by Cassie James
Copyright © 2019 by Cassie James
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
For Bibi & Ashton—
Thank you for keeping me sane…
or at least as close as I’m ever going to get.
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Epilogue
Books By Cassie James
Chapter One
“I know where Hollis’ treasure is.”
All six of us stare down at the key laying in the center of the island. For a long moment, the kitchen is so silent you could hear a pin drop from the other side of the house. “You’re not fucking serious.” My eyes snap toward Jax in time to see him pushing away from the island, an ugly sneer pulling his lips down as he jerks the key up and stares at it with a hard glint in his eyes.
“Uh, yeah?” I watch confused as he stares down at the key like it’s personally betrayed him. His fingers curl into a fist around it for a second before he slams it back down on top of the thick stack of papers cataloging my inheritance. This wasn’t the reaction I expected.
I glance around at the other guys. Smith’s staring down at the key like it’s a lifeline, which isn’t much of a surprise considering how much time we’ve spent debating Hollis’ secret for the last few months. Patrick’s fingers are curled tight around the marble corner of the countertop as he eyes Jax like he’s waiting for him to lose it and all hell to break loose. Ace looks anywhere but at me. I don’t dare turn to look at Jake—things are weird enough right now without me doing anything to fan the fire.
“I thought—” I try to meet Jax’s eyes, but he’s tossed his head back to stare up at the ceiling, his arms crossed over his chest as he heaves one deep breath after another. “I thought you guys would be a little more excited.”
“I can’t fucking believe you,” Jax explodes as soon as the words leave my mouth. “We left you here with just him last night because we fucking trusted you! You waited, what? Point-five seconds after we were gone to crawl into bed with him? And now you really think we want to talk about Hollis’ bullshit treasure? I don’t give a damn about it! This whole thing is bullshit. What the fuck were you thinking?”
“Jax.” Patrick pushes away from the counter, a warning clear in his voice. Ace starts to shift, too, his arms bunching as he slides off his stool. “Maybe you need to go get some air or something.” Patrick glances toward me, and his eyes narrow when he sees how close Jake has shuffled next to me, a protective instinct that doesn’t go unnoticed. By anyone. Jax’s nostrils flare as he eyes Jake’s closeness, too.
He slams both fists down on the countertop and I jump at the loud bang it makes. All it does is make Jake shift closer, his hand brushing against mine under the cover of the countertop. The last thing he wants is a fight, but we’re Nikon Park kids. The way we grew up, if someone’s causing problems or shit talking you, you either did something about it or ran the risk of being dubbed an easy target for the rest of your life. I got lucky, and mostly got left alone, but Jake had to follow his brother Brandon’s footsteps, and Brandon left a hell of a lot of trouble in his wake. Jake could hold his own if it came to that.
I have to hope it doesn’t.
“Do the rest of you really not fucking care that we found our girlfriend in bed with another guy?” Jax glares at Smith, Ace, and Patrick all in turn. “Because I know we all signed on for this sharing thing, but I still thought we at least got to have a fucking say in things. Wasn’t that the agreement?”
Guilt washes over me, sending a wave of nausea through my stomach as I shift carefully away from Jake. The last thing he wanted was to come here and cause trouble for me and my guys, and yet here we are. Smith’s eyes finally jump from the key to my face, and he quirks an eyebrow like he’s finally just realized what the fuck is going on around us. He glances toward Jax, but it’s Ace that grunts and heads toward the door.
“Ace!” I call after him, abandoning my spot at the counter to chase after him as he heads for the front door. “Hey, stop, please. I’m sorry, okay?” A small part of me inwardly rebels about the fact that I’m even apologizing right now. Yeah, it might not have been my brightest moment, but I didn’t do anything with Jake, and I’d told them that. I’m getting a firsthand look right now at how little they actually trust me. I grab Ace’s arm before he can get his hand around the door handle, his shoulders stiffening at my touch. “Nothing happened, Ace. Please don’t leave.”
“Juliet, I love you, but I just… I can’t do this with you right now,” he mumbles in a hollow voice, and the sound of it makes my heart fucking ache. He shrugs my hand off his arm and pulls the door open. He glances over his shoulder before taking the first step through the door, and my heart shatters at the look of confusion and grief playing over his face. I did that to him. To all of them. “I—” He shakes his head, apparently deciding against whatever he was going to say.
Just like that, he’s gone.
My hands shake as I close the door with a loud thump, but I can’t quite seem to let go of it. I brace myself on shaking arms as the heat of tears builds behind my eyes. I swallow around the lump in my throat as my head falls forward to rest on my chest. I can’t start crying right now. There are four guys in the kitchen waiting for me, and I can’t let another one of them walk out the door before this whole misunderstanding is resolved.
“You need to move.” My shoulders stiffen, and I swallow back the tears the best I can. Out of anyone, Jax is the least likely to be moved by tears at the moment. I’m just so tired of everything falling apart. I turn to face Jax with watery eyes. “Seriously, get the fuck out of my way. I don’t want to be here.”
“Jax, let’s just talk about it.” I don’t know why I’m pretending talking would help right now. Everything about Jax is a chemical reaction—searing heat, boiling points, and explosions at every turn—he’s not the calm one. He’s not the reasonable one. His eyes are impossibly dark as he stalks forward, and my stomach jolts. I brace for the feeling of him shoving me out of his way, but it never comes. Instead, he wraps his hand around my wrist and drags me across the foyer, shoving me into the room where Pearl…
The thought trails away as he slams the door closed behind us. “Hey!” I protest as he tugs me back so he can push me back against the wall just inside the room. “Get off of me,” I growl. I may have wanted to talk, but I didn’t want asshole-Jax, not when everything’s already falling completely apart. There’s a time and a place, and this isn’t it.
I start to take a step forward, but he shoves me back again. A small squeak escapes my throat as he puts his hands on my hips and pins me to the wall way harder than necessary. He’s staring at me with pure rage in his eyes. For a second, real fear makes my heart rate spike, but I force it down. Jax would never hurt me. No physically. Still, he’s doing a pretty damn convincing job right no
w of acting otherwise as his fingers dig into my skin.
“Just get it over with,” Jax says in a quiet voice that doesn’t match the death grip he’s got on my hips.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I frown right into his face, meeting his eyes even as a troubling cloud of emotion passes through them. I can feel my traitorous heart start to soften, but I internally scream at it to stop. I have to stop giving Jax free passes to be an asshole just because he’s hot as hell and maybe a little vulnerable under it all. I’ve been letting him get away with far too much.
Jax turns his head slightly so he’s not looking at me again. Apparently that’s the theme of the fucking morning. “You got who you really wanted and now you’re just gonna kick the rest of us to the curb. We all know it. It’s all anyone could fucking talk about this morning while we were waiting for the two of you to—” He clears his throat like it pains him. “To crawl out of bed. The two of you have history. Patrick did that stupid internet deep dive shit to find out all about it.”
“You all stalked me online.” It doesn’t even come out like a question, that’s how shocked I am. “After everything you all did to me, you really think you have the right to accuse me of not being genuine?” I hold my hand up to stop him from trying to answer. That one might have come out sounding like a question, but it was definitely rhetorical. “Let’s make one thing clear. I am well past done being the girl you look down on. The one you push around because I seem like an easy target. I’m not an outsider anymore. In fact, you were the one that said it was time I figure out what it means to be a Lexington. Well, Jax, I think I’ve figured it the fuck out.”
I take a deep breath, trying to make myself calm down because my heart is moving a million beats a second it feels like. “Go back in the kitchen and sit the hell down.” He wavers, looking torn between arguing with me or doing exactly what I’ve asked. I wonder how many times someone else has told Jax Woods what to do. “I’m not kidding, Jax. I’m going to take five minutes in this room so that I don’t strangle you, and when I come back out I’ll think about addressing your concerns.”
My voice is strong now. Stronger than it’s maybe ever been.
“You know what? Fuck this.” he spits as he pushes away from me. My shoulders tense as he storms halfway across the room, lacing his fingers behind his neck as he goes. Jax pauses with his back toward me, his shoulders rising and falling with each deep breath he takes. The tension melts from his frame after a quiet minute, and even from halfway across the room, I can hear his sigh. He retreats, opening the door quietly. He pauses, just like Ace, and my heart crawls to a slow stop.
“You need to figure out what you want, Juliet.” He says before slipping through the door. For all I know, he’s going to leave and never look back. Somehow, though, I don’t think he will. He could probably use an anger management class or two, but Jax Woods has already proven he’s no good at walking away.
I wasn’t bluffing with what I just told him, either. Despite everything, I’ve never actually felt more in control. Ever since I stepped foot in Patience, I’ve been facing things as they come. Dealing with the bare necessities because it all felt too overwhelming. But no one else is in charge here. Everything Pearl did, forcing me to be a part of parties I cared nothing about, talking to me about legacy and duty, and leaving this last thing—Hollis’ goddamn treasure—for me to find only after her death… It was all meant to prepare me.
Whatever is waiting for me at the beach house, it’s not going to be easy to face. And Pearl didn’t want me to face it alone, either. “Next summer, take those boys of yours to the beach house. They can skip the fancy vacations for one year. Spend some real, quality time together. Learn each other’s secrets.”
I force myself to breathe in and then out several times in a row until I feel calm enough to think straight. The boys are obviously upset about me spending the night with Jake, and I have to admit that’s partially my fault. I blurred the lines there, especially knowing I grew up all those years with such a big crush on my best friend. I can’t pretend it’s totally wholesome for us to have spent the night in bed together—regardless of what bed it was.
My nerves are on edge, too, from dealing not only with losing Pearl but also with all the responsibility suddenly thrust upon me. I have to remind myself that she wouldn’t have left everything to me if she really thought I couldn’t handle it. She told me to take the boys to the beach house so I wouldn’t have to face whatever’s there alone. I need to trust that she knew what she was doing. Besides, what do I really have to lose? A treasure that I’m sure I don’t even really need? I can’t imagine what Hollis would have kept that would be worth more than the literal fortune that’s already been handed to me.
I’ve made up my mind. Maybe I had even before I’d exchanged words with Jax in the room where I’d spent my summer watching Pearl wither away. My relationships with the guys aren’t perfect, but we saw something in each other that drew us all together, for better or worse. It’s time to see that through, and face whatever the consequences may be.
My mouth’s open as I step into the kitchen, prepared to apologize until I’m blue in the face for crossing the line last night by sharing a bed with Jake, but it sinks open even further at the sight that meets my eyes. Patrick and Jake are standing on one side of the island, arms crossed and jaws clenched as Smith and Jax stand on the other side, arguing with each other. Smith indicates toward where the key’s still sitting on top of the stack of papers, but the second the words Hollis’ treasure leave his lips, Jax loses it.
“I don’t give a damn about that, Smith!” he shouts as he glares at the one person he’s usually closest to. He turns his glare next to Jake. “What about you? Decide you’d come play nice again and take your crack at our little town mystery? Or did you really only come to take a crack at Juliet?”
Is he fucking kidding me right now?
Jake turns his head away just enough that he manages to catch sight of me. He starts towards me until I shake my head sharply. I glance to Patrick standing next to him, eyes downcast as he stays completely silent. He doesn’t want to get into this mess, and while I can’t say I blame him, I wish someone besides me would fucking stand up to Jax for once.
My hand trembles as I pull it away from my mouth. I breathe deeply, in and out slowly, while moving towards the door that will lead me to the gazebo and hopefully just one minute of silence and peace. “I need some air,” I mutter as I pass by all of them. I have to get out of this chaos. No one moves to follow me. “Clearly we need some space. I think it’d be best if you were all gone when I come back inside. We can try this again tomorrow.”
“Juliet,” Jake calls, but the door’s closing behind me, cutting off whatever it is he thought he was going to say to make me feel like the entire world isn’t crumbling out from under me. I climb the steps slowly, my whole body shaking around the effort to just keep it together, since no one’s here to keep it together for me anymore. All of it’s mine. The money. The properties. The name. The treasure. The legacy. The problems.
I let a long sigh out into the air as I settle on my favorite of the two swings, curling my legs underneath me as I try to block everything else out. It’s hard to find any peace when everything inside me is a total disaster, but for a moment I just want to pretend.
A long while later, light footsteps make their way toward me. I know it’s Jake even before he asks if he can sit. I know him as well—no, better—than any of my other guys, the way he walks, what his steps sound like when he’s being cautious, the gentle way he treats me when he thinks I might be at my breaking point. My heart aches as he bumps his shoulder against mine.
“So. That was a lot earlier, huh?” I can’t help but smile. Leave it to him to make light of the serious meltdown he witnessed.
I fight the urge to lean against him, already feeling like I’ve crossed enough lines for now. “I’ll admit, I didn’t really consider the number of egos I’d be dealing with w
hen I decided dating four guys was a good idea.” I smirk as that comment earns a snort from Jake, relishing in the stolen light-hearted moment.
“You never could do things the easy way could you?” He turns his head to look me full-on, his eyes looking a million miles away even though he’s looking at me from such a short distance.
I could kiss him right now, I think. But I hold back because I know I can’t. Just because I’m not committed to having just one boyfriend doesn’t mean I’m not committed at all. Even thinking about Jake like this right now feels like a betrayal. A throat clears and my heart jumps. Jake and I both jump a little, making the swing beneath us rock unsteadily. I could’ve used another lifetime of the light-hearted peace.
“Sorry to interrupt.” Patrick steps up onto the gazebo, and my lips purse—so much for giving each other space. His eyes find mine first, and I almost melt under his honey gaze. He stayed out of things back in the kitchen, which really was probably for the best, so the least I can do is let him say his piece now.
“I didn’t want any of what happened in there, you know that right?” My lips form a tight line as I nod. He was the only one that didn’t seem to have a comment at the ready to cut me down. His attention swings to Jake. “We never officially met yesterday with…” the funeral, “but I’m Patrick. It’s nice to meet you.”
For a split second, Jake eyes Patrick’s outstretched hand suspiciously—who could blame him?—but then he reaches out his own and the two of them shake hands. It’s a little stiff, but the gesture is touching. While everyone else has been busy being suspicious, Patrick is the first to make an effort to treat Jake like anything more than an inconvenience. I can’t for the life of me figure out why, though. It makes me squirmy and uncomfortable. Uneasy, my mind provides.
