Obsessed: Part Two (8 page)

"Holy hell, it's hot in here." Jax instantly breaks a sweat when he walks into my apartment after our train ride back to the city. "Why didn't you turn on your air conditioner before we left?"

"It's broken." I pull an elastic band from the drawer of the foyer table so I can put my hair into a ponytail. "I'll open some windows."

"How long has it been like this?" He fans himself with one of the newspapers he picked up with my mail.

"I'm not sure. At least a week." I pull open the weathered latch on the window and push it upwards to open it. The warm midday air comes rushing in. "Great, it's hotter outside than it is in here. This isn't going to help."

"You can't stay here." He marches into the kitchen.

"It's fine." I flip through my mail as he walks back in with two chilled water bottles in hand.

"I almost climbed into the refrigerator." He laughs. "It's not fine. You can't live here."

"I can and I do." I trace my finger along the edge of an envelope that is emblazoned with stickers claiming I'm a guaranteed prize winner.

"Gather some things. You're coming to my place." It's a demand that he's trying to veil as a request.

"I'm really okay here." I toss the letter into the trash. "All of my work is here and I'm falling behind."

"Beautiful. You should come live with me." He grabs both my hands in his. "Just move in with me."

I'm stunned into silence. He is actually asking me to leave this apartment and move into his? This is moving too quickly. Just days ago I was certain he was nothing but a lying, conniving, cutthroat, power hungry bastard. Now I'm going to move in with him?

"It makes perfect sense." He leans over to pick up my mail and shove it into my overnight bag. "Grab whatever else you need for tonight and I'll send someone over tomorrow to finish packing your things."

"No." I shake my head weakly. "No. I can't."

"You will." He pulls out his phone and points his finger to silence me. "Leonard, come get us at Ivy's. Come up to her apartment. We're bringing some of her things home."

"So that's that?" I stomp my foot. "I don't get to decide?"

"What is there to decide?" He walks down the hallway towards my bedroom.

"What if I want to stay here?" I have to almost run to keep up with his large steps.

He pulls one of my large suitcases from the closet. "Fill this up."

"Jax. Stop." I pull his hands so he'll sit next to me on the bed. "This is overwhelming. I can't think."

"Beautiful, I love you. I don't want to waste any more time away from you. You can't stay here. The air is so thick and hot. It's not good for you. Come and be with me." He scoops up a bead of sweat that is running down my forehead.

"It's really too soon." I say it without any conviction.

"According to who?" He gently pulls at the necklace reminding me of how tender and loving he is.

"I need some time here to gather my stuff together." I search his face for some understanding. "I want to talk to Mrs. Adams too."

"I understand." He stands. "I got a little ahead of myself. It's hard not to." He leans down and brushes his lips against my forehead.

"I want to live with you," I whisper the words under my breath.

"Why don't you take whatever time you need to get organized and I'll come get you when you're ready? Does that work for you?" He kneels in front of me now.

"Yes, thank you." I kiss him softly before I wipe the sweat from his brow.

"I'll get Leonard to bring over some floor fans." He winks. "I don't want to come back and find you melting."

I laugh as I wrap my arms around his neck.

***

"I'm going to move in with a friend." I hand Mrs. Adams a tall glass of water.

"That makes me smile, dear." She reaches for the glass and I notice her hand trembling.

"I'm going to really miss you." I know that I'm going to cry. "But I'll come back every Saturday to get your groceries and help you run errands."

"I'd love that." Her eyes well with tears. "You've been like a daughter to me, Ivy."

"You've helped me so much." I sob now, knowing that I'll miss her terribly. I'll miss the way she woke me too early in the morning to share mundane gossip with me and I'll miss the biting comments she throws at me when she thinks I'm being too flirty or risqué.

"I worry about you." She pats me hand with her own. "I worry that you're going to have your heart broken again."

"Not this time." I pull on the necklace so it's closer for her to see. "He gave me this."

"Who did?" she's genuine with the question.

"The hippie." I laugh.

She bursts out laughing. "Rex did. He turned out to be a good boy after all."

I smile at the fact that she can't remember Jax's name. "We worked through everything."

"I hope he'll be your Mr. Adams." She reaches to touch my cheek. "You need that, dear."

I press my palm over her hand. "I want that."

"I'm not sure what you said to him, but Jax's attorney called me this morning and said we're good to go with the contract exactly as you want it." Nathan motions for the waiter.

"That's such great news." I smile at him before directing my attention to the young man who rushed over. "Just an iced tea would be great."

"So, that's it. You're going to be part owner of Veray Jewelers. How does that feel?" He claps his hands together as a wide grin runs over his lips.

"Promising and exciting," I say as I soak in the ambiance of the restaurant he chose for our celebratory lunch.

"Have you been here before?" he leans his elbow on the table and scans his smartphone quickly.

"No. This place is new for me, but I really like it." I was being genuine. It was earthy and casual. I liked the atmosphere and I could tell from the content looks on the other diners faces that the food was delicious too.

"I did some digging." Nathan leans back again in his seat and crosses his legs.

"What kind of digging?" I nod to the waiter as he places the large glass of iced tea with lemon down in front of me.

"We'll need a few more minutes with the menu," he coolly says. "I'll let you know when we're ready."

"Digging?" I repeat. My curiosity is definitely peaked at this point.

"Remember that confusing comment you got wind of? Something about the fact that more than one person was trying to take over Mark's business?"

"I already asked Jax about that. He said it was nothing." I take a long sip of the tea. It's welcome given that I walked here from my apartment and I'm feeling extra parched.

"He said it was nothing?" he asks. His expression speaks of some confusion. "And you believe him?"

"Things have changed between us" I absentmindedly run my fingers over the necklace Jax gave me. "We went to see my dad this past weekend for his birthday."

"You were in Boston?" he smiles broadly. "I was there too. I wish I'd have known that. I could have taken you to see Sandra."

I sigh. "I hadn't even thought of that. Dammit. Does she ever come to visit you here?"

He shakes his head. "Nope. It's too hard for her with the kids."

"I'll give her a call then."  I reach for my phone. "Can you give me her number?"

He rattles off her phone number by heart and I make a mental note to text her after lunch. I'm definitely going to stop by to see her next time I visit my dad, hopefully with Jax in tow.

"Back to that comment, Ivy." He's being cautious. I can tell. "I don't want to overstep any boundaries."

"Did you find out anything concrete about it?" I ask even though I don't want to know. I can't imagine he's learned anything that will surprise me. I asked Jax point blank about it and he assured me that there was no one else involved in his quest to get my shares.

"Nothing with actual evidence." He finishes his martini. "I did ask around."

"Are you ready to order?" I feel slightly panicked inside. Everything is so perfect at this point. I don't want him to throw something at me that is going to make me question Jax's honesty. I've pushed and pushed Jax on that and I'd know if he was being dishonest.

"Sure." He motions again for the waiter and we both relay our orders. His phone rings and he excuses himself to take the call. I glance down at my phone and scan through the numbers. I stop at Jax's. Part of me wants to call him just so I can hear his voice and he can reassure me that the necklace holds as much meaning as I believe it does. He wouldn't have given it to me if he were still being deceitful. I would have seen that within his eyes when he looked at me last night when we were making love.

"Sorry about that, Ivy." Nathan sits down again. He obviously stopped at the bar given the fact that he's got another martini in his hand. "As I said I was asking around about Jax."

"It's really okay, Nathan." I hold up my hand to stop him. "I've asked Jax about it and I do trust him."

"You should hear this. You need to know it especially if you're involved personally with him again." His words have a biting tone to them and I feel an undercurrent of something else.

"You don't approve of him, do you?" I push the question at him.

"No. He's a smug, arrogant ass." He takes a large drink from his glass. "You shouldn’t trust him either."

"I'm not hungry anymore." I stand to leave. "We weren't supposed to get personal with this, remember? Strictly client and attorney."

"Don't let your feelings blind you." He doesn't move a muscle. "You did that with Mark. Don't make that mistake again."

"You have no right to say that." I pick up my purse and turn to leave.

"You're still that little girl I chased when I was a kid," he calls after me. "Don't let him steal that part of you away."

***

"I can't imagine what you think we have to talk about, Mark." I push past him towards the bank of elevators as I nod in Oliver's direction.

"Jax Walker." The way he says his name cuts into my bones. I can't stand Mark and I don't want to hear him even utter the name of the man I'm in love with.

"What about him?" I ask impatiently as I press the call button.

"We're not doing this here." He reaches for my elbow to push me into the elevator car that's just arrived.

"Don't you dare touch me," I sneer. "Ever." I'm already irritated from my meeting with Nathan and now I have to deal with Mark and all his incessant ramblings.

"Get in, Ivy." He walks past me into the car and I have no choice but to follow. "You need to hear this whether you want to or not."

"I'm so sick of this bullshit." I push past him when we reach the third floor and I fumble with my keys. My hands are trembling. This push and pull between Jax and Mark is wearing and I just want the feud to be over. I'm tired of being caught in the middle of it.

"What the hell is going on?" he demands after stepping into the apartment. "What are all these boxes for?"

"I'm moving," I announce nonchalantly. "I'm leaving this afternoon."

"You're not moving in with him? Ivy, tell me that's not it." He's pleading with me now.

I turn to face him. He's still looking as tired as ever. The peach colored polo he's wearing doesn't help his pale complexion. His jeans hang on his hips loosely. His world is crumbling and his outward appearance isn't masking that at all. "My air conditioning broke. I need a place to stay so for the time being I'm moving in with Jax."

"Don't do that." His voice is impassioned. "I know I'm not someone who can tell you what to do but this is a huge mistake."

"Why? Why Mark?" I spit the words with disdain at him. "You don’t get to have an opinion on this. You made that choice when you decided to fuck my best friend."

"Grow up." His eyes glaze over with anger. "Wake up. Can't you see what's going on?"

"You're talking about the company, aren't you?" I push the words towards him with a hint of entitlement. "You hate that I'm handing control of your precious company to Jax."

"I could care less about that at this point." He runs his hand through his greying hair. "Do what you want with those shares. I don't give a fuck."

I twirl around to face him directly now. "You're kidding, right?" I chuckle. "That company is what you live for. Well that and bedding as many women as possible."

"Shut up," he snaps. "Just shut the hell up and listen to me."

"No." I march towards the door and fling it wide open. "Get out. You shouldn't have come here."

"I'm not leaving until you hear me out." He stomps his foot as though that will intimidate me enough that I'll slam the door and sit down to listen to him.

"Ivy, what's going on?" Mrs. Adams weak voice calls to me from her doorway.

"It's nothing. Go back inside." I call back to her. The last thing I need right now is Mark getting into a shouting match with her.

"I'm going to call the police." She yells back towards me. "They'll come take him away."

"Don't you dare do that." Mark lunges past me and down the hallway.

She quickly slams her door and he turns again to look at me before pressing the elevator call button.

"Don’t bother me again." I start to close the door.

"Ask him about Brooke."

"Who?" I feel my pulse quicken at the mention of a woman's name in relation to Jax.

"Brooke." His mouth curves into a tainted smile. "Ask him."

"Wait." I march forward to press the call button holding the car on my floor. "Just tell me, Mark. Who is Brooke?"

"I'm not hanging around here." He reaches outside the car to push my hand from its place. "Apparently the police are on their way and you're not worth the trouble."

"Whatever," I spit back as I take a step away from the closing doors.

His hand bolts to hold the doors open. "Oh, and sweetheart, keep those keys. You'll be back here soon enough."

***

"I emptied the top two drawers in my dresser so you can put your unmentionables in there," he teases.

"Unmentionables? Like my dildos?" I twist my lips together and roll my eyes.

Jax blushes. I've never seen that happen and I'm smitten with how genuinely embarrassed he looks. "I meant your lingerie, but I guess if you brought…" his voice trails as I reach up to kiss him softly.

"I didn't bring anything unmentionable with me." I walk over to where he's placed my suitcase on the bed. "Just these panties and things." I hold them up and he takes them, tucking them neatly away in the top drawer.

My confrontation with Mark keeps ringing through my ears but after he left I spent time saying goodbye to Mrs. Adams. She had convinced me that Mark was just being petty and throwing random names at me to try to jar me into distrusting Jax. She pointed out that Mark had lost and had always been a sore loser. Besides, I didn't want to begin my new life with Jax with a barrage of questions about some woman I wasn't even sure existed. If Mark ever gave me any real, concrete proof of this Brooke person and her involvement with Jax, I'd bring it up.

"Ivy, are you listening?" He's bent his knees so his gaze directly aligns with mine.

"Yes. Well, actually no." I giggle. "I was daydreaming."

"About all the fun we're going to have in this bed when I get back from my meeting?" He adjusts the necklace so the pendant is dangling loosely between my breasts.

"Can't we have fun before your meeting?" I suggestively pull on the sash of my dress causing it to fall open. "I bought these new unmentionables just for you."

His gaze slowly runs the length of my body, stopping to drink in the sight of the new black bra and panties I ordered a few weeks ago. He pulls me to him and I shrug the dress from my shoulders. His lips claim mine and I feel his tongue expertly caress mine just as his hand reaches my breast. "I can't," he whimpers into my mouth.

I pull back and unhook the clasp at the front of my bar causing my full breasts to rub against his shirt. "My nipples are so hard. Just look." I lean back slightly so he can get a full view of me running my hands over my breasts. I stop to pull on both nipples.

"Fuck." He falls to his knees and takes both breasts into his hands. His mouth clamps down on the left and I flinch when I feel his teeth pull at my nipple. "I have to go. I can't miss this."

I lean back until my knees hit the bed. I let myself fall backwards while he's still settled on the floor. "I'll have to take care of this myself then." I push my hand into my panties and across my very wet cleft. "I'll think of you." I close my eyes as I hear him rustling.

"Hell," he growls as I feel the panties being ripped from me. His mouth finds my clit immediately and he hungrily licks and bites it. He pushes his hands under my ass, pulling my center into him. He knows how close I am. He knows I need this.

"Come for me," he whispers and his breath pushes me over the edge. I reach my climax instantly and intensely. My entire body shudders and he holds me as I slowly push myself back into the bedding.

"I'll never get enough of you." He kisses me tenderly on the forehead as he pulls a light blanket from the foot of the bed to cover me. "Sleep now. I'll be back as soon as I can. I love you, Ivy."

"I love you, Jax," I tell him softly as I drift off, his footsteps lulling me to sleep.