Abandoned but Not Alone (22 page)

Rising
slowly, silently from above Jason
’
s prone
body, Aviva pulled the sheet over him before going into the bathroom to take
care of her nightly ablutions of removing her makeup and brushing her teeth.
Re-entering the bedroom she quietly pulled on a nightdress and slid under the
covers beside him. A long muscled arm immediately snaked around her waist,
pulling her close against his warm body.

“
Thank you.
”

“
I thought you were asleep.
”

“
I was, but I
’
m a very light sleeper.
”

“
I
’
ll have to remember that for the future.
”

“
Does that mean we have a future together?
”
Jason asked, seeming to hold his breath
for her answer.

“
I hope so
…
I really hope so.
”

“
Me too Angel
…
me too.

The next
morning Aviva left Jason asleep as she made her way downstairs. As she reached
the hallway she was approached by Drake who informed her she had a telephone
call. Curious as to who could be calling her at Jason
’
s house, she walked into the lounge and picked up the phone.

“
This is Aviva.
”

“
Aviva, good morning my dear, this is
Jackson Kingdom.
”

“
Mr Kingdom, however did you get this
number?
”
Aviva responded,
surprise evident in her voice.

“
My dear young lady, I
’
m a very resourceful man when I have a
need to be. Last night I found out for the first time that I have another son.
Did you really think I would let him walk out of my life as though his
existence meant nothing?
”

“
I guess not
…”
she answered hesitantly.

“
How is he this morning?
”
Jackson asked abruptly, changing the
tone of the conversation.

“
He
’
s still asleep. He's been through a lot and he needs the rest.
”

“
Thank you for looking after him.
”
The words were so heartfelt; Aviva could
feel the depth of emotion transferred through the telephone line.

You
’
re welcome Mr Kingdom.
”

“
Jackson
…
, please call me, Jackson.
”

“
Um
…
okay.
”

“
Say it
–
say Jackson.
”

Aviva
laughed nervously, hesitating, feeling a little silly at her reluctance at
calling Jason
’
s father by
his first name. She actually liked this man but their conversation somehow felt
as though it were a betrayal of Jason
’
s trust.
She could sense the concern for his son was genuine, whether he had known him
for a day or a lifetime.

“
Jackson
…”

“
Ah, there you see, that wasn
’
t so hard now was it?
”

“
No, it was surprisingly easy to tell the
truth.
”
Aviva laughingly
replied.

“
Good, good
–
now that we
’
ve broken
the ice; I must turn to the reason for my call this morning.  I need your help.
”

“
My help, how could I possibly help you?
”
Aviva responded, a feeling of unease
settling over her.

“
I need you to persuade Jason to meet with
his brothers and me. You see my dear
–
he
’
s ours, and we want him.
”
Jackson
’
s words, so simple, yet so poignant conveyed a longing that
touched her heart.

“
I don
’
t know if I can do that Jackson. I think you
’
re attributing me with more sway than I
possess if you think I can change his mind.
”

“
My dear young lady, I was witness to his
rescue of you last night. Well at least to his mind it was a rescue. His only
reason for coming within an inch of any of us was to ensure you remained with
him and him alone.
”

“
I don
’
t know about that. Jason is his own man. I can assure you, I
have no sway over his decisions.
”

“
I know what I witnessed last night.
However, it would seem you have yet to accept what was apparent to my sons and
me. All we ask is that you try
…
please, it
would mean everything to us.
”

“
I don
’
t know what I can do, but I
’
ll try...I
’
ll try.
Give me your number and I
’
ll get back
to you.
”
Reaching for a pen
and paper, she took down his contact details and said goodbye.

Still
holding the piece of paper containing Jackson
’
s telephone numbers, Aviva turned and almost collided with
Jason. Just managing to hold back a yelp of surprise, she looked up at him, his
irritation so profound his eyes glistened black with displeasure.

“
Who was that, Aviva?
”

She
hesitated, he lifted an eyebrow. The arch of his brow an indication he already
knew the answer to his own question.
“
Jackson, he
wanted me to try to persuade you to meet with them.
”

“
No!
”

“
Jason, maybe you should think about
meeting with them. They really want to get to know you, surely you want that
too.
”

“
No.
”

“
Please, just think about it.
”

“
I said, no!
”
Jason bellowed in anger.

“
Don
’
t you dare raise your voice at me Jason King!
”

“
I told you no twice, now that
’
s an end to it. The subject is closed!
”
His hand slashing across the air
emphatically, emphasizing a close to the subject, then he turned and walked
away.

Aviva stood
with her mouth hanging open, stunned into silence.
‘
Oh no he didn
’
t just
speak to me like one of his minions, and then just walk away
’
,
she
thought, her own temper rising. Rushing to catch up with him she grabbed him by
the arm and attempted to spin him around.

“
Listen, Mr Man, you don
’
t get to issue me with commands and then
just walk away. I am not one of your underlings
–
you got that. If you wish to speak to me you will do so with
respect. You will not get away with speaking to me in that manner, now or ever.
Is that understood? Aviva punctuated each sentence with a poke to Jason
’
s chest.

Jason
braced his legs, folded his arms across his chest and raised one eyebrow,
looking down at Aviva, saying nothing.

“
Did you hear me, Jason?
”

“
What, you think I lost my hearing
overnight?
”
He asked
sarcastically, glaring down at her.

“
Apologize, I want an apology right this
minute.
”

“
Well it
’
s about to be the longest minute of your life, because I
’
m not about to hand out an apology when I
have nothing to apologize for. I meant everything I said, and just for the
record, I can
’
t even
promise it won
’
t happen
again, so get the hell used to it!
”

Aviva was
again stunned into silence. Jason turned and walked away. She watched his
disappearing back, and she was vexed, the kind of vexed that made a person want
to stamp their feet and break things.
‘
Who the hell did that bloke think he was speaking to?
’
She had
only known him for five minutes and he was already speaking to her as if she
were of no consequence
. 'Oh no, hell no
–
I am not standing for this crap, I am so out of here.
’

Storming to
the kitchen Aviva found the very man she was looking for. 
“
Mr Drake, please be so kind as to call me
a taxi with as much haste as possible, I
’
m leaving.
”

“
Um
…
certainly Miss Aviva, where should I inform them as to your
destination?
”

“
I
’
ll tell them when they get here.
”
  Aviva replied giving Drake a suspicious look.

“
I
’
ll call now Miss.
”

With a
quiet thank you, she left the kitchen, hurriedly making her way to the bedroom
that she had been sharing with Jason for the last two days. Grabbing her
suitcase she began throwing in her belongings.

Bang, the
bedroom door slammed off the wall.
“
What the
hell are you doing?
”
Jason
demanded, coming into the room.

“
I would think that were obvious, even to
a dick like you.
”

“
Where do you think you
’
re going?
”

“
I don
’
t know where I
’
m going.
All I know is, as long as you
’
re not there,
that
’
s fine with me!
”

“
Don
’
t be stupid
…”

“
Stupid...stupid
…
oh no, you did not just call me stupid.
”

“
Now come on Angel, you know I didn
’
t mean it that way.
”

“
Oh sod off, you knuckle dragging
Neanderthal!
”

Knuckle
dragging
…
Jason had
to fight off laughter. If he laughed now he was going to be in over his head
because as he saw it, he was currently shoulder deep in shit of his own making.
Moving slowly so as not to startle her, he stole towards the open suitcase,
while her back was turned he pulled out the items she had just flung inside.
Turning she caught him red-handed.

“
Get your hands off my knickers.
”

“
Knickers
…
?
”

“
Those.
”
Aviva pointed to his hands overflowing with her underwear.
Looking down at his big fists clutching pieces of wispy lace, Jason walked to
the opened draw and shoved them inside. Silently he repeated his actions,
withdrew more items from the suitcase, depositing them into the draw. Stunned
at his audacity, Aviva rushed to her suitcase and stood in front of it with her
arms spread to keep him away.

“
Stop it. Don
’
t you dare touch another piece of my clothing.
”

“
You are not leaving.
”

“
Watch me, if you think I
’
m going to stay here and have you speak
to me however you like, then you have another think coming.
”

“
Come on Angel, I
’
m sorry.
”
Jason
flashed his dimples. His dimples always worked on the ladies.