“Big brother, I cannot believe it
’s you
!”
“Hey little sis.” He croaks, holding her tight.
Carol turns to me, and her face pales, she pulls me into her arms.
“You…oh Jade. Are you ok honey?”
“I’m ok. I could use a shower.”
“Come love, I will make you a cup of tea.” Amber says, wrapping her arm around my shoulders.
“Maddox, you look like you could use a beer?” Rusty laughs hoarsely.
“I have been tangled with bad pirates for a long time pops, you have no idea the relief I feel right now to be free or how much, I want a beer.”
I laugh, and Maddox winks at me. I know he and I will get along just fine. We make our way inside, and I shower myself before coming down and allowing Amber to clean me up.
“We should get this bullet removed.” She says.
“No, leave it there.”
“Leave it?” She asks.
“It
’
s not hurting me and…well…I want it as a reminder that I survived.”
She smiles and pats my leg. “You’re a brave girl.”
“She is.” Maddox says, walking out shirtless from his shower.
My eyes widen, wow, his body is as breathtaking as Jax’s. He is stockier in build; his shoulders are wider and thicker. His skin is covered in tattoos, like Jax’s. It
’
s quite surprising to see how alike they are. I blush and look away.
“My sons seem to affect you love.” Rusty laughs.
“Good genes,” I mutter, flaming red. “Have you heard from Jax?”
“He is on his way back.”
“Already?”
“I told you Jax was the most feared out there,” Maddox mutters. “Ben wouldn’t have seen it coming.”
We sit and talk for an hour or so more. The crew arrive and come into the house; I beam at Jax who is untouched aside from a few blood stains. He grins at me, and I leap into his arms.
“You look better.” He whispers.
“You don’t.” I laugh.
“Ben ran, he found the dead bodies you and Maddox created and he bolted. Man isn't stupid. We got ninety percent of the crew, but he is still out there. I doubt he will show his face around here again though.”
“Bastard.” Maddox mutters.
“Throw me a beer dad, I am going to have a shower.”
Rusty tosses Jax a beer and he pulls off his shirt. I flush again. Rusty snorts laughter.
“Your wife has rosy cheeks son.”
Jax turns to me and grins. “She does.”
“First Maddox, then you.”
“Were you checking out my brother, Mr’s Watts.” Jax teases.
“NO!” I splutter.
The room erupts in laughter and I scowl at them. Jax disappears into the bathroom to shower and returns fresh and clean ten minutes later. I crawl onto his lap and nestle into him.
“I am glad that’s over.” He mutters.
“So am I,” Maddox says. “I couldn’t believe when Ben said Jade called him and wanted to meet up with him, I knew it would not end well.”
Jax tenses beneath me and my blood runs cold. No, oh no.
“What?” He hisses.
I close my eyes and slide off his lap.
“Did I say something wrong?” Maddox asks puzzled.
“She called Ben?”
“
Err
, yeah.”
Everybody’s eyes turn to me, and I look down.
“Jade, you better not fucking tell me you went to him, or I swear to god…”
“I did.” I whisper.
“WHAT!” Jax roars leaping up.
I stand. “It wasn’t like that. He threatened Lilly; I had no choice.”
“When?”
“What?”
“WHEN DID YOU START CONTACT WITH HIM?”
“The night I got stabbed.”
Jax hisses through his teeth and his words come out like acid.
“You fucking knew where he was all that time.”
“NO,” I cry. “He told me to bring him the treasure or he would kill her.”
“So you betrayed me? Us? You knew, and you went behind my back to help him.”
“I wasn’t helping him!” I screech. “I was protecting my daughter.”
“You didn’t fucking think to tell me and then none of this would have happened!”
“Bullshit! You would have gone after him, and I would have been in danger. I was scared, and I didn’t want her to get hurt.”
“You lied to me! You betrayed me. Do you fucking know what I do to my crew members who betray me?”
I freeze. “Jax…”
“I fucking shoot them.”
“Son, calm down.”
I tremble and look up at him from my position on the floor. He glares down at me.
“I am going out. Don’t follow me. Don
’
t ring me. Don’t talk with me.”
He grips his keys and is out the door before I can say another word. I fall into a rack of sobs, Rusty kneels by my side.
“Love, he will calm down.”
“I want to be alone.” I whisper.
He nods and everyone leaves. When I am alone, I begin sobbing wildly and screaming, tearing at my hair. It’s my fault, all my fault. I lied; I betrayed; I made the mistake. I have nobody else to blame but myself.
CHAPTER
17
I wait for Jax; he doesn’t return until two am. When he does, he is dressed in his old singlet and jeans. He looks like a pirate again, which means only one thing.
“I am leaving.”
I nod weakly, what is there to say? He narrows his eyes and steps forward.
“I am not leaving forever. I need time. You broke my heart, my rules and my trust. I need that back. You are my wife, and I promised you I would take care of you. I love you, and that won’t change, but right now, in this minute, I can’t stand you. I need time.”
I nod again.
“I will take a few months, I am going to find Ben and sort him out. I won’t leave you unprotected, Jack and Jez are going to stay and watch you. So is my father. I will call Lilly every day.”
I nod.
“Why did you do it Jade?”
I look up at him; my eyes are puffy. I can tell because he is blurry.
“He said he would find Lilly and kill her, no matter where we hid. I was scared. I know it was wrong, but I was trying to put my life before hers…and yours.” My voice comes out hoarse and scratchy.
He stares at me for a long moment, blinking rapidly to block his emotions.
“You should have come to me.”
“If anybody was going to die, it should have been me. I thought it was the right thing.”
He nods and runs his hands through his hair.
“Well, I need time all the same. I will call, after a few months. We need some separation.”
“Ok.”
“You aren’t going to fight me on this?”
“
What’s
the point?” I whisper. “I deserve it.”
I hear him begin to pant.
“I…I want to just take you in my arms and tell you it’s not your fault. I hate to see you cry, but it is your fault Jade. I…can’t forgive you for this right now. I hope soon I can…”
“Can you leave then? I can’t take you being here any longer than you need to be.”
He winces. “I came back to say goodbye to Lilly.”
“Then say goodbye to her.”
He walks upstairs and is gone for a good half an hour. When he comes back down, his eyes are bloodshot red from emotion. He picks up the bags he has gotten from upstairs and stands in front of me.
“I am still your husband. I expect that you won’t move on until we sort this out.”
“You mean while you leave me for god knows how long? And decide if you even want me? That’s not fair.”
He stiffens. “I said you are my wife, I said I would work through it. I won’t betray you; I trust you won’t do it to me again.”
I swallow to reign in my emotions. “I have no interest in touching anybody else.”
“Well…I will text you as I go. I will call in a few months when I…am not so wild.”
I look up at him. He is wild; I can see it by the way the veins in his arms are throbbing. The way his eyes are flaring red, then green. He is speaking to me so calmly, but I can see how hard he is fighting to keep his temper under control. He is doing that for me. He doesn’t want to hurt me any more than he already is. I love him for that.
“I…hope you stay safe.”
He steps forward and puts his hand on my cheek. It’s not really an affectionate touch, but it’s something.
“You too.”
Then he is gone. My husband, my life, is gone. I stare out at the ocean for hours after I see his ship disappear into the darkness. I did this. This one is on me. I hurt him; I lied, I broke
his heart.
I, Jade Watts, broke the first rule of piracy, betrayal is an unforgivable act. I did the one thing I knew Jax couldn’t handle.
TO BE CONTINUED.
Keep an eye out for the third and final book in the pirate series Vengance.
Follow me on facebook – Bec Botefuhr or check out my website
http://craigbecanna.wix.com/new-author
God Bless!
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