Fever (Breathless #2)(111)

Jace winced. “Sorry, man. That sucks balls.”

“You’re telling me.”

“You tell them to go f**k themselves?”

Ash went silent and dropped his gaze.

Jace immediately sat forward. “You did tell them to go f**k themselves, right?”

Ash sighed. “I like the old man. He’s the only one who ever gave a f**k about me. If it was just Mom and Dad and my siblings, yeah, I’d tell them to f**k off.”

“Jesus, you’re going to do it, aren’t you? You’re actually going to play nice with them for him?”

“I don’t know what I’m going to do yet,” he muttered. “Haven’t decided. I’ve been invited to dinner next week. Granddad is going to be there. The whole f**king family will be there.”

“I’ll go with you,” Jace said quickly. “Gabe will too. And Mia.”

Ash looked back up at him, fierce love reflected in his green eyes. “You know I love you guys. You’ve always had my back. I’ll never forget that. But you and Gabe have Mia and Bethany now. I don’t want either of them—or you and Gabe—exposed to my nest of vipers.”

“That’s bullshit,” Jace cut in impatiently. “We’re your family. You’re real family. And family doesn’t leave family to deal with this shit alone.”

“I’m a big boy now. I can deal with their bullshit. I’d rather Mia and Bethany not be exposed to their manipulations. They’re malicious on a good day. Can you imagine what they’d do to Bethany if they knew about her past? They’d rip her to shreds without a thought. Do you honestly want that for her when things are still so new between you?”

Jace slowly shook his head. “No, I don’t. We don’t have to bring her. I can go with you and leave her at the apartment. Or I’ll have Mia spend the evening with her. I just don’t want you going without someone at your back.”

Ash stood. “I appreciate that, man. More than you’ll ever know. But some things I have to do on my own. This is one of them. I’ll go. Make it clear they can’t f**k with me like they used to. I’ll make an appearance for Granddad, but the rest of them can kiss my ass.”

“Okay, but if you change your mind you know Gabe and I will be there with you, no questions asked.”

“Yeah, I do know. And thanks.”

Ash started to walk to the door and then he turned. “Want me to check with my people and see if Kingston has borrowed any more money or gotten into shit over his head? I can put out some feelers and see if anything comes back. Might even figure out where the f**k he’s hiding.”

Jace hesitated and then finally shook his head. “No. Sometimes ignorance is bliss. I don’t want to ever be in a position where I lie to Bethany, and if I knew Jack was in trouble, I’d definitely lie to her. I wouldn’t want her involved in any way. It’s better if neither of us knows.”

Ash nodded. “Okay. Let me know if you change your mind.”

“Will do, and Ash? Let me know how things go, okay? We’ll get together after your dinner with the family from hell. You, me, Gabe, Mia and Bethany. We’ll have dinner.”

“Sounds good. See you around.”

Jace watched as Ash walked out, his chest heavy. He didn’t miss any part of the threesomes they used to indulge in, but he did miss that connection with Ash. It was twisted, but they’d been friends who shared damn near everything for a lot of years and now suddenly things were very different.

Hell, he hadn’t even seen much of Ash since meeting Bethany. He and Gabe both had been focused on the women they loved, which meant Ash had solidly been pushed from the tight circle he used to occupy a huge part of.

His office line rang and he picked it up. A few minutes later, he was swearing and striding into Gabe’s office.

“What the f**k is up with the Paris deal?” he demanded. “I just got a call that two of our biggest investors have pulled out.”

Chapter thirty-seven

Bethany picked up the phone when it rang and uttered a hesitant hello.

“Miss Willis, Mr. McIntyre is here. Shall I send him up?”

Her pulse sped up. Jace wasn’t home yet and it was past his usual time. Maybe Ash thought he’d be here already?

“Uhm, sure,” she replied.

She wiped her hands nervously down her jeans and then castigated herself. Ash had been the epitome of polite and nice ever since the night she’d had sex with him and Jace. There was no reason for her to work herself into knots every time she had to face him.

A few moments later, the elevator opened and Ash stepped out.

“Hello, Bethany,” he said, offering her a warm smile.

“Hi, Ash. Jace isn’t home yet.”

Ash frowned. “Damn. Thought he’d be here. I needed to give him a folder. Deal’s going south on us. He may have been tied up at the office longer than I thought, trying to straighten this shit out.”

Her brow crinkled. “It sounds bad. Is it?”

He smiled. “Nothing we can’t handle. Shit like this happens all the time. Just another day at the office.”

“Come in. Don’t just stand there. My manners are horrible. Why don’t you sit in the living room? I’m sure he’ll be here shortly. Would you like some hot chocolate? I was just making some.”