Page 61 of The Devil's Detail
“What the fuck is going on? Is that Carter?” I ask, trying to be super annoyed, but a little bit hoping that it might be.
Kell has his head down, looking at the messages. “Shit,” he breathes out. His eyes slowly rise to lock onto mine. “I think you may have got the wrong end of the stick, brother.”
“Is that Carter?” I demand.
“Yes, but look.” He hands me the phone and removes his daughter from me as Ash comes to stand next to me, reading over my shoulder
‘Carter Maywood to be the next secret agent’
‘Get Carter’ to catch a bad guy.’
‘Thirty-six-year-old star to play ‘role of his dreams’’
‘How the Tennessee boy turned into a British secret agent. Hear Carter speak about his journey to Jameson Bonney.’
Headline after headline. Story after story. Bonney after Bonney.
All the blood has drained from my face. It’s as if I’ve taken part in some sort of Shakespearean farce. I was a major player. The lead. Carter my supporting actor. Or, more over, the fucking director in this farce. Epic proportions.
Well I don’t give a fuck.
My face must harden, as Kell asks. “What are you going to do, Jackson? You need to talk to him.”
Ash’s phone starts to ring. He shows me the display. Carter.
39
Jackson
“Are we still working for him?”Ash asks, loyal to a fault. If I say no, he’ll ditch him.
“I don’t fucking know.” My mind is whirring. All the talk, the conversations coming back at me. How did I get it so wrong? Why did I not pick up on the fact that Carter was talking about a film one minute. But I jumped off a cliff the next.
It’s that fucking voice. That whole experience has sent me into a meltdown. I couldn’t think straight. I was there in that room. Blinded. And he’s still blinding me now. He lied. He lied by omission.
The call rings off. “Regardless of what he is now. What film he’s in. He lied. Fucking straight up lied.” Kell goes to open his mouth, but I’m not done. “By omission. He should have said. He obviously thought I wouldn’t find out.”
Kell laughs at that. “Get a grip Jackson. He’s just announced to the world he’s Jameson fucking Bonney. You are going to be listening to that posh twat for years to come. He wasn’t hiding, he was biding his time. He also must have known that as soon asyou got your massive paws on his body again, you’d figure it out. Even though Ash has tweaked it. He’d know, you’d know. You don’t get that up close and personal and not fucking know.” He points at my chest. “And you know it.”
“When did you get so rational?” I growl out at him.
“When I married your sister, and my fucking husband, who will all tell you the same thing.” He pauses and lowers his voice, making it soft. “He wants you, Jackson. He was probably afraid you’d fuck him off if you found out it was him that night. Would you have gone on with the night, if you’d known it was Carter?” I can see his curiosity is piqued.
I shake my head emphatically. “No. I’d have said no. There’s no way at that point I would have said yes. Which is why he tricked me.” I slam my hand on my chest. He lied.Liar.
“What I don’t get is why he was doing that in the first place,” questions Ash. “I mean, he has everyone throwing themselves at him. Men, women. The lot. I just can’t believe he had to go to those lengths to get laid?”
“Another question for you, Jackson. I think you need to meet the man. Find out the real story here. Hope Henry what’s-his-face doesn’t press charges. And then make a decision.”
“No fucking chance. He lied. Whatever the reason, he lied. Fair enough, he probably would have had to tell me at some point. But only due to that fucking film. If he’d have not got that role, he would have said nothing. I bet you.”
“Well, you’ll never know that. Because your boyfriend just set off for intergalactic stardom. Better buckle up, Jackson, it might be a bumpy ride.”
Kell looks like he wants to say more, but we hear the squeal of the boys.
Xander dashes in, chasing after the twins. “Where’s your daddy?” he calls to them as they make a beeline for Kell. Theyhug him, and then come to me, jumping for me to pick them up as Kell has Rio.
“Carter Maywood is Jameson Bonney, Kell. Can you believe it? We’ve just heard it on the radio.” Evie comes into the room and does a double take when she sees me, shirtless, holding Sorley, Ash just picking up Lochi, and Kell with the baby. Her heartmelting expression explains her lack of words for a second. But she soon finds her feet again. “Jameson Bonney. He is going to be huge. Did you know, Jackson? You won’t let this derail your plans for him, will you? I mean, I know the spotlight will be even bigger now. But you’ll manage, won’t you?” I can hear the worry in her voice as her brain moves from one thing to the next.
