Author’s pov –
The cold water from the sink kept running over her wrist.
It didn’t help.
Nothing helped.
The bright red blood mixed with the water before disappearing down the drain, leaving no trace of what had just happened.
As if he hadn’t just been there.
Instead of touching the towel Damien had thrown at her, Jay Jay opened the bathroom cabinet with shaking hands.
She found a roll of medical tape and a piece of clean fabric behind the mirror.
She pressed the fabric right onto the cut, wrapping it tightly to stop the bleeding.
The sharp edges of the broken bracelet had cut much deeper than she thought.She rolled the medical tape around her wrist.
She pulled her long sleeve down completely to hide the messy tape, took a deep breath, and walked out.
Damien was already gone.
He had walked out as if nothing had happened.
As if he hadn’t threatened her five minutes ago.
As if he hadn’t looked at her blood on his fingers and felt absolutely nothing.
The dinner passed in a total blur.
Voices drifted around her, talking about wedding dates, engagement parties, expensive hotels, and guest lists.
Every word felt far away.
Every laugh sounded fake.
A few times during dinner,
Eleanor stared at her and asked.
“Are you alright, Jay Jay?”
Jay Jay just smiled—the same fake, practiced smile she had been using all day.
By the time she finally got back to her own house, it was dark.
She went straight to her room and locked the door safely behind her.
Only then did she pull up her sleeve and gently take off the blood-soaked fabric .
Her breath caught in her throat.
The wound looked worse.
Much worse.
The skin around the deep cut was bright red, swollen, and angry.
Fresh blood was starting to come out again.
She quickly pulled out the first-aid box from her closet.
Cotton, medicine, and clean bandages.
Her hands shook like crazy as she cleaned the cut.
The second the burning medicine touched the raw skin, a sharp pain shot up.
She squeezed her eyes shut, a tear slipping down her cheek.
It wasn’t because of the physical pain.
It was because his words were repeating over and over in her head:
“You don’t choose Watson.
You don’t run to Watson.
You will learn to obey me.”
She squeezed the cotton ball tight.
Just then, her phone vibrated on the bed
Keifer.
From Keifer –
Patient alive?
Her lips trembled as she typed back with her good hand.
To keifer –
Barely.
The reply came right away.
From Keifer –
Should I send rescue services now?
She stared at the message, then looked down at the dark blood slowly staining her fresh bandage.
To keifer –
CEO helicopter available now?
From Keifer –
Depends.
Emergency level?
Jay Jay looked at her wrist.
At the blood seeping through the fabric and at the dark bruise forming around the cut.
To keifer –
Survivable.
A few seconds later, another text popped up.
From Keifer –
Good.
Because I don’t like losing my patients.
For some reason, those words hurt more than the actual cut.
Because someone out there cared enough to say that, and she couldn’t even tell him the truth about why she needed saving.
Keifer’s pov –
The big office was almost empty when Ethan walked in.
The head of security walked over quietly and placed a black file right on the desk.
“You asked for info about the number that texted Miss Jay sir” Ethan said.
I nodded.
“What do we have?”
“Not much, honestly.” Ethan sighed.
“It was a prepaid SIM card.
Unregistered.
It’s a burner phone.”
I leaned back in my chair, my eyes narrowing.
Professional.
Whoever did this knew exactly how to hide.
Ethan opened the file and pointed to a map.
“But there is something interesting, sir.
The location data from the phone signals matches perfectly with properties owned by Reyes Holdings.”
The name felt like a threat hanging in the air.
Reyes.
Reyes Holdings was Watson Group’s biggest competitor….their biggest rival for the last ten years.
Investors, projects, contracts…
every big deal in the city always ended with Watson and Reyes fighting against each other.
Ethan looked at me noticing how cold my expression had become.
“Sir?”
I didn’t answer right away.
I looked down at messages from Jay Jay
“Trying to be “.
The reply of my message if she was okay or not .
Suddenly, everything clicked.
The pieces of the puzzle started falling into place.
“Find out everything you can about Damien Reyes” I ordered, my voice deadly calm.
Ethan frowned a little.
“The heir to Reyes Holdings?” Ethan asked
“Yes.” I replied
“What exactly am I looking for, sir?” He asked.
I turned his chair toward the big glass window, looking out at the city lights in the dark sky.
“Anything connecting him to Jay.
Look into her family’s business with them.
Check everything.”
For the first time in years, this didn’t feel like a regular business war.
This wasn’t about money or companies anymore.
Because if Damien Reyes was the one making her bleed and keeping her silent, then this wasn’t Watson versus Reyes.
This was personal.
Very personal.
And Keifer Watson never lost.
Author’s pov-
The next morning came far too quickly.
Jay Jay had barely slept at all.
Every single time she moved during the night, a sharp pain shot straight through her injured wrist, waking her up.
By morning, the cut looked much worse.
The skin around it had become bright red and swollen.
Working quickly, she wrapped another bandage around it herself.
It was a messy, rushed job, and the fabric wouldn’t stay in place properly.
Ignoring the throbbing pain, she quietly got ready and left for the bakery.
Work helped.
Work distracted her, at least for a little while.
Hours passed by as customers came and went.
Orders were packed, cakes were carefully decorated, and cookies were baked.
For a few hours, Jay Jay almost managed to forget everything that had happened.
Almost.
By evening, the bakery was finally closing.
Jay Jay took off her apron, picked up her bag, and locked the back door.
As she walked around to the front of the shop, she gasped and stopped in her tracks.
Keifer Watson was leaning against his sleek black sports car parked right by the side of the bakery.
He was still wearing his sharp office clothes, but his tie was loosened and his sleeves were neatly folded up to his elbows.
He held a bag from a nearby food joint in one hand and two cups of coffee in the other.
He looked up and their eyes met.
“Are you stalking me now?” Jay Jay asked trying to sound playful despite her exhaustion.
He raised an eyebrow, a small smirk playing on his lips.
“Just checking if my patient survived the day.”
Jay Jay smiled slightly, walking closer.
“Barely.”
“Come on” Keifer said, nodding toward the small, quiet public garden just a few steps away from the bakery.
“Let’s sit down.
You look like you’re about to pass out, and I brought food.”
She hesitated for a split second, then followed him to a wooden bench surrounded by trees.
They sat down beside each other.
For a few moments, neither of them spoke.
The cool evening breeze moved softly through the leaves around them.
For once, the silence felt completely comfortable.
Jay Jay took a sip of the warm coffee he handed her, feeling the heavy tension in her shoulders start to melt away.
She reached into her bag to grab a napkin but as she pulled her hand back, her sleeve caught on the zipper.
The fabric pulled up, exposing her wrist .
Keifer’s eyes dropped toward her wrist, and his expression changed instantly.
The relaxed look vanished, replaced by a cold, hard stare.
“What happened?” he asked, his voice dropping.
Jay Jay looked down and panicked.
The messy bandage she had wrapped that morning had completely shifted.
A small, bright red spot of blood had soaked right through the white fabric.
She quickly pulled her sleeve down, trying to hide it.
“Nothing.
Just a clumsy mistake.” Jay Jay said
“Jay.” Keifer said
“It’s fine, really.”
Keifer looked at her for a few seconds, his eyes intense.
Then, he held his hand out, palm up.
“Show me.”
She didn’t move.
She kept her arm tucked close to her body.
“Jay” he said again.
It was his deep, commanding CEO voice.
Slowly, reluctantly, she placed her small hand in his wide palm.
Keifer’s eyebrows immediately furrowed.
“This isn’t fine” he murmured.
“It’s just a small cut.” Jay Jay said
“Small cuts don’t bleed through bandages, Jay.” Keifer said .
He carefully peeled back the poorly wrapped fabric.The moment the air hit the raw wound, Jay Jay winced.
Keifer’s jaw tightened so hard a muscle jumped in his cheek.
He looked at the swollen, red skin and the deep, jagged slice left by the broken bracelet.
“Did you do this yourself?” he asked quietly.
“…maybe.”
“Terrible work” he said, though his voice was soft, devoid of any real bite.
“Thank you.” Jay replied
“You’re welcome.” Keifer said.
Keifer reached over, opened his car door, and pulled out a small, professional first-aid kit from the glove compartment.
Jay Jay blinked in surprise.
“You keep a medical kit in your car?”
“When enough people depend on you, you learn to prepare for anything.” he replied smoothly, sitting back down right next to her.
He gently lifted her hand again, resting her arm securely across his knee.
He took out a bottle of antiseptic cream and some clean cotton.
“This is going to sting” he warned, his eyes meeting hers for a second.
The moment the medicine touched the cut, a sharp, burning pain shot right up Jay Jay’s arm.
She flinched violently, a small gasp escaping her lips as she instinctively tried to pull her hand back.
But Keifer didn’t let go.
Instead, his grip tightened just enough to keep her still, his thumb rubbing soothing circles against her palm to ground her.
“I know, I know.
I’m sorry” he whispered, his voice incredibly soft and full of emotion.
He blew gently on her wrist to cool the burning sting, his touch so tender it made Jay Jay’s heart race for an entirely different reason.
For a moment, neither of them spoke again.
He carefully applied a soothing cream over the raw skin, his fingers moving with absolute care, making sure he didn’t hurt her any further.
Then, he wrapped a fresh, clean bandage around her wrist.
This time, it was done perfectly.
Secure, neat, and gentle.
“There” Keifer murmured, letting his fingers linger against her hand for a second before pulling back.
Jay Jay looked down at it.
The throbbing had already started to calm down, and the bandage looked completely professional.
“Thank you.”
He looked at her, his dark eyes searching her face.
Then, quietly and directly, he asked, “Did Damien Reyes do this?”
The world seemed to stop.
Jay Jay’s breathing hitched, and her eyes instantly snapped toward his.
“How…
how do you know Damien Reyes?”
Keifer’s expression remained calm, but his eyes were dangerous.
“Reyes Holdings and Watson Group have been trying to destroy each other for almost ten years.
I know exactly who he is.”
Of course.
They were massive business rivals.
Jay Jay quickly looked down at her hands, unable to hold his gaze.
Keifer noticed.
He noticed everything.
“Jay.”
She stayed silent, gripping her dress.
“Did he did this to you?”
The garden suddenly felt very quiet.
Too quiet.
She wanted to lie to him.
She wanted to say no, to protect everyone—to protect Keifer from getting into a dangerous fight, to protect herself, and to keep the families at peace.
Instead, she looked away and whispered, “…it was an accident.”
Keifer stared at her for several long seconds, a heavy sigh escaping his lips.
“Liar.”
Jay Jay bit her lip, looking out at the trees, her chest aching.
For a while, neither of them spoke.
The silence stretched between them until Keifer quietly broke it.
“You know something interesting about me, Jay?”
She turned her head back toward him.
“What?”
He looked out at the glittering city lights ahead of them, his profile looking sharp and strong in the evening light.
“I absolutely hate losing.”
She frowned slightly, confused.
“What does that have to do with my wrist?”
Keifer turned his head, his intense eyes locking onto hers, holding her gaze completely.
“If someone is hurting the people I care about…
I usually don’t stop until I win.”
For the first time in days, the cold, suffocating weight in Jay Jay’s chest lifted.
Looking into Keifer’s eyes, she felt completely safe again.
And that sudden feeling of safety scared her almost as much as Damien Reyes did.
Thank you for all the love on my recent chapters ❤️
I know this journey is getting emotional and maybe a little painful to read, but every scene has a reason and every action has consequences in this story.
Some chapters will make you smile, some will make you angry, and some will make you want to protect these characters with your whole heart 🥹✨
Trust the process a little longer.
And don’t worry…
JayFer still has a long journey ahead 👀💜
See you in the next chapter ✨