The Blackmail Bride

Chapter 49 Part 1

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Jace

I was drained for today.

But when Jace said the conversation was going to wait after we've both eaten our meals, he made it seem like an order that I complied with or else.

I wasn't even sure why I was staying around to hear his side. For a good half hour, his back muscles stretched beneath his cotton shirt as he manned the stove. And I watched his movements blankly from my seat on the island counter, my whole face swollen from crying. I still sniffed, and at some point, he handed me a dry dish towel to use instead of the wet back of my hand.

Then the meatball spaghetti was set down under my nose. The smell rivaled those restaurants my family frequented. Herbs, tomatoes, and olive oil. Then the smell of meat and cheese mixed in.

I said I didn't want dinner anymore. But the sight of neatly twirled pasta, red sauce, and golden-brown meatballs made me salivate. A fork was slid into my right hand and a Caesar salad was tossed in a bowl in front of me with flare. Gripping the heavy utensil in my hand, I waited for Jace to sit down beside me before I started eating. The flavors exploded in my mouth and reluctantly, I looked at the man beside me.

He was already looking at me.

"Good?"

I nodded my head and Jace smiled, digging into his own plate. I couldn't even lie.

We ate in silence after that. Somehow, having my stomach filled cleared my head a bit and calmed me down. But that also made me antsy in a way... was he breaking down my guard with food?

I declined when he offered me wine. Just the thought of alcohol made my head spin, and I didn't want a repeat of yesterday.

The table was cleared. And the dishes washed and put away. All by Jace.

An hour had gone by since he told me he was going to give me his explanation.

I sat in place and waited for him to turn back to me. And as if reading my thoughts, Jace twisted around and raised an eyebrow at me.

"Where do you want to have this conversation?"

"Here is fine."

He bobbed his head and rounded the island counter before sitting back down beside me. Jace twisted in his seat so he was fully facing me while my whole body faced the counter.

And silence. My heartrate was already starting to pick up and I breathed deeply to calm myself down. There was nothing to be terrified of, I told myself.

"Where would you like me to start?"

My head snapped in his direction. His clear gray eyes were already settled on mine and we weren't even an armlength away. My skin tingled, not sure if this meant he was too close but asking him to move would make him too far away.

"Well?"

I tilted my head to the side before looking down at the marble details on the flat surface of the counter.

I breathed a shaky breath, "Why don't we start with what I saw? Why were you with Claire Smith inside your suite during our engagement party?" I held back the rest of what I wanted to say.

Do you have any idea of what I was feeling that time?

His hand grabbed the back of my seat and tugged me a bit closer to him. His head leaned, in and his eyes stared at me seriously.

"Why don't we review what happened that day? Remember why I went back to my room?"

I blankly stared at him.