Page 69 of Amor Prohibido

The current song faded and a new one kicked in. I closed my eyes and let the melody claim my awareness as I recapped, again. I could have gone to Mama and Papi’s, or Darren and Callie’s, or Lozza and Marc’s for that matter, but I felt I had a point to prove—to them, to Jace, and to myself. There wasn’t just me to stand up for anymore and I’ll be damned if I let someone—loved or not—walk all over me just like any other asshole would. That mystery woman was everything I wasn’t, from the blonde mid-length hair to the desperation oozing from her body language.

Unfortunately for Jace, the longer he took to come home, the higher my resentment crept. It rose in waves, lapping at my sanity and flicking at my already-short fuse.

The music masked his eventual arrival home, and I almost shat myself when he appeared at my side. His presence seemed larger than usual, or maybe I was smaller… Inner Jax certainly was.

“Hey, sweetheart. How was your day?” he yelled above the song.

He leaned down to kiss me, but I fended him off, barely stopping short of throat punching him. “Don’t give me thathey sweetheartbullshit,” I shouted back. Turning off the music, I stood and prepared to pitch one helluva bitch fit. “Do you really think I’m stupid?”

Confusion and surprise flicked across his face, and he took a hasty step back before potentially losing a ball sack. “What? I’m sorry, but I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Oh, sure you don’t. Because why would you want your fiancée knowing about your piece of blonde ass on the side?”

Flashing my ring hand at him to remind him that he had, indeed, put a ring on it, I glared as his mouth worked open and closed.

“Yeah, that ol’ chestnut. I bet it’s a complete buzzkill when your dirty little secret is blown wide open.”

“It’s not like that, J. You’ve totally got the wrong idea.”

“¡La mierda! Otherwise, you would have told me about meeting her for a lunch date.”

“It wasn’t a date for fuck’s sake!”

“It looked like it. Was that the woman you took out for dinner the night I told you I was pregnant?” Oh God, I sounded like one of those girls I vowed to never be: desperate and clingy, and I hated myself for it.

“Anna?Fuck no. Jeez, I haven’t seen her since then.”

My wrath increased a notch. “Thenwhowas she?”

He visibly paled at my demand, and I saw,I fucking sawhim conjuring up a lie right before my eyes.

I snapped up a hand to halt any words before they slipped from his tongue. “Think about your answer carefully, Jason, because if you think I’m settling for bullshit, then you’ll be out on your ass faster than you can fall to your knees and beg for forgiveness.”

His Adam’s apple bobbed, and I heard him swallow hard. The silent plea in his eyes was bright and it hurt my heart to know I was the one to cause it.

His confession was soft, yet assertive. “She’s someone I used to date in the city. I met with her today—it was the first and last time—to make it clear that there’s nothing for her here.”

“You mean you? She’s here for you? Why does she think she’s got a chance?”

He huffed and pressed a forefinger and thumb into his eye sockets. “She doesn’t have a chance, and it’s a long story. In a nutshell, I broke it off with her when things got messy—before I left the city. She’s fucking psychotic. Don’t go anywhere near her,” he warned like I was about to hunt her down.

I scoffed. “I don’t even know what she looks like aside from her hair colour.”

He stifled a snigger and my rage returned. “You have no idea how much I want you to leave right now.This is not funny. This is serious because I feel that there’s been a severe lack of communication from you, which is causing me to doubt every ounce of trust. I love you, Jace, but I will not stand by and let you walk over me just because I’m obligated to stay.” The outburst left me breathless and gasping.

Instant anger hit Jace hard. He seethed from my words, and it pleased me to no end. “Wow. You’re really thinking of kicking me out? Because of something you saw but didn’t understand? Because you’re feeling insecure about my commitment to you? That’s utter shit and you know it,” he hissed, bending slightly to get in my face and jabbing a finger.

“¡Hijo de puta!You’re really putting this on me right now? Are you fucking serious? You want me to just accept this situation like it’s nothing. Just likethat?”I snapped my fingers. “All because you don’t feel like you have to explain the entire situation to me?”

“Yes, that’s exactly what I want. If you trust me, and trust us, you’ll accept my explanation for what it is. But know this, Jax, I haven’t cheated on you, or anyone else in my past for that matter, and I never will. That blonde you saw today? She’s a chunk of my past I want to keep there. In. The. Past!” He reached for me, so I backed up a step.

“Yeah, likethatmakes me feel better. News flash for you: keeping secrets isn’t the right way to gain someone’s trust,” I snarled over my shoulder, already walking away.

“Where the hell do you think you’re going? We’re not done here!”

“Uh, yeah, we are. I can’t stand to be in the same room as you right now. I’m going to bed.” I flipped him off, satisfyingly enraging him further.

He followed, his footsteps loud and determined behind me. I waited until he was almost at the threshold to our room before sneering, “Alone,” and slammed the door in his scowling face.

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