Page 82 of Sweet Wicked Vows

Bell dropped down from his lap and made a beeline for me while her new favorite person set the table in tense silence. For a cat who normally hated men, she was having no problem getting all cozy with Jaxon.

The little traitor.

He said he didn’t like animals, but Bell was wearing him down. There was more than one occasion where I caught the two of them together. Bell’s new favorite sleeping spot was Jaxon’s lap, his fingers absentmindedly stroking under her chin while he worked.

I may have been slightly jealous of my own cat.

“Are we expecting someone else?” I watched Jaxon set an extra place at the table.

“Oui,Olivier is joining us for dinner.”

I tried to swallow my groan. It wasn’t as if I disliked Jaxon’s youngest brother. In fact, it was quite the opposite. Olivier was a delight—he was always so friendly and bubbly, a complete contrast to Jaxon and Frederic. I was just exhausted and wanted nothing more than dinner and my bed.

“Why didn’t you tell me your brother was coming for dinner?”

He shrugged. “Between dealing with your father’s latest mess and trying to run my own company, I didn’t find a chance.”

I clicked my tongue against the roof of my mouth. “Our offices are right beside each other. I am sure you very easily could have dropped in. Or sent me an email or, hell, put it on that damn shared calendar I made months ago.”

He shrugged while straightening the knives and forks.

This version of Jaxon was the exact same one as I first married. Distant and uncooperative.

It was as if Thanksgiving never happened.

Was I really that naïve to think that us sleeping together would have changed how he felt?

Poppy busied herself with serving up dinner in silence.

“It’s only dinner,” Jaxon said bluntly. “Olivier called this morning and asked if I was free for lunch. Thanks toCapitol Pressand your father’s cock-ups, I was unable to meet him. I thought it polite to invite him to dinner, instead.”

“No one asked you to step in and help, you know.”

“Last time I checked, it was part of our marriage agreement. I’m to help you not run the company into the ground. This sort of news could very well have done that if not acted upon appropriately.”

“That’s what our PR team is for,” I countered.

“They’ve done enough damage hiding it in the first place.” He poured himself a glass of bourbon. “I was simply fulfilling my end of the bargain,douceur.”

“What, because all of a sudden, that’s all it is again, just an arrangement?”

“Why would it be anything else?”

What the hell was wrong with him? He was acting like a total and complete ass.

Where was the man who held me at Dad’s bedside?

“Look, I understand that no one wants to deal with what happened today.” I tried to stay calm. “If Dad were awake, this would be a different story. He could answer for his actions rather than us.”

The front door knocking echoed through the silent house.

Poppy practically fell over her own feet running to answer it.

“If you’re upset because of what happened today, I can’t blame you. I am upset, too.” I stepped towards him. When he stepped back, it was a blunt blade to my heart. “Something is bothering you. I can tell. Was it the phone call?”

Guilt and uncertainty flickered in his whiskey eyes before he blinked them away rapidly. “Like I said, it does not concern you.”

Olivier sauntering into the kitchen put an unfinished abrupt end to the conversation.

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