Chapter 9 Black
BLACK
Two more weeks had gone by since the incident with Camaro and Daniel, and thankfully, I hadn’t seen the bastard once. Darren was tense, obviously conflicted with protecting me from his only living brother while also protecting him from getting killed by Matt.
What a predicament he’d landed himself in.
Drama was a toxin that could erode families faster than acid could break down a body. But as it turns out, it was also deliciously entertaining to watch.
I sighed as I turned to face the mirror, zipping up the tight little baby-blue dress Darren had left out for me to wear tonight.
For the past couple of days, he’d been planning something big, something he’d been very mischievous about.
I knew he didn’t want to take me out anywhere anymore because of my pregnancy, so I figured we were probably just having some fancy dinner downstairs.
Slipping on my strappy silver sandals, I gave myself one final look over.
I’d curled my hair, smoked my eyes out, and painted my lips with a rosy gloss that brought the entire look together.
But beneath the carefully crafted illusion of virility, I could see the truth in my eyes.
I was tired. So very tired. So whatever Darren had planned tonight, it had better be something low energy.
Walking out of the closet, I met Sloane in the bedroom who was currently looking out the window. I paused as I took note of her appearance, noticing the intricate pattern of the velvet burgundy suit jacket she was wearing with her tailored black pants.
She didn’t typically wear a suit like Clive and Owen had. She opted for more sporty clothing that was easy to maneuver in but could still be packed with armored plates if needed. As I got closer, I noticed the pattern was made of Japanese dragons intertwining themselves throughout the fabric.
Upon my entry, she quickly turned around and squared her shoulders, seemingly blocking my view of the window, and smiled.
“Come on, you don’t want to be late,” she said, her voice coming off with veiled eagerness.
I cocked a brow at her as she ushered me toward the door. “Late for what? It’s just dinner,” I replied as Camaro caught up with me to happily trot at my side. “What are you all dressed up for?”
“You really don’t know what day it is?” Sloane asked, sounding surprised.
I shook my head as we descended the stairs. “I don’t exactly keep a calendar, Sloane. I hardly know what day of the week it is unless someone tells me.”
She hummed her shock, leading me around the corner and past the blatantly empty dining room.
“Well, then I guess this really will be quite the surprise.”
I turned my gaze to hers. “What are you talking about?”
“You’ll see,” she answered, nodding toward the back door we were currently heading for.
With my interest now piqued, I allowed Sloane to usher me to the back of the house until we stepped onto the back patio.
And then my eyes widened. Far into the distance of the open water, pictured before the setting sun, was Darren’s yacht, Legion.
I’d forgotten how massive the thing was as I watched the waves splash against the hull.
“What’s that doing here?” I asked, pointing at it.
“That’s part of the surprise.”
That’s one hell of an expensive surprise.
I allowed Sloane to lead Camaro and me down the lawn and onto the dock, where several crew members were waiting for me.
They all smiled in greeting and helped me onto the smaller boat that would take us to the yacht.
Once Sloane and I were settled in our seats and Camaro was tucked against the floor, the boat slowly made its way toward the yacht.
From this distance, I could see that it had been somewhat decorated. String lights had been strung over the main deck, party decorations were hung from various spots, and a large banner had been draped against a window, though I couldn’t tell what it said from this angle.
Docking against the stern, the crew helped me and Camaro onto the deck where we followed Sloane up the stairs to the main deck. Stepping up the last stair, I was slightly startled by an abrupt “SURPRISE!” shouted into the air by the large group of people gathered together.
With wide eyes, I came across several known faces, and just as many unknown.
Katherine smiled brightly in a shimmery gold dress next to her scowling brooding husband, the man a stone-cold statue in a three-piece suit.
Carla stood next to them in a bright red dress and matching lipstick, smirking intently as she clapped with the crowd.
Glancing across the room, I saw the banner draped above the bar that read “Happy Birthday, Jaden!” in bright colors.
I felt my blood freeze in my veins as realization hit me.
It was my birthday? And I didn’t even know it?
How in the fuck?
I felt my jaw clench as my eyes searched and connected with Darren’s sly gaze, his curved mouth accentuating the look of deviousness as he watched me process my reality.
It was my thirtieth birthday.
When I was taken, I had been twenty-five years old, soon-to-be twenty-six. And now I was thirty.
And I did not even fucking know it until now.
The knowledge of it being kept from me made my blood go from freezing to instant molten lava. I directed the rage that I knew was flaring behind my eyes straight at Darren, but all he did was smirk in return and stupidly approached me.
“Happy birthday, princess,” he said, his mouth stretching into a wolfish grin I wanted to smack right off his face.
“Is it, though?” I muttered up at him so that only he would hear.
“Of course it is. Now smile and say thank you to your guests. A lot of effort and money went in to putting this together just for you.”
I almost rolled my eyes. “Was part of that effort spent on ensuring I didn’t even know what day of the week it was? Again?”
He chuckled as he wrapped his arm around my shoulders and turned around to face the crowd with me. “You don’t need to know the damn day of the week.”
Someone started taking pictures of us, the flashing lights blinding me to the point of annoyance. Stepping out from under Darren’s arm, I approached Katherine, who smiled and reached out to embrace me in a hug.
“Happy birthday, Jaden!” she said, her wide grin bright enough to distract from the healing scars on her beautiful face.
“Thanks.”
After several birthday wishes from the rest of my “guests,” who were mostly guards and the crew from the ship, we all sat down for dinner as the yacht cruised around the bay.
The conversation was light, the air filled with small bouts of laughter here and there, most of which I didn’t contribute to, that is, until the presents were brought out.
I didn’t expect gifts, but apparently, I would have to endure additional torture in front of an audience.
Katherine was visibly eager when she placed her perfectly wrapped gift in front of me, the smile on her face beaming with barely contained excitement.
Confusion hit me when I placed my hands on the box and found it a little cold, but once I opened it and saw what was inside, I couldn’t stop myself from belting out a laugh of pure joy.
She had gotten me a large carton of Superman ice cream.
“Oh my God, this is awesome,” I exclaimed, a chuckle bubbling up my throat. “Thank you so much.”
Katherine’s smile widened just as much as Daniel’s scowl did. “You’re welcome. It was pretty difficult to track down, but Darren spared no expense,” she explained.
I tilted my head at Darren, cocking a brow at the reveal. He returned my gaze with a knowing smile and then lowered his mouth to my ear. “There’s an entire freezer full of it in the garage just for you,” he said smoothly. “I told you I’d find your stupid ice cream.”
“So you did,” I replied with a tight grin. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” After kissing me on the cheek, Darren stood back to his full height behind me. “But you can also thank Sloane for locating the correct Midwest supplier.”
I glanced over at my bodyguard who smirked back at me, then stepped up to present a small box she had been hiding behind her back to place it on the table in front of me.
“Happy birthday, Jaden,” she said with a warm smile.
Picking up the box, I pulled off the wrapping paper and lifted the lid to find a single pair of brass knuckles in rainbow chrome.
“Oh, wow,” I murmured as I picked them up to examine them.
They had little designs etched into the metal with small spikes at the tips of the knuckles.
Sliding them over my fingers, I saw that they fit perfectly for the small size of my hand, so it had to have been custom-made just for me.
“These are really cool. Thank you, Sloane.”
“You’re very welcome,” she replied.
When I glanced over at Darren, his reaction to Sloane’s gift was difficult to read, but given the hard look in his eyes, I doubted it had his full stamp of approval.
“I’m not sure that’s entirely appropriate, Sloane,” Carla interjected snidely as she stepped closer to place a gift bag in front of me. “Jaden is about to be a mother after all. She shouldn’t resort to such violent things.”
I rolled my eyes at her. “You’ve clearly never witnessed a mother bear protecting her cubs.” Violence was second nature.
“Oh, don’t be silly, Jaden,” she retorted. “Open your gift.”
Softening my glare, I turned my gaze down to the bag and pulled away the tissue paper to find a sparkling pink apron and cookbook inside. The fabric had “Jaden’s Kitchen” written in golden letters across the front. I clamped my jaw shut. Would it be rude to toss a gift overboard?
“Thanks, Carla,” I said and placed the gifts back into the bag.
“Oh, you’re so welcome, Jaden!” she practically beamed. “I figured you could finally learn how to cook for your family before the baby gets here. I’m sure Pascal would love to teach you.”
I doubt it.