Page 21 of Jaxon

I blinked back tears. I'd been doing that a lot lately. I'd spoken confidently, only I had no idea how to get out of this horrid situation. But that didn't matter right now. I needed to get home and make sure that Dad was going to keep his part of the deal. I'd stay away from Jaxon, and he'd leave the Stone family alone.

I slammed the front door as I walked inside. I placed my beach things on the bottom step and marched down the hallway to Dad's office. His door was slightly ajar. I could hear him talking angrily on the phone.

"I don't understand, Keller. I thought it was taken care of." Keller was one of his accountants. He was a guy who always looked as if he'd been up all night drinking, and he always seemed pretty fucking shady compared to some of Dad's other advisors. Whatever had happened, Dad sounded mad as hell. I glanced through the crack into his office. He was pacing in front of the desk.

"Just make sure it's done cleanly. If this comes back to me—" Dad looked up and spotted me. He paused the conversation. "Why the fuck are you lurking around out there, Bridget?"

"I need to talk to you," I said. Now seemed like a terrible time to do that, but I needed to make sure he left the Stones alone.

"Call you later, Keller." He hung up. "What do you want, Bridget? I'm busy."

His tone made me shrink back, and I considered dropping the idea of confronting him, only it was too important. I took a deep breath and pushed open the door. "I'm not going to see Jaxon, but you will keep your end of the promise, right?"

He was always so caught up in his own life and spent so little time thinking about mine, except when he was looking to control it, it took him a moment to decipher what I was talking about. "Just stay away from him," he said curtly with an imperial wave of his hand.

I stepped farther inside. "You will keep your end of the bargain. Leave the Stones alone."

He wasn't used to having orders tossed his way. His mouth twisted as if he'd just sucked on a bitter lemon. He leaned against the front of his desk and crossed his arms. "Can we set the wedding date?"

"No more fucking blackmail. You told me not to see him. That was my side of the bargain. Yours was to keep your greedy fucking paws off the Stones. This has nothing to do with Alex and me."

"I think it does because once I pass you off to him, you become his burden. Not mine."

I stared at the man and wondered how there could be any family connection at all. I knew one thing for certain, I couldn't hate him any more than I did right at that moment.

"Marry Alex yourself. You're perfect for each other," I muttered and walked out.

CHAPTER 9

JAXON

Isent off the packages and picked up the damn hoses, but I was in no hurry to head back to the shop. The scene with Dad was especially bad, and it had been the last thing I needed. I hated to admit it, but when I was feeling really crappy, like this morning, there was only one person I wanted to talk to. I parked near the pier and walked down to Scones and Brew, the small kiosk on the pier that sold good fucking coffee and semi-decent scones.

My sister ran the kiosk in the mornings. Stella was working on an archaeology degree. It had been her life's dream to squat in sandy deserts and faraway places to look for ancient artifacts and fossils. When we were little, our mom used to bury "artifacts" in the backyard and Stella would put on her straw hat and sit out there with her tools and brushes digging up the treasures. I always envied her for having such a big, strong dream for her future. I'd always wavered back and forth between unachievable dreams like becoming a motocross superstar or a pro skateboarder. I was athletic but never good or disciplined enough for either. Theo was the stellar athlete of the bunch. He'd won some big mountain biking competitions, and he was a fucking wizard on a BMX bike.

Stella had stepped outside of the kiosk for a second to watch Roland feed the pelicans. He was an old guy who dropped his hook in the water from the pier every morning. Today, two birds sat patiently and politely with their oversized beaks waiting for fresh fish. He dropped a fish in for each and then winked at Stella before returning to his pole.

Stella's long hair fluttered around her tanned shoulders as she spun around. "I thought I heard your Hulk-sized footsteps pounding the planks behind me. I love to watch him feed the pelicans. We've got those maple-pecan scones you like." She motioned with her head and then paused. "Uh-oh, you look upset." She nodded. "Come on inside. The doctor is in, and I won't even charge you the usual nickel." Stella piled her hair up in a loose knot at the back of her neck and pulled on an apron. "Don't tell me this is still about that woman from the boat. Walsh's daughter, right?"

"Why is that the one thing everyone remembers about her?"

Stella shrugged. "It's kind of a big deal because her dad is?—"

"The enemy," I finished for her.

"I was going to say the biggest, greediest asshole this side of the Mississippi but enemy works, too." Stella pulled a scone out, but I shook my head.

Her green eyes rounded. "Oh boy, you've got it bad then, eh?"

"That and I downed three blueberry muffins at the shop. Dad and I had a good one this morning, good enough for the boss to get involved."

Stella looked up from the box she was filling with scones. "Oh wow. Who was mom more pissed at?"

I shook my head. Dad curling his fist in front of me had thrown me more than I realized. Mom too, apparently. I'd never heard her threaten to leave him. She adored my dad as if he was some kind of fucking rock star. Deep down, I knew he'd never hit me. He and his brothers had to live in constant fear of their old man slamming them around. Dad never, ever wanted to be like his horrid old man. I decided not to go into details with Stella. It would upset her.

"Let's just say it was a draw, and Mom was plenty pissed at both of us."

"Well, what luck, two of my favorite sweeties in one place," Aunt Jade said cheerily. Jade was a big hugger and kisser. She put her arms around me for a hug, then hopped up on tiptoes to kiss my cheek. "Oh my god, you get broader every time I see you." She dropped her arms. "How are things going?"

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