Her Defender (MacLachlan Security Group Book 2) Read online

  “Wow,” Janie muttered, marveling at the gown in the window.

  “It’s perfect,” Alexandra whispered.

  “You think so?” Janie asked, excited. Alexandra looked at her and smiled, pure joy written all over her face. She nodded enthusiastically.

  “Then let’s go!” Janie shouted. “What are you waiting for?”

  Alexandra laughed as Janie ushered her through the shop doors to try on the wedding dress of her dreams.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  Four days. It had been four days since he’d last seen Janie. Four days since he’d lashed out at Parker in his kitchen and made an ass of himself. He’d apologized, of course, and Parker had told him they were good, but he’d been distant ever since. They’d hardly spoken.

  Parker might look like a big goon with tattoos, but he was more sensitive than people thought and sometimes it took him a while to let go of things. Jackson had known him long enough to know there was nothing he could do other than give him some time.

  Janie was another matter. She seemed to be fine. They hadn’t seen each other, but they’d texted back and forth when they had the time and had even had a short phone conversation two days ago.

  But something still didn’t sit right with him. He needed to see her in person and make sure they were still okay.

  Which was why he’d decided to drop by the office today to drop off a list of names for the party Alexandra wanted to throw for Connor. He’d had to do some digging, on the down low of course, but he’d managed to compile a pretty thorough list of names and addresses.

  As he rode up to the correct floor, Jackson was pretty sure it wasn’t the elevator making his stomach flip. By the time the doors opened, he had to keep himself from sprinting down the hallway. Instead he walked down the short hallway and turned the corner toward Alexandra’s office.

  He could see Janie at her desk, her head bent over a stack of files. Her red curls bounced and swayed with every small movement of her head. He could remember the feel of them between his fingers and he wanted to run his hands through her hair while he kissed her.

  Focus.

  She looked up from her desk and the smile she gave him took his breath away. Any doubt about how things stood between them melted away and the knot in his stomach eased.

  “Hey.” He smiled, approaching to stand in front of her desk.

  “Hi,” she replied, hopping up and coming to stand in front of him. She surprised him by taking his hand and tugging him down so that she could stretch up and give him a kiss on the cheek.

  “What brings you here?” she asked, releasing his hand and taking a small step back, her cheeks red.

  “I have some names for Alexandra for Connor’s surprise party,” he said. Her face fell for a moment and his heart twisted. He glanced around before leaning down close to her ear. “I could have emailed them, but I wanted to see you.”

  “Oh.” Janie’s smile widened. “Good. You saved me a phone call.”

  “I did?” he asked.

  “Yeah. I was going to see if you wanted to come over later,” Janie said, turning to straighten the stack of files on her desk.

  “Sure. Just tell me when.”

  “How about seven?” she replied.

  “Sounds good,” he murmured, bending down to kiss her cheek.

  Janie cleared her throat and moved away, sinking back into her chair. She picked up her phone receiver and punched a button. A minute later she was motioning him toward Alexandra’s office and the moment was over.

  He dropped off the list with Alexandra and they talked for a few minutes about the party, going over details. All in all, it only took about ten minutes.

  When Jackson stepped out of the office, hoping to steal another few minutes with Janie, he was surprised to see her standing off to one side of the room with her father. He couldn’t hear what they were talking about, but Janie didn’t look happy.

  Once again, Jackson wanted to storm in and shake some sense into the man, but Janie seemed upset enough. Instead, Jackson scribbled a short note and left it on Janie’s chair for her to find, then he retreated down the hallway to wait.

  Five minutes later, James Carpenter stomped down the hallway toward the elevator and ran smack into Jackson.

  “Oh, excuse me,” he muttered, not looking up.

  “Mr. Carpenter,” Jackson said, making no move to get out of his way.

  “Oh,” he replied, finally recognizing him. “Jack, wasn’t it?”

  “Jackson.”

  “Yeah. Jackson. That’s right. How are you?” he said, making to move past him. Jackson put a hand on his chest to stop him.

  “A word if you don’t mind,” Jackson said, gesturing toward an empty conference room.”

  “Alright,” her father reluctantly replied.

  Jackson walked into the conference room after him, closing the door behind him.

  “What’s this about?” Mr. Carpenter asked, pinching the bridge of his nose as if the task of merely talking to another human being was exhausting.

  “I wanted to talk to you about Janie,” Jackson said evenly.

  “What about her?” her father asked, confused.

  “Well, respectfully, sir, I think you need to get your head out of your ass and really take a look at your daughter.”

  “What did you say?” he replied, genuinely taken aback.

  “Remove your head from your ass and pay attention to your daughter,” Jackson said again, trying to keep calm. This man couldn’t possibly be more oblivious if he were blindfolded and wearing a pair of ear plugs.

  “Listen,” he said wearily. “You don’t know anything about my family. I-”

  “I know enough. Anyone with eyes would know that your wife is a venomous witch who treats your daughters like shit.” Jackson shouted. “I know Janie probably better than you do since you don’t seem to notice a fucking thing that happens right in front of your goddamn face.”

  “She’s my daughter.” Mr. Carpenter spat back. The first real fight he’d seen in the man.

  “And? She left Mississippi five years ago. How many times have you seen her since then?” Jackson asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

  “We talk on the phone.”

  “And have you ever bothered to ask her why she left? Why she doesn’t visit?”

  Clearly he never had, because he stared at Jackson with a mixture of anger and shame, but said nothing.

  “Janie grew up being told she was worthless. Your wife spent years, years, telling her that she wasn’t good enough to be loved. And what did you do? Judging from what I’ve seen so far, not a fucking thing. Janie might be your daughter, but you sure as shit haven’t been any kind of father to her.”

  James Carpenter’s face turned red, and for a second Jackson was afraid the man was going to have a stroke or a heart attack and he’d have to explain to Janie how he’d killed her father.

  “You have no idea what I went through when my wife died. You don’t know what it was like for me.” Her father said through clenched teeth.

  “No, I don’t. But I do know what it was like for Janie. She lost her mother, and then she lost her father, too. I lost my father at sixteen so I know exactly what she went through.” Jackson yelled, taking a step toward the older man, getting right in his face.

  “You think you’re the only person who had to mourn your wife? You think you’re the only person who’s had to grieve for someone you loved? Wake the fuck up, man. We all have. The difference is, the rest of us found a way to be there for each other and keep going. You have never been there for Janie. Never once thought about what it was like for her.”

  “You don’t know what you’re talking about.” he rasped. But Jackson could tell by the panicked look on his face that he’d hit the nail pretty much on the head.

  “I don’t know if Janie will ever be able to forgive you. God knows, if I were in her shoes I wouldn’t. But I do know that she deserved better. She deserves better. So either find a way to
do better, or do her a favor and fucking disappear.”

  Jackson turned on his heel and stormed out before he did something really stupid like punch the wrong-headed man in his stupid face.

  He got on the elevator and punched the button for the ground floor a little more aggressively than necessary. Two men in perfectly pressed suits shifted further into the corner and Jackson tried to give them a reassuring smile. Judging by the look they gave each other, he failed miserably.

  Time to hit the gym and burn off some of this aggression before he got himself into trouble. Maybe it would make the afternoon go a little quicker and kill some time before he could see Janie that evening.

  Just the thought of her calmed him some and he shook his head. He hoped that conversation wasn’t going to come back and bite him in the ass, because the thought of losing Janie had him coiled like a spring again in a heartbeat.

  I am in so much trouble…

  ✽✽✽

  Janie was nervous and excited. This was a huge step for her, but it felt good. It felt right. For once in her life, she was going to be optimistic. She just hoped she didn’t regret it.

  She changed out of her work clothes into a pair of comfy leggings and a long sweater. She fluffed her hair and checked her makeup for the tenth time before she finally poured herself a glass of wine and sat down on the couch beside her sister.

  Makenna had fallen into a bit of funk, spending most of her time curled up on the couch watching tv until she fell asleep.

  She and Angel had both tried to get her to go out and see the sights or start thinking about what she wanted to do long term, but Makenna seemed set on becoming one with the couch for the time being. Janie knew exactly what she was going through, so she tried to just give her space and let her know that she was there for her if Makenna wanted to talk.

  Janie’s leg bounced nervously as she checked the clock every few seconds. It was still quarter to seven, but she couldn’t seem to relax. She craned her neck to look out the window every few minutes, looking for his mammoth Range Rover. She checked her phone every minute, repeatedly making sure that the ringer was on and she hadn’t missed any messages.

  Finally he arrived, having the audacity to arrive only five minutes early. She leapt up, opening the door for him and actually squealing with delight when he wrapped her up in his arms and lifted her off the ground.

  He kissed her, long and deep, and for a few precious moments she forgot all about why she’d asked him to come. Her sister cleared her throat from the living room and they broke apart.

  “Get a room, you two,” Makenna said, rolling her eyes. But at least she was smiling.

  “Come on,” Janie laughed, taking Jackson’s hand and leading him upstairs to her bedroom. She closed the door as Jackson took a moment to look around.

  He turned back to her with a smile and started toward her, but she put up a hand to stop him. His smile faltered and he looked confused.

  “I want to talk to you about something,” Janie said, gesturing for him to have a seat on her bed. He took off his jacket and she took a moment to appreciate how delicious he looked in his blue jeans and plain white t-shirt before he sat down, looking at her expectantly.

  The nerves returned and she took a deep breath to steady herself.

  “So, since we’re doing… this,” she began, gesturing between them. “I think there’s something you should know.”

  “Okay,” he replied.

  “I’ve told you a little about what it was like for me at home, but there’s something I didn’t tell you.”

  “Go ahead,” he said softly. His tone was gentle, but his eyes were positively murderous, as if he was prepared to avenge every sin committed against her. It did funny things to her insides, but she ignored it.

  “When I was sixteen, I… developed… a disorder,” she stammered. “An eating disorder. Bulimia, specifically. I’m okay, now,” she added, hastily. “I mean, I’ll never be cured, but I’ve been in recovery for five years and I’m doing way better.”

  Jackson reached out a hand and she reluctantly slipped her hand into his. He squeezed it gently, but said nothing, patiently waiting for her to continue.

  “My stepmother was a terror, as you know. Her constant comments about my weight and my grades and my clothes and… everything, basically, is where it started, I think. She used to nitpick about everything, but especially about what I ate. So I started just eating whatever I wanted out of spite. But by then, everything she’d said had worked its way into my head and I’d feel so terrible about myself afterwards that I’d… throw it all up.”

  Another squeeze, but no response. She took a deep breath and forged ahead, trying to get everything out all at once so she could be done with it.

  “By twenty one I’d had enough. I was underweight and miserable at home so I took all the money I’d managed to save and hopped on a bus to New York. I found a support group at first and then, when I could afford it, private therapy, and here we are.”

  She was afraid to look at him. If she saw pity on his face, she wasn’t sure she would survive.

  “Come here, baby girl,” Jackson said softly, tugging on her hand. She took a step forward so that she was standing right in front of him. He took her other hand and pulled her into him until she was standing between his legs.

  “Look at me, Janie,” he said. She looked up, slowly, and his handsome face was smiling faintly. No pity, just… tenderness? Maybe a little anger, but she knew it wasn’t for her.

  “You are amazing, you know that?” he said, running his hand up and down her arm, soothing her agitation with his touch.

  “Please, tell me more,” she joked.

  “I’m serious,” he said. “It takes a lot of guts to get out of a bad situation with nothing but the money in your pocket and the clothes on your back. Not only did you do that, but you got help, got healthy and made a life for yourself. You’re amazing.”

  “Thank you,” Janie mumbled, trying not to cry.

  “You know I’m here for you, right? Anything you need, I’m here.”

  “I appreciate that,” Janie said, sniffling. “But this is something I’m always going to have to deal with, and it’s my fight.”

  “I know that. I just want you to know that I’m in your corner,” he replied with a wink.

  She chuckled and he pulled her in and held her tightly for a few moments.

  “Are you hungry?” she asked when they finally separated.

  “Starving,” Jackson replied.

  “Pizza?” Janie asked.

  “Perfect,” he answered, kissing the tip of her nose. She laughed and picked up her phone. She ordered a large pepperoni pizza and a large ham and pineapple with extra cheese.

  “It’ll be about half an hour,” she said, setting her phone down on the nightstand.

  Jackson groaned at the thought, but the sound turned her knees to jelly.

  “I think I might know a good way to kill some time, though,” Janie said, giving him a seductive smile and biting her lower lip.

  “Oh, yeah?” he asked, standing up and walking toward her. He stopped in front of her, close enough so that she could feel his breath in her ear when he leaned in.

  “And what is that?” he asked, his voice low and rough.

  Rather than respond, she grabbed his belt and pulled him toward her, finding his mouth with hers. His hands went into her hair and he kissed her hard, probing deeply with his tongue.

  She moaned into his mouth as her back hit the wall and one of his thighs slid between her legs. His hands skimmed down her sides, resting briefly on her hips before he slipped them behind her thighs and lifted her up, urging her legs around his waist.

  She was pinned to the wall by the weight of his body, the erection straining against the fly of his jeans rubbing against her through the thin material of her leggings. She tilted her hips seeking more contact, more friction- anything to satisfy the ache that was growing everywhere their bodies touched.

  “
Fuck,” he growled, spinning away from the wall and striding to the bed. She fell backwards onto the mattress and he came down on top of her, kissing her neck and nipping at her ear while his hands roamed over her body.

  One hand slid beneath her leggings to squeeze her ass while the other snaked beneath her sweater to cover her breast. He toyed with her nipple through the lace of her bra and she arched her back, pressing herself into his hand.

  Suddenly his hands and his mouth were gone and she whimpered. She propped herself up on her elbows and watched as Jackson stripped off his shirt and tossed it aside, all the while devouring her with his eyes like she was his own personal feast.

  He kicked off his boots and slid his jeans and boxers down, stepping out of them. His cock stood at attention and once again the sight of him aroused, knowing it was because of her, was heady. In that moment, it overcame her and she gave in to her impish impulses, sliding off the bed and onto her knees in front of him.

  Jackson shook his head and opened his mouth to speak, but she put her mouth on him and the only sound that came out was a long, low moan of pleasure.

  She pulled him in as far as she could and then pulled back slowly, scraping her teeth oh so gently along the length of his shaft. He hissed through his teeth and his hand fisted in her hair.

  “Jesus, that’s good,” he rasped.

  When she reached the tip of his penis, she flicked her tongue on the underside of his head and his hips bucked involuntarily.

  With her hands on his hips, she bobbed her head, swirling her tongue as she sucked, keeping her rhythm steady and relentless. In and out, in and out, until his hips were moving with her and his breathing quickened.

  “I won’t last much longer, baby girl,” he panted, clearly giving her an out if she wanted one. Instead, she picked up her pace, determined to give him as much pleasure as he’d always given her without asking for anything in return.

  His hands tightened in her hair and his hips jerked. He growled as he came and she swallowed convulsively until his hand relaxed and his cock slipped from her mouth as he stepped away.