Jaxon’s POV
The moment I saw Elias standing at my front gate, my day was ruined.
I considered closing the gate in his face.
Unfortunately, he was holding legal documents, and he looked entirely too pleased with himself.
“Miss me?” he asked as he stepped inside.
“No, get the fuck off.”
”Good.
I’d be concerned if you did.”
I resisted the urge to throw him back out.
According to the paperwork in his hand, he was conducting a follow-up visit as part of the custody proceedings.
According to me, he was looking for an excuse to insert himself into Vesper’s life.
Again.
By dinner, my patience was hanging by a thread.
Sunny sat beside Vesper, talking about a movie she’d watched earlier, while I tried very hard not to notice the way Elias kept looking at her.
Not openly or enough for anyone else to call him out, but I noticed.
“Do you still hate mushrooms?” Elias asked suddenly, and the question made Vesper look up.
For a brief moment, surprise crossed her face.
Then she shrugged.
“I never hated mushrooms.”
”You used to pick them out of everything.”
”That was years ago.”
The words settled heavily over the table, and Elias smiled faintly.
“Your favorite was always tomato basil soup.”
Sunny looked confused and frowned.
“How do you know that?”
The smile on Elias’s face widened.
“We knew each other a long time ago.”
I tightened my grip around my fork.
Just enough to stop myself from saying something I’d regret.
Across from me, Vesper shifted uncomfortably.
She clearly wasn’t enjoying this conversation any more than I was.
Good.
At least we agreed on something, but Elias continued eating like he owned the place.
“You used to order the same thing every time.”
”People change, drop it already, Elias.
You came to do your job.
Observe table manners before the kid.”
”Some things don’t.
Vesper and Sunny seem a little more curious to know about me.”
I gritted my teeth, and the look he gave her irritated me more than it should have.
Beneath the table, my hand found Vesper’s.
She was startled, but I ignored it and laced our fingers together.
Vesper felt it, my hands gripping her nonchalantly as if I’m passing a warning or a message.
I could tell from the way her shoulders stiffened.
For one second, I considered letting go.
Instead, I tightened my hold.
She’s Mine now.
The thought came too quickly and naturally.
Elias continued talking, but his eyes briefly flickered downward, and he noticed.
The rest of dinner passed under a layer of tension thick enough to choke on.
By the time Elias finally stood to leave, I was already mentally celebrating.
Then he turned toward Vesper.
“I’ll be back next week.” My mood immediately worsened, and Vesper offered a polite smile.
“I’ll survive until then.”
His mouth twitched, and for a second, something passed between them that screamed they both had a history or lingering Memories.
An entire chapter of life that existed long before I entered the picture.
I hated it a lot.
The front door closed behind him, and silence settled over the house.
Sunny disappeared upstairs with one of the staff members, leaving Vesper and me alone in the foyer.
She exhaled heavily.
“Well, that was exhausting.”
I stared at the door, then at her.
My irritation hadn’t faded.
If anything, it had gotten worse.
Vesper noticed immediately.
“Do you still care about him?”
The question escaped before I could stop it, and Vesper blinked.
Then understanding dawned on her face.
“Oh.”
I hated that response.
“Oh?”
Her lips parted.
For the first time all evening, she looked genuinely caught off guard.
Which meant I wasn’t the only one having a bad night.
“That’s what this is about?
Your sudden attitude?”
“Answer the question.”
A soft laugh escaped her, but the smile faded from her face when she saw I wasn’t joking.
The teasing disappeared.
So did the sarcasm.
And suddenly neither of us was joking anymore.
“No,” she said quietly.
The answer came without hesitation, and something inside my chest loosened.
Just a little, but not enough.
Because I still remembered the way she’d looked at him when he arrived, and history had a habit of lingering.
I stepped closer before I realized I was moving, and Vesper’s back met the door.
Her eyes widened.
“Jaxon.”
My name sounded different coming from her.
The realization did absolutely nothing to improve my self-control.
“You don’t care about him?”
”No, I just said that.”
”You don’t miss him?”
”No.”
The answer came faster this time, and my gaze dropped briefly to her mouth.
Now that’s a mistake, A very serious mistake, because suddenly I became aware of everything.
How close we were, how warm she felt.
How impossible it was becoming to remember why this was supposed to be fake.
Vesper stopped breathing for a second, or maybe that was me.
I couldn’t tell anymore.
For one reckless moment, I almost closed the distance….I almost gale her sweet scent and took what was mine.
Almost.
Then reality returned all at once: the custody battle, the contract, and Sunny.
The fact that if I crossed this line, there might be no going back.
I swore quietly under my breath, and Vesper looked just as startled as I felt, which somehow made things worse.
With a frustrated laugh, I stepped back.
Creating space before I did something incredibly stupid.
Her expression flickered with confusion and relief or with something else I couldn’t quite identify.
I dragged a hand through my hair.
“Forget it.”
”Jaxon—”
”Good night, Vesper.”
Before she could say anything else, I turned and walked away.