Page 58 of Undisputed Player
I glanced up at him, confused, then at Avery racing toward the entrance with Leo in tow.
It was their home. Not mine.
"They'll be fine," Jax promised. "The house is completely secure. No one gets in or out without my say-so, and my housekeeper is around.”
His hand at my back pressed just a little harder, guiding me inside,and I let him because the alternative was standing in his driveway like a gaping idiot.
The entryway opened into a vast living area with soaring ceilings and walls of glass that framed the ocean view like the world's most expensive painting. The floors were polished marble that gleamed like mirrors, the furniture all sleek lines and soft fabrics in shades of cream and gold.
Everything gleamed—the staircase, the glass tables, the massive chandelier that hung like a frozen waterfall from the ceiling twenty feet above our heads.
This was wealth beyond imagination, luxury so vast I could barely comprehend it.
"This is..." I trailed off, unable to find words.
"Home," Jax finished for me. "At least, it's supposed to be. Sometimes it feels more like a showroom."
He leaned in, his cologne wrapping around me. "But you make it feel right, princess."
I flushed, heat creeping up my neck as I struggled to find an appropriate response. This was exactly the kind of smooth talk that had gotten Giselle into trouble, the practiced charm that wealthy men used to seduce women who should know better.
"Avery, why don't you show Leo your toys?” Jax suggested, his thumb tracing small circles against my back. “I put them in your room.”
Avery nodded eagerly, pulling Leo down a hall that was bigger than my entire apartment. "Come on! Jax brought all my dinosaur stuff!”
I watched them go, that familiar worry rising in my chest like flood water. In my world, you never let children out of sight, never trusted that safety was guaranteed, never assumed the best-case scenario.
"I should?—"
"Let them be kids for a while," Jax interrupted,his hand still warm against my back. "The room has cameras if you're worried. I can show you the feed.”
His thumb pressed possessively into my hip, and I shivered despite myself.
"I'm not worried," I lied, because admitting fear felt like showing weakness. "I just..."
"You're not used to letting him out of your sight.” His voice was understanding rather than judgmental. "I get it. But you're safe here, princess. Both of you."
He stepped in front of me, crowding me back against the kitchen island. His hands came up to bracket me in, palms flat against the marble on either side of my hips, trapping me in a cage of masculine heat.
"You can breathe, Estelle. I'll watch over you."
The words, his closeness, the way his hands trapped me without quite touching—it was too much. The memory of our kitchen encounter flooded back, and I could practically feel his fingers working the tension from my neck and hear his voice calling me beautiful.
I forced myself to step sideways, pushing out of his cage before I could do something catastrophically stupid.
"Are you okay?" he asked. "You don't have to be scared of me."
I wasn’t scared of him. I was scared of how much I wanted him to touch me, to keep holding my hand, to keep looking at me like I was the only thing in the world. It was terrifying, knowing his reputation and who he was.
Especially knowing he would inevitably break my heart.
I didn’t answer but gave a little nod, letting my gaze wander around the kitchen.
"So," Jax said, settling against the arm of an opposite sofa, his posture casual but those piercing blue eyes intent on my face. "Tell me about yourself, Estelle. Beyond what I already know from Avery's endless stories."
What could I possibly tell this man about my life that wouldn't sound pathetic compared to all this marble and gold?
"There… isn’t much,” I mumbled finally, voice small. "I work at the academy and take care of Leo. That's pretty much it."
