Page 121 of The Protection Agreement

First, I need to build up the nerves to tell Jonah before this goes public, and I am a hundred percent sure Jonah will remove me from here before he hears anything I have to say. Also, I’m certain Bruce will hunt him down, which would be a complete disaster.

I still can’t believe I asked Bruce to marry me and he said yes. My subconscious must have been working overtime, or the alcohol gave my ego a push. Otherwise, nowhere in my wildest dreams would I have asked Bruce Powell to marry me. But I guess I was functioning on something beyond my sober mind.

Anyway, the big problem now is my brother, who told me, without mincing words, to avoid Bruce Powell, and our families aren’t friends. Despite knowing all that, I still fell for Bruce. At least I know his dad likes me, and my dad is dead, so there shouldn’t be any family concerns there.

You think.

I don’t want to believe that’s the problem.

Stepping into the office, I don’t want anyone to notice my ring. I keep my left hand hidden as I head to my desk, with Ice in tow. He’s a bit quiet today, and I welcome his silence, because my mind is still foggy on what to say to Jonah. The more I try to find the words, the more I come up empty, and I know Bruce isn’t going to keep us a secret for long.

Shit. Why didn’t I resist him a bit more and miss all that pleasure?

Nah.

Settling at my desk, I fire up the computer and try to focus on everything and not think about anything else. Maybe trying too hard is the problem.

Julian shows up at my desk.

“I hear congratulations are in order,” he says, smiling.

“Thank you,” I whisper. “Can you please keep it quiet?”

“Sure, but it might be best to rip off the bandage.”

“I’d like to keep the bandage on for now, okay?” I plead.

“For now?” he emphasizes, like he knows something I don’t. He pulls a chair and sits. “Where are we with the enterprise customers?”

“Still working on it. I’m a little behind schedule. I will have it on your desk by the end of the day tomorrow.”

“Okay. Guess I should be grateful Bruce didn’t make you quit.”

“No quitting happening here, and as stated, you will have it tomorrow.”

He nods and leaves. Ice pulls into the chair.

“Are you okay?” he asks.

“No.” I sigh. “I’m drawing a blank on what to say to Jonah about Bruce and me.”

“Just tell him the truth,” he says, like it should be easy.

I know my brother. He won’t accept me marrying Bruce, and I can’t disobey him. I made a promise I cannot break.

“It’s not that easy. Jonah warned me to keep my name from Bruce, and under no circumstances should I have any relationship with him. So calling him and telling him I married Bruce won’t go down well. I know that for a fact,” I whisper.

“I understand, but telling him the truth, that you and Bruce love each other, will also go a long way,” he replies.

I nod, but he doesn’t know Jonah. All I can do now is work and deal with my marriage and my brother later.

Chapter seventy-one

Bruce

My wife is happy and unhappy at the same time. Two things can be true. I can feel her tension about our marriage. She is happy to be with me, but her connection with Jonah is not something I can easily break. She is uneasy about telling him we got married. I can sense it.

When I get to the office, I check in with Ice, and he tells me she is okay and at her desk, working. I call Malik in with Smith to let them know my wife needs extra security, and it has to stay quiet. I feel like I need an army to protect her from everything. I also know she would not like that, so it has to stay low key. They congratulate me and get to work organizing her protection. She is my Achilles heel, which makes her a powerful weapon against me.