Chapter 24

Chapter Twenty-Four

“You’re right. The view from the loft is better,” Jason said, rolling over in the bed to look at Jen. She lay there, long hair over her shoulders, only half covered by a sheet, her body still flushed from sleepy sex. He loved watching her body’s response to him. The way she looked in the morning. She was so naturally beautiful—one of the rare women who woke up looking like the same person he’d taken to bed. Not that she even used that much makeup.

“Remind me why I have to get up to go to church.” She checked her phone.

He nuzzled her neck with a light kiss. “You don’t. You can stay here with me, and I promise it’ll be a lot more fun.”

She laughed and swatted him. “You’re practically wearing a red cape and horns.” Sitting up, she brushed her hair from her face with her fingers. “You know, if you really wanted to impress my parents, you could go with me.”

He interlaced his hand with hers. “I could, but then the church might burn down from that lightning strike when I go in. And then where would we be?”

Jen rolled her eyes. “I’m serious.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll see them tonight. I think spending the entire afternoon yesterday moving boxes from your apartment with your dad and brothers and a family dinner tonight is probably all I should attempt at this point. Don’t want to give them too much time to poke holes in our story.”

“Or, God forbid, have them think you like me?”

“Well, I wouldn’t want that.” He grinned.

She climbed out of the bed. “I guess if I show up to church with you, they’re going to know for sure that I spent the night here last night, anyway.”

Grabbing his pants, Jason stood. “Or you could just tell them.”

“Thanks, but no. Ever since your dumb brother, my whole family thinks I’m a screwup. My mom already gave me a talk about how it would be a good idea for us to ‘get to know each other before we decide to be intimate,’ and I really don’t want to have another discussion with her like that again.”

Considering the way Dan had acted, her church-going parents would probably despise him if they knew even a shadow of truth about their relationship. “At least they don’t have the expectation that you’re a virgin.”

She gaped at him, her eyes widening. “Asshole.”

He chuckled. “I’m serious. Lots of religious parents hold their kids to that standard.” He came over to where she stood, still naked, and ran his hands over the smooth curves of her hips, cupping her ass. “And we both know you are anything but.”

“So I’m just a slut, then?” She narrowed her gaze as though trying to decide if she was offended.

“No.” He pulled her closer, kissing her jaw. “You’re the perfect combination of innocent and dirty, exactly when you need to be. Which makes you unbelievably fucking hot.” He swept her up into a kiss, and she gave a low, throaty moan before pulling away.

“If I don’t hurry, I’m going to be late. And my parents like to sit in the front row with my brother Warren and his wife. I don’t want to cross over everyone to get to Colby.” She disentangled herself from his arms.

“The one time you worry about not being late.” He gave her a teasing glance, lifting a brow.

“Oh, shut up.” She laughed, grabbing her overnight bag and hurrying to the bathroom.

When she’d left, Jason made a coffee, grabbed his laptop, and returned to the loft bed. He opened the browser to the Financial Times, an old habit he’d developed in college.

He’d avoided the thought of another job while he was here in Brandywood, but it was something he’d have to think about soon. Ironically, as long as he’d been in the world of business, he’d never had to search for a job. He’d started going into the office with his father as a boy and later interned there in high school and college. As luck would have it, the CFO position opened a year after he’d graduated with his master's. Cavanaugh Metals was a family business. Of course, it was going to stay in the family.

Until it didn’t.

With forty percent of the shares to the company tied up in an inheritance trust, who knew if there would be a company for Colby to benefit from in fifteen years?

The thought made his stomach clench with nausea. And there was little he could do to change things now. He was on the outside without those shares and fired. He’d watch Powell and Chad torch what his family had created—and it would die.

Just like everyone else did.

He rubbed his eyes, dropping back against the pillow, trying to get more comfortable. He could still smell the scent of Jen’s perfume against the sheets. Time was running out to settle the inheritance issue for Colby. And Ned was bound to find out the truth soon if he hadn’t already. But if he told Jen about everything now and his idea to marry her and adopt Colby, would he lose her? He couldn’t promise her the marriage of her dreams, but they seemed to be compatible. Sex was great, too. In a lot of ways, this was the best solution he could have come up with. It honored what his grandfather wanted to do with his will, in theory, while still allowing Jason the chance to save the company.

He wouldn’t lie to her and let her make the mistake of thinking about this romantically. It was a business transaction. He’d never wanted to marry again, and he couldn’t pretend the thought really appealed to him. Women changed when they were comfortably married—both in and out of the bedroom. But he cared about her and Colby, and she would want for nothing. If he could get Mildred to let him work something out with that hardware store, too, he’d give her the key to her dreams. She could stay in Brandywood, and he would...he’d find something somewhere. It wouldn’t matter. Jen didn’t really need him.

Cavanaugh Metals wouldn’t lose its importance. He wouldn’t be the Cavanaugh to let it fail. His father wouldn’t have let it fail because his father never, ever gave up on the people he loved. Jason knew that all too well.

Swallowing a bitter sip of coffee, he turned his attention back to the computer and clicked through the headlines. Then he saw Bill Powell’s photo. “Bill Powell: Guiding Cavanaugh Metals Into the Future as its New President.”

Rage surged through him. That son of a bitch.

Closing the article, he slammed the laptop shut and sprang out of the bed. He was tempted to call the bastard and ream him out.

The phone rang in his hand. A number he didn’t recognize popped into his call log, but from the area code, it seemed to be local to Brandywood. He answered.

“Jason.” TJ’s voice had none of its typical humor. “You busy?”

“Not at the moment.” Jason sat on the edge of the bed, staring out the enormous window of the loft. Outside, the sky was a crystalline blue, the bare branches of the trees reaching into the cloudless view.

“I’m in jail. I need you to bail me out.”

As TJ walked out of the police station with Jason, he stuffed his hands into his pockets. “I’m going to kill you. I never gave you those cameras, thinking you’d turn around and give them right back to Ned. I’m facing felony charges, dude. Fel-o-ny.”

The knot in Jason’s stomach tightened. “I’m so sorry, man. I don’t know what I was thinking.”

TJ glared. “I know what you were thinking. You were thinking you could pull some macho, tough-guy move. Telling Ned we were onto him, I was fine with. Giving him the damn cameras, though?” He hooked his fingers into claws, shaking them in front of him as though he was strangling someone. “My fingerprints are all over those damned things!”

Jason cringed. He hadn’t thought about that. “Doesn’t water ruin prints?”

“Not necessarily. Especially if the objects don’t stay in the water long. Vickers might be lying to scare me, but if he’s telling the truth, I’m screwed.”

“I’m going to pay for your legal fees.” Jason unlocked his car as they approached it.

“Doesn’t mean I won’t go to jail. Stalking. Illegal surveillance. Threats. Not to mention the fact that I can’t follow the dude anymore. I have a fucking restraining order.” TJ opened the passenger door, plopped down into the seat, then slammed the door.

Normally, Jason would comment about someone slamming his car door, but TJ’s anger was warranted. He got in the driver’s side and sat, letting out a slow sigh. Ned had been quiet for too long. He should have known he was planning to strike a move.

“What now, then? What do we do about Ned?” Jason started the car. He felt a headache coming on, the muscles in the back of his neck and shoulders so taut that they felt as though they might stay permanently frozen like that. He tried to roll them out.

“I’m out.” TJ shook his head in disbelief. “You can’t seriously think I’m still going to keep helping you with this shitshow. It’s over, Jason. I can’t. I like you, you’re a good client. Almost a friend, even. But you’re in over your head with this one. My advice? Leave now. Before things get so fucked up, you’ll never find a way to fix them. Space can be a good thing. You’re too involved with that woman to think straight.”

Jason didn’t pull out of the parking spot. He rubbed his eyes. “What do you think Ned’s endgame is? Just to get back at you? Me?”

TJ rubbed his hands together, then turned on the air vent so it hit him more directly. “Partially, yeah. But he’s smarter than that. There are lines you cross in this industry only when necessary. And in this case, I’ve been in his way. My guess is that he wanted to get me out of the way.”

Jason stiffened.

Jen.

He threw the car into reverse, feeling sick. TJ grabbed the handle above his seat. “Whoa, whoa, whoa! I’m not buckled.”

Jason zipped out of his space, then put the car into gear. “Where’s the first place you would go if you were Ned and no one was in the way?”

TJ’s belt clicked into place. “I see your point.”

Jason dialed Jen’s phone number. It rang, but then went to voice mail after a few rings.

“Did she just decline your call?” TJ gave him a sidelong glance.

Maybe. Jason’s heart hammered in his chest. If that sniveling snake got to Jen before he explained things, Ned could ruin everything.

His car zoomed through the streets of Brandywood. Luckily, Jen had texted him her parents’ address the day before when he’d been helping her move—it was just one touch of a button to get his GPS to give him directions.

“Have I told you I get carsick?” TJ puffed his cheeks out as Jason took a hard turn.

They arrived within a few minutes, and Jason parked in the street in front of the old Victorian house. Jen’s car was in the driveway, along with a few other cars, including Dan’s police cruiser.

“Is one of those cars Ned’s?” Jason tried to remember the car outside of Ned’s cabin, but he couldn’t.

TJ’s lips set to a line, and he pointed—not at the driveway but across the street. The car was empty.

Jason dialed Jen’s number again. The call immediately went to voice mail. Exchanging a look with TJ, Jason steadied his hands with a death grip on his steering wheel.

He didn’t want to go in.

But he couldn’t not go in, either. He opened the door.

“Can you leave the car running?” TJ called. “It’s cold outside and I just spent the night in jail.”

Jason tossed him the keys and started up the driveway.

Before he made it halfway up, the front door opened. Warren, a big, barrel-chested man—of similar stature and appearance to Dan, but bearded—stepped onto the porch. He stormed down the stairs and his petite, auburn-haired wife, Alice, appeared behind him. “Warren...” Alice said in a low warning tone.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Warren stormed up to Jason, and before Jason could get a word out, he threw a punch.

Jason ducked, springing back. Warren didn’t stop, though. He looked like he should be a linebacker. And from the stance he took, he probably had been one. He leaned forward, then tackled Jason, flattening him onto the grass in front of the house.

The sky above Jason swam, his ears ringing from the blow to the back of his head. Something sharp—like a rock or a pinecone—dug into his back. Warren raised his fist to throw another punch, and a shadow crossed them. Dan was there, too, now. He caught his older brother’s hand.

“You don’t need this dick claiming you assaulted him, War.” Dan held him back.

Jason blinked, his head feeling as though someone had taken an axe to it. The unyielding sun made his eyes water, and tears gathered on his lashes as he tried to see straight. “Get the fuck off me,” he growled to Warren.

Warren heaved an angry breath but spit on Jason as he stood, shoulders heaving.

As Jason tried to sit, he caught Dan’s gaze. He looked angry but troubled. He gave Jason a menacing look. “You fucking lied to me.”

More people came out onto the porch of the Kleins’ house—Betty, Bob...and Ned. Ned gave Jason a satisfied smirk, then turned back and shook Bob’s hand. “Don’t forget, if you have any questions at all, please reach out to me.”

Ned descended the steps in front of the porch, then sauntered down the front walkway in front of the Kleins’ house. He practically glowed. Giving Jason a mock salute with two fingers, he crossed the street toward his car.

“Warren. Dan. Get inside the house,” Bob said in a flat tone. “Now.”

Jason gave Dan a pleading look. “I need to talk to Jen. I didn’t lie to you.”

“You’re never talking to her again.” Dan shook his head and pointed a thick finger at Jason. “I’m taking her to the precinct after this to get a restraining order. You stay away from her, you hear?” He grabbed Warren by the elbow and dragged him away.

Bob came to the top of the steps and stared at Jason as his sons passed him. Betty joined her husband for a moment, murmuring something, then went inside along with Warren’s wife.

Jason stood, feeling unsteady. He turned toward Bob and walked a few feet forward. “Please let me talk to Jen.”

Bob clasped his hands in front of him. He was like a bodyguard, except that he didn’t remotely have the stature of his sons. He was much smaller. He took a few steps down. “Listen, Jason. Jenneeds a little time to process things. It’d be best if you just went on home.”

“To Chicago?” Jason lifted a brow.

“That’d be preferable.” Bob shrugged. “I know you don’t have any children, Jason. And it’s hard to be a dad. Hard to see your little girl grow up and get hurt by a man who leaves her in the worst sort of position. But it’s a little worse when that man’s brother comes around and tries to pull a fast one over her.”

“I swear to you that wasn’t my intention. And I know how much you love your daughter—”

Bob gave him a stern look. “When my daughter came to tell me she was pregnant, I told her, ‘Jen, that’s my grandbaby, not bad news.’ And that’s the truth. I love that girl. And I love that baby. And I will not let anyone hurt them if I can intercede.”

Jason drew a shaky breath. “I don’t know what that man told you, sir, but he doesn’t know the whole story. I want to take care of Jen. I want to marry her and adopt Colby—”

The door to the house opened.

Jen stood at the door, pale, eyes puffy as though she’d been crying. She wore an oversized sweater, and somehow, it made her look smaller, younger. The sound of her footsteps on the wooden slats of the porch caught Bob’s attention, and he looked back at his daughter. “Jen, honey, I can handle this.”

“No, Dad.” Jen didn’t look at Jason. “I want to—need to—talk to him.”

Bob sucked air in through his teeth. Then he gave her a nod and went back up the stairs. “We’ll be right inside if you need anything. And please”—Bob gave her a stern glance—“don’t go anywhere with him.”

“I won’t.” Jen wiped her eyes, then turned away from her father.

Jason crossed the yellowed grass on the lawn toward her. “Jen, babe, please listen to me—”

“Don’t.” Her voice was so quiet that he barely heard her. She turned a watery gaze toward him, not moving. “Don’t call me that.”

Jason clenched his teeth, a tightness closing in over his chest and heart, so fierce that it felt as though it would burst. “Jen...I...there’s more to it than what that guy told you.”

“All right.” Jen crossed her arms. “Then answer a few questions for me.”

Although she still had tears on her face, her words gave him the faintest notion of hope. “I’ll answer anything you ask.”

“Did you come down to Brandywood to make sure that no one would ever find out about Colby so you could inherit your grandfather’s money instead of Colby?”

Wow. A trap right off the bat. Not a chance he could make this sound better than it was. He gave her a stiff nod, his neck aching from Warren’s tackle. “Yes.”

She choked back a sob. “And you had no intention of telling me that not only were you a multi- millionaire, but that Colby was your grandfather’s heir?”

He came closer to her. Brutal honesty might be his best bet. “Not at first. I didn’t think Colby deserved it. Or you.” He saw the tears welling in her eyes once again. “But I knew nothing about you, Jen. I didn’t know that Kevin loved you. Kevin liked to party hard and sleep around. The chance of you just being some chick he knocked up was pretty high.”

She blinked tears away, her eyes narrowing. “And that’s—that’s what you thought I was when you met me? Just some ‘chick’ your brother knocked up?”

He put his hands in his pockets. “Yeah. I did. But it didn’t take long for me to think differently.” He cleared his throat, finding it hard to breathe. “Listen, Jen, I didn’t know what happened to Kevin. With him dying of an overdose, I just assumed his life went on a downward spiral of drugs and God knows what else. But when I talked to Mildred last week, she told me the type of relationship Kevin had with you.”

“Millie?” Jen looked at him in disbelief. “She knows about all this?”

He didn’t want to throw his grandmother under the bus. “She knows some of it. Enough to tell me that Kevin left because he loved you so much he wanted to protect you and Colby from my grandfather. I don’t know what he was thinking, but I can tell you that my grandfather was cruel and controlling. Even Kevin didn’t want my grandfather finding out about you.”

Jen absorbed this information with a dull expression. She pressed her dry lips together as though trying to form words.

Jason stepped even closer. “I know you don’t need me in your life. But if Colby is named the heir to my grandfather’s estate, control of the estate will go to a trustee—the CEO of Cavanaugh Metals, Chad Duncan—a man I deeply distrust. Most trusts work in a way that the minors don’t inherit until after they reach adulthood anyway, but Chad’s an asshole. The only thing Colby being the heir means is that Chad will control huge portions of his life and wealth—and yours, by extension, well into Colby’s adulthood.”

Squinting at him, Jen rubbed her collarbone, her fingers barely peeking out of the sleeves of her sweater. “So the money wouldn’t help us at all now? Wouldn’t make Colby’s life better?”

“Not necessarily. It depends on the way my grandfather set it all up, but the trustee gets a lot of say in things. And I don’t want that creep anywhere near you.” Jason took a slow breath. “That’s why I want to marry you, Jen. I want to adopt Colby. And I know it’s a rush, but there’s a ninety-day window for Colby to claim his inheritance, and it’s almost closed. But if he’s my son, we can take the whole thing to court. We can argue they should name me the trustee, which is what would happen if I had a legal son of my own. Then I can make life better for you both. Now.”

“Just Colby and me?” Jen gave him a wary glance. “Or your life, too?”

His gut dropped. “It’s not like that—”

“Isn’t it, though? From where I’m standing, it sounds like you have a lot to lose—everything, in fact—if that’s not what happens. The only way for you to get to your grandfather’s money is what you just suggested.” She covered her mouth, then lowered one hand to her stomach as though she might gag. “Is that why you’ve been sleeping with me? Because you wanted to make me think you cared about me so I would marry you?”

“No, Jen, no, I—” Jason dug both hands through his hair. Mildred’s words about how he’d ruined things swirled in his brain. “No. I genuinely care about you. I can’t get enough of you. I want you. Everything between us was completely real, I swear it.” He drew closer and reached for her hand. “Even I couldn’t fake a connection like you and I have. I promise—”

“Don’t touch me.”

Jason pulled his hand back.

She stepped back, her eyes wounded. “Please leave. Please.”

“Jen, it doesn’t have to be like this. What happened between us? It’s been great. We get along well, and that’s more than enough to build a life on.”

“Are you kidding me right now? This isn’t a movie, Jason. This whole thing more than proves we barely know each other. I am so sick of being taken for a ride, Jason. First Kevin, who proclaimed to love me and then bolted. And now you, asking me to marry you with even more to lose if I refuse you. No, I’m done. Just leave me alone. Get out!”

The last words tore from her throat with a savage torment that he closed his eyes, feeling her slip far out of his grasp.

When he looked back, she’d gone back into the house. Bob stood at the front window, his expression unreadable.

Jason’s shoulders fell. He released the last suffocating sigh in his chest, then went back to the car.