Page 5 of His Lovebug

My gaze shot up to Jackson, who leaned against the archway of the den, his mouth curled in a not so subtle smirk.

“Much prettier than Bethany.” He raised his eyebrows.

I grunted in answer. The thing about Jackson was that he never stayed around for long. He got in, got off, and then got out. He hadn’t come to my wedding to my ex and that had always been fine with me. Quin had never met him. Jackson was atroublemaker wherever he went, and even if he was in the same city as me, I preferred him to stay away.

We’d been close once, mostly when we were kids, but then life happened. Dad died, and we’d gone our separate ways. He only ever popped up when he wanted something, and the last time he’d needed money, he’d gotten more than that. He’d gotten my ex-wife’s pussy, too. I wasn’t going to be that naive when it came to him again. Not when it involved Quin, who I loved a hell of a lot more than Bethany.

“Why are you really here?” I grumbled, leaning back in my chair with a glare. My fingers twitched with the urge to reach into the top desk drawer and pull out my gun in warning. I didn’t, but only because I knew how disappointed in me Quin would be.

“I told you.” He straightened and strode into the den, his long legs eating up the space between us until he plopped into the chair in front of my desk. “I lost my job and need a place to crash until I can get back on my feet.”

Jackson was talented at lying, but I’d grown up with him. His tells were easy to spot. One of the main ones was how the pointer finger on his left hand twitched. He wasn’t aware, and I wasn’t going to enlighten him. It was easier to call his bluff.

“What aren’t you telling me?” My jaw clenched until it ached and I leaned forward, elbows on the smooth wood of my desk. “Don’t think for one second I won’t put you six feet under because you’re my brother.”

He rolled his eyes. “So dramatic.” Then, he grinned wide. “But good to know you’re still doing the wholebang banggig.” He made finger guns and shifted them, taking imaginary shots. “I see Derek’s still got you by the balls. You know, you’re going to take the fall if he’s ever caught, right? I don’t trust that bastard.”

“And I don’t trust you, but here you are.” I tapped the desk. “So, tell me right the fuck now what you want so I can go on living my life with my wife.”

“Are you married yet?” He gave me another smile designed to disarm. Not a chance. “I didn’t get an invite this time.”

“And you won’t.” I gnashed my teeth together to prevent myself from reaching for that gun. “Stop evading the question. What did you do?”

He kicked his feet up on the edge of my desk. “It’s a funny story, really.”

“I doubt it,” I drawled.

“You remember I was working with Dad’s old friend, Topher. He’s a real hard-ass.”

How could I forget? Topher was the one who’d tried to convince Dad to beat us, and when Dad didn’t do it, Topher had accused him of being weak. The only reason Dad kept him around was because they’d been friends since high school.

“Yeah, well, the old goat might have caught me in a vulnerable position.” The right corner of his mouth kicked upward.

I didn’t have to work out what position he was talking about. “Who were you fucking?”

He laughed. Jackson never knew how to be sorry about his actions. Dad had ruined him in that way. As far as Dad was concerned, Jackson could do no wrong. He was the baby of the family. “His daughter.”

I blinked, not quite sure I’d heard him correctly. “Amber?”

His lips twitched.

“Fuck. Amber? She’s married and pregnant, Jackson. It’s not yours, is it?” I shot to my feet and pointed at him. “Your dick is what gets you into trouble every single time.”

He rocked his feet from side to side on the desk. “Eh. Don’t get your panties in a twist. The baby isn’t mine, and she was having marital problems anyway.”

“Didn’t her husbandworkwith you?” I narrowed my eyes.

His rich laughter filled the room. “He did, yeah. He walked in after Topher. From what I heard, Tyler’s gonna stroll away with a lot of dough. There was a cheating clause in their prenup, and Tyler’s getting about ten mil from the old man because his daughter spread her legs for someone who wasn’t her husband.”

I blinked, weaving the threads of his deceitful nature together in my head until, finally, it all came together. “You were in on it with Tyler. You’re getting some of the cash.”

He shrugged. “When the divorce is done, yeah. I should get a couple mil.”

I bared my teeth at him. “You’re looking for ways to get yourself killed.”

“Making money comes with risks. There’s no significant difference between this and pouring hope into a venture startup portfolio.” He dropped his feet and stood to match my height, though he didn’t quite reach it. Crossing his arms, he grinned. “So, yourwifeconvinced you to let me stay? How nice of him. Though, I don’t remember you being into dudes.”

I growled and stalked around to his side of the desk until we were nearly chest to chest. “You don’t know anything about me. Don’t pretend you give a damn.”

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