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  He hooked his fingers into her lace underwear and pulled on the thin fabric. Taking the hint, she slid off him and removed her panties while he maneuvered his boxer briefs off as well. She positioned herself, her knees on either side of his waist, and rose, a goddess with her hair hanging over her shoulders.

  She grasped his cock and settled him into her, sliding down until their bodies were one. He groaned at the feel of her, tight and slick around him, and she began to glide up and down, riding him, taking control until their eyes met and sensation gave way to something more.

  And in that moment, he knew. He wasn’t falling in love. He had already fallen. He was in too deep to escape and didn’t know what to do. Then she squeezed her inner walls and he groaned, lifting his hips, their bodies meeting again and again until she came, her hips rocking, her entire body spasming around him. Her climax triggered his own, and he slammed his hips upward and ground into her.

  A few minutes later, she lay splayed across him, breathing heavily. “I needed that.” She rolled to the side, flipping her hair off her face.

  “Any time.” He grinned, taking in the flush in her cheeks. “How about you shower and I’ll check in with Jonathan. See if he’s got any leverage on Lilah,” he said of the lawyer they’d hired.

  She played with his hair, her gaze soft on his. “Are you sure you don’t want to shower with me and we can call Jonathan after?” she asked in a tempting voice.

  And he was tempted. But with his heart on the line and her feelings unknown, he needed distance. “I need to call Austin, too.”

  “Okay. Let me know what they say.” She kissed him on the lips and rolled out of bed, leaving him alone.

  Chapter Twelve

  Macy showered, letting the warm water run over her skin, soaping her body with strawberry gel, replacing Jaxon’s masculine scent with the fruity one. She didn’t kid herself. She couldn’t rid herself of Jaxon if she wanted to and she didn’t. She loved him. But he had so many walls built up around him she didn’t know if she’d ever get through.

  They’d had a moment in bed earlier. She shampooed her hair and tipped her head back to let the bubbles run off. Their bodies had been connected, and for a moment, she’d thought their hearts had as well. But afterwards, she’d felt his defenses go back up and knew he was shutting her out.

  Oh, he’d be there for her with Hannah, help deal with the lawyer, go up against Lilah. But the glimpse she’d gotten of his heart? That was locked up tight again.

  After conditioning her hair and rinsing off, she stepped out of the shower and onto the fluffy bathroom mat. She dried off and pulled on a dress she’d taken into the bathroom with her and wrapped her damp hair in a bun to dry.

  She headed to the kitchen, where she found Jaxon standing by the granite counter, drinking a cup of coffee. “Hi.”

  “Hi. Coffee?” He gestured to the brewer.

  “I can make it, thanks. Any news from Jonathan?”

  He stepped aside so she could get to the machine, and while she popped in a K-cup, he filled her in. “Nothing worth mentioning about Lilah except a low bank balance—don’t ask how he knows that because I didn’t—and a boyfriend who doesn’t have much more money than she does.”

  “You’d think that Hannah is wealthy and that’s why she wants custody but–” She was about to explain how Hannah’s insurance from their father was tied up in trust with Macy as trustee and that money was set aside for college when Hannah’s voice sounded through the house followed by the front door slamming.

  “Oh, shit.” Macy put the mug down before even taking a sip and rushed to meet her sister in the hall.

  Given the black streaks of tears running down Hannah’s face, Macy opted not to lay into her now for sneaking out without leaving a note or asking permission.

  “I hate her!”

  Macy met Jaxon’s gaze. He appeared as shocked as Macy was. “Who do you hate?” she asked, just to be clear.

  “Mom. I overheard her talking to her boyfriend. Do you want to know why she wants me? Because Dad left me insurance and getting custody would give her control of the money.” Her eyes filled again. “He said I was baggage she had to take to get the money but it would be worth it.”

  That bitch. Macy was going to kill her. She pulled Hannah into a hug. “Honey, I’m so sorry your mother disappointed you.”

  Hannah sniffed. “I wanted to live with her because she was fun. She never got mad at me. She didn’t make me do anything like clean up. I thought it meant she loved me more than you did.”

  Jaxon arrived with tissues in his hand and gave them to Hannah, then discreetly stepped away.

  “Hannah, I love you. I’ve always told you that. And all the arguments and punishments, those are because I want what’s best for you. And that’s for you to grow up to be a woman with morals and a good sense of right and wrong.”

  “I’m sorry.” Hannah wiped her face with the tissues, the black mascara smearing even more. Suddenly her eyes opened wide. “What if Mom gets custody of me? She made me sign a piece of paper saying I wanted to live with her, but that was before. What am I going to do?” She began to panic, wring her hands, and pace.

  “Hannah, stop and listen to me. Your money is in a trust. I’m in charge, and even if your mother got custody, she couldn’t touch the money.” Which meant Lilah wasn’t going to want her daughter, and Macy didn’t want to be the one to give Hannah the cold facts.

  She wrapped an arm around her sister’s shoulder. “You should go up and wash your face and shower. We can talk about everything that happened some more, and you leaving this house without permission, later.”

  Hannah sniffed and nodded. “What are you going to do?” she asked, because she knew Macy well.

  “Jaxon and I are going to talk and decide whether I should go lay out the facts for your mom or let the lawyer do it for me.” Although Macy wanted to confront Lilah and see her face when she realized the money her dad had left was protected from her greedy hands. “What’s Lilah’s hotel room number?” she asked.

  Hannah mumbled the answer, and once she’d disappeared and Macy heard the door to the bedroom close, Jaxon returned from wherever he’d disappeared to.

  “I didn’t want to embarrass her by being here when she was crying. Or admitting her mother didn’t really want her.” He shook his head. “Poor kid.”

  Macy frowned. “Better she learn the truth now than after some judge awarded custody to Lilah because she was the biological mother.” Her stomach cramped at the thought of how easily that result could have occurred.

  “I want to confront her myself,” Macy said. “Is it awful that I want to see her reaction?” She shook her head. “All of this upheaval because she somehow found out about Dad’s insurance. I’m sure they spoke about it when they were married. Dad was really good about estate planning. Lilah just obviously isn’t very smart about how it works.”

  Jaxon folded his arms across his chest, a move she always loved because it displayed his muscular forearms.

  “How about I stay with the kid. I can distract her when she comes down, and you can go have it out with your stepmother,” he suggested.

  “Perfect. Thank you.” She walked over, rose to her tiptoes, and pressed a kiss to his cheek. She was grateful and wanted him to know it. “Hold down the fort,” she said with a wink before heading to get her purse and car keys.

  She had a confrontation to get to and a woman to get out of her sister’s life for good.

  * * *

  Macy’s anger had time to fester on the drive to the hotel where Lilah was staying. She left the car with the valet, strode through the luxurious mirrored lobby, and took the elevator to the eighth floor.

  After following the signs, she banged on the door number Hannah had given her and waited. When no one answered, she raised her hand to knock harder, but the door flung open and Lilah greeted her.

  “Good job. You all but destroyed your daughter. Are you happy?” Macy pushed her way inside, intendi
ng to have the argument in private.

  “Excuse me!”

  “We need to talk and I’m not doing it in the hallway.” Macy waited until Lilah shut the door before speaking. “Are we alone or is your boyfriend here?” She wanted to know what she was dealing with.

  “We’re alone. Is Hannah okay? I’ve been calling her to make sure she got home safely but she won’t answer.”

  Macy studied her and realized Lilah appeared shaken, something that surprised her. “She’s home safely but she’s not fine. Not after finding out the only reason her mother wanted custody was to get her hands on her insurance money her father left her when he died.”

  Appearing pale, Lilah faced Macy. “I love her. I was wrong to leave her in the first place, but the fact is that I’m broke and that money will help tremendously.”

  “Then who’s paying for this?” Macy gestured around the beautiful hotel room with a large living room and the bedroom in the far corner.

  “I haven’t reached the limit on one of my credit cards.”

  Macy shook her head. “That’s not Hannah’s problem. Or mine. So let me explain the facts to you. I don’t know what Dad told you about his insurance policies when you were together, but when he died, the policy money went into trust and I’m the trustee.” She poked herself in the chest. “Me.”

  Lilah’s eyes opened wide and her face grew paler, if such a thing were possible. “But I just assumed there would be monthly payments to help whoever was her guardian. And I know your grandparents left money to your father that he must have split between you and Hannah.”

  “Also in trust.” Macy folded her arms across her chest. “You assumed wrong and you hurt your daughter in the process.” She didn’t wait for Lilah’s reply before continuing. “Hannah’s money is going to pay for her college and help her get started in life. Not to fund your lifestyle. So if you want to keep fighting me for custody, go ahead. If you win, you’ll have a teenager you need to support as well as yourself.”

  Macy would never let Hannah suffer because of her mother’s neglect, but Lilah didn’t need to know that Macy would help her sister regardless of who she lived with. There was a monthly stipend, but it wasn’t enough to keep Lilah in the lifestyle she wanted.

  Which brought up another question. “Dad didn’t have enough money to keep you happy when you were married. Why are you so eager to get your hands on it now?” Macy asked.

  Lilah flushed and sat down on the sofa. Wearing a leopard-print dress and high heels, she didn’t appear to be suffering from lack of money. But apparently looks were deceiving.

  “You don’t know how hard it is when you age. Older men with money are interested in younger women than me. And younger men assume a woman like me has a hefty income.” She lifted her hands to her unlined face, courtesy of injections and fillers. “I told Rafe I was coming into a lot of money once I got custody of Hannah. She overheard him talking this morning about what we’d do when I came into money. He wanted to put her in a boarding school so she wasn’t in the way.”

  “For God’s sake, Lilah!” Macy couldn’t believe that what Hannah had overheard was worse than just her mother wanting her for money. She’d also wanted to send her away.

  Lilah pushed herself up from her seat, walked over to a makeshift bar, poured herself vodka, and took a sip. “That wasn’t what I wanted. It was Rafe who said it. I’ve been enjoying spending time with Hannah.”

  Macy paced the floor in front of the woman who stood between her and her sister. “Spending time isn’t the same as parenting.”

  “I realized that the other night while helping her clean up the party mess. I didn’t envy you having to deal with the repercussions. The punishment. Hannah’s anger. But then I had Rafe, who still expects me to come into money. My life is a mess!”

  “And I couldn’t care less.”

  Hand shaking, Lilah took another sip of her drink. “I don’t know what to do.”

  Macy bit the inside of her cheek. “I’ll tell you what’s going to happen as far as Hannah is concerned. We both know you don’t want real parental responsibility, and now you know there’s no cash in it for you. Before I leave here, I want the paper you made Hannah sign stating she wants to live with you. And tomorrow you’re going to call your lawyer and rescind the custody suit.”

  Lilah looked at her with sad, tear-filled eyes. Only Lilah knew if those tears were real. “I love her, you know,” she said as she walked to a stack of papers on a table and handed Macy a sheet of paper with Hannah’s familiar signature.

  “You have a funny way of showing it,” Macy muttered. “Don’t ask me why but I’ll throw you one bone. If you get your act together and want a relationship with your daughter, it’s up to Hannah if she wants to have anything to do with you. I won’t stand in your way if you act like an adult and a parent. But I won’t let you jerk her around.” As much as Macy disliked Lilah, it wasn’t her place to keep Hannah from her mother.

  Lilah nodded, clutching her drink in both hands.

  Macy went on. “If you get in touch with Hannah again, it had better be for a real, genuine relationship. Otherwise disappear. For good this time.”

  She strode out without waiting for an answer. Heading down the hall to the elevator, she shook her head. She’d always known the other woman had an agenda. And to think Macy had gotten married because Lilah assumed Hannah came with insurance money. If only Macy had known what Lilah wanted ahead of time, then she wouldn’t have married Jaxon.

  Or fallen in love.

  She drew in a deep breath. One half of their reason for being married was over. Her half.

  Jaxon still needed the pretense of family life. And she wanted to stay married to him, but she also needed him to feel the same way about her that she did for him. She desired a real relationship and that started with honesty. Whether or not Jaxon could handle love and emotions was anyone’s guess.

  * * *

  While Macy went to deal with the wicked witch, Jaxon sat in the family room, keeping an ear out for Hannah in case she left her room and came looking for her sister. He watched an old action movie on the big screen and waited until he heard Hannah in the kitchen.

  He rose and joined her.

  She’d poured a bowl of cereal and milk and sat at the counter on a barstool. Though her eyes were still red, she’d cleaned up in the shower and her face was clear of black makeup.

  “Mind if I join you?” he asked.

  She shrugged and took another spoonful, the crunching sound loud in the silence.

  Pulling the box over to him, he took a handful and popped some into his mouth. “Want to talk about it?” he asked her.

  She shrugged again.

  “I told you about my dad,” Jaxon reminded her. “He wasn’t father of the year, but I had my mother and my brothers and sister. You’ve got Macy.”

  With big eyes, Hannah met his gaze. “What if I drive her away, too? My own mother doesn’t want me. Why would Macy?” She pushed the bowl away, only soggy cereal left.

  Jaxon propped on an elbow and leaned close. “Has Macy gone anywhere yet? Or given you any indication that she doesn’t want you? She was willing to fight your mom for you. Doesn’t that prove to you how much she loves you?” he asked.

  “I’ve been really shitty to her. I told her I’d rather live with my mom, but that was just because I was so happy Mom came back and I thought because she wanted me.” She rested her chin in her hands and let out a prolonged sigh.

  His heart hurt for Hannah. It was hard enough being a teenager without adding in her own mother playing head games. “It’s not about you. You know that, right? Lilah’s the one with the issues. You’re going to be fine. You and Macy.”

  And him?

  Was that what he wanted? To make them a real family? Could he open himself up to the feelings he knew were in his heart?

  “Thanks,” Hannah said, oblivious to his thoughts. “Do you love my sister?” Leave it to a teen to cut right to the point.

&nb
sp; “It’s complicated,” he told her.

  “Grown-ups make things complicated.”

  He raised his eyebrows. “Yeah? And teenagers don’t?”

  The smile he hadn’t seen all day returned.

  “True. But I see how you look at Macy.” Hannah rose from her seat. “I have homework that’s due tomorrow. Gotta go do it.” Picking up the bowl and spoon, she walked to the sink and rinsed everything, dried it, and put it away before turning back to him. “Jaxon?”

  “Yes?”

  “Thanks.” Impulsively, she strode over and gave him a hug before ducking her head and running out, heading for her room.

  He stared after her, the teenager and her mood swings a reminder of the life he could have if he told Macy he loved her and she felt the same way.

  Right now? She no longer had a reason to stay married but she would, because she’d made a bargain and he still needed the pretense of a family life. Granted, a quieter one than they’d had so far. It wasn’t real. But it could be.

  He could try and make things between them genuine. Turn their relationship into one without an expiration date looming in the future.

  Head spinning, heart pounding, he picked up his phone to text Macy and see how things were going when the cell rang in his hand and Austin’s name flashed on the screen.

  Austin. The same brother Jaxon had sworn he’d never be like. He’d believed he wouldn’t fall in love quickly like Austin had with Quinn. He’d thought he didn’t need or want someone in his life who could disappoint him the way Katie had. The way his father had.

  And then came Macy.

  The phone rang again, startling him out of his thoughts, and he answered. “Hey! What’s up?” He strode back into the family room as he spoke. “Did you keep things calm with management for me? I haven’t heard from anyone, so I assume what happened last night with the party will get swept under the rug?” he asked Austin, his manager.