Page 69 of Traitorous Lies
May as well have been alone in the room for all the signs of life she was giving, or complete lack thereof.
“Here you go,” he said, setting the dessert on the table in front of her, half expecting her to ignore it, or refuse to eat it, to yell at him maybe.
But she did none of that.
With a painfully polite nod, she offered him a smile that was nothing more than the curving up of her lips, it went nowhere close to reaching her eyes or looking real. “Thank you,” she said, her voice perfectly polite with not a hint of anything real to it as she picked up her fork.
“Where’s mine, Uncle Jax?” Essie asked before Gabriella could shush her.
The little girl was the only one not picking up on the tension hanging thickly in the air. It wasn't like he’d hidden the careless words he’d hurled at her in fear. As soon as Monique had gone running out of the house, he’d gathered his family and told them about her phone call and how badly he’d reacted to it.
Like he’d known they would, despite their disappointment in him, the whole family had rallied. Supporting Monique while they asked her questions about her father, and talked through every piece of evidence they had against these men. Trying to show her through their words and actions that she had a place there if only she could accept it.
Even if she couldn’t forgive him, she still had a place.
This was Cassandra’s family, and she was Cassandra’s sister, so she was family too. Jax prayed she would come to see that. While not being able to have her in his life the way he wanted would be the worst kind of torture, if Monique at least found a place to belong where she would be accepted, then that would be something.
“Coming right up,” he answered Essie, turning away from Monique and trying to fight the disappointment.
Not that he was giving up.
He’d made this mess, and it was his job to clean it up.
Whatever he had to do, however long it took, he was going to find a way to show Monique that he saw her. That he knew she wasn't the immature, spoiled, vacuous, high-society princess the media portrayed her as.
The opposite.
She had depth and substance, she was smart and compassionate, knowing who she was, what her skills and strengths were, and putting them to work in her community. She was sweet and put people at ease, even if she was a little introverted.
Honestly, she was everything, and he was an idiot for not making sure she knew that.
“You know you're an idiot, right?” Jake asked as his brother echoed his thoughts as he apparently followed him through into the kitchen.
“I know.” That was going to get no argument from him.
“Why would you say that when you know she’s sensitive about not being seen?” Jake asked.
“Why did you mess up and walk away from Alannah in the hospital after she asked you to move your relationship from friends to lovers?” he shot back, not to make his brother feel bad but to illustrate his point.
“Because I was terrified of losing her,” Jake replied.
“Right. When I walked into that room and found her on the phonewith her dad, knowing how vulnerable she is to him because she isn’t ready to let herself see the truth, it was like something in me went feral. I couldsoeasily lose her, and I just snapped. Words were coming out of my mouth without me realizing it. It wasn't until I saw her shut down literally in front of me that I realized what I'd done.”
Only by then, it was too late to take back those words.
They were out there, and they would forever hang between them. Even if Monique was able to forgive him and give him another chance, they would still be there. Likely for the rest of their lives there would always be that tiny bit of doubt hidden in the back of her mind, wondering if he really saw her or the version of her the media had created.
“Tell me how I fix it,” he ordered. Jake was his big brother, the only one who had always been there for him, looked out for him, cared for him, and guided him. Now he needed him to give him step by step instructions on how to fix the mess he’d created. “How did you fix things with Alannah?”
“By being honest. By holding nothing back. And by promising that I would never let my fears and insecurities come between us again.”
That all sounded great, but how was he supposed to do that when Monique didn't want anything to do with him, and seemed intent on pretending she was nothing but the overly polite, empty inside woman the world thought her to be?
November 12th
10:16 A.M
If she didn't get somewhere on her own in the next few seconds, Monique was going to lose it.
