Chapter 6

Dominic’s POV

I tried all I could to forget that night but I couldn't. It was as if I had dedicated a large portion of my brain for thinking about Lisa and Jace.

Because of this, I decided to stay away from the family house not because I feared Jace.

No, never, I wasn't scared of him. I simply refused to give him the satisfaction of seeing me.

The memory of his smug face after she kissed him in front of those reporters and stealing the spotlight of my engagement still gnawed at me.

But my father thought it wise to call for a family meeting when I was still nursing my wound.

That morning, I was going through some documents that I had been trying to sign off when a call came from him.

“Family meeting, tonight,” he said without mincing words. I tried to argue, tried to say I had more important matters, but he hung up, cutting me off.

“Your brother will be there," Avery said behind me. She was sitting behind the vanity and filing her nails.

That was all she knew how to do; look beautiful but she couldn't make use of her brains.

“It's a family meeting so he is going to be there." I kept my tone clipped as I fixed my tie.

"You shouldn't get yourself worked up about him. He isn't worth it, just like Lisa who is worthless.”

Smacking her lips, she pushed her chair backwards and with slow and deliberate steps, she made her way up to me.

"What do you think?” She asked, rubbing her just made manicured fingers on my chest.

Grabbing her hands, I shoved her aside. “I'm not in the mood."

Grabbing my jacket off the bed, I stormed out in anger.

When I got to the family house which was about half an hour drive from mine, I was greeted with the scent of polished wood.

With a hand tucked in my pocket, I was halfway through loosening my tie when I heard footsteps echoing behind me.

Creasing my brow, I turned around to see Jace.

That instant, something snapped inside of me and without thinking, I lunged towards him.

My fist connected with his cheekbone. The impact was sharp and satisfying as I watched him stagger backwards.

“You think you can humiliate me?” I spat, shoving him into the wall. “You think you’re better than me? You’re nothing, Jace! Nothing!” I yelled, connecting my fist to his face again.

He didn’t fight back and that infuriated me more.

“Say something bastard." I yelled, grabbing his head with both hands before I finally sent it into the wall.

“Enough!” Father appeared just in time before I became a murderer.

For the next few minutes no one said a word. The only sound in the hallway was the low groan of Jace who was clutching his side.

Father alternated his gaze between us for a while before he finally said, “The study."

Five minutes later, everyone was present in the study. While father sat at the head of the table, I sat on the right with Jace sitting opposite me.

He was dabbing his lip with a napkin as a bruise formed along his jaw. He didn’t complain, he just sat there, nursing his wounds while the rest of us ignored him.

Smirking, I leaned back on my chair, folding my hands on my chest.

Weakness suited him.

Clearing his throat, father leaned forward as he rested his hand on the table.

“I called this meeting because I am tired of watching the family image going down the drain.”

I didn’t respond, nor did anyone else.

Father’s eyes narrowed only for them to settle on Jace. “Tell me, what are you doing with your life?”

Jace looked up and with an unreadable expression, he said, “I’m working.”

“Working?” Father arched his brow and with a tone dripping with disbelief, he asked, “And what kind of work is that?”

There was a long pause before Jace answered.

“A factory.”

That instant, everyone burst out into a loud and long laugh, the sound echoing through the room.

“A factory?” I sneered. “What are you doing there, little brother? Packing boxes? Sweeping floors? Is that the grand destiny you’ve carved for yourself?”

He didn’t answer.

“That doesn't suit you,” Father said sharply. “You’re a Davenport, you belong to the family business and not a factory.” He slammed his fist against the table.

“A friend of mine informed me about it and since then I have been furious." He added, his gaze still trained on him.

“Why? Did I hurt your ego?" Jace asked, inviting a thick silence in the study.

This was the first time he was speaking up in a family meeting and so everyone was stunned.

“Jace…” Father was still speaking but he cut him off. Pushing his chair backwards, he rose to his full height.

“When did you start caring about my life?"

“Jace, what are you talking about?" Mother snapped. “Your father has to pay the media to bury the news otherwise our name would have been splashed everywhere in the tabloids."

“And do I look like I care?" He retorted.

After a brief silence, he added, “My decision and the way I choose to live my life is none of your business."

No one could react as this was the least we were expecting. Jace didn't just talk at the family meeting, he had issued a stern warning.

"I think I'm done here.” He didn't wait for father to dismiss the meeting before he made his way towards the door with calm indifference.

Unable to hold back the anger running through my veins, I went after him and the moment he stepped out of the study, I caught his arm and slammed him against the wall.

“Who do you think you are?" I roared, raising my hand above my head but before I could send it across his face, I found myself pinned against the wall.

For a moment, I was rooted to the spot in shock.

“Don’t you ever touch me again,” he said, his voice low and dangerous. “And don’t hurt Lisa either.”

Yet to recover from his stern warning, he added with his face a few inches from mine.

“Because if you do, I swear to God, I will make you pay for everything you’ve done to her.”