Aftershock

  “Thank you.”

  He turned to face the room, his hand coming to rest on my hip in a blatantly possessive display of ownership. “In a couple of hours we can fly back to New York. Or we can grab a room here in the hotel.”

  “Or join the mile-high club. After all, what’s the point of taking a private jet if we don’t get naughty in it?”

  His fingers flexed into my flesh. “And once again, I have an erection in public. Thank you very much.”

  I laughed and leaned into him. “What do you need to do here?”

  “Not sure.” He took a drink. “Once Parker shows up, I’ll have an idea.”

  “He relies on you a lot, doesn’t he?”

  Jax shrugged, but I saw the tightness around his mouth again. It was soon echoed by a corresponding tautness to his big frame, and when I followed his gaze, I saw why. Parker and Regina Rutledge had arrived. The two stood near the entrance to the ballroom, surrounded by those who wanted to rub shoulders with a Rutledge. There were several of them in attendance, but Parker was the wizard behind the curtain whom everyone wanted to see.

  He looked over at Jax and me, smiling when he caught my eye and then glancing at Jax. A silent bit of communication passed between them.

  “Gimme a second, babe,” Jax murmured, then he walked away, striding easily through a crowd that parted for him.

  I watched him until he reached his father, studying both men for body language.

  “Well, you cleaned up nicely,” a familiar voice said beside me.

  Turning my head, I looked at Allison Rutledge, formerly Allison Kelsey. I raked her with a glance, noting the changes. I’d barely seen her the night I escorted Ian, so I took the opportunity. She was thinner than she had been in Vegas and she’d been slender then. Polished and perfect in a brittle way, she appeared to have hardened and grown more jaded. There was a world-weariness in her eyes that echoed what I occasionally saw in Jax.

  But she was still as beautiful as ever, with dark hair cut into a sleek bob that framed delicate features and big blue eyes. Her aqua-hued gown was a lovely contrast to her porcelain skin.

  “Hello, Allison,” I said, turning my attention back to the two darkly handsome Rutledge men across the room.

  “That’s a beautiful dress.” She examined me. “Gretchen must be partial to it. She suggested it to me, as well, but it’s not my style.”

  I took another sip of champagne to hide how I felt at the unexpected mention of the stylist’s name. So, Gretchen was an ace in the hole for the entire Rutledge family. Nice to know. “You might be surprised to hear that it wasn’t my first choice, either.”

  Her smile was anything but friendly. “You’re smart to let Jackson dress you. But then you’re obviously smarter than I gave you credit for, or you wouldn’t be here.”

  “Can you go be a bitch somewhere else?” I said, waving my hand carelessly. “This is my space and you need to see your way out of it.”

  “If I remember correctly, you’re not a woman who likes pretense and bullshit, so I’m not shoveling any your way. We have to get along, after all. Might as well start now.”

  “We don’t have to do anything.” My gaze flicked over to her. “I suggest we do our best to avoid one another.”

  Her brows rose as if she were surprised, then she laughed, the sound as melodious as her voice. “That’s not how this works, Gianna. You and I are going to be best friends, as far as public knowledge goes. We’ll have lunch and shop together. Ted and I will have dinner with you and Jackson. We’ll go to ball games and exhibitions. All sorts of things where we’ll smile at the camera and look tighter than sisters.”

  “You’ve had too much champagne.”

  “I’ll let Jackson explain it to you.” Her eyes were suspiciously bright, which got my back up.

  “Explain what?” Regina Rutledge asked, joining us.

  “Ted’s upcoming mayoral bid. Jackson’s outdone himself this time.”

  My hand tightened around the stem of my glass, alarm bells ringing.

  Regina’s mouth curved, but her voice came cold and sharp. “I think you should leave Gianna to Jackson. He’s very protective.”

  “I get the hint.” Allison looked at me. “I’ll plan for us to have dinner in the city soon. Enjoy yourself, Gianna. And again, you look stunning. That dress was made for you.”

  She glided off and I rubbed my nose with my middle finger, discreetly flipping her off before dismissing her and looking away. Parker still had Jax at his side, his hand resting on his son’s shoulder as they spoke to a white-haired gentleman whose face was vaguely familiar.

  “Don’t pay her any mind,” Regina said, stepping into my line of sight.

  Her blond hair skimmed her shoulders in stylized waves that were reminiscent of the heydays of Hollywood starlets. “She’s jealous. She has a Rutledge, but...” She lifted one shoulder in a careless shrug. “Ted isn’t Jackson or Parker.”

  I silently agreed with that. “It’s nice seeing you again,” I said instead.

  Her mouth curved. “You and I are lucky women. Trust me, Jackson’s stamina won’t fade with time.”

  My brows lifted. Even though Regina was nearer to my age than her husband’s, she was still Jax’s stepmother. It felt weird talking to her about sex with our men.

  Jax appeared in front of me, taking my flute and passing it to Regina. His dark eyes hot on my face, he caught my hand and pulled me into him. “Dance with me.”

  He led me onto the dance floor, his arms coming around me. “You’re the most beautiful woman here.”

  “Flattery will get you everywhere.” It was heady being in Jax’s arms in public, nearly as heady as being held by him in private. “I have to say, though, that I’d rather not work with stylists who are also working with Allison. I don’t like her, Jax.”

  His fingers stroked over my back. “She’s not one of my favorite people, either, but she’s married to Ted. She’s family.”

  “I’m done with her treating me like I’m the scratching post for her claws.”

  “She can be a raging bitch,” he agreed, “but she has those claws for a reason. You’ll need them, too, Gia.”

  I treated him to a sulky stare. “I know you think I’m not strong enough to deal with your life, and I’m going to prove you wrong. That said, I am not going to go out of my way to spend time with people who give me grief.”

  “So, the part about us acting as a team...that only applies to things you choose?”

  “That’s not fair! I would never ask you to just suffer quietly while people insult you. I respect you more than that!”

  A muscle ticked in his jaw. “It’s not about respect, Gia. I shouldn’t have to tell you that I’m going to talk to Allison about how she approaches you—that should be obvious. But whether we like her or not, we’ve all got to work together.”

  “I don’t have to do anything for her.”

  “Then do it for me,” he snapped. “This is my life. I was very clear about how unpleasant some parts of it may be for you.”

  I was startled by his vehemence. “You don’t like this any more than I do. I know you don’t. You don’t want to be here, at this party. It’d be different if you were asking me to hang in there because of something that’s really important to you, but that’s not the case!”

  “I made my bed, Gia,” he said tightly, his face hard and remote. “And you made the decision to lie in it with me.”

  I shook my head, trying to reconcile the Jax in front of me with the one I’d first met. That Jax had been fun-loving, larger than life, a hedonist in many ways. “I don’t understand you. Life is short, Jax. Why spend time doing things that don’t make you happy?”

  “Doing you makes me very happy.”

  I shoved at his shoulder. “Be serious. This is importa
nt. I really need to know.”

  He didn’t answer me for a minute, long enough for one song to end and another to begin. I felt a change move through him, the quickening of his breath and a tightening of his hold on me. “The time for me to make a different choice came and went a long time ago.”

  “That’s a cop-out. You’re not even thirty. Your whole life is ahead of you and nothing is behind you that you can’t fix.”

  Jax looked over my shoulder, his gaze distant and unfocused, as if he were seeing something I couldn’t. “Sometimes you can’t go back,” he muttered. “You just have to face the consequences and own your mistakes.”

  “You don’t have to keep making new ones.” I cupped his cheek, returning his attention back to me. “We’re starting over, Jax. We’ve got a second chance to get it right. Let’s not waste energy on people and situations that just drag us down.”

  He heaved out his breath, then pressed a quick hard kiss to my forehead. “Let’s get out of here.”

  7

  “YOU LOOK FANTASTIC,” my best friend, Lynn, said, checking me out. “I haven’t seen you look this good since Vegas.”

  “Considering that was a couple years ago, I’m not feeling too hot about that compliment.” I was teasing her and she knew it, just as I knew I was looking pretty good lately.

  Three weeks of living with Jax had led to me dropping about five pounds—the honeymoon diet without the honeymoon. Jax was insatiable and I was eating better because of it. There was a greater incentive to make smart food choices when you knew someone was going to be seeing you naked every day.

  She laughed and glanced around Rossi’s. “This place looks great, too.”

  Business at both Rossi’s locations was brisk, due in part to media mentions of Jax and me. Because I’d made an effort to avoid hearing anything about Jax while we were apart, I hadn’t realized just how often his name made the news. He’d said the gossip blogs and social media hounds would love me, but he hadn’t mentioned how much they loved him. The public wanted him in office. He was young, gorgeous, a Rutledge, and he had just enough ruthlessness to put him on the right side of edgy.

  “The eye candy is delicious as always,” Lynn went on, her attention drifting to Vincent, who was working the bar.

  He looked up, caught her eye, and winked.

  “Be still my heart,” she said, tucking a stray lock of her red hair behind her ear and blowing him a kiss.

  I groaned. “He’s got a big-enough head already.”

  “Wouldn’t I like to find out?”

  “Eww.” I rolled my eyes. I’d suggested we meet at Rossi’s because I wanted to relax without worrying about someone snapping a picture of me. I’d gotten used to having a bodyguard around all the time, but at Rossi’s I had the added eyes of my family watching out for invasions of my privacy.

  She shot me a sympathetic look. “Is it really bad?”

  “It’s not terrible. I’m not a celebrity or anything. But there always seems to be one or two photographers lurking around.”

  “Stalker rat bastards.”

  I shrugged, having accepted them as part of my life. Whenever I got irritated, I reminded myself that Jax had broken both our hearts to protect me from the attention. If I’d learned anything over the past three weeks, it was how happy being with Jax could make me. I couldn’t remember ever being happier. “I just have to be careful, that’s all.”

  Twisting on her bar stool, she faced me, her long legs kicking playfully. Dressed in a long floral maxi and jean jacket, with a ton of bracelets and necklaces that she made—and sold—herself, she rocked bohemian elegance. “How is Jackson, anyway? I mean, on an ordinary day. He seems so...intense in interviews.”

  “He is. But he can also be playful. And funny. He makes me laugh every day.”

  She grinned. “Look at that smile on your face. Almost makes up for his conservative politics.”

  I rolled my eyes, not wanting to get into a discussion about Lynn’s liberal views. I left that to my dad, who loved to talk to her about their similar stances on issues. “That’s not to say he can’t be stubborn, irrational, frustrating—”

  “A man.”

  “Yeah.”

  “So...speaking of politics.”

  “We weren’t,” I said firmly.

  She gave me a toothy grin. “I was. You manage to get the tribe all together in one place yet?”

  “Not yet.” My feet tapped on the brass foot rail. “Shooting for a brunch this Saturday. It’s the only time we could get everyone together.”

  “God. You’re going to have to give me all the details. Wish I could listen in. That’s going to be a hell of a brunch.”

  She wasn’t wrong. In most ways, the Rossis and Rutledges were two different breeds of family.

  I took a bite of a crostini, then glanced at my smartphone as it buzzed on the bar. The text message from Jax made me smile. Bring home lasagna.

  Lynn glanced at it, too. “Girl, don’t tell me the romance is over already.”

  My phone vibrated again. I’ve got the gelato to lick off your body....

  She laughed and I laughed with her.

  “I need a boyfriend.” Her gaze slid over to where Vincent was shaking up a drink. “Or a booty call.”

  I distracted her from my heartbreaker of a brother. “How’s work?”

  “Busy.” She played with her long necklaces. “Internet sales are really picking up. If my rent and taxes keep going up, too, I may close the store and just focus on the online business.”

  “Really? But you love that store!” I knew how hard Lynn had worked to open it, and how much she’d wanted to prove that her jewelry making and pottery weren’t just worthless hobbies.

  She shrugged, but I could see it bothered her. “Wouldn’t be so bad to set my own hours and have more time to come up with new concepts. I could also travel to more conventions and shows, which might be better for me.”

  I wanted to keep her thinking positively. “I could use more of your business cards. I wore your amethyst earrings to a party last week and got a ton of compliments on them.”

  “Yeah?” She brightened. “That’s great. Thank you.”

  I gestured for Vincent to refill our beers, while Lynn pulled some business cards out of her behemoth of a purse.

  “How’s work going for you?” she asked when she handed them over.

  “Good.”

  “You still love it?”

  “I do, yes.” I smiled at Vincent as he set two fresh, full glasses in front of us and took the others away.

  “What aren’t you telling me?”

  I shot my best friend a narrowed glance. She was too perceptive. “Nothing.”

  “And your boss is totally okay with you and Jackson?” she prodded.

  Sighing, I picked up another crostini. “We don’t talk about it. Which is okay, because she’s my boss and not my friend, but still....”

  “You think she’s got a problem with it?”

  “I’d say she’s taking it pretty well, considering I’m living with the guy who is doing business with the man who screwed her over. She still trusts me with sensitive information. But there’s...something between us that wasn’t there before.” And that bothered me. A lot.

  “What are you going to do?”

  “What can I do?” I chewed and swallowed, chasing the toast down with a swig of beer. “I figure she’s waiting to see how it all shakes out. After enough time passes, maybe she’ll feel better about the whole thing.”

  Lynn wrinkled her nose. “Have you talked to Jackson?”

  “Can’t. He’s a fixer. He’ll want to step in and smooth things over, and that might make things even more uncomfortable.”

  “That’s probably the best endorsement you could’ve made for hi
m in my eyes. Every gal wants their best friend to end up with a guy willing to slay their dragons.” She winked. “And lick gelato off them.”

  Laughing, I turned my head and glanced around the packed restaurant. Walk-in patrons waited in the foyer by reception, while tables were turned with brisk efficiency thanks to my dad’s insistence on a robust service staff. Families mixed with couples and groups, while a popular television star enjoyed the illusion of anonymity at her favorite table. A camera flash caught my eye, luring my attention to what looked to be a birthday party. Above the din of conversation and the clattering of silverware, an Italian tenor sang about love and loss through the speaker system.

  Contentment slid through me, as it always did when I was at Rossi’s.

  “Did hell just freeze over?” Lynn asked, bringing my gaze back to her.

  “Huh?”

  She gestured with a jerk of her chin and I followed. Blinking, I took in the sight of my dad standing beside Ted Rutledge, who had his arm tossed across his shoulders. Ted was dressed in a suit and tie, while my father wore his usual white chef’s coat, black pants, and red Rossi’s apron. Giovanni Rossi remained a striking man, with a full head of salt and pepper hair, and a strong jaw. A photographer snapped their photo.

  “Hard to tell from here,” she said. “Is that a campaign button on his shirt?”

  I looked at my dad first, then at Ted. Sure enough, Ted had something pinned to his jacket.

  “Second time he’s been in here this week,” Vincent said behind me.

  When I looked at my brother, I saw the muscle ticcing in his jaw.

  “I didn’t know anything about this,” I told him.

  “Yeah?” His brown eyes were hard. “Can Jackson say that?”

  * * *

  Lynn took off around eight, but I decided to stay and wait until closing, so I could talk to my dad. I also decided to head back to the loft with Angelo and Vincent.

  Because I didn’t want to get into it with Jax when I was tired and cranky, I sent a text letting him know I wasn’t coming home, and then dropped my phone back into my purse. I sipped at a glass of anisette decorated with a lemon twist. After seeing my dad with Ted, a liqueur was calming.