Before You (Before You #1)(82)
“Jax,” Katrina said, her voice low and urgent. “Don’t be mad. We only pushed this because we thought you wanted to be with her, but you felt like you couldn’t because it would mean you’d caved to your dad’s ultimatum. As much as we adore Katie, we want you to be happy, and if Katie isn’t the one that can do that, we’re okay with that,” she said.
“What? I don’t understand,” Jax said, spinning around.
Katrina walked behind the desk and put her hands on his dad’s shoulders. “Tell him, James.”
“Can you sit?” his dad said, gesturing toward the chair across from him.
“No. I prefer to stand.” Jax shoved his hands in his pockets.
“Fine.” James exhaled loudly. “I want to apologize for not giving you or your mom the time you deserved over the past ten years or so. I should have been a better parent and a better husband.”
Jax’s eyes flicked between his mother and father and his mother’s supportive position behind his dad. “I guess you two have worked things out. I’m glad—”
James held up his hand. “I’m sure you don’t know this, but over the past year, your mom and I have been seeing a marriage therapist, and your mom has agreed to give me another chance.” James looked up at his wife and smiled. “I’d like you to give me another chance, too.”
“By interfering in my life and trying to control me? No thanks.”
James cringed. “Katie told us the two of you were in love, and that you’d talked about getting married, but she said lately you’ve been pushing her away. We—no, I—thought you were pushing her away to make a point to me, or maybe because of me and your mother’s track record—hell, I don’t know. I thought by giving you my blessing with the band and nudging you to marry Katie, I was helping you get the two things you wanted most. I thought…maybe…you would forgive me.” James twirled his pen between his fingers, watching Jax’s face. “You know, the moment I gave her that ring, I regretted it. I knew I shouldn’t have interfered with your life, but I was desperate for us to be a family again. I’m sorry. I made a dumb decision.”
Jax was stunned. He didn’t know what to say. He had come to his childhood home prepared for a fight, but instead, he encountered a father he didn’t know. “Katie was a mistake. I’ve told her repeatedly our relationship was over. I never loved her! She’s been nothing but a liar and now she’s screwed up my life.”
James raked his hands through his hair. “I’ve had this picture in my mind for so long of a perfect life for you. You would come to work with me, marry Katie, and unite our two families, but I never stopped to consider what you wanted. I guess I’m still making mistakes. I’ll take care of Katie and fix this.”
“You can’t fix this! Katie told the woman that I do love that we’re engaged, and she showed her that damn ring with K&J Forever on it.”
“Oh, honey,” Katrina said. “I’m sorry. Your dad and I can talk to her, tell her what happened.”
“No. I think I’m on my own here.”
Katrina nodded and kissed him on the cheek.
“Speaking of which, I need to go find her and talk to her before it’s too late.”
Chapter Thirty-Two
Bre pushed her sushi to the side with her chopsticks. Eating sushi wasn’t the best idea when her stomach was still unsettled. She couldn’t get Katie’s ring out of her mind. Asking Jax would be the most logical course of action before she wrote him out of her life, but part of her wanted to walk away before she gave Jax the ability to crush her completely.
She considered what Jax said about fighting for her and not letting her go, but she didn’t even know what that meant anymore. What did he think? She’d stay with him while he married Katie? Bre shivered in disgust. Even now, she had difficulty digesting Katie’s story. Would Jax have agreed to marry Katie to get his band signed when he claimed to love her? Her heart didn’t want to believe it, but her mind didn’t know what to believe. She sensed from the first moment she laid eyes on Katie that she would do anything to keep Jax, but fabricating an engagement seemed above and beyond the capabilities of any woman, infatuated or not. It would be too easy to confirm or disprove, but what did she know? She’d watched her mom play games with people’s heads her entire life, and it still shocked her that those people were utterly blind to her mom’s games. They only saw what they wanted to see. She hoped she hadn’t done that with Jax.
“Are you going to eat anything or are you going to push it around on your plate for another twenty minutes?” Cam asked.
“I’m not hungry,” Bre muttered.
“This place is good, but nothing beats the place on Main Street in Aspen,” Cam said, and then he stuffed another piece of sushi in his mouth.
“I know, but it’s a small fortune every time I go.”
“What about some dessert? You always have room for that.”
“I don’t know.” Bre leaned back against the booth. Dessert was tempting, but she still had to figure out how to get her clothes from Jax’s place. She should go there, get her stuff, and demand an explanation, but she didn’t know if she could handle the answer if he admitted he and Katie were engaged.