Page 19 of Faking It With My Pucking Protector
Blonde hair perfectly disheveled. Sleeves rolled to his forearms. The top two buttons of his shirt undone, like he threw it on in a hurry. He looks exactly the same. Like the man I almost married, except all I can see now is the lie.
His eyes land on me immediately, wide and pleading.
“Ava.”
Every part of me goes cold.
Jackson steps instinctively between us and just like that, the quiet morning shatters.
Chapter Six
JACKSON
The second I open the door and see him standing there, I don’t need an introduction to know who he is.
Brad.
It’s obvious. A practiced look of concern in his eyes, and a bouquet of crushed white flowers dangling from one hand like they’re supposed to fix something.
I step fully in front of her before I even realize I’m doing it.
Behind me, Ava’s breath hitches like she’s been punched, and I feel her go completely still.
“Hey,” Brad says, tone casual. Too casual. “Ava. Thank God.”
I turn to Ava, meeting her eyes. “You want him gone?”
She nods once, jaw set.
I turn back to Brad. “You need to leave.”
“I just want to talk to her.”
“She doesn’t want to talk to you.”
Ava’s voice is small behind me, but clear. “How… how did you know I was here?”
Brad hesitates for a beat too long. Then shrugs. “Jenna or your brother must’ve said something.”
I glance over my shoulder. Ava’s eyes narrow slightly.
“No,” she says slowly. “They wouldn’t.”
Brad shifts, and his confidence flickers.
“I remembered we had that location-sharing app,” he finally says, trying to sound casual. “The one we used when we traveled. I figured maybe it was still active. I checked, and…”
My jaw locks and I clench my fists at my sides. It takes everything in me not to grab him by the shirt and shove him off my damn porch.
Ava stares at him, horrified. “Youtrackedme?”
“It’s not like that.” He raises his hands. “I didn’t know what else to do, Ava. You wouldn’t answer. You vanished.”
I plant my feet. “You mean sheleftyou.”
Brad scowls, eyes flicking over me. “And who the hell are you?”
“Someone who actually gives a damn about her well-being,” I say evenly. “Now leave.”
