“You’re acting like a child.” Even muffled through the door, his voice resonated with fury.
“Get a clue, Jax. I don’t want to see you.”
“That’s too damn bad. You can’t stay in there forever, Gia, but I can put a guard on your door who’ll make sure that when you come out, you come straight to me. It’s your choice how you want this to go.”
Narrow-eyed, I slapped the security bar back and yanked the door open. Jax immediately crowded me, forcing me back into the room. I caught barely a glimpse of a guy in a suit behind Jax’s big frame, then Jax kicked the door shut behind him.
I backed up quickly, my gaze darting down the length of his body. He was dressed in black slacks and a matching vest, his gray shirt and tie not softening the dark vibe. His hair looked as if he’d been running his fingers through it, the longer strands falling over his forehead in sexy disarray. His brown eyes were hot as they catalogued my appearance, his irritation evident in the scowl that furrowed his brow.
He’d said I was sexy as hell when I was mad at him and I understood what he meant when confronted by over six feet of angry, bristling masculinity. The angles of his gorgeous face were tight, his jaw rigid, the sensual curve of his lips firmed into an unyielding line. He looked dangerous and fiercely sexual.
“I’m getting real tired of you cutting things off,” he said, clenching his teeth.
“Boy do I know that feeling.”
He glanced at the ceiling as if he were praying for patience. “Is Yeung giving you a hard time?”
“No.” I crossed my arms, wishing I were wearing more than the hotel-provided robe, which was a thin shield for my nakedness underneath. “She’s actually been remarkably forgiving, all things considered.”
He watched me back carefully away. He filled the entryway of the room, blocking the exit, the closet, and the bathroom. The Mondego was a really nice hotel, beautifully decorated with understated elegance, but this suite was nowhere near as fabulous as the one Jax had taken me to in New Jersey. “My deal with Pembry has nothing to do with you.”
“I don’t believe you.”
His brows rose. “You don’t? Or Yeung doesn’t?”
“Me. I’m sure you had a few reasons why you did it, but I’m also pretty sure I was one of the reasons. And since it’s worked out so well and made me seriously consider how much of a liability you are, I can’t be sure you won’t pull something else that makes me hate you. That’s what you want, isn’t it? You want me to end things because you can’t.”
His face revealed no expression, but something in his eyes changed. “Why would I want to do that?”
“Because you’re afraid of me. Especially the way you feel about me.”
“Am I?”
“That, or your dad has you running scared. Which is it?”
“I’ve told you what he’s like,” Jax said softly.
That stopped my retreat. “I guess I have more faith in you than you have in yourself. I think you can take him on, Jax. I trust that you’d watch out for me.”
He laughed and it was a horrible, humorless sound. “You think I’d protect you from the big bad wolf?”
I stared at him, shocked, never having seen this bitter side of him. The next thing I knew, he had me in his powerful grip, his body curling into me and his face close to mine. He was impossibly beautiful. The most stunning man I’d ever seen. And he was seriously pissed.
“I am the big bad wolf, baby,” he growled. “You want to be with me? You want to be my girlfriend? You want to go to parties with me...events...have dinner with the family?”
“Yes!” I lifted onto my tiptoes. “I’m sick of being your booty call, Jax. You’ve got dozens of women for that. I deserve better!”
“Dozens? I’ve damn near been a monk since I met you! Two women, Gia. Two. And since you fucked two guys, you’ve got no room to talk. I’m entitled to those two, as pointless as they were.”
I gasped, horrified that he’d watched me close enough to know how many men I had slept with since we’d been apart.
“You want the whole deal?” he snapped. “Fine. Your life is about to change completely. Your privacy is a thing of the past. You’re going—”
“As if I had any privacy! My God, you’ve been stalking me for years. Are you—?”
“Gia, every questionable thing you’ve ever done is about to become tomorrow’s news. Your brothers’ lives are up for grabs, too. And that goes for your parents and friends, too. Go out in public and the photographers will follow. From how you vote to what you’re wearing, everything is fair game.”
I swallowed hard.
“You’re going to move in with me. You’ll be safe in my apartment, but I can’t say what your brothers will have to deal with. Or your sister-in-law. There’ll be security with you at all times. And I don’t want to hear about how inconvenient it is to constantly have someone with you, someone you’ll have to report your schedule to.”
“You can’t scare me,” I whispered, but it was a lie. My heart was pounding with anxiety. I had always been incredibly protective of my family. Whenever they were threatened, I came out swinging.
“Oh, I will,” he warned darkly. “You’ve had nothing but the best of me so far, but if you want it all, that’s what you’ll get. The good and the really fucking ugly.”