heightened hormone level,” she laughed.
“Absolutely, what man wouldn’t want to make love to their beautifully glowing wife twenty-four-seven? Besides, plays are boring.” I shrugged.
“There’s plenty of time for us to make love, but honestly—” she turned into my hold, staring back at me. “—I need to recoup from this morning.” She batted her eyes.
“Okay, you think you’ll feel recouped in a few hours?” I asked serious then smiled.
Her brows lifted. “You’re insatiable, you know that?”
I pressed a kiss to her forehead and escorted her out of the bedroom. After closing the door, I felt a vibration against my chest. I reached inside of my jacket and retrieved my phone, seeing the number wasn’t one that I recognized. “I’ll be down in a minute,” I told Bella. I turned back toward the bedroom and answered. “Hello?”
“Hello, Jax.”
I closed my eyes tight. I never thought I’d hear that voice again. As a matter-of-fact, I prayed I’d never hear that voice again. “What do you want?” I spit through closed teeth.
“Is that any way to speak to your wife, Jax?”
“You are alive?”
“Living and breathing—” I could hear the smirk in her voice. The breathing part was accurate, for now.
“What do you want?”
“Among other things, I want to see you.”
“To see me? Not gonna happen,” I said flatly.
“I have been a very patient woman, Jax, but I’m losing that patience. We have a lot to discuss.”
“We have nothing to discuss.” I closed the bedroom door.
“Your attempt at having me killed gives us many things to discuss, wouldn’t you agree?”
I slammed my fist into the wall in a rage of anger. “When?”
“Detroit tomorrow, I’ll text you the location. Oh and, Jax—”
I closed my eyes; sweat beaded at my temples as I leaned on the wall I’d just put the hole inside of. “What?” I growled.
“You will bring the princess, won't you? I’m sure she’d love to hear all about the real Jax Moretti.” She disconnected the call.
I stood for several minutes watching as the room spun out of control. I walked into the bathroom and tucked my phone into my pants pocket to splash water on my face. I hung on the edge of the sink another few minutes as I tried to regain control over my life once again.
“Jax?” I heard Bella ask from inside the bedroom. “What’s going on?” Her footsteps came closer to me in the bathroom.
“Damn it!” I spit, flashing a glance into the mirror in front of me. My face was dark, blood red, forehead wrinkled, eyes bursting with anger and I didn’t want her seeing me like that.
“Jax?” She slowly crept into the bathroom. “Where did the hole in the wall come from?” She pointed behind her.
“Work. I’m sorry I lost my shit. I’ll have one of the guys fix it tomorrow.” The word tomorrow made me cringe. I stood upright facing Bella. “Baby, I know you were looking forward to this night—
“You want to stay in? Maybe, a massage will help you feel better.” She leaned in, resting her head against my chest.
I rested my cheek against the top of her head risking her comfort—stealing it really. If Bella had any idea of the real reason I was so pissed off she’d be running. My thoughts went silent, ignoring the possibility that this— all this— would be over. I wrapped my arms around her small body and sighed. “I love you more than anything in this world, Isabella. No matter what I want you to always remember that, okay.” I squeezed her tight.
“Baby, is everything alright?”
I drew in a deep breath, “When you’re in my arms, everything is alright. It’s when your not that everything turns to shit.”
She leaned back away from my chest, pressing her palm to my cheek. “I’ll always be here.” She offered a sweet smile. “Tell you what, I’ll go downstairs and whip something up for dinner and we’ll eat over an old movie, sound good?”
I nodded. “Perfect,”
“You sure you’re