For Richer, For Poorer （To Have or To Hold, Book Two）

CHAPTER 4

　　A look of panic shot across his green eyes, and I could see him struggle for an answer.

　　“There were some things that I didn’t want to bring up… and he was one of them,” Jace voiced, cutting up his chicken.

　　“Now that he has literally dropped into my world, I need to know what it is about him that you don’t want anyone to know. You said that we would talk tonight, Jace, so don’t you dare fob me off with any more of your half-truths.”

　　“It seems I have met my match.” He lightly smiled, locking eyes with me. “Have you ever had anything that is a whisper of a distant memory, but it turns into a large echo when it’s around?”

　　“I don’t even know what that means. What is it about your brother that’s so bad?” I urged.

　　“He is what’s so bad. As much as I love him because he’s my brother, he’s just not a good person,” he explained, beginning to eat.

　　“Why, what’s he done?”

　　“Ha,” he laughed, “what he hasn’t done would be a far shorter list.”

　　“Just tell me, because I still can’t work out how he got into my home in the first place. Seriously, Jace, I’m pretty unnerved about it. I can’t relax when I should be able to, because I can’t work out how he got inside the building!”

　　“Yes, I apologise. Let me put your mind at ease. I’ve spoken to him this afternoon, and although he may be some things, he has assured me that he won’t be returning to the apartment. I’ve given him another place to stay. He got in because he’s quite skilled at that sort of thing…” he replied, rolling his eyes at the thought.

　　“You mean he didn’t have a key? How is he skilled at those types of things?”

　　“No, he didn’t have a key to get in. Becca, he’s just got out of prison.”

　　“What?” I gulped.

　　Oh my god, I had a convict in my home? Had he escaped from prison?

　　“He was inside for a few years for burglary.”

　　“What?” I repeated, unable to believe my ears.

　　“He’s not your average robber. He thinks of himself as some sort of professional diamond thief and only robs from the high profile places,” Jace spoke, rolling his eyes again at what he was saying. “So, he can pretty much get into most buildings.”

　　“Jeez… are you sure he won’t get back in to where I am? Had he served his sentence, or…?” I urged, feeling that concern ebb over me again.

　　“Yes, he didn’t break out of jail. And as for your apartment, he doesn’t need to, nor want to go back to that apartment complex. He usually has his sights set on higher things than a second-floor apartment.” He chuckled.

　　“Jace, that’s not funny. He was in my home when I was asleep, and now when I’m at home I feel like there’s someone watching me. Are you sure he won’t try anything like that again?”

　　“Becca, Drew may be an i***t, but he’s no p*****t. He won’t be watching you.”

　　Continuing to eat my meal, I wasn’t so sure. Over the couple of times I had met Drew, even though he could’ve done anything to me this morning and thankfully didn’t, he gave me the creeps. There was something about him that I couldn’t put my finger on, and I found him to be quite a sleaze. There was also a depth to his eyes that I couldn’t place, like there was a predator underneath the suave exterior, ready to strike out at any moment.

　　Jace, sat there and eating his meal as if he hadn’t just told me that his brother was an ex-convict, seemed oblivious to how I felt about the whole scenario, and figuring that he knew his brother better than I did, I decided to let it go – to a certain extent. If I ever came across Drew again, I would certainly be on my guard more than I previously had been.

　　“So far it has been me asking you questions, and apart from sort of answering them, you haven’t spoken about much else,” I voiced, finishing up my meal.

　　“I’m letting you ask me whatever is playing on your mind. There’s no point in me rabbiting on and not letting you get these burning questions off your chest.” He grinned, yet I wasn’t finding anything so funny.

　　“Why have you ignored me over the past couple of weeks?” I blurted, wanting to desperately know what was going on in that head of his.

　　He sighed, placing his cutlery down and his face turned serious as his brows furrowed. “Firstly, I never thought I’d see you again, after Barbados. Don’t get me wrong, I wanted to see you again, but I never thought you would land into my lap the way you did. I thought you would’ve come back home and sorted everything out. Secondly, you were settling into Morgan Estates, and I didn’t want to disrupt that. You’ll have had a lot to deal with and get your head around…”

　　“And the third thing is?” I eyed.

　　“The third thing is that I can’t give you what you want, or deserve.”

　　“You’ve said things like this before, and I still don’t know what you mean. You’ve literally provided me with everything when you took me on at Morgan Estates, and you looked after me when we were in Barbados. I’ve never seen that level of kindness from anyone else.”

　　“But you opened my eyes, and were kinder to me than any other person I’ve known. You don’t realise that.”

　　I chuckled. “I remember being wary of you at first, and I don’t remember being in the best frame of mind on a number of occasions. I’m not sure how you came to the conclusion that I was kind to you.”

　　“Believe me,” he began, sitting forward, “you opened my eyes, and I’ve never been spoken to by anyone, the way you spoke to me. It was what I needed and I realised then and there that you were different. You gave me a wakeup call and I wanted to get to know you. But now I don’t know how to handle anything. I had to let myself get used to a difference in feeling.”

　　“And yet I’m still left in confusion with your answers, and have no idea what you’re talking about.”

　　“Maybe it’s not important,” he replied, sitting back and placing his napkin on the table. “You don’t understand… for the majority of my adult life, I’ve never had anyone talk to me like I’m not a wealthy man who they can get something out of. As soon as I met you, I knew there was something different. You weren’t putting on a show, or kissing my backside in the hopes that you could get something for nothing. You asked for nothing from me, and that was what made me give you everything. Everything including…”

　　I watched his eyes flurry with emotion, and I wished I could’ve swam in the teal pools of his irises, to even catch a glimpse of what was burdening him so much.

　　“Including what?” I wondered, breaking up his thoughts.

　　“It’s nothing,” he replied, straightening up. “All’s I do know is that you would be better off without me. I have flaws… like, I’m moody in the morning, and must have a coffee before I’m even remotely awake.” He laughed.

　　“Don’t we all.” I smiled. “You know that you can talk to me?”

　　“What do you mean?” he asked, looking perplexed.

　　“Even though you are now my boss and I’m your employee, I can see that something is burdening you, yet I’m not sure what that is. If you ever wanted to talk, I would listen to you, it would go no further, and I wouldn’t judge.”

　　“That remains to be seen.” He shyly smiled, ducking his head down. “I remember saying that to you to not long ago.”

　　“Think of it as repaying the favour.” I smiled, watching the shy persona of Jace play out before my eyes, which I wasn’t used to seeing.

　　“Right, would you like a dessert?” he suddenly announced, sitting up straight in his chair and placing his hands on his lap.

　　“Er, yeah, sure?” I mumbled in reply, wondering where the sudden change had burst from.

　　With that, Jace was back to his usual self again, and before I could prod him anymore on the subject of opening up and talking to me, I had a chocolate dessert in front of me, as we began to tuck in.