CHAPTER336
Getting into her apartment is easy enough; all Jake needs to do is bark two words into the intercom.
“I’m here,” and she lets us in without any hesitation.
Whore.
She has the shock of her life when she answers the door, in nothing more than lace bra and panties under a see-through robe and is faced with two angry men and a seething little blonde girlfriend. All I can do is balk and take in her slutty attire, she truly believed he was coming to fuck her.
What planet is she from?
Marissa visibly steps back mouth gaping, before recovering her equilibrium, making no attempt at covering herself. She glances swiftly at Ben, noticing him seems to knock the wind out of her sails and she pulls her robe across her protruding bump.
“What the fuck is this?!” She snaps. Jake pushes past her dragging me, quite confidently, by the hand into the large expensive apartment. It’s a loft apartment and is decorated in an almost industrial style. I don’t want to know if he’s ever been here with her, even when they were teens.
“What does it fucking look like, Marissa?” Jake growls, taking me to a low couch, sitting me down gently, plumping a couple of cushions up behind my back and running a finger across my mouth as though to ground me, trying to help me relax. His attention is always on me.
“We came to party.” Ben breaks in sarcastically. He wanders over to the mini bar and I notice the way he starts fixing two drinks, acting equally as cocky as Jake. He seems a little too comfortable in here as well. I guess this is an apartment they’ve both known quite well, and it makes me feel a tad sick.
“I want you all to leave, I don’t know what this is but …” She starts with hands on her hips, nastily pouting.
“Cut the shit, Marissa,” Jake snaps and walks beside Ben to lift a glass, downing it in one go. I cringe at every drink he takes, knowing it’ll fuel that less than reasonable side to him. Jake is more capable of ferociousness when he’s consumed alcohol.
“Were you ever going to tell me that your baby has two possible fathers, Marissa?” He glares at her icily, all hostility on show.
Ben seems immersed in cracking ice for his own drink and pours Jake another without question. He is irritatingly cool, laid back and almost smiling. I wonder if this is why they used to get on so well. Jake was the hot head and Ben was the calm one. Hunter is that for Jake now, sometimes.
It’s weird to see them so buddy-buddy, side by side at the drinks bar while impressively intimidating the shit out of her. Both scary in full-blown scowling-alpha mode, in entirely different ways. I can see why she has a hard time picking between the two when they’re like this, so effortlessly alike, domineering in their own way. But to me, Jake is far more beautiful. I like his impulsive fire way more than Ben’s cool mood.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I know which one of you is the father.” She lifts her chin nastily, no hint of remorse, surprisingly no hesitation either.
Interesting.
“Sorry … How can you tell who the father is when you fucked two men within twenty-four hours of one another?” Ben remarks snapping at her and I catch a tiny flicker of something appear on Marissa’s face.
Not knowing her well I assume it’s a tiny flail in her perfected bitch stance. She’s lost her confidence, but Jake’s sharp eyes swoops right in.
“What the fuck was that?” Jake snarls viciously, and I jump at the temper only moments ago, I was admiring.
“Hmm?” Ben looks up, a little clueless, completely non-phased with Jake’s outburst.
“That look … That tiny little falter on her calculating face.” Jake raises his empty glass like a pointing tool and
Ben is now staring intently at her. She moves her hands to her hips.
“You can stop the double act and get the fuck out before I call security,” She walks toward me, and Jake grows a little taller, bristling if she dares come anywhere near me. She sees it in the corner of her eye and halts, changing direction and goes to the chair near the door. It seems like she knows enough about that Carrero temper to not be sure of how he would react to her getting so close to me. At last she realizes I mean more than life to him and it gives me a sudden sense of calm and control, old Emma moving in, making me sit a little taller.
“You have thirty seconds to leave.” She sounds confident and bolshie but both men just laugh at her, almost manically.
“I’d love to see your fucking security try sweetheart.” Jake bubbles, his anger simmering as he downs another drink equally as fast as the last. I’m a little nervous. I’m starting to wonder if his fast alcohol consumption is wise. He knows how it can make him and Marissa isn’t someone he can take his fists to. He’s bristling for a fight and I pray to God she doesn’t bring any men in here that he can inflict damage upon.
If I was her, I’d fear the psychotic sound to Jake’s tone. He can be as scary as hell and I can’t imagine what he’d do to her security.
Ben isn’t much of a fighter against Jake, but I’m sure he would give it a damn good go countering some heavy-handed bouncer. He has Jake’s build and height and looks like he could inflict a great amount of damage and, despite downing as much booze as Jake, he still appears to be the calmer of the two.
“What do you want? You want me to say yes I fucked you both?” She laughs and nothing, but manic bubbling come out; acting like this amuses her. I’m starting to wonder if she’s mentally all there.
“We already know that sweetheart.” Ben glares at her icily.
Yes, that’s what it is, ice and fire, Ben, and Jake. I can see it clearly now.
“So, what? You’re going to try to force me to consent to DNA testing when it’s born? You can both fuck off and I’ll see you in court! No one can do anything to this kid without my fucking consent and as neither of you will get a chance to be alone with it … good luck with that!” She gets up and goes to walk airily toward the phone sitting on the table beside me. I automatically pick it up, standing to meet her.
“Looking for this?” I hold it up. “Calling your security?” I raise an eyebrow at her and catch Jake moving nearer to me from the corner of my eye, always trying to protect me. He’s ready to take her down, I have zero doubts about that and I’m not sure how I would react if he did. Jake isn’t someone who would hurt a woman, but if he felt I was in danger maybe he would.
“Thank you.” She holds out her overly manicured hand sarcastically, red talons and swinging charms, but I just slide her phone into my bag with a wicked smile. She isn’t bringing any form of help that would put Jake into fight mode until he’s finished with her.
I can protect him too.
“When we’re done … I wonder how many close friends you talk to about your pregnancy, Marissa? I know I have at least one female friend who knows everything intimately. You know? Every single tiny detail.” There’s that tiny ray of hope inside of me, the one Arrick planted a while back, the slithering of doubt that this baby is Jake’s at all. The way she seemed to confidently suggest she knew exactly whose baby this is … there’s only one way a woman would know for sure.
There’s that faltering flicker on her face again and I sense Jake’s warmth right behind my shoulder. I’m a little more empowered as he seems to get what I’m hinting at. His hand coming to my waist lets me know he’s right behind me, not that I need it. I can always feel his presence.
“I wonder how many texts you’ve sent about it?” I reach back into my bag slowly, wondering how easily I can make her fold especially if I’m right about this.
“You can’t access my fucking messages. I have a pin.” She smirks, but Jake steps in front of me protectively, sliding a hand behind him to keep me close, telling me he doesn’t trust her not to fly at me.
“I don’t need one,” he growls at her. “I’m pretty sure any of my tech guys could access your messages seeing as I managed to track my girlfriend’s cell in less than five seconds when I needed to.” He’s back to that snarling furious tone sending shivers down my spine.
So, that’s how he did it?
“What do you hope to find?” She lifts her chin defiantly, smirking, but the look of smugness has evaporated from her dark eyes, replaced with a slight hint of apprehension.
“Maybe something fun and incriminating, maybe nothing.” Ben slides in and seems to be enjoying this a little too much. I’m sure he has no idea what we’re on about but he’s playing along. An old friendship flickers between the two men who used to, so closely, have each other’s backs.
“Did I actually fuck you?” Jake comes out with it, getting to the point, and I catch Ben’s confusion flicker across his brow. He quickly regains his previous expression, blank-faced, and says nothing while turning to look at Marissa.
She snorts but doesn’t answer. Her head shaking as though this is ridiculous. Her foot tapping and hands firmly on her hips as she pushes her bust out. She looks impressively feisty and ready to take them both on. I can see why she may have held some attraction to a fifteen-year-old Jake. He likes the feisty in me and my ability to stand up to him. He always smiled when I bristled back at him and gave him attitude as his PA.
“Did. I. Lay. A. Single. Fucking. Hand. On. You?” Jake says it very slowly, so agonizing to hear. Every word, precise, oozing with a hint of poison.
“It’s not my fault you can’t remember, baby. But you still fuck hard, even when you’re drunk, and I more than loved it. You made me cum like a freight train.” She throws me an evil look, her arched eyebrow and haughty smile trying to wound me. Ben clenches his jaw and looks away, still obviously affected by her. He has some feelings left for her, but Jake is showing that there’s nothing at all in there for her with him. Inner anger seethes and bubbles inside of me and I want to gouge her eyes out.
Fucking bitch!
“I never did I?” Jake sounds shocked. My head snaps up to him wondering what he sees close-up in that cocky whore’s face that I can’t. She hesitates and looks back at him, like she’s been caught, and she loses the mask for a millisecond. It quickly draws back up, but I think even Ben caught it, a tiny flicker of shit he knows.
“Yes, you did,” she snaps a little too quickly. The flicker turns into a full-on twitch as she has trouble keeping her face under control.
“No, I didn’t. I can tell when you’re lying to my face … I never had sex with you, did I?” Jake’s tone has completely dispersed, instead of rage he sounds shocked, something in his brain whirring and clicking. Figuring it all out, trying to work through the drunken haze of a night he still can’t remember.
“Marissa? Surely even you couldn’t scrape as low as that?” Ben snorts in absolute disgust and I see the ways she clenches her teeth, pure hatred emanating everywhere. Ben shakes his head, appalled, deciding that this is the truth right here. He walks off to get another drink.
“That night in the hotel …” Jake’s lost in memory and talking out loud, his voice a little soft, “… You never said my baby. You said you were having a baby.” He seems to be trying to pull something out of his head, running fingers through his hair. “You knew I would see a lie when you were faced with me that way.” His chin lifts again and glares at her angrily.
“You’ve got no clue of what you’re saying.” She throws her hair back over her shoulder and turns to storm off, but Jake’s lightening quick reflexes means he catches her wrist and pulls her back with serious aggression; yanking her to him with a hollow thud as she hits his chest with her arm, he draws her wrist up to his shoulder angrily. The grip is harsh, even from here.
“You said you were pregnant and having a baby. You asked me what I was going to do about it, but you never actually used the fucking words my baby … Not once … In that whole conversation. Later when we were separated by lawyers and distance, sure … but up close like this … Never fucking once!” He’s standing but his back is bent, nose to nose with her, voice seething, scarily intimidating and I being to wonder if he’s capable of hurting a woman in this state. I recoil behind him, suddenly unsure of this person I’ve never seen before coming out.
My heart is pounding and every part of me is fighting to intervene. I can’t let Jake hurt her even if I hate her. I would never look at him the same way. This isn’t what I want, this isn’t who I love. I can feel his hatred for her sweeping off him, around us, like smoke filling the room. So many memories of cruel men with power over me and I can’t let that happen to anyone else, even her.
“Stop it, you’re hurting me,” she snarls through gritted teeth but there’s fear in her eyes too. She doesn’t know this version of him and neither do I. I feel faint with the confusion tearing through me. My hands cover my mouth and I have absolutely no idea what to do. Even Ben looks a little uneasy at this terrifying version of Jake in full-on viciousness and he tenses as though ready to intervene.
“Did I fuck you?” His angry glare and nasty growl, through clenched teeth, show a man on the verge of so much rage it’s sweeping off him in droves so powerful the air seems to be cracking around him. His knuckles are white with the grip of his fisted hand by his side, and the one on her wrist is almost crushing her. This is a side to Jake I’ve never known and he’s terrifying.
Her eyes fill with tears and she stops pulling at her wrist because it obviously hurts. The color drains from her face, her eyes losing a little of their confident arrogance and her lip starts to wobble in the presence of this version of him. She feels the same fear I feel, but she’s the object of his pure undivided attention so I can only imagine how much worse it really is. He’s almost nose to nose with her in the most vicious scowl I have ever seen. I reach out to his back and touch him, a begging touch, to stop hurting her for me. I may hate her but right now I can’t bear to see her hurt like this, not by him or any man. No women ever deserves to be treated this way even if she has done the unthinkable."
