Beholden (The Belonging Duet, #2)(18)

“Don’t f*ck this up,” Mark says as he pulls away.

I’m going to miss him. He’s like the brother I never had. The one who picks on you, but if anyone else did he’d kill them. Which he’s more than capable of doing.

“When I’m back to normal we’re going to roll.”

“I think you could use a good ass kicking,” Mark says as he laces his fingers and cracks them.

“Dude, you’ve never beaten me when we wrestle. Ever,” Jackson smirks.

Mark puts his arms up and flexes as I roll my eyes. These two are worse than a couple of kids. “I’m ready for you, Muffin. Now be good to her.”

“I’m always good. Well … that depends on your definition.”

Mark laughs as he walks over to Jackson.

“Maybe, but I’m better.”

“Be careful getting home, glitter boy.”

Mark leans close and whispers something and Jackson’s eyes dart to me before closing and shutting me out.

My gut tightens as I try to calm the fears that that one single moment brought out of me. His eyes showed pure fear at whatever Mark said.

“Catherine?” Mark says snapping me out of my trance.

“Sorry,” I say shaking my head to rid myself of the panic traveling through my body. What could’ve made him look so scared?

“I said I’ll call in a few days. Check in on how we need to handle the press statement for both companies. Is that how you still want to proceed?” Mark asks studying my face.

I smile and nod. “Yeah, that sounds fine. The release is next month so I’d like to maybe push it all to happen at once. If I can control the story we can keep the shareholders happy and show that we’re business as usual.”

Jackson clears his throat drawing my attention back to him. “Are there any issues I should be concerned about?” he asks.

“Nope,” I say turning to Mark so I don’t betray my false statement.

There aren’t huge issues per se, but there was a dip yesterday. The fact that Jackson hasn’t personally addressed his company has spooked a few people. During the last few years, there has been a lot of change and this appears to be another moment of instability. While I’ve been able to handle a few small things, the bottom line is I need to make a formal statement and I need to be in New York City to stay on top of it. Being here is delaying the news. I’m putting out fires instead of preventing them.

“Okay.” Mark looks over my shoulder to Jackson and then back to me. “I’ll see you guys soon.” Mark walks to Jackson and places his hand on his shoulder. “Glad you didn’t die. I would’ve had to kill you.”

Jackson laughs and playfully smacks him in the stomach. “Thanks for being here.”

“No thanks needed. Just don’t do it again.” He winks and kisses my cheek before heading out the door. I’m going to miss him even though he gives me hell.

“Then there were two,” I hear Jackson say, his voice heavy with emotion.

Not wanting to be away from him for even a second, I smile softly and snuggle into his side, careful not to touch his leg. We don’t speak, we enjoy the solace of being in each other’s arms. Together—in every sense of the word—we found our way back through the storm. Despite the rough seas, we discovered our calm waters.

I don’t know how I’m going to handle pretty much living with him. Even when I was engaged to Neil, we never lived together. I’m determined to be more open with my feelings, give him everything, including my trust. While there is a large part of me unsure how I’ll fight against every defense mechanism I’ve built, I know it’s our only chance of survival.





His breathing grows deeper and steadier after a few moments of lying silently. I hear the vibrating of my phone and extract myself carefully so as to not wake Jackson. Grabbing my phone, I see it’s a New York number.

“Hello?” I say quietly as I exit the room.

“Hey, babe, it’s Gretchen.”

Immediately I smile hearing the sound of one of my best friend’s voices. I miss them both so much. “Hey, stranger.”

“How’s Jackson doing?” she asks with concern.

I smile looking back into the room where he sleeps peacefully. “Really well. I’m hoping we’ll be out of here soon. How are you?”

“Good. You know me, always busy. Anyway, I’m calling because I heard some rumors floating around about Neil from a few of my lawyer friends.”

My good mood fades instantly at the sound of his name.

“Why would you hear that?”

“When the fight between Jackson and Neil happened I asked a few to listen for your name or Neil’s.”

My gut sinks. “What rumors?” I ask her, already knowing where this is going.

She sighs and I hear her shuffling some papers. “Right now he’s looking for a lawyer to go after you pro bono for losses he’s sustained. The engagement ring and the ring you purchased. I heard a few things about assault but no one is grabbing his case at this point. Ashton told me about the fight before Jackson left. I know why you didn’t want to tell me, but she knew I could help. I called in a few favors and had everyone keep an ear out. One of my friends called and I explained I have possession of evidence to show that Neil assaulted you.”