Page 47 of Bully's Second Chance
You know, when I actually went home.
I figured Jax would’ve said something to me by now about moving out and going home. But, he hadn’t. For as many days as we had worked from his home office, or driven into work together, or even stayed up late in his living room doing video conferences with the men in Shanghai, not once had he brought up the whole, “You really need to head back to your place” conversation.
I wondered if he’d ever bring it up.
Did I just start living here now if he didn’t say anything?
The idea sounded absurd, even in my head. But I told him I wasn’t leaving anytime soon. And so long as he didn’t kick me out, I was flying under the assumption that he still needed me here. His father was hanging on by a thread. He hadn’t coded again since that night, but the DNR loomed over everyone’s heads, especially when the machines started to go crazy like they currently were.
“Shit,” I hissed.
Jax threw down his newspaper. “Adelaide!”
“I hear it!”
Her voice echoed off the walls of the massive home as we all rushed for the stairs. With Adelaide in her gown and me still in my house shoes, we raced toward Mr. Levy’s room and burst through the door. Nurses gathered at his side as they checked his IVs and his heart monitor, looking for any outward sign as to why his monitoring machines were now going crazy. But when no outside source was found, they all stopped.
“Dammit, Mr. Levy, why did you sign that stupid thing?” Adelaide whispered.
I watched her take his hand, and I wondered if this was it. I wondered if this was Mr. Levy’s time.
“Dad,” Jax said as he bent his lips toward his father’s ear, “if you’re ready, so are we.”
“Don’t say that,” Adelaide hissed.
I shot her a look. “Let him speak.”
She sighed heavily before she perched on his bedside, and I watched her thread her fingers with Mr. Levy’s. It made me wonder about her history with the man. Had she known Jax’s father before he had gotten sick? Did they have some torrid love affair from afar while he worked himself to the bone?
I rubbed Jax’s back while he softly talked to his father as I imagined the kind of life Adelaide and Mr. Levy might have led together up to this point.
“I love you,” Jax whispered.
And when he kissed his father, the monitors settled back down.
“What’s happening?” I asked.
Adelaide snickered. “He’s—he’s stabilizing.”
“Wait, really?” Jax asked as he stood.
Adelaide looked at us with a smile on her face. “Yeah, really. He’s stabilizing. His heart is settling down.”
I smiled. “That’s good, right?”
But, when I peered up at Jax, he wasn’t smiling.
“That’s not good?” I asked.
When he stormed out of the room, I didn’t think that meant we wouldn’t talk for the rest of the day. But that’s exactly what happened. We worked in tandem in his office and didn’t speak unless he spoke first. We took our lunch break in separate rooms despite my want to poke and prod until I found all the answers I needed from him.
I didn’t know why he was suddenly acting so cold toward me, but I was determined to find out. “Got any fun plans for dinner?” I asked. I leaned against the doorway of his office and watched him shake his head.
“Just work.”
“Jax, it’s eight o’clock. You don’t have any conferences, or phone meetings, or pending contracts to sign.”
He shrugged. “Doesn’t mean there isn’t work.”
