Jediah wanted to yell at her again, but he was too tired to.He heaved a breath.“Gone again.”
“Dimitri?”
“Him a deal wid a thing.Find another driver,” he said before taking a quick sip from the glass.The alcohol burned his throat as it went down.He placed the glass onto the desk, then circled the rim with his index finger.
Jediah lingered in silence for a moment before standing.He approached the chessboard on the side table.He lifted the queen piece lying on its side and fixed it back into place.“Four months.”
Chapter twenty-one
“Wherewereyouthesepast three months?”Bryony asked.She dipped her index and middle fingers into the tube of ointment, scooping a generous amount onto them, then tentatively massaging it into Ashari’s back.
Ashari hissed.The coolness from the healing ointment seeped into the open wounds in her skin, gradually fading seconds after while it soothed the wounds.She stared at the ring on her finger, its diamonds glistening beneath the room’s lights.
“He was worried sick, Ash,” Bryony added.
Ashari scoffed.“Am I supposed to believe that?”
“Yes.Him put the entire family legacy pon the line when him marry yu, and yu still turn round and betray him.”
Ashari looked from the ring to see Bryony’s reflection in the mirror.Her eyes flickered to the nearby open window, then to her belly, which she could see because of the height of the chair she sat on.Its back faced the mirror, her arms resting on the top of it while her legs were spread on either side of the seat.
The door opened, and she looked up, meeting Jediah’s eyes in the mirror.He stood in the doorway with one hand in his pocket.He was still in the suit he wore to the extravagant donation ball.
Bryony scowled at Jediah’s reflection while standing.She practically glued herself to the door jamb to brush past him without touching him.Jediah’s head hung low, his jaw clenching while Bryony’s loud footsteps faded down the hallway until there was silence.
Finally, Jediah entered the room.He closed the door.
Ashari swallowed a lump that formed in her throat as he approached her.Jediah stopped behind her, his eyes holding hers for a few seconds longer than she would’ve liked.He removed his hand from his pocket.The addictive aroma of his musky cologne mixed with hints of woodsy tobacco permeated the air, making Ashari stiffen.Aclinkstemmed from where Jediah placed something on the table, where Bryony had scattered many tubs of ointments, rolls of bandages, and bottles of pills.Ashari broke the stare to look at what Jediah had placed there.She read the label on the small white bottle, and her jaws tightened as her eyes dragged to Jediah’s.
Walking around the chair, Jediah stopped before the mirror.He tucked both hands into his pockets.“You have two choices.”
She forced her jaws to relax just enough to say, “I’m not killing it.”
“So, option two?”he asked with a smirk.“Whose baby is it?”
Gasping, Ashari got to her feet as quickly as her aching body would allow.Her fists clenched at her sides while she glared.“If you’re gonna accuse me of being a whore, be man enough to say it.”
“Yu missing fi three months, then yu come back pregnant?Yu study all a mi medical records.Yuknowmi caan’ breed yu.Tell me who the father is, or else—”
“You can’t kill me, Jediah,” she declared with certainty, lifting her chin.“I have your present hidden and your future growing in my belly.”
“So, you’re invincible?”
“Yes.”
He threw his head back, laughing boisterously for seconds that dragged into minutes.Ashari’s chin lowered, her brows pulling together as she watched him.It took longer than Ashari would’ve liked for Jediah to calm down.
He removed his hands from his pockets to wipe tears from his eyes.A silly smile was on his face as he buried his hands in his pockets while meeting Ashari’s eyes.“Oh.”
A chill ran down Ashari’s spine.Her eyes darted past Jediah to lock on her reflection in the mirror.Her eyes widened at the glowing red dot at the center of her forehead.“J-Jed,” she forced out, her voice raspy from her throat that had gone dry.
Jediah’s smirk stretched.“What was that, Mrs.Richardson?Thought you weren’t scared of me.”
She gulped hard, opening her mouth, then shutting it as the door opened.She looked over her shoulder at Elias.He walked further into the room with something in his hands.
Ashari stepped backward and bumped into the table.It toppled over with a loud crash, scattering the medical supplies across the floor.“You can’t be serious.”
“I am.”