Chapter 52

Watching Jadon walk out of the kitchen, still clearly laughing at her, had nearly sent Tapiwa into a fit of rage. The man had to thank his angels that she hadn't sent the empty plate flying at his retreating back; she thought with a scowl.

Hell, the man had to be grateful she hadn't broken another plate just to get on his nerves. Tapiwa fumed, her hands fisted on her lap. She looked around at the mess she had started.

Honestly, Tapiwa had no idea how it had gotten that bad. It had all started with her wanting to put the mugs in order. And then she had discovered that the skillet had been thrown in the same cabinet as the plates. After that, Tapiwa lost track of her own actions. And now she sat in the midst of a mess she knew would take hours to fix.

Part of her, the immature part that felt a bone-deep need to get on Jadon's nerves, was tempted to just leave the mess as it was until Jadon got home. See if he would still be laughing then.

But Tapiwa knew she couldn't do that. Jadon had given her a bed to sleep in and was willing to feed her until this entire mess blew over. Pissing him off wasn't in her best interest.

With that in mind, Tapiwa got off the stool and walked over to the sink to get started. That's when she heard the voices.

Tapiwa stopped and frowned, confused. She'd thought Jadon had already left the house. She could have sworn she'd heard the front door open, but now she was certain one of the voices she heard in the hallway belonged to him.

Acting on her curiosity, because Tapiwa didn't believe curiosity killed the cat, she quietly made her way toward the hallway that led to the front door.

The tension was the first thing she sensed when she stepped into the hallway. It pulsed against the walls like a living, breathing being. She should have stepped back and stayed away, but she had to know what was going on. Then she saw them and the air rushed out of her lungs in a choke.

Suddenly, the brothers were staring at her. Before she knew what was happening, though, Jadon rushed forward and placed himself between Tapiwa and Asher. The move was so unexpected that Tapiwa gasped and took a step back, even as her heart warmed at the thought that he wanted to protect her. Or maybe he just didn't want a murder scene in his house. Either way, Jadon placed himself as a human shield, and it wasn't a second too soon.

Asher, who had been too shocked to react a second before, exploded. "Are you fucking kidding me?"

Tapiwa flinched, but she didn't run.

"Get out of my house," Jadon barked, his back so stiff Tapiwa could see the muscles ripple even through the suit.

Asher's furious gaze darted between Jadon and Tapiwa. "So this was what was happening all along?"

An exasperated groan tore out of Jadon. He took a step toward his brother. "Asher, I don't care what you think or believe. I just want you the hell out of my house. Right. Now."

Tapiwa's heart was no longer beating at the back of her throat. She was sure it had just left her body. Her ears rang and her vision blurred. But she didn't miss the second things turned from bad to chaotic.

With a growl that sounded more animalistic than human, Asher lunged forward at Jadon. The first sound of a fist meeting flesh echoed a second later. Tapiwa wasn't sure who had punched who. She was too busy screaming as she dropped to her knees against the wall and covered her head with her arms.

For several seconds, all she heard was the madness of fists meeting flesh, grunts, and the occasional thud, as though someone had hit the floor or wall. Something smashed, the sound so loud she flinched. She didn't look. Part of her told her she needed to help Jadon. Maybe call the police or grab something from the kitchen to beat Asher with.

Unfortunately, her body seemed to have locked in fear and she couldn't do anything but wait it out, hoping like hell Asher wasn't left the last man standing. She didn't want to think he would physically harm her, but she wouldn't bet her neck on it.

Then suddenly she heard the front door slam shut, the force of it making the wall she cradled against tremble from the force. An eerie silence followed. Tapiwa squeezed her eyes shut and waited.

But after a long minute, she needed to know. What if Asher had killed Jadon and then escaped? What if Jadon was bleeding out on the floor just a few feet from her while she cowered against the wall, doing nothing?

The thought brought bile to the back of her throat but propelled her into motion. Tapiwa dropped her arms and jerked into an upright position. When her eyes landed on Jadon, a whimper escaped her throat before she could hold it back.

Jadon winced, his teeth clenched tightly as he fought not to move despite the pain. The nurse was almost done, and he didn't want to delay the process any further.

Still, his reaction got him a lecture. "This could have been less painful if you had just gone to the hospital," the nurse said with a pointed look before piercing his skin again with her needle.

"I appreciate you doing this," Jadon said instead, and the woman just huffed, earning a snicker from Ezra.

They were all gathered at Ezra's closed sportswear boutique. After Jadon threw Asher out of his house and took stock of the additional damage done to his body, he knew he needed stitches. Unfortunately, going to the hospital would have raised more questions, and Jadon thought his life was already enough of a shit show.

The last thing he wanted was to file another police report for assault, which was the only way to get treated at the hospital. One look at him and the doctors would have known he hadn't walked into a door or slipped on the wet bathroom floor. His face looked like he had been in a scuffle with a pissed-off man and there was no hiding it.

Lucky for him, though, one of Ezra's past girlfriends was a nurse and when they called, she came, no questions asked. Jadon couldn't even remember her name, but he was grateful for her help.

"There. All done," she finally said before she gently tilted his head to the side to admire her work. She gave herself a nod of approval. "I think you will still be handsome."

"Now I remember why we broke up," Ezra suddenly said. He shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest, regarding the nurse with an unimpressed look. "I was here wondering why we broke up, but that just reminded me."

Kaelo snorted, giving Ezra a side-eye. "You mean you forgot how insecure she made you feel by always talking about how handsome your friends are?"

Pursing her lips, the nurse began to clean up. No one missed the darker shade of embarrassment on her cheeks. Thankfully, though, his friends decided not to point it out and waited for her to pack up and leave before they said anything further.

Jadon was glad. He didn't want the woman pissed at them. The way things were going, there was every chance they would need her services again, and he didn't want to risk her turning them down because Ezra and Kaelo lacked tact.

So, to make sure the woman was sufficiently motivated to still answer their call and ignore the jabs, Jadon gave her a nice amount for her 'transport' and then she was gone and Jadon faced his two idiot friends.

"You couldn't help yourself?" Jadon asked Ezra.

Unfazed, Ezra shrugged with a grin. "Trust me, I did you a favor."

Shaking his head, Jadon dropped the subject and finally leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes. God, his body felt as though he had been run over by a twenty-ton truck several times. He was in pain, and the pills he had taken earlier were yet to make a difference.

"Hey, you good?" Kaelo's voice cut through the silence.

Jadon snorted. "Far from it."

"Yeah. You look like shit."

Opening his left eye, which hurt less since it wasn't directly under the stitched cut on his forehead, Jadon glared at his friend. "How about you stop stating the irritating obvious and help me instead get my life back on track before there is nothing left of me to save?"

"Dramatic much?" Ezra teased and got a glare as well for his trouble.

Hoping to relax a little so he could think straight, Jadon closed his eyes again and just drew a deep breath.

"Are you really going to live with Tapiwa under the same roof?" Kaelo asked after a beat.

Jadon sighed. He could still see the horrified look on her face when he left the house bleeding. She had been frantic and nearly hysterical, but Jadon hadn't been in any mindset to deal with that and calm her. So he'd snapped at her and told her to leave him alone before he stormed out the door. Now he regretted it and wondered if she would be home when he got back. He wouldn't be shocked if she left.

Except she had nowhere to go.

"Yeah," Jadon said quietly. "She will stay with me." Sitting up then, his face took on a hard look. "Besides, I think it's safer given everything that happened."

Kaelo and Ezra nodded before they shared a long look. After a beat, Kaelo held Jadon's gaze. "Since you are no longer working for your father and it's official can we now focus on starting something of our own?"

"Please, say yes," Ezra pleaded. He waved a hand around the boutique. "I like this, but I am bored out of my mind here."

Jadon chuckled, the move making his chest ache. He quickly stopped. "Yeah. We can finally get that on the drawing board. But I want to find out who blackmailed me and put those pictures on the net before we get anywhere."

Kaelo frowned. "Do you think they would still come after you after exposing you?"

Jadon shrugged with a grimace. "With these people, who can truly know?"