Page 79 of My Fiancé's Brother
“Leave,” a voice spoke from behind Matt.
I looked up. There behind Matt, towered Jackson. He looked dangerous with his corded neck, flared nostrils and green eyes that were mean slits. Jackson was gone, and a big fucking badass navy SEAL stood in my kitchen. He looked like he was ready to rip Matt’s head off.
Matt took a step back. His voice sounded unsteady. “This is none of your concern.”
“Get the fuck out.”
Matt looked at me, giving me a death look before he grabbed his phone and keys. He kicked the dog bed on his way out, causing it to sail across the room. He slammed open the door and then was gone.
I huddled into myself.
The wine dripped down onto the floor, breaking the silence that deafened the room. I was in shock. Had Matt just thrown his dinner at my head?
My eyes lifted to Jackson. He still looked fierce. He walked towards me. I couldn’t help it. I flinched when he raised his hand to my chin.
“I'm not going to hurt you,” he said in a voice that was so gentle, it almost made me cry. He tilted my face. “You’ve been cut.”
I blinked. Nothing was making sense. My brain was frozen. Unable to process what had just happened. I reached up and touched my forehead, wincing. My fingertips had blood on them.
“Come here,” he said, steering me to the island. He lifted me to sit up on the countertop. I watched as he ran a clean tea towel under the water and then he was gently dabbing at my face. Only five hours earlier, in this exact spot, he had kissed me. Now he was tending my wounds from my fiancé’s violence.
“Has he ever been like that before?” he asked in a very calm voice.
“No.”
Green eyes stared into mine. “I think this is just a scratch. It won’t scar.”
I worked to breathe. Nothing in my life was making sense anymore. “I should clean up.”
He put one massive hand on my knee.
Our eyes met.
“Emily.”
I covered my eyes with one hand and started to cry. “I’m not ready.”
That made no sense, but those are the words that came out of my mouth. He lifted a hand to cup my cheek tenderly. “Try and get some sleep, okay?”
I felt tired and sad. “Okay.”
I picked up Chloe’s bed from where Matt had kicked it and then I called Chloe. She stretched, jumped off the couch and followed me upstairs.
Chloe’s bed remained on the floor unused. She climbed into bed and curled up to me. I lay there, my hand stroking her soft damp fur, and stared into the dark. How could I get everything back to normal? I could feel my entire world breaking and shifting, and it scared me. I needed to get Matt back on track. Things would go back to normal. They had to. We needed things to go back to the way they were.
I decided to plan the wedding. We needed to make it to that day, and everything would be fine. Matt was under so much stress at work. This whole Jackson thing wasn’t helping either. The two of them had a lot of stuff to work through.
My heart pounded when I thought of Jackson. I forbid myself from thinking about him. He had no place in my life. He was a Navy SEAL who lived a dangerous life. He didn’t want marriage. He didn’t want kids. Jackson and I were about as compatible as a fluffy bunny and a giant wolf. Yes, he was stupidly attractive, but my excuses were over now. I needed to think of him as only my pseudo future brother-in-law. Because I was pretty sure the success of mymarriage would depend on my ability to abolish Jackson from my mind.
Something woke me up.Chloe was snoring delicately in my bed. I looked at the clock. It was after 2 AM. Another noise. It was the sound of the garage door. Matt was home. I crept to my bedroom door and opened it. I peered down over the glass balcony railing. The mudroom light was on casting long shadows in the room below. I noted that Jackson had cleaned up the kitchen. I glanced over at his shut bedroom door.
I stood in the shadows and heard the heavy door slide open and then shut. Matt strolled in, not looking up. I watched as he walked to the island, and dumped his pockets. Keys and phone and change clattered on the granite.
Out of the shadows, behind Matt, materialized Jackson. I covered my mouth. He looked frightening. Like a monster ghost appearing out of thin air.
“Jesus,” Matt startled, jumping back. “You scared the fuck out of me.”
Jackson just stood there. Legs planted, arms crossed. “Want to explain what that was about?”
