He nodded. “Now everything is settled, I can retire, knowing the company is in the right hands.” He slipped on his coat. “You’ll send the bill to my assistant?”
Jaxson smirked. “Of course. It will arrive promptly.”
Mr. Waters chuckled. “I would expect nothing less.”
He left, and I gathered up the file as Jaxson jotted down some last-minute notes. My stomach clenched as I watched him, his bold script filling up the page. He’d been stranger than normal the past two days. Not cold, not angry.
Indifferent.
There had been no more texts. No contact at all. In the office, he was polite, distant. He hadn’t raised his voice once. Even Michael noticed that he was off.
“Whatever his weekend plans were, obviously, they didn’t work out,” he muttered at one point. “He’s worse than usual this way. I’m waiting for the explosion.”
I had to agree.
I slipped the file into my case and waited for Jaxson to speak. To give me a clue. I looked around the small antechamber. There were many of them in the courthouse. Places where lawyers could meet with their clients in private. The rooms were simple, equipped with a table and chairs, soundproofed for discretion. This one was tucked into the back, close to the exit. I hadn’t been in it until now since Jaxson usually chose one close to the courtroom instead.
Jaxson closed the folder and screwed the cap on his pen. He loved expensive pens and had a small collection of preferred ones. He set it carefully on top of the folder and sat back, his hands folded together on top of the table. His posture was tense, his shoulders set back, rigid and straight. I found myself mirroring his posture, unease winding up my spine. He lifted his gaze, his blue eyes calm and vacant.
“Jaxson?” I asked.
“Grace,” he began, the tone of his voice sending a shiver down my spine. “I doubt what I’m about to say is going to come as a shock to you.”
I knew that tone. I’d heard him use it with judges. Fellow lawyers. Clients. It was removed, cold. Final.
“Jaxson,” I whispered. “No.”
“We’re done.”
Those two words cut through me, piercing my core with an intensity that burned. I was stunned.
“Done,” I repeated numbly.
He drummed his fingers on the table. “We should never have begun. It was a mistake.”
“Mistake,” I echoed, unable to process any other words but the ones he was stating.
“Yes. I let my baser needs cloud my judgment.”
There was a beat of silence. “I don’t understand.”
“Yes, you do, Grace. You’re a beautiful woman. I wanted you. Sex with you was epic. But—” he waved his hand in a dismissive action “—now it’s complicated. I don’t do complicated.”
I found my voice. “You’re saying all that was between us was sex?”
A fake smile crossed his handsome features. It was as cold and dismissive as his tone. “I admit I was drawn to you. But you’re…too much.”
“Too much.” Once again, I repeated his words.
“The elevator thing. The clinginess. Playing house. Having to look after you. It’s tiresome.”
My heart broke at his words. Without even trying, he had hit all my weaknesses. I hated my fear of enclosed spaces. I was independent, but I did love to be held. I had especially loved being held by him. I hadn’t considered the time we spent together as playing house, and I had thought he wanted it as much as I did.
How had I read this so wrong?
“I told you before I wasn’t interested in forever. I don’t believe in it.”
“Is this because I told you that I loved you?”
“I already knew you thought you did. It’s a phase, Grace. You see me as some sort of hero—the same way you do your father. Neither of us is. And with time, you’ll see that. You’ll find a nice guy to settle down with, and I’ll just be a memory.”
His casual reference to my father jolted me as much as his opinions. “You think I’m that shallow?”
“No, I think you’re that young.”
His statement hurt. I knew he was more experienced. Older. That had never mattered until this very moment as he sat there calmly, breaking my heart.
“You said you cared. You said you wanted to explore this.”
“I’ve explored it as much as I want.” He laughed lightly, the sound sharp in the room. “You should congratulate yourself. You lasted longer than most.”
My breathing stuttered in my throat. I was only a passing moment to him. He had gotten all he wanted, and now, I was a regret.
“You can go to the partners if you choose. Tell them I’ve harassed you.”
“Do you really think I would do that? Ruin your career out of spite?”
He shrugged, nonplussed. “I would move on. There are lots of firms willing to look the other way to get my expertise on their payroll.”
I had seen Jaxson in full lawyer mode. Cold, removed, and dangerous. It was nothing compared to the icy man in front of me. I barely recognized him.