Amara’s POV
This was a far cry from the Jackson I knew, without question. There was a time I used to have to order for him when we split a pizza and now he was commanding a room with split reactions-all making him out to be intimidating. The men surrounding the medium sized table in the Spanish-style restaurant all evaded eye contact while those they chose in their arms were batting their lashes at my husband. I couldn't help but wonder if anybody here was forced into a marriage of convenience as well or if thar was simply our story. I didn't have much time to pick up on the details of distance before a specific introduction caught my attention. “Danielle Davenport.” Her talon nails extended as I simply stared. Jackson wrapped his arm around my waist, gently digging his nails into my hip as a way to make me behave. All it did was bring me closer to his side and painfully aware that he was dominant to a cruel advantage. “Jackson's wife.” IJackson's POVThis woman was going to be the death of me. If her dress tonight wasn't confirmation than for her attitude that left me wanting her and wanting to correct her in equal measure. It made me psychotic and possessive as I thought of all the things I would say to her once she realized she was left to depend on me to access our apartment. I should have made her wait but I had some pull in my stomach to keep her from lingering too long on her own as she had a habit of bringing unwanted attention to herself. She seemed oblivious to it tonight as I saw Danielle's husband look at her without apology and it took everything I had not to relieve him of the sense. If not for my wife's smart mouth, I might have. “You bitch!” A voice echoed in the stairwell I was forced to take. It was a male tone and it was enough to send me flying up the remaining steps. Once making it to the top, I threw the door open to reveal Andrew Fraser. “You think you can leave
Amara's POV Have you ever wanted something so badly that you couldn't comprehend going another second without it? Because with our proximity closed this tightly and his body almost trembling with anticipation, I couldn't see anything beyond making that closure. I wouldn't admit to anyone but myself just how desperately I wanted this. More than my next breath as a curiosity always remained of how he would taste, even when we were in that trying time of adolescence. Now, it was burning with an unstoppable rage that any reason to pull away was recycled into a reason to press forward. One of his hands managed to drop from my arms and to my waist, fitting into the curve, as the other lifted to my cheek. A soft thumb broke the trace of our mouths as he was careful over my wound. What once stung by the cruel air to broken skin was now aching in an absence of his mouth to mine-an absence that should have been impossible since contact was only in a whisper close.
Jackson's POVI couldn't sleep and if you ask my cock the angry bastard would tell you I was to blame. A beautiful, smart, sexy woman was offering to return the favor that still wore heavy on my tongue and I played the gentleman I denied us both seconds prior. And now I was solid and sleepless as I finally pulled the covers back and decided something in the kitchen may prove to be a distraction to my unintentional abstinence. “Shit!” Her voice broke the silence of the night as a smirk extended across my face. I watched her for a short while as she was loosely covered in one of my dress shirts with an exposed elbow she had to fix each time gravity tugged at it. The naked shoulder was begging for my lips as I ran my tongue over them at the memory of her coconut scented skin taunting me. “Come on!” She was using a long spatula to try and get a specific glass from a top shelf way beyond her reach. The curse came from her having knocked three over in the process, o
Amara’s POVNothing looked right. Of the clothes Jackson had sent for me, nothing gave the aesthetic I was going for. Something flirty but elegant wasn't among the dresses as everything far and in-between lay there instead. It was either too bold or too short, the fabric was too frilly or thick-it made me end up with my back against the wall and my nails between my teeth as I nibbled nervously. “Anything you wear will be gorgeous on you.” A woman's voice shot me to my feet. I completely forgot the maid was coming today. A woman who was about twenty years older than me entered with a wide smile as she began her work immediately. She was at the height of my shoulders and wore shoulder length red hair almost mechanically straight with a loose accent almost impossible to place. But she was the only female that I knew could help me decide. “But nothing feels right…” I cocked my mouth. “What do you think?” I questioned as she asked by expression alone what she could
Jackson's POVThe space between us was electrified with tension. If she shared my train of thought it was why she also remained still. Worried that if I were to make the first move there might be a rejection in having misread the situation. Even so, I was buzzing to be near her as it was difficult to sit still. Finally she was the one to break the silence. It wouldn't have mattered what she spoke as my body worked quickly towards her, working off the belt, and pulling her to me in taking yet another risk.“Do you want to listen to-” Without her own belt in place, she was easy to pull towards me. Her lips parted effortlessly and her tongue was quick to join mine as I was allowing myself a specific parameter. Nothing more than a heavy kiss and maybe a graze of exposed skin and it would keep me a gentleman. At least that was what I told myself, even as she began to use my shirt as a way to pull me harder against her.
Amara's POVIt all happened way too fast. The height of bliss Jackson and I built to together was obliterated as I was literally torn away from his arms and into a tinted car. My attempts to lift were weighed down by too many strong grips to fight. The only clue to my captors came in the cursing of their accents that reminded me of home. “Don't make this harder.” One of them grunted as I was taken to my feet with a brutal pull. My body was already in fight mode but my eyes struggled to adjust to my surroundings. It took too long to realize I was being taken to another airfield. Another private plane. Only this one was one I recognized. “Let go of me!” I ordered before being thrown to the ground and locked inside. A pair of loafers met my gaze first as I was quick to stand as I distinguished their style.“Have you not embarrassed our family enough?” My father's voice boomed over me. There was once a time when it could send me immediately into tears. Now,
Amara's POV I wasn't allowed my phone, extra carbs, or even a window for ventilation as I was forced to get ready in the largest supply closet which was only mildly larger than a personal bathroom. Even so, I was forced to come out between the mops and cleaning supplies looking like I came off of some red carpet. Even if my dress came off the runway and my makeup was expensive enough to sell and make a life of my own without a loan, I was beyond trapped. The dress was tight. The new ring on my left hand was heavy. And as the last step to my look was a veil I refused to put in, I hesitated. Surely Jackson was protecting me somehow. He would come in minutes before the wedding or even seconds after it started. His words when we were alone were too honest to not be followed through when he was called on them. But as I looked at my reflection in the metallic plate that once held keys before me, I only saw a foolish girl getting her hopes up on some antinquidated fairytale
Jackson’s POVIt killed me to watch her taken from my lap, but I knew it was going to happen sooner or later. But it absolutely decimated me to see her on her knees for someone else. Someone else who had wanted her almost as desperately as I did. Enough for his life to come at a cost for his lust. It was barely a worthy payment but gave an excuse to rid the world of him as I'd planned from the get-go. Now, she was back at my side again. Although she wasn't rejoicing as I had naively hoped, she loathed me as I expected she might. But I was a patient man. I had already spent fifteen years waiting for her. And now, nothing would tear us apart again. Whether she knew that, believe it, or not-it was the truth. “Are you going to stay in the car all night?” I asked after we took the side exit from the hotel as those tasked with watching her were not expecting her to leave alive. It made it easy to sneak away undetected but tempting to leave a trail of blood in ou