by Freya Barker
I look over his shoulder and catch Jordy eyeing his back, a little smile tugging at her lips before she notices me watching, and ducks her head, her face blushing red. Mia, sitting next to her, looks me straight in the eye, smiling big. I just shake my head and turn back to John, who’s smiling again, his eyebrow raised.
“Whatever,” I mumble, giving in. I guess she could do worse. “But you hurt her...? I don’t care if you’re the law around here, I will mow you down.”
“So noted.” Is the only response I get before he gets up, walks casual as you like over to the girls, says something I can’t quite hear, which has Mia smiling and Jordy blushing, and with a light touch to the baby’s head, he walks to the door. “I’ll be in touch,” he throws over his shoulder before pulling the door shut behind him.
I’d better go call Brian.
Mia
The moment the bedroom door opens, I’m awake.
Jordy had gone to lie down for a bit with Ole, and exhausted from this morning’s events, I’d followed suit. I’d walked up to Jared, who was still sitting at the kitchen counter, and pressed myself against him. His arms automatically came up to hold me there.
“Going to lie down for a bit,” I told him, to which he nodded in response.
“I have some calls to make.”
“I’m sorry,” I whispered. Not so much an apology as it was an expression of regret for what happened. He silenced me with his mouth, before he let me go, his eyes dark with worry.
Part of me wanted to stay in support, but I knew he likely needed some time and space to deal with the aftermath. So I dragged myself down the hall and fell facedown on the spare bed, exhaustion rendering me asleep in mere seconds.
“Hey,” Jared rumbles, leaning against the doorpost, looking at me with a slight lift of his eyebrows. I push myself up so my back rests against the headboard.
“Hey back.”
“Was hoping I’d find you in my bed,” he says suggestively, moving to sit on the edge of the bed. I shrug in response.
“It was tempting,” I admit. “But I’m trying not to overstep my boundaries.”
“There are no boundaries for you to overstep,” he drawls, lying down with his head on my stomach. My hand immediately finds its way into his hair, my fingers lazily massaging his skull underneath. He groans in appreciation, sending a ripple of awareness through my body.
“What did Brian say?” I probe carefully. He presses his face into the swell of my belly, groaning louder.
“Read me the riot act,” he mumbles, before lifting his head and facing me. “How are you?” I let my hand trail down the side of his face and still against his jaw.
“Other than that I’m worried about you, I’m fine. The nap helped.”
“Good,” he says, effectively evading my concern.
He crawls up the bed and shifts until he’s propped against the headboard, tucking me against him. I snuggle in gratefully, with my head on his chest and my arm draped over his stomach. We sit like that for a while, lost in our own thoughts, when the ring of a phone cuts through the silence.
“Let me grab that,” Jared volunteers, and with a light peck on my lips, leaves the bed. I follow suit, but aim the bathroom instead.
When I walk out minutes later, I find Jared standing in the kitchen, his back toward me. My purse is open on the counter, and he has my phone to his ear.
“I’m taking care of it,” I hear him say to, who I assume must be, Steffie. Hardly anyone else knows my number, let alone calls. “I know,” he says, clearly pained. “I’m not that guy anymore. You’re just going to have to trust me on that.”
Okay. That’s enough. It’s clear from just his side of the conversation that my bestie is giving Jared a hard time, something he doesn’t need after the day he’s had. I walk up behind him and steal my phone from his hand.
“....one complaint, and I’ll make your life a living hell. And one more thing...”
“Steffie!”
“Mia?”
“Yes it is and where do you get off tearing into Jared?” I’m angry and not afraid to let her know.
“Doug showed me this article. Said someone at work showed him. Jesus, Mia! I was worried sick. What has that man gotten you into?” I feel guilty I didn’t call her to give her a head’s up, but my hair stands on end when she tries to blame Jared.
“He didn’t get me into anything! He’s done everything in his power to shield me, literally has gone to bat for me. But you know what? I guess it was easier to jump to conclusions based on what you think you know from newspaper gossip, than to just ask.” With that I end the call, unfamiliar anger coursing through me.
“Whoa,” Jared’s deep voice sounds in my ear, as he wraps his arms around me from behind. “I love that you want to defend my honour, baby, but that’s your best friend you hung up on. She’s just worried about you. Needs to look out for you. I understand that.”
I turn in his arms and lift my face to him.
“But you don’t deserve that.” He shows a wry grin.
“I think we both know I deserve every bit of doubt she has. She’s clearly aware I have a reputation. One I created myself.” He shrugs a little sheepishly. “I may not be that guy anymore, but you can’t blame her for being protective. A guy who has a name for being a bit of a partier, drags her best friend, who happens to value her privacy, onto the gossip pages of the newspaper? I’d be pissed, too.” I feel a little sick to my stomach when he’s done talking.
“Oh,” I manage, ashamed I lost all sense of perspective with my own need to protect.
Jared bends his head and gently brushes his lips over mine.
“We make quite a pair,” he says when he pulls back. His eyes boring into mine. “The way we jump into battle for each other, you’d think—”
“You’re in love?” Jordy cuts him off as she walks in with Ole on her arm. “Yeah, that’s not exactly news,” she adds, as she moves past, heading toward the fridge. “What’s for dinner?”
My eyes are still locked on Jared’s, I’m sure mine are wide in shock, but his are warm and mildly amused.
“I think she’s right,” he mouths silently, causing my heart to skip a beat before settling into a faster beat. Before I can change my mind, I respond on a whisper.
“That’s quite possible.”
“We’ll have to address that later,” he says with a wink. “But first let me get some food into my sister. She gets cranky when she has to go without.”
“Hey!” Jordy lifts her head from the fridge. “I resemble that statement!”
I snicker and shake my head as the two of them start their now familiar sibling bicker fest. Stepping from Jared’s hold, I walk over to Jordy and take a bright-eyed Ole from her hands.
During a quickly pulled together dinner, Jared explains what he and Brian discussed this afternoon. Brian feels it may be possible to nip this in the bud before official charges are laid, if Torrence is presented with a onetime offer. He also suggested Marie Blumberg, the local lawyer, should be pulled in, given that Jordy’s ex is at the root of this issue. Jared had called her earlier, filled her in, and she’d wanted in on whatever was being put together. She apparently contacted Brian, brainstormed, and a proposal was being drafted up right away.
It’s clear Jared isn’t happy with what will be on offer; an exclusive interview with photo op, here at his house, not to mention exposing Jordy and Ole to the cameras—Marie’s idea—but Brian apparently feels it might kill two birds with one stone. By taking away the mystery, he hopes it will kill the attraction.
It’s not until much later, after we watched the latest Jason Bourne movie, during which Jordy fell asleep on the couch, and we’d all retreated to bed—Jared making it clear I was to share his—that Jordy’s earlier words resurface.
I carefully lower myself on Jared’s hard length after working him with my mouth, making him not only slick and ready, but myself as well. He’s sitting with his back to the headboard and his head tilted ba
ck a little. My hands are braced on either side of his head, using the frame for balance as I slowly, but deliberately move up and down on his glorious cock. My eyes are fused to his, and my mouth falls open as his hands on my hips force me down hard, while grinding himself against my core. I love seeing the dark red flush on his cheekbones and his pupils widen with need. It’s powerful—heady—to see how I affect him.
Other than the puff of our breaths, the grinding of our bodies, there is no other sound. I focus instead on the sensations he creates inside me, and feel myself building toward orgasm. When his hips buck up underneath me, signalling his own pending release, I let myself fly.
That’s when those words slip from his mouth.
“Jordy may have a point,” he whispers, still gasping for breath.
I freeze just as I drape myself on top of him, a little thrown at the reference to his sister at this moment in time. But the next words he mumbles, his face buried in my hair, reduce me into a puddle.
“Thirty-nine years old, and I can honestly say I have never, in my almost forty years, felt what I’m feeling for you. I’ve tried rationalizing it, tried compartmentalizing it, but I can’t. It’s big, it scares the shit out of me, and I clearly have no choice in the matter.”
I need a moment to let the full impact of his words wash over me. Then I lift my head and look him straight in the eye.
“I’m scared, too. And confused, and plenty torn, but I also feel more secure than I’ve felt in a long time. Even under these circumstances.” I lift my mouth to his and allow myself to get lost in his kiss, before I gently pull back.
“And I feel alive—you make me feel alive.”
TWENTY-THREE
Jared
“So what’s the verdict?”
The proposal my lawyers drew up had been delivered yesterday, first thing in the morning. Turns out Mr. Torrence had already lawyered up, which was to be expected, and the past twenty-four hours I’ve heard little but that negotiations are underway.
John LeBlanc called yesterday, around noon, to let me know he never showed up to file an official complaint, which let me know he was at least considering the offer.
I’d suggested to throw some money at him too, to sweeten the pot, but Brian advised against it. Said if I started down that road, people would purposely throw themselves in front of my car to cash in.
Hard to believe there was actually a time I enjoyed all the attention—the recognition. As a young kid up in Sault Ste Marie, I’d basked in the glory. People there were rabid about their Greyhounds. Here in Canada, being a hockey player is akin to being a rock star at times. The last ten years playing in the U.S., I’d almost forgotten that. The hockey hype is not quite as big there. I could walk the streets and no one would be the wiser. I have trouble doing that anywhere here.
So Brian may have a point, but I’ve been worried perhaps offering an exclusive won’t be enough.
“I need you in Toronto tomorrow afternoon,” Brian answers. “To sign off on the agreement.”
“He’s taking the deal?” I let out a big breath of relief, the threat of an assault charge weighing heavier on me than I’d realized. I’d always been good at going with the flow, taking life on the chin, but that was when I’d only had myself to worry about. That is no longer the case. Now I can’t wait for things to settle down, get the shit with Jordy’s ex and Ole’s custody sorted, get the damn press off my back for good.
I’m craving calmer waters.
“Looks like, but he wants you there. Says he wants to see you sign off on his final stipulation personally.”
“Final stipulation? What the fuck?” The relief I felt earlier was short lived. “What is he talking about?” I heard Brian’s deep sigh over the phone and guess I probably won’t like what’s coming next.
“He wants Mia there for the interview.”
“Over my dead body,” I bite off instantly, blood roaring in my ears. “He leaves Mia alone or no deal.”
“Buddy, I get it,” Brian tries to appease me, but it only heats me up more. “But keep in mind that this agreement could solve a lot of your problems, in one fell swoop. He’s willing to sign an affidavit outlining how Nick Quarles approached him to make your sister’s life miserable after what happened at your place. The man apparently is hard up for money—gambling debts—and was hoping to get to your bank account through Jordy and the baby. He admitted as much to Torrence. Fuck, Jared, the guy has that entire conversation on tape. Says it’s the journalist in him. The moment he heard Quarles say your name, every word was recorded.” Brian pauses before he hammers home his point. “Marie says with that tape she can make any claim for custody disappear. Permanently. Mia for Ole, my friend.”
“Son of a bitch!” I roar, hurling the mug I was holding against the fireplace, shattering it against the stone. Griffin jumps up from his spot by the coffee table and starts whimpering, and I can hear Ole cry out in his room. Fucking brilliant.
I sit down on the couch, dropping my head in my hand, as my sister comes tearing into the room, Mia right behind her holding a crying Ole.
“Jesus, Jared—What the hell?”
I lift my head and watch as Jordy takes in the scene and takes a few steps toward me, but Mia shoots out a hand to stop her.
“Here,” she says, calmly. “You take the baby in the nursery and feed him, while I clean this up.” She enforces her words by shoving the baby in Jordy’s arms and resolutely turning her in the right direction. Surprisingly she goes without argument. When Mia turns to me, there is concern on her face as she looks at the phone still clutched in my hand.
“I’ve gotta call you back,” I tell Brian, my voice flat, and end the call. I watch while Mia moves to let the dog out, gently talking to him, before returning to bend down in front of the fireplace, picking up the shards of my coffee mug.
“Leave it. I’ll do it,” I tell her, but she ignores me, swiftly removing the evidence of my outburst, save for the dark coffee stain on the exposed stone.
This is the second time I’ve lost control in front of her. Because of her. She has every remaining Neanderthal gene raring to life. I used to laugh at guys who’d talk about their woman. Could never understand that whole possessive he-man thing. Not until Mia.
I stay put as she carries the pieces into the kitchen and dumps them in the trash, before she washes her hands. My eyes follow every move and watch as she finally turns and walks toward me. I fight the urge to rub my head against her as she reaches out and runs her fingers through my hair, before she takes a seat beside me.
“Talk to me.”
Her touch, her voice, her presence; it calms me.
“Taylor Torrence wants you to be there for the interview. That’s not gonna happen. I won’t agree to it,” I quickly add, the moment I feel her body go rigid.
“Why?” she asks, her voice quiet.
“Because I won’t subject you to that.”
“No. I mean why would he want me there?”
Good question, one I hadn’t really considered until now. But I have a good guess.
“He knows it’s a sure way to get under my skin,” I explain, vaguely recalling what I yelled at him while I was rearranging his face just two days ago. “Told him I’d never allow him to even breathe the same air as you. Guess this is him, letting me know who’s in control. Fuck!” I move to stand up, but Mia’s hold on my arm stops me.
“I’ll do it.”
I can barely hear her through the chaos in my head, as I turn to face her.
“What?”
“I said, I’ll do it,” she repeats, looking me straight in the eye.
“No way,” I tell her adamantly. “That won’t happen. We’ll find another way to nail Nick.”
“Nick? Wait...what aren’t you telling me?”
“Not your concern,” I bluntly state, and I can visibly see her retreat before her eyes turn to slits and she tilts her head.
“He’s got something on Nick, doesn’t he?” I don’t respon
d either way, but I can see the wheels turning. “Something he’ll only give to you, if you let him have his way.”
“Can’t put you through that, Beautiful.”
“Not your choice, Jared,” she fires right back, scrambling to her feet and turning on me with her hands on her hips and her face in mine. “I was going to do it when I thought it was only about you getting off the hook. If you think you’re gonna stop me now that I know it could help get rid of Ole’s sperm donor at the same time, you’ve got another thing coming. Not. Your. Choice.” With that she swings around, and with her shoulders square and her head high, she marches down the hall to the spare bedroom.
I hold back from rushing after her.
Instead, I consider her words and clue in I’m not the only one with a protective streak a mile wide when it comes to loved ones. Probably without realizing it, Mia has just shown me in no uncertain terms how invested she is. Enough to go toe-to-toe with me.
I can’t stop the smile teasing the corners of my mouth as I dial Brian back. I’m still pissed to have been forced in this position, but I’m seriously relieved Mia effectively took the choice out of my hands. Never mind that she took my balls in the process.
My ego is sustaining some serious bruising.
Mia
I can’t believe I was that stupid.
I’d fallen asleep last night, still attached with Jared in every sense of the word, after letting go of all my fears and allowing my carefully guarded heart to bubble over. It was easier than I expected, once he’d opened up to me. But the warm and fuzzy blanket of emotions took a pretty drastic turn this morning when I woke up alone in bed, with the sticky evidence of careless behaviour on the tender skin of my thighs.
I haven’t used the pill since I had my miscarriage. Even then, it had only been for a short time until Blair and I wanted to try again. When that never happened, I never bothered again. Just because I don’t think pregnancy is really a concern, there are other things that are.
