Chapter 7 : The Day After

Jaxon

I woke up early the next morning, stretching and staring at the ceiling for a while before I got up. My mind was racing with thoughts of Sara, and her reaction to everything last night.

I remembered watching Sara as she stomped up the stairs, trying not to chuckle, whether in amusement or exasperation…

She was so stubborn sometimes, but then again, that was something I had always liked about her. Maybe too much. That fire and rage in her eyes throughout the evening were far too attractive. Dangerous. She wasn't a child anymore but still....

I reminded myself that this was the best option for everyone. Sara would be away from her father, and he wouldn't be able to come in contact with her anymore to ask for money. She could finally stop stifling her potential from having to take care of that fool.

It would be hell for me though, to have her so close, actually living together but unable to have her. And Sara thought that I was the one being cruel to her when she was unknowingly being a d*mn tease.

That wasn't the only thing though; most people would see it as me taking in an old friend's child until Sara was in a more stable situation. For the people who knew how she came into my care though....

It was a dangerous game I was playing, not just having her here where I could see her and be tempted every time I laid my eyes on her, but now I had a weakness. I was king of my domain, and there were a lot of people who would just love to dethrone me and would stop at nothing to do it.

I might have an ironclad hold on the city, but every city had its rats.

Sara might have thought I was being controlling, but it was for her own safety that she needed to stick under my and my men's care. If anything happened to her—I was already pissed by what her dad did; God help the fool who thought they could use her like her dad had.

I finally got up and headed downstairs, but Sara didn't come down for breakfast. I didn't expect her to, and a part of me was glad she hadn't.

My dreams had taken a turn for the worse—or became better, depending on which head was in control: Sara under me, moaning my name, an absolute vision with her hair splayed against the pillows. I almost wished I hadn't woken up. It was torture to live together, just as I had suspected it would be.

Staying away was even harder, but it had to be done.

Ha! I was the richest and most powerful man in the city, well-respected, well-loved, and well-feared, and yet Sara still deserved better than me. What a laugh… truly.

The one thing you wanted was always too far out of your reach unless you truly went to all the wrong lengths for it.

"Sir?"

"Ah, Ron, perfect timing," I said. "I believe Sara will be trying to leave for work soon. Drive her to her shift and bring her back. Don't let her deviate. Jonny's in position, right?"

"Across the street from the diner like you wanted."

"Good." Maybe I was being a bit paranoid, but now that Sara was truly under my care, I had to make sure she'd be safe. "Don't let her know."

"What, that the fruit seller across the street is one of yours, or that he doesn't make nearly enough to warrant staying on that corner?" came a beautiful voice from around the corner.

"Sara, charming as always," I smirked as she came into the kitchen, hair up in a bun and just a bit of makeup that made her gorgeous eyes pop, black pants and a white blouse, a work uniform that she really shouldn't look so good in with how the pants hugged her curves and two buttons were popped on the blouse, giving a teasing peek of flesh. Gorgeous as always. Seems she was going to be joining me after all.

F*ck.

"When did you figure it out?" I asked her.

"He's young, Jaxon. Didn't take a genius. He also gives me fruit for free, and I know I'm pretty, but not THAT pretty."

I'd beg to differ, but those thoughts needed to stay out of the way. "You seemed to have settled in nicely."

Her hand paused while reaching for the fresh pot of coffee I'd had brewed. "Did you expect me to cry?" she asked.

"No," I answered honestly. No, we were nowhere near the point where Sara, of all people, would start to cry. Feel betrayed, indignant, angry, and just a little bit of hate to the point she was going to be snarky, sarcastic, bullheaded, and p*ssed? Yeah—we were about there.

"I have work. It ends at 10. Should I call you if I have overtime?" There was that sarcasm.

"Call Ron if you do. He'll take care of it. I expected you in my people's sights, if not mine, at all times."

I watched as Sara's hands balled into fists, but she didn't explode on me. Not yet.

"Fine," she bit out, spinning around, an angry smile on her face. "If my 'master' so wishes. Ron, I'm ready to go."

I didn't say anything, not with how my grip on my coffee cup was about to shatter it.

I groaned, shifting how I was sitting. Calling me 'master'… did she really not know what she did to me? Sometimes I really wondered if she knew or not.

After a moment, I stood up, headed to my office.

Being in charge of the criminal world as well as being the head of a publishing company, living a double life, wasn't as hard as some people might think it would be.

It wasn't easy either though, with trades happening, books that needed approval for publication, other gangs doing deals or stirring up trouble while the accounting books needed to be checked to make sure no one was skimming off the top.

It was late in the evening when I finally got the call I'd been expecting all day.

"Mother, how are you? How's Manila? Usually, you only call to talk about the company stock," I said to her.

It's not that I didn't love my mother; it's just that she could be a little much. As the daughter of a mafia don, she'd been exposed to the underworld ever since she was a kid. While she might've married my dad and gotten out, it was those ties of hers that allowed me to climb so high in such a short period of time.

It was also what allowed my mother to live the luxurious lifestyle she had always had. Normally our calls were about the companies and how well they were doing, and if she had heard anything I should keep an eye out for.

Normally. I didn't think that's why she was calling today.

"Manila's lovely as always. I'm just in a bar, sipping on an appletini. But enough about ME. I've just heard the most interesting news, dear. A little birdie told me that someone bought a rather expensive toy last night."

Ah, yep, there it was. She knew about Sara. I expected her to learn about it; I just wasn't sure when she would.

"You're well informed, as always."

"Indeed, so let's skip the pleasantries, Jaxon. You own all the cabaret girls and every wh*re house in the city operates under your orders. Why on earth do you have one of those dancers LIVING with you?"

"Mother, she's not a dancer. Are your skills fading with your age so that you don't even know who it is?" I teased.

"Cut the crap, Jaxon. I know it's Sara. The 'little angel' we used to have over."

"I used to have over. There was no 'we' about it," I clarified.

"Haven't you lusted after her enough though? Just f*ck her and be done with it. Live your fantasy and get rid of her. Your image won't survive if the media catches wind of you dating someone almost twenty years your junior."

"I'm not going to kick her out. She's mine."

My mother scoffed, but she wouldn't understand. The girls who sold themselves for money or danced for men had always been beneath my mother in her eyes. She thought I was being soft on them with rules keeping them safe, but I always preferred it when the people under me were well behaved.

Why would they run or cause trouble when they knew d*mn well they had it far better than they would've gotten in a city that wasn't under my protection?

That was the job though; this thing with Sara was different. She had always been different, but that wasn't a good thing, not when it made me want her this badly, and my mother knew it too.

"Listen, Jaxon. You know why you're the king of the city right now?" she asked.

"Because you helped me get there?"

"I might've kept you from screwing up, but you were smart about it, about hiding behind the publishing company, of slowly gaining control of the gangs and mobs in the city—of seizing the power for yourself. You played it smart. And now you're being led around by your d*ck because of that girl."

"I've run this company, and this city, for well over a decade, and I'm not about to falter now. Sara's special, I'll admit, but I'm not about to let anyone take anything from me. If they try, I'll get rid of them," I insisted.

Making people disappear always stirred up trouble no matter how good you were at it, but there was just something so satisfying about getting rid of your problems and making an example out of someone.

"Seems you haven't gotten soft at least. But tell me, Jaxon, since you own that girl now, is she included in that 'anything' of yours?"

I was silent.

"That's what I thought," she huffed, sighing heavily. "I suppose for now I can't do anything about this, but just know Jaxon that I'm not happy, and I won't be quiet if I think you're doing something stupid."

"You never have, Mother."

I guess, in her own way, she was trying to look out for me, even if it was unwarranted, unwanted, and completely unnecessary.

"Goodbye, I'll talk to you later. Enjoy your stay in Monaco," I said, dismissing her and the whole conversation.

"Watch yourself, Jaxon. You've been king for a long time, and people will just be dying to knock you down." With that, my mother hung up.

"Dramatic as always," I sighed, running a hand through my hair, exhausted from our conversation. She wasn't wrong though—but that's why I had Jonny and Ron posted; my men were stiff with the rules and keeping people in line. Things would settle; they always did. I would make sure of it.

I checked the clock. It was 9:15 AM, and Ron had said Sara was going to work overtime that evening. After contemplating it for a moment, I saved the document I was working on and made my way to the garage.

I'd pick Sara up myself tonight, already breaking my own self-imposed rules to stay away from her. What could I say? She made it hard to want to stay away, and I didn't want her getting any ideas that SHE was the one in charge.

Sara had always been stubborn, but it would be better if she accepted what was going on sooner rather than later. I didn't want her getting hurt just because she didn't listen.

The underworld was a dangerous place, and I wanted her to stay out of it. If she WAS going to stay out of it too, then she had to listen to me.

Whether she wanted to or not.