Page 110 of Reputation
Shaking her head, she said, “No, not that.I am very aware of how that happened.”Taking a deep breath, she swallowed more tears that threatened to fall.“How did I end up…”
“Falling in love with him?”Joyce supplied.
“No, of course not!I’m not in love with him,” she said firmly, though it rang false to even her own ears.“I just met him.We’ve never even been on a date.”A crushing sadness ripped through Eavie as she remembered tonight would have been their first.“But I liked him a lot, and he made me feel…” She couldn’t bring herself to say it, the memory of his words from Sunday making the wound in her chest feel too raw.“Now, thinking about everything, I have this ache in my chest.It’s different from last time with Derek.I thought what I had felt then was devastating, but it hadn’t felt like this,” she paused, rubbing the heel of her hand against her chest absently.“I trusted him enough to risk everything I’ve worked for, and now…now I’m where I always feared I would be, and with a broken heart.At least I didn’t get fired.”
“Shit, Vie…I’m so sorry,” said Joyce, reaching forward to clasp Eavie’s hand.“You know what I don’t understand?”She shook her head, lips pursing.“How did everyone find out?”
“I don’t know,” she answered quietly.She didn’t want to believe it was Jax, but she struggled to come up with another explanation.“Despite what it looks like, I had been careful to ensure no one saw us.Every time we were together, there was no one around.The only possibility is security seeing us leaving together, but they wouldn’t care.”
Just as Joyce opened her mouth to say something, a knock sounded on the door.They both glanced over at it.
“Are you expecting anyone?”Joyce asked, turning to look at her.
Shaking her head, Eavie stared at the door, confused.She started to put her ice cream down when Joyce patted her knee.“You stay here.I’ll go see who it is,” she said, getting up.
Joyce walked over to the door, disappearing down the entry hall.A moment later, she reappeared.“It’s Jax.”
Panic gripped Eavie’s throat.She could not let him see her like this.She had promised herself the next time he saw her, she would be put together, not red-eyed and splotchy-skinned.
“I’m not ready to talk to him,” she said, looking at Joyce wide-eyed.
She nodded.“I’ll handle this.”
Jax raised his fist and knocked again.He could hear voices on the other side, so he knew she was there.He’d spent all his free time that day trying to find her and spent the rest thinking about her.
Everything had gone wrong so fast that he hadn’t even had a chance to get more than one word out to her before the look she sent him had his blood turning cold.That one look told him everything he needed to know.
Regardless, he’d kept trying to find her.He needed a chance to explain—he needed her to know he would not have done that to her.She meant too much to him.The depth of his feelings toward her only became clear after everything crashed around them.
When her door opened, he came face to face with a petite woman with black hair and fierce, dark eyes.Eyes, he noted, that gazed at him coldly.
“You must be Joyce,” he said, remembering her from the bar the first night he met Eavie.“I’m Jax.”
She nodded, looking him up and down, no doubt assessing him.“I know who you are,” she said.“What can I help you with?”
Sighing, he accepted this wouldn’t be easy.“I need to talk to her,” he pleaded.
“She doesn’t want to talk to you, Jax.”She had a firm grip on the door, and he knew she wasn’t about to let him by without a fight.
“Please.I need a chance to explain,” he begged, but she was already shaking her head.
She glanced behind her before stepping over the threshold, pulling the door close to her body.Lowering her voice, she looked directly up at him.“Not tonight.”Even with their height difference, he could tell she was formidable.“Look, Eavie told me everything, and I don’t know what happened, but you know about her…insecurities.She doesn’t trust easily, and this,” Joyce paused, worry clouding her dark eyes.“She may seem strong, but she’s not invincible.This was a blow to the weakest part of her.It’s best to leave her be.Let her put herself back together and move on.”
Shaking his head, he pinched the bridge of his nose.“Please, I have to talk to her,” he begged.“I can’t let her move on.I don’t want her to move on.”
Joyce sighed, still holding the door close to her body.“Well, tonight isn’t the night.Give her some space to sort through this.Maybe, once she’s calmed down, she’ll listen to what you have to say.But tonight, her heart is broken.”
His throat closed at the thought he was the one causing her pain.Jax’s shoulders deflated as he realized talking to Eavie tonight was a losing quest.He nodded and reluctantly turned to leave, but stopped after two steps.Turning back to Joyce, he looked at the woman he knew was fiercely loyal to Eavie.Maybe she could help convince her to hear him out.
“Tell her…” he said, pausing.“Tell her I’m sorry.I never meant for this to happen.”
Joyce nodded her head once.“I will,” she said before closing the door.
Jax stood there for another minute before he finally turned and made his way back to the elevators.Even though he felt defeated, he knew he would eventually cross paths with her.It was only a matter of time, and when he did, he would make her hear him out and convince her to give him another chance.
What they had was special.He’d never felt this way about a woman, not even Abigail.They hadn’t broached the subject of what was between them again, but after Sunday, he knew their relationship had changed irrevocably, and it didn’t scare him.Now, he refused to give up on her—or them, that easily.
Chapter Thirty Eight
