All Chapters of The Ties That Binds : Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

“Savannah, stop walking away from me.”Jackson’s voice chased her down the long hallway, sharp, controlled, threaded with something dangerously close to desperation.Savannah didn’t stop. Didn’t slow. Didn’t look back.Her pulse hammered against her ribs as she pushed through the double doors leading into the east wing sitting room, the one room in this mansion that didn’t feel like it pressed the air out of her lungs.She needed space.She needed to breathe.She needed a world without Sterling eyes watching her every move , including Jackson’s.But Jackson wasn’t a man who let things go.He followed, steps long and unyielding, his presence filling the doorway before she could gather her thoughts.“Savannah,” he said again, quieter this time, “look at me.”She spun around so fast it startled him.“Look at you?” she choked out. “I’ve been looking at you for weeks, Jackson. And every time I think I understand you, something else detonates in my face.”His jaw flexed. “That’s not fair.”

“Why are you looking at me like that?”Savannah’s voice was barely above a whisper, sharp with exhaustion, trembling with everything she had been forced to hold inside for hours.Jackson didn’t answer her right away. He stood at the far end of the room, hands braced on the granite countertop, head bowed as if the weight of the entire empire pressed between his shoulders. The air between them pulsed with tension , heavy, unspoken, coiled like a wire ready to snap.“Because,” he said finally, lifting his head, eyes dark and unreadable, “I’m trying to understand how we got here.”Savannah swallowed. “We didn’t get here. You dragged us here.”His jaw tightened. “You think this is what I wanted?”“Jackson,” she snapped, voice rising, “every time something goes wrong, you disappear into yourself. Into your walls. Into that damned Sterling armor you think makes you untouchable.”She took a step toward him, hands trembling.“You shut me out. Then you expect me to be calm, to be silent, to pre

“Savannah, look at me.”Jackson’s voice cut through the air like a blade , low, sharp, and more desperate than he intended.Savannah didn’t turn. She stood at the edge of the balcony, fingers curled around the cold railing, her breath visible in the chill of the night. The city lights glittered below them like broken glass scattered across velvet darkness. Everything felt too big, too loud, too fragile.“I am looking,” she murmured, though her back stayed to him. “Just not at you.”Jackson exhaled slowly. The space between them felt like a battlefield , one wrong move and everything would detonate.“You can’t keep walking away every time something scares you,” he said.Savannah’s shoulders tensed. She turned then , slowly, deliberately , and her eyes were tired, reddened, burning with something raw.“Everything scares me, Jackson,” she whispered. “Your father. The board. Delilah. The press. This marriage. You.”Jackson swallowed. That last word hit him in a place he didn’t even know w

“Savannah, stop walking away from me.”Jackson’s voice chased her down the hallway, low and tight, the kind of tone he only used when he was trying , and barely failing , to stay in control. Savannah didn’t stop. Her steps were sharp, quick, her breath coming in uneven bursts as she moved deeper into the Sterling mansion’s west wing.“I’m not walking away,” she shot over her shoulder. “I’m escaping before I say something I can’t take back.”Jackson’s footsteps closed in behind her. “You think I can’t handle something you say?”She spun so fast he nearly collided into her. “That’s the problem, Jackson! You think you can handle everything. Everyone. You think you can control every piece of this mess like you control your board and your company. But you can’t control me.”His jaw flexed. “I’m not trying to control you. I’m trying to protect you.”“From what exactly?” She folded her arms, eyes blazing. “Your father? Delilah? Your own past? Or the secrets you keep dropping on me like landm

“Savannah, open the door.”Jackson’s voice cut through the quiet of the hallway, low, controlled, and far too close. Savannah pressed her palms against the cool surface of the bathroom counter, breathing hard, willing herself not to crumble. Her reflection stared back at her: flushed cheeks, trembling lips, eyes rimmed with frustration and exhaustion.“Savannah,” he said again, this time softer but edged with urgency. “Talk to me.”“No.” Her voice cracked. “You don’t get to demand that right now.”A beat of silence.Then the unmistakable click of the door handle.“You locked it,” he muttered.“Exactly.” Savannah turned away from the mirror, pacing across the tile floor. “It’s the only way I can get space from you.”His sigh was sharp, irritated. “I’m not your enemy.”She laughed bitterly. “You sure act like one.”Silence thickened between them, heavy enough to make her chest ache.Finally she heard him sit, his back sliding down the wall outside until he was positioned just on the oth