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He didn’t know why she didn’t believe him when he said he wasn’t going anywhere, but it didn’t matter. He would do anything to shield her. He refused to remain on the sidelines and watch the voracious media whet their appetite with her.
Having made a decision, he tossed aside his injured feelings and joined her next to the fireplace.
He slid his arms around her waist. “We don’t have to do this anymore.”
“Thank you. Let’s talk about something else,” she said, snuggling into his embrace. “I hate fighting with you.”
Having her close always short-circuited his nerve endings. He kissed the top of her head. “I don’t mean this discussion. I was referring to these events for the Company. We’ve done enough. Let’s collect our promise and go.”
She stiffened. “There you go, trying to fix things!”
He clenched his jaw, annoyed by the ever-shifting surge of emotions. “I will never apologize for wanting to protect you.”
“And what about Calanthe? Are you willing to sacrifice her home, her security, and her way of life? All on the altar of my protection?”
“You’re being dramatic. I’ll talk to Catherine. I’m sure—”
“Jay, you made a promise. And the state visit is next week. We can wait.”
Why was she fighting him so hard on this? He still hadn’t fully understood why she’d gone back on their agreement to further entwine their lives outside of their relationship, but he’d appreciated that she’d been willing to do so for his mother. But neither he nor his mother wanted her to be harmed for her assistance. Knowing that was happening and how important her good name and brand were to her, why would she stay and allow it?
“What if I don’t want to wait?”
She jammed a hand on her hip. “What if I do?”
“Butwhy?”
She threw that same hand in the air. “Because we gave the queen our word. And I don’t want her or anyone else to think you’re backing out because of me. How would that make me look?”
“What does it matter what people you don’t like think about you?”
“It matters because I don’t have the privilege of it not mattering. If you decide to back out, be clear that it’s all on you. Don’t pretend you’re making that choice for me. I’m telling you right now, I fucked up but I’m willing to stay and see this through. For you. For us.”
The air between them was heavy and thick. How had they gotten here? In California they’d only quarreled over what movie to watch, what food to eat, and whether cheerleading was an actual sport.
(She swore it was.)
But here they were. Neither one of them inclined to break the silence.
That would fall to Margery.
“Sir, Mr. Barnes is here.”
Fuck.Jameson shoved a hand through his hair. He’d forgotten he’d had plans with Rhys.
“We were supposed to head over to the club and catch a game tonight.” But when he’d made those plans, he hadn’t thought they’d come on the tail end of two arguments with Dani. He exhaled. “Give me a minute. I’m going to tell him I can’t go and then we can finish this—”
“Pardon my interruption, sir, but Mr. Barnes said if you mentioned canceling, I should tell you that you twisted his balls to get him to do this and you bloody well can’t back out now.” Margery cleared her throat. “His words, sir, not mine.”
He couldn’t help the tiny smile. “Thank you, Margery.”
Dani sighed and spoke for the first time in several minutes. “It’s fine. Go.”
“You’re not fine.”
“I’m not. But if things go bad, we’ll need our friends. You going is good for us.”
“If things go bad...”
