Page 45 of Pastel Kisses

Not until I’m free. Not until she pays. Not until this nightmare is over.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Lennox

Sarah’s voice grates on my last damn nerve, her fake sweetness barely masking the manipulation underneath. She’s sitting inAvery’s house, spreading out ultrasound pictures on the coffee table like we’re supposed to gather around and coo over them. Like we’re some happy little family waiting to welcome a bundle of joy into the world.

She’s already mentioned, more than once, that she thinks it would bewisefor her to move in with us for a while—at least until the baby is born.

I callbullshit.

There’s no way in hell she’s moving intothishouse.

I stare her down from where I’m perched on the arm of the couch, arms crossed, expression set. “Not happening.” My voice is hard, leaving no room for argument. “You’renotmoving in here.”

She flicks her gaze to Jaxton, clearly expecting him to back her up. When he stays quiet, jaw tight and unreadable, she huffs and turns back to me. “It’s notyourdecision, Lennox,” she snaps. “This is Jax’s baby. Don’t you think it’s important for him to be involved? For him to be close?”

Jaxton drags a hand down his face, exhaling through his nose like he’s two seconds from losing his patience. “Iwillbe involved,” he states firmly, his golden eyes sharp as they cut to hers. “Butyouare not moving in with us. That’s not up for discussion.”

Sarah’s nostrils flare, but she tries to school her features into something softer. “Jax, think about it,” she pleads, leaning forward, resting her hand on his knee. He immediately shifts away, and her expression twists in frustration. “It’s just for a little while. It’ll be easier this way. The baby will need stability, and I won’t have to drag them back and forth between homes all the time—”

“No.”

The single word, sharp as a blade, slices through her excuses.

Kamden leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees, eyes locked on her like a predator watching its prey. “Let me make this real clear, Sarah,” he drawls, slow and deliberate. “We’re stayinghere. InAvery’s house. This isnotyour home, and it never will be. You don’t get to waltz in here and pretend like you belong.”

Sarah’s face twists with irritation, but before she can launch into another pathetic attempt to justify herself, Liam speaks up.

“And you sure ashelldon’t get to pretend that you’re part ofusanymore.”

She flinches at that, and it’s the first real emotion I’ve seen from her that isn’t calculated.

Jaxton leans forward, elbows resting on his knees, pinning her in place with a stare so intense even I wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end. “I’ll be there for the baby,” he tells her, his voice a low rumble of finality. “I’ll do what I need to do as a father. Butonlyme. My brothers are not part of this deal, and youdamn surearen’t getting back into our lives the way you want.”

Sarah’s lips part, like she’s going to argue, but Jaxton isn’t done.

“We love Avery,” he states with unwavering certainty. “We’llalwayslove Avery. We’re never coming back toyou, Sarah. It’s time for you to move the fuck on.”

Silence blankets the room like a heavy fog.

Sarah’s hands tremble in her lap, whether from rage or humiliation, I don’t know. Her eyes scan each of our faces, searching for some kind of crack in our resolve. She finds nothing but solid walls of rejection.

Her face twists, and then—just like that—the sweetness, the pleading, the carefully constructed act,shatters.

“You’reallfucking pathetic,” she spits, standing so abruptly that the ultrasound photos scatter. “You’re wasting your lives pining over somedead girl!”

I lurch to my feet so fast the coffee table jerks forward. “Watch your fucking mouth,” I snarl, voice vibrating with fury.

Jaxton is on his feet too, his entire body coiled tight, fists clenched at his sides. Liam and Kamden don’t move, but the tension rolling off them is lethal.

Sarah’s chest heaves as she glares at us, but even she realizes she’s pushed too far. Her lips curl, and then she turns, storming toward the door. “Fuck all of you.”

The door slams so hard the walls shake.

Silence lingers in her wake, thick and suffocating.

No one moves. No one speaks.

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