Love's Protector: A Maverick's Shield Novel

by Charisma Chloe

  All the blood instantly drained from Amour’s face and Jason knew she’d understood exactly what Angela was saying. She slowly turned to him. Her expression completely blank. “Jason…”

  Fuck! He could kill Angela right where she stood. He decided at that point that he could at least be the one to give it to her straight. He wasn’t going to give Angela anymore satisfaction. “It’s true sweetheart. Ted is not your biological father, Pierce is.”

  She brought her fingers to her lips as shook filled her face. “No…that’s not true.” Her breathing began to accelerate and she’d looked as if she was about to pass out. “No…”

  “That’s what Adam Romero gave me when I went to see him. It was a paternity test. The modern way of doing it was in its infancy back then so the results of your mother’s test were only around ninety percent but that was more than enough to prove paternity in the eighties.” She said nothing. “Amour?” He tried to touch her but she jerked away from him and ran out of Angela’s office. Jason was so angry his blood started to boil. He turned to Angela and looked her straight in the eye. “I will make damn sure that you suffer for this and that’s not a threat, that’s a promise bitch!” Then just like that, he turned around and walked out.

  CHAPTER 39

  The tears ran down Amour’s face like a faucet as she sat on a small bench outside of the Eleganti. She couldn’t stop them no matter how hard she tried. How could this be happening? What she’d just heard couldn’t possibly be true. The man who raised her all of her life, who’s been there for her through childhood, the awkward teenaged years, taught her to ride a bike, drive, father daughter dances and countless other things was not her father? “No…he would’ve told me…” She murmured. Would he have? Would she even be able to trust her father anymore? If ever she needed a cigarette the time was then but that probably wouldn’t even help. She just wanted to crawl inside of a hole and die. She closed her eyes and tried to imagine the world she lived in prior to coming to Los Angeles. Home in Nebraska, in her own house, in her own bed with a book and her father was still…her father. A strong cool breeze blew over her face pushing her tears to the sides of her cheeks as she just sat there, wishing it would just take her away.

  “Amour?” Jason said from beside her. She stared at the ground but said nothing. “Look, I know you’re angry at me.” He sat down on the bench next to her and she flinched when he tried to touch her. “I know you wish I would’ve told you but I couldn’t. I’m sorry.”

  She continued to look at the ground. “When did you find out?”

  “It doesn’t really matter Amour.”

  She looked up at him with an angry expression. “It matters to me!”

  “Okay.” He rubbed his temples before speaking. “Adam Romero gave it to me when I went to see him last week.”

  “You’ve know about this all this time?”

  “Yeah, and I feel like shit for keeping it from you but in all fairness Amour, it was not my place to tell you. Believe me, the last thing I ever wanted to do was hurt you. I told Ted…”

  “You talked to my father about this?” she interrupted.

  “Yes and he didn’t want me to tell you either. He felt that it would be better if you found out from him.”

  She wiped the tears from her eyes and breathed in deeply. She didn’t feel like crying anymore. She was much too pissed to continue to do so. “Take me home! I’m booking a flight home for tomorrow.”

  Amour sat at Jason’s computer to once again attempting to change her flight information. She couldn’t under any circumstances stay here now. The one person here that she’d trusted the most turned out not to be so trustworthy after all. How could he keep something so detrimental to her life from her? If he kept this from her, she could imagine what else he was hiding. Asshole. She guessed she deserved it for falling for someone she’d only known for a little over two weeks. And what about her father? What else was he hiding? This was all just a little too much for her right now. Instead of booking a flight back to Nebraska, she needed to book one to some remote island and stay there until she was ready to go back home. She began to imagine what it would be like to escape to a place like that when Jason placed his hand on her shoulder interrupting her thoughts. She wanted to slap it off of her but at the same time; it put her at ease despite her anger towards him.

  His one hand on her turned into two hands on either side which then turned into his arms wrapping around her shoulders and pressing his cheek to hers. The stubble on his face coupled with the scent of his cologne made it hard for her to resist his touch. He softly kissed her cheek. “I’m sorry I hurt you but that was your father’s place to tell you that; whichever one decided to that is, not mine.”

  She closed her eyes. “I know, but I’m still angry. I can’t help it. I have to leave Jason.”

  “I understand but can you at least stay for Chandra’s funeral?”

  Damn it! She’d almost completely forgotten about Chandra and she felt like shit for doing so. She owed it to her and Mack to attend the services out of respect alone. “Of course I will.”

  “What about us?” he asked mildly.

  She stared at the computer screen. “I don’t know what we are Jason. So I can’t answer that.”

  He took his arms from around her and straightened his body. “Chandra’s funeral is Saturday.”

  Before she could respond to what he’d said, he turned around, walked into his bedroom and shut the door. He was obviously upset by her answer to his question. She supposed his frustration was warranted. He did express his need for her to stay when they’d made love on the couch that night.

  Please don’t leave me…His words played over and over in her mind. The way he’d touched her and passion behind the words he’d spoken told her that she’d fixed something in him that had been broken. But even so, why should she be the one giving her all to this relationship…or…whatever it was? What about us? How the hell would she know? He never once discussed “us” with her at any given time since she’d been there. Hell, he hadn’t even acknowledged the fact that they’d slept together. The answer she’d given him was all she had and she had every right leave him high and dry after he’d lied to her. Well, he didn’t exactly lie; he just didn’t tell her a very important piece of information that could change life as she knew it. So screw him! He had no right to make her feel guilty for leaving. She was not the one that was wrong in this situation and that was a fact. Then why did she still feel like crap?

  * * *

  Jake’s was surprisingly crowded for a Thursday night so the five of them had to wait a little while for a table. Jason couldn’t bring himself to speak to Amour since the conversation they had at the apartment. He hoped that understood his choice to remain silent on the subject, but he could tell she was still uncomfortable with it because not only did he barely speak to her; she also barely spoke to him. As they all started to fill the back booth the waitress had shown them to, Jason chose to sit across from Amour rather than next to her. He figured that would be the best thing to do.

  “How are you holding up man?” he asked Mack.

  Mack looked as if he also wanted to crawl into a hole. “I’m good.”

  Jason didn’t press the issue. He knew it wouldn’t be a good idea to do so. Instead he just patted Mack on the back and let it go. Soon after, Shyla joined them at the booth. She had the day off so she decided to have lunch with all of them. When she sat, she called one of the waitresses by her first name and the woman walked over to them. After she’d taken all of their orders and had gone, an awkward silence filled the area.

  Shyla unsurprisingly decided to speak first. “How have you been Amour?”

  “Not that great.”

  “I know it’s been a lot going on the past few days but your mom’s killer is behind bars now so you should be happy about that at least.”

  Before Amour could respond, Alex drew everyone’s attention to the television that was hanging on the wall. “Check that shit out!�
��

  There, as clear as day was Pierce Harrington having what looked like a press conference on TV. Everyone’s eyes were glued to the television and the listed in.

  Good afternoon everyone. I am here today to address the recent events that have come to pass over the past week. As you know, I have been involved in a scandal involving several people including my wife, Beatrice Harrington. I am aware of her involvement in the case that prompted the Los Angeles Police Department and the District attorney’s office to investigate.

  Due to the large amount of press it has received, I am sure many of you have heard the details regarding this case already so I will not provide them at this moment. Though I cannot justify what my wife has done twenty-seven years ago or what she has done recently, I can assure the good people who are directly involved in this incident that Mrs. Harrington has been for the past thirty years evaluated for mental disease and was unaware of her actions at the time they occurred. Her mental illness was in fact brought on by my stubbornness, pride and inability to be the husband and father that she expected of me. The rumors that you have been hearing regarding me are very much true. I have in fact been unfaithful to my wife on several occasions over the past thirty years with several prostitutes and the young woman in question who shall remain anonymous is in fact my daughter. I take full responsibility for my actions and the actions of my wife in this matter. You will continue to have my deepest regrets and apologies for the pain and hurt I have cause all those who were affected by my actions. I’m here to tell you today that I feel that I can no longer appropriately represent my family or the great citizens of the state of California and I will be stepping down from my seat in the United States Senate and also will not be pursuing any other positions in public office. Thank you very much.

  After Pierce had walked off camera, everyone’s mouths flew open at the table but no one said a word. Amour took a huge gulp of her beer. “Well, I guess the shit has hit the fan now.” Everyone but Jason looked at her wondering what the heck she was talking about. She raised her bottle in a toast. “Here’s to my dear old dad, he sure knows how to make an announcement.” Everyone still said nothing. “Oh that’s right, you guys don’t know. I just found out that Pierce Harrington is my real father. I’m the “daughter” he was referring to.” She stood up from the booth. “I’m going to the bathroom.”

  Shyla scooted out from the booth as well. “I’ll go with you.”

  Amour shrugged her shoulders. “Whatever.”

  When the two of them had gone, the guys just sat there staring off in space trying to find something to say to break the obvious awkwardness in the room.

  “What the fuck was that all about? Is this true Jason?” Jax asked.

  Jason did not want to discuss it any further but he knew he was going to owe them an explanation eventually. “Yeah, it’s true.”

  Alex sipped his water. “Am I to assume that because the two of you are barely looking at each other that you already knew about this ahead of time but neglected to tell her about it?”

  That dammed Alex was so perceptive. Sometimes too perceptive. “Yeah.” Jason finished off his beer and sat the bottle down on the table. “In my defense, I didn’t tell her because I felt that it was her father’s job to do that.” They all remained quiet but continued to look at him. “What?”

  “Then how did she find out?” Mack asked.

  “That Angela chick. She told her when we went to question her about her being at Carly’s house that day.” They all looked confused. Jason took a short breath. “She was banging Pierce Harrington too.”

  By the time Shyla and Amour had returned, Jason had explained everything in full to the guys. When the girls slid back into the booth, Mack reached over and grabbed Amour’s hand. “Are you going to talk to Harrington?”

  “Yeah, I guess. Although I have no idea what I’m going to say to him. Whatever it is, I have to do fast because I won’t be here for much longer.”

  Shyla’s eyes widened. “You’re leaving?”

  She looked at Jason before answering Shyla’s question but he didn’t say anything. “Yes.”

  “Aww…I’m gonna miss you girl. Are you coming back?”

  “Probably not.”

  “Well that sucks!”

  Alex gave Jason a look telling him to that he needed to fix this but remained quiet. The ability to read people was in fact something he admired about Alex but now, it was really starting to irritate him. “You shouldn’t leave.”

  She looked up at him. “Why not?”

  When he didn’t respond to her, Alex gave him that “look” again. “Because I want you to stay.”

  Her lips parted and she looked as though she were contemplating on what to say. “Really?”

  “Yes.”

  She smiled. “Maybe I will then, I’ll have to think about it.”

  It wasn’t a yes, but it wasn’t a no either so he accepted it. “Great.”

  “Aww…” Shyla said as she made a heart shape out of her hands.

  Jax’s cell rang and he excused himself from the table while the others finished up their meals and drinks. When he returned about ten minutes later, he had a huge grin on his face. “Hey you guys! Good news. Cheryl said that Harrington’s gonna be at one of his field offices later today to formally say goodbye to his staff. She said we are more than welcome to come by and talk to him especially now that he will no longer be Senator Harrington.”

  Jason held Amour’s hand. “It’s up to you honey.”

  “I’ll go. I don’t care.”

  Jax slid his cell back in his pocket. “Alright.”

  CHAPTER 40

  When they pulled up to Pierce’s campaign office, Amour was surprised that she didn’t feel the least bit nervous or anxious. That may have been because she was well over all of this. She prayed that there would be no other mysteries to unfold because she didn’t think that she could handle any more surprises. When they walked in, Jax immediately walked up to Cheryl, spoke to her for a few minutes and then walked back to them.

  “Okay guys.” Jax said. “Cheryl just told me that Harrington is gonna be here any minute now so we’ll just sit tight until he gets here.”

  Jason put his hand on her face and stroked her cheek. “Do you want to do this alone Amour?”

  “I probably should but I want all of to stay here though.”

  “Of course honey.”

  After about an hour, a barricade of cars pulled up to the building. Soon after, a black limousine followed.

  “That must be him.” Jax said as he looked out of the window.

  Amour finally started to feel nervous but at least this time she wasn’t sick to her stomach. Now that the cat was out of the bag and she knew he didn’t murder her mother, there was really no reason to be intimidated by this man at all. She looked up to see him standing in the doorway wearing a perfectly tailored suit and expensive leather dress shoes. There his was in all his glory. Pierce Harrington, her father. Well, not really. Maybe biologically but definitely not physically or emotionally. What on earth was she possibly going to say to him?

  He walked fully inside, paused and then gave everyone in the room a big smile followed by a wave. He seemed to be a little nervous but she guessed he had every reason to be; all of his dirty had just been exposed to whole state of California. Amour just shook her head in disbelief of all of this.

  Pierce held his hand up and looked around the room. “Hello all. I’m sure you all are already aware of the fact that I’m stepping down as your senator.” The workers in the room all made sob sounds. “I know, I know. I’m very disappointed myself but this is a result of my own actions. I just want to let you all know just how truly sorry I am and that I appreciate each and every one of you for all that you’ve done for me regarding my campaign and all the other aspects of my life as well. There will be another candidate who will take my place effective immediately. He is a fine man and I hope that you will put forth just as much effort into getting him el
ected as you’ve done for me.

  Pierce shook a few of the workers hands and snapped a few photos before heading to his private office in the back of the room.

  Alex came up behind her and placed his hand on her shoulder. “Now is your chance.”

  “What about his security? How do I get passed them?”

  “I’m sure you won’t have a problem,” Mack said.

  “I guess you’re right.” She took a deep breath and slowly let it out. “Here goes.”

  She headed towards the back of the room to his office where two huge bodyguards waited at the entrance. When she approached them, they looked at her with very serious expressions which scared the crap out of her.

  “Yes?” one of them asked.

  “I’m here to talk to Senator Harrington.”

  “Is he expecting you?”

  “No, but I’m sure he’ll talk to me.”

  “And you are?” the guard asked after crossing his large arms over his chest.

  “I’m his daughter.”

  The guard frowned. “I’ve seen his daughter plenty of times and you’re not her.”

  She looked him straight in the eye. “Believe me, I’m his daughter.”

  The guard frowned for a second before the realization of who she was hit him. He raised his hand. “One second.” the guard said before knocking on the door. A few seconds passed. “Someone’s here to see you sir.” After a couple of more seconds, the guard then said, “It’s your daughter sir…okay sir.” he turned back to Amour. “Okay, you can go in now.”

  He opened the door and gestured towards the entrance. Once inside, she stood in the doorway but said nothing. Pierce was facing the opposite way digging in a large file cabinet.

  Once he’d heard the guard shut the door, he spoke. “I’ll be right with you sweetheart.” He had obviously assumed she was Caroline because he never turned to look at her. Amour just decided to keep quiet and use the element of surprise to grab his attention. “Why didn’t you stay in the car honey? I won’t be long.” Amour still didn’t respond. After about five seconds, he shut the drawer of the file cabinet and then turned to face her. When he saw her, he froze and his eyes widened but he remained silent.