What do girls like?

JETHRO’S POV

I walked into the building where Mr. Williams had sent me. I didn’t want to get Melanie hurt. Just a few minutes ago, Mr. Williams had sent me a voice clip instructing me to come alone. I slammed the door open and found Melanie in a terrible situation. Her hair was over her face, and I ran to her.

“Are you—” I held her hand softly.

“Aaargh,” she groaned, recoiling from my hold.

“Look at me,” I said with the softest voice I could manage, and she lifted her head to look at me. On seeing the scars on her face and the blood beside her lips, my blood began to boil.

“Who did this to you?” I asked softly, yet laden with anger.

“Tell me, Melanie,” I said, livid.

“Richard—” Tears began to roll down her eyes, and I pulled her into a hug.

“Shhh, don’t worry, I’m here now. He’ll pay for laying a finger on you,” I promised as I lifted her up bridal style, and she rested her head on my chest.

“Welcome to my world, Mr. Jethro Blackstone,” Richard grinned as I turned slowly with Melanie in my arms.

“How dare you lay a finger on my wife,” I yelled, looking at Richard.

“What about Emma?” he raised his brow.

“You’ll regret it,” I said, moving to take a step forward. Richard pointed a gun at me.

“Not too soon.” His father and several armed men came into the room, pointing their guns at me. “I didn’t know you were this foolish — you came onto your enemy’s territory unarmed and without backup,” he said, shaking his head.

I didn’t say a word; I just stood looking at them.

“Where’s my mum?” I didn’t say anything. “Where’s my wife and kids?”

“Mr. Williams, don’t tell me you forgot what I told you earlier about my wife — you’d regret it,” I reminded him, turning my gaze to Mr. Williams.

Melanie looked at me, but my attention wasn’t on her.

“What are you going to do?” he grinned. “You’ve met your end, you bastard,” he yelled.

“Take a good look behind you,” I said. Richard turned, shocked to find armed men behind him.

“Surrender your weapons,” I ordered.

Faced with the number of my people surrounding them, Richard bent over and pushed his gun forward to my feet, and the rest of his men did the same, including his father.

“Who’s the bigger fool between us?” I gestured for my people to hold them. “Take them to the red room,” I said. “You’ll suffer for laying a finger on her.” And they took them out of the building.

I looked at Melanie, and she immediately averted her eyes from me.

I carried her bridal style upstairs to our room and softly placed her on the bed before covering her with the duvet. The doctor followed behind us and examined her.

“It’s just a scratch,” the doctor said, before leaving us alone in the room.

“Get some rest.” I walked to the door and swung it open.

“Thank you.” I turned and nodded before walking out.

***

I stopped in front of a building and walked in angrily. Brandon and Rocco were already waiting for me.

“Boss.”

“Where’s Rose?” I asked, walking past them, my blood boiling, wanting to shed blood at that moment.

“She’s also in the red room,” Brandon answered.

Rocco opened the door as we arrived, and I walked in, looking at the father and son tied to chairs.

“Richard, Richard, Richard,” I said, walking up to him. “I warned you to let my wife go, but you didn’t listen.” I paused. “I don’t share what’s mine with anyone. But you saw what only I was supposed to see.”

“Let her go,” Richard yelled, looking at his wife.

“You mean her?” I pointed.

“Take off her clothes,” I ordered, looking at Rocco.

“Yes, boss.” He nodded and walked up to Rose and began taking off her clothes.

Once she was completely naked, I gestured for her to be released and brought to me.

“Dance,” I muttered.

“What?” she blustered. “I’m not gonna dance.”

“Don’t make me repeat myself.”

“I’m not scared of you.”

“You need to be.”

“Well, I’m not.”

“I like your courage.”

“Richard, tell me what’s going on here?” Rose asked, looking at him, confused, both hands on her waist.

“He’s got nothing to say to you.”

“Shut the fuck up,” Rose yelled at me, and received a hard slap from me that left a handprint on her cheek.

“Don’t ever shout at me again.”

“Who do you think you are?” she shot back, and received another hard slap on the other side of her cheek.

“Start dancing, or you’ll be the reason for your children’s death.” She began dancing at the thought of her children dying.

“Let them go,” I ordered once she was done.

“Get me the toolbox.” I looked at Brandon, who immediately retrieved it from the drawer. I took out a spanner and held Richard’s right hand, which was tied to the arm of the chair.

“You hurt my wife with this hand.” I paused. “Your fingers left marks on both sides of her cheek.” I held his small finger. “I’ll remove everything,” I said. “Cut off his small finger.”

Richard’s hand began to shake.

“Aaargh,” he cried out as blood began flowing.

“Be strong, we agreed on that,” I said, seeming to enjoy it.

“Shhh — not down yet,” I said, and cut off the next one.

“Aaaaaaaaah,” he screamed.

“Please, don’t do this,” Mr. Williams begged.

“I warned you — not even a single scratch.” I angrily cut off the middle finger. Blood flowed like a river that could never stop running.

“Aaaaaaaaaaaaah,” he shrieked.

“Are you ready to sign your shares over to me?” He nodded.

“Brandon, give him the document.” Without reading it, he signed with shivering hands.

“Let us go, please.”

“He hurt my wife, my darling wife.” I cut off his index finger, then his thumb, and he shrieked. “One last thing,” I paused, and brought out a cleaver, which I used to cut off his palm.

“Your wife will never love you back. Your love will remain unrequited,” Mr. Williams said. I ordered him whipped twenty strokes and Richard a hundred, before being released.

“Let Preston go.”

“Okay, boss.”

***

I couldn’t concentrate on my work. I closed my laptop and opened it again. Mr. Williams’ words kept on taunting me. He was right — my love is an unrequited one. Nothing had ever made me want to change myself, nothing at all. I’d treated her the way I did because I thought she’d be too scared to leave me.

Truth was, I’d loved Melanie for four years — since the day we were together, before everything fell apart between us. Nothing about that had changed, even now. I just didn’t know how to be a different man for her.

I picked up my phone from the table and called Brandon. I needed some advice, though I wasn’t about to admit that’s what it was.

“Boss.”

“Melanie needs to stop looking at me like I’m the enemy.”

A pause. “Okay… and how do you want to fix that?”

“I didn’t say I wanted to fix anything. I just said it’s irritating.”

“Right.” Another pause, longer this time. “So what do you want me to do about it?”

“I don’t know. That’s why I’m calling you.”

“Boss, if you want her to warm up to you—”

“I didn’t say that.”

“—you might want to try something she’d actually like.”

I said nothing for a moment. “What do girls like?”I asked

“Depends on the girl.” he said

“What do you think she’ll like?”

“You’d know better than me. You two were together for years.”

“That was a long time ago.”

“Doesn’t sound like it, from how you’re asking.”

“Watch it, Brandon.”

“Sorry, boss.” A beat. “Girls love gifts.”

“Gifts. Fine. What kind?”

“Jewelry, usually.”

“Jewelry.” I let the word sit. “Get me the number for Tiffany.”

“The jeweler?”

“Did I stutter?”

“No, boss.”

“Good.”

I hung up before he could say anything else — before he could ask why a man who claimed he didn’t care what she thought was about to spend a fortune to change her mind.