Page 46 of Heartless

“That’s what technology is for. Can’t you work from home and have virtual meetings?”

“Every day, MJ? That’s illogical.”

“Is it?” I ask, turning to him.

“Yes, and you know that it is. Why are you being so difficult?”

“I don’t think that I am.”

Onyx places his hands on his hips and says, “I’m leaving for Vegas in the morning. You can come with me, or you can stay here. That’s up to you.”

Laughing, I ask, “What makes you think that I’d feel any safer there than I would at home? If anything, going there would be worse.”

“Because I’ll be there with you.”

“No, you won’t be with me there. You’ll be in and out of meetings all day. That’s the only thing you’ve ever done when I’ve accompanied you on work trips in the past. How would this be any different?”

Dropping his head, he replies, “It won’t.”

“Exactly.”

“Tell me, baby. What is it that you want me to do?”

“I don’t know, okay!” I cry, breaking down in tears.

He walks to me and places his hands on my shoulders squeezing before he pulls me to him. Onyx wraps me in his arms and rests his chin on my head.

“MJ, what’s happening to us, babe?” he says softly.

I rock my head from side to side, sniffling.

“I wish I knew, Onyx. I wish that I could change things, but I can’t.”

“Look, I get why you’re upset about the assault, and you don’t feel safe. But I’ve tried to do everything within my power to help you, and you won’t let me.”

“Move to another studio? Sell my dream home?” I ask, pulling from his embrace.

“I want to get you away from where the attack happened. Our home is close to your studio.”

“And then what? If something happens in another location, we pack up and move from there too? I can’t run every time something bad happens.”

Onyx's face screws up as he looks at me. “Are you serious right now? You do realize that’s exactly what you’ve done, right? You run every time you refuse to go to the studio or operate the way that you once did. You’re running away and giving this guy power over you, over us, over me, damn it!”

“What do you want me to do, Onyx?”

“The same damn thing I’ve been asking. Talk to a professional!”

“What am I going to tell them that I haven’t already told you?”

“I don’t know, MJ,” he says tiredly. “I just know that I’m not skilled at this. You need someone who can help you. I’m getting overwhelmed by this, and I know I shouldn’t say this, but all I want to do these days is find a quiet place where I can be alone with my thoughts. There’s no peace in this house.”

“Do you think that I like living this way?”

“I’m beginning to be uncertain. I don’t know anymore.”

My bottom lip trembles, and my stomach pitches, but I owe him the truth.

“Onyx, the man that assaulted me insinuated that he once worked for your father.”

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