes of white are everywhere, and she tightens her hold on my hand. I tug her closer, tucking her into my side, and lower my mouth to her ear. “If you don’t think you’re up to this, we can turn right back around, get back into the car, and go home,” I suggest.
She tilts her head back to stare up at me. A smile tugs at the corners of her lips.
“Thank you, but I will survive.” She pushes to her toes and places a chaste kiss on my lips. “I am a woman, after all. Being strong is what we do.”
I duck my head and kiss her lips again. “I don’t doubt that.”
“Good,” she says as we walk into the hotel. “Wow. This place is beautiful.”
I watch her take in her surroundings, and she’s in complete awe. Her lips are parted, and her eyes are wide as she looks at everything around her, so I decide to do my own sweep of the place, and I must say the venue they went with is… they have great taste. The theme seems to be dark red, gold, and black. The room is decorated with deep red and golden roses, red and black tablecloths, with each placemat arranged around a vase full of roses. The chairs are black and gold, and the round glass table has gold trim to match.
“This place is enchanting,” Tabitha gasps. “I almost don’t ever want to leave.”
I snake my arm around her middle and lean forward to whisper in her ear.
“You’re looking very ravishing in that dress, Ms. Davenport.”
She gasps and turns to face me, a smile playing on her lips.
“Well, that was definitely out of the blue.”
I shake my head. “Not really. You always look ravishing, and I will always want to tell you.”
Smiling, she lifts her arms and wraps them around my neck, her fingers playing with my hair. “I love your hair, you know that? I love your hair, your smile, your eyes, and the way you make me feel,” she says softly, placing a gentle kiss to my lips.
“And how is that? How do I make you feel, Tabitha?” I ask while wrapping my arms around her middle and crushing her to me. “You’ve not voiced how you feel about me.”
She looks down for a moment before meeting my gaze once again. “Maybe—”
She’s interrupte
d by someone screaming my name.
“Jeremiah!”
I turn around, an arm still wrapped around Tabitha’s waist, to see Jessica, Hayden, and Elena—Jessica’s friends—heading our way. Jessica is dressed in a knee-length red dress with a diamond necklace around her neck with matching earrings. Hayden and Elena are dressed in matching blue dresses that stop at their feet, the shade of blue being the only difference: Elena’s dress is dark blue and Hayden’s dress is baby blue. The three of them look beautiful—there’s no denying it—but neither of them look as beautiful and/or ravishing as Tabitha does.
“Jessica, hey.” I wrap my free arm around her in an embrace. “It’s good to see you.”
“Same here. You remember Hayden and Elena, right?” She points at the two smiling women.
I nod. “It’s nice to see you ladies again.”
I hold my hand out to them, and they take it, one after the other. “Likewise,” Hayden says.
“Same,” Elena says, her hand lingering in mine.
I drop her hand quickly, and pull Tabitha into my side. “Ladies, I’d like for you to meet my girlfriend, Tabitha Davenport.” I smile proudly. “Tabitha, this is Elena Gillard and Hayden Webber.”
Tabitha smiles at them. “Hello. It’s nice to meet you both.” She gives a short nod.
“Oh. You’re the girlfriend,” Hayden says with what looks to be a forced smile. “How nice.”
“You work for Jeremiah, right?” Elena questions.
“I work for the company he runs, yes,” Tabitha clears up. “Why do you ask?”
I feel Tabitha’s hand tighten around mine, and I know she’s getting a bit irritated.
“Oh, no reason,” Elena says with a smirk.
“Look, if you have something to say, then say it,” Tabitha spits, catching her off guard.
“She’s wondering what you did to land Jeremiah,” Hayden blurts.
I glare at the two women. “Excuse me?” I hiss.
Suddenly, I hear a bitter laugh from beside me. I look over to see Tabitha staring at them with a bitter smile on her lips. “Ahh, I knew this was coming.” Tabitha steps out of my hold to stand directly in front of them. “So, you’re wondering if I’m sleeping with Jeremiah for his money, is that it?”
