Chapter 22
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Jaxon watched as Adalyn hopped to her feet and practically ran to the kitchen, putting a healthy distance between them.
Disappointment mingled with relief in his gut as he observed her move away.
The air between them had been charged with lust, and his fingers still tingled with the need to reach out and touch her.
He curled them into a fist and gazed around the sunny, welcoming living room, taking in the comfortable furniture and décor.
Although he had been there just yesterday, he hadn’t paid much attention to his surroundings.
The house was homey and welcoming, trendy without being overdone.
There was a faux stone fireplace situated against the far wall, and the couch was large and comfortable, the perfect size for cuddling up with a beautiful woman.
Like Adalyn.
Before the thought fully solidified in his mind, he heard the front door open then slam shut again. Someone had a key to Adalyn’s place?
He threw a glance at Adalyn, whose posture had changed dramatically. Was it because of him, or because of who was here? She hadn’t mentioned a roommate. A friend, maybe?
Adalyn’s shoulders seemed to jump with each staccato tap of heels echoing in the short hallway as the visitor made her way toward the kitchen.
Still partially obscured by the couch, Jaxon watched the woman enter the room. She let out a huff and directed her wrath at Adalyn. “I had to park on the street because of the behemoth truck blocking your driveway, and—oh, good Lord, what are you wearing?”
So, not a friend… Jaxon’s brows lifted at the woman’s horrified gaze as it skimmed over Adalyn, clad in the black sweats that hugged her bottom and skimmed her legs. Not that he’d looked.
Adalyn glanced down at herself with a shrug. “It’s not like I’m going anywhere.”
“How do you always manage to find the most horrendous things possible?” The woman shook her head as Adalyn opened her mouth to respond. “Anyway. You know I can’t stand this place. I thought you said your lease was up?”
Jaxon’s eyes narrowed as he studied her. Somewhere around middle-aged, he couldn’t tell exactly how old she was. She was pretty enough in an overdone, high-maintenance kind of way, but that didn’t explain how she knew Adalyn or why she was here throwing insults around like it was her job.
Was she a business associate? God, he hoped not. He wasn’t going to lie. Adalyn wasn’t exactly his favorite person at the moment, but he pitied her if she had to deal with this piece of work every day.
His eyes jumped to Adalyn, who just shrugged sedately. “You know it suits us just fine. It’s safe, and rent is reasonable.”
The woman gave another little irritated huff and propped a hand on her hip. “Not if you have neighbors taking up all the parking space.”
Jaxon stood and addressed the woman’s issue. “Sorry, ma’am, that would be me.”
Her surprised gaze snapped in his direction, just noticing him for the first time.
Her lip curled slightly as she studied him, her gaze sliding over his standard issue black polo and TDUs.
Almost immediately, she dismissed him and turned back to Adalyn.
“I didn’t realize you were entertaining a… friend.”
Anger rose up inside him. Above all things, he hated being disrespected. He somehow managed to bite his tongue for Adalyn’s sake. If she wasn’t going to say anything, neither was he.
The woman’s gaze landed next on the Chinese food sitting on the counter, and she launched into an opinionated offensive. “I don’t know how you eat that stuff.” She shuddered. “It’s revolting, and it’s full of fat. You of all people should know better.”
Had she just called Adalyn fat? His Adalyn, who was practically perfection, her tall figure rounded in all the right places? Who did she think she was?
Protective instincts flared to the surface, and he barely managed to tamp them down before he said something he’d regret. Well, that wasn’t quite true. He wouldn’t regret putting the woman in her place, but he had a feeling that Adalyn might not like him speaking up on her behalf.
His brows drew together as he watched Adalyn, waiting for her to defend herself.
He couldn’t understand why she let this woman walk all over her.
So far, she’d had the audacity to insult Adalyn’s home, the food she ate, the way Adalyn dressed, then dismissed him as if he were no better than common trash.
He was already pissed off, struggling desperately to understand what was happening.
The open, relaxed expression Adalyn had worn five minutes ago was long gone.
If not friendly, exactly, she’d been polite and had even laughed a few times as they’d flipped through photographs.
Now, though, it was as if she had literally flipped a switch.
She’d shut every emotion down, defensive walls going up in their place.
He hated seeing her like this, but he didn’t know what to do about it.
Why would she let someone speak to her this way?
The woman studied Adalyn, then sniffed, as if not getting the reaction she’d hoped for.
Jaxon didn’t know what her angle was, but he was already ready to boot her out of the house.
Lifting a shopping bag he hadn’t noticed, she set it on the counter and began to pull out tiny pink outfits. “I bought these for Jaclyn.”
Adalyn’s shoulders slumped, and she seemed to soften. Jaxon watched the exchange with interest. Adalyn’s voice was quiet, almost resigned, when she responded. “Thanks, Evelyn. I’m sure she’ll love them.”
The woman looked around. “Where is Jaclyn?” Her eyes lighting on Jaclyn, she strode into the living room and held her arms out. “Come here, baby.”
Anger coursed through Jaxon’s veins as he studied the woman’s features. Was Adalyn related to this woman? A sister, maybe? Jesus. His pity increased tenfold.
Jaclyn looked up at the woman—Evelyn—for a moment, then redirected her attention to the blocks scattered around the floor. Evelyn turned back to Adalyn. “Have you spoken with the pediatrician lately? I still don’t understand why she doesn’t talk. And she doesn’t make eye contact.”
“It’s perfectly normal,” Adalyn replied, her voice tight.
It was on the tip of Jaxon’s tongue to tell the woman that Jaclyn was barely a year old and had the attention span of a goldfish, but her next words stopped him in his tracks, sending a wave of fury through him. “Are you sure there’s nothing wrong with her?”
Red bled into his vision, anger threatening to explode outward. She thought she could walk in here and degrade Adalyn and Jaclyn? She thought that bringing gifts could manipulate them into allowing her to spew her hateful opinions? No way. He’d had enough.
Drawing himself to his full height, he stared her down. “There’s nothing wrong with her. She’s perfect.”
Evelyn’s gaze jumped to him, filled first with surprise, then loathing. “And who are you?”
Adalyn tried to interject. “This is—”
He cut her off. “I’m Jaxon. Jaclyn’s father.”
Surprise flared in Evelyn’s eyes, and she made a little sound of derision. “Of course. I should have realized. Too bad my grandbaby got all of your genes instead.”
Wait… what? His mind spun. It took a moment for the words to register, then realization slammed into him, stealing the retort from the tip of his tongue. Christ Almighty. This just got worse and worse. This was Adalyn’s mother?
Evelyn turned her attention back to Adalyn. “How was your date?”
Just the mention of the man Adalyn had been out with a few nights ago sent anger curling through him. Adalyn shrugged. “We didn’t really hit it off.”
He snorted, then spoke the words he knew Adalyn wouldn’t. “That’s an understatement. He stuck her with the check.”
Evelyn threw a glare his way before dismissing him once more. “Well. Maybe next time.”
Next time? How often did Adalyn’s mother set her up with jerks like the one he’d met Saturday night?
Why did she feel it was her place to set Adalyn up at all?
And to mention it in front of him—Adalyn’s husband and Jaclyn’s father—pissed him off more than he could say.
“I think it’s time to wrap up for tonight. It’s almost Jaclyn’s bedtime.”
Evelyn dug in her heels, not ready to give in. “You’re staying?”
As much as he’d love to, he wasn’t going to lie and tell her yes, make her think Adalyn and he were sleeping together. From the distasteful look on her face, he figured that was probably the worst thing she could imagine. Didn’t mean he couldn’t stretch the truth a little. “You’re blocking me in.”
Her eyes narrowed before she gave a haughty toss of her head. “Adalyn, we’ll talk later.”
“Okay.”
Adalyn’s eyes remained glued to the countertop, but he saw her flinch when the front door slammed, punctuating Evelyn’s dramatic exit. He stared at Adalyn, willing her to meet his gaze. Finally, steel-gray eyes lifted to his, and the words poured from his mouth. “What just happened?”