She didn’t have to ask him what he meant. It was obvious he’d caught glimpses of the bruises around her neck and face. Suddenly feeling both defensive and embarrassed, she shot him a withering glare that would frighten even the boldest paparazzi.
“None of your fucking business.” Nose in the air, she moved around him and walked out the door. She kept her head held high, like she was a queen.
By the time she made it back to the dining room, Minh had already cleaned up the mess, leaving no trace of the disaster Gia had left it in. Her brows raised in question when she saw her wearing Jake’s shirt. The kids were all eating happily, and had probably gotten new dishes served while she and Jake had been in the bathroom.
She’d lost her appetite and wanted to go home.
“Hey, I’m gonna head back. You okay with the kids?” Minhnodded her head, mouth full of food. She turned to look at Marley, who was looking at Gia, her food untouched in front of her. “It’s so nice to meet you. Hopefully, I’ll see you around soon.”
Marley offered her a wave and a sweet smile before Gia bolted out of the restaurant like her ass was on fire.
Six
JAKE
The smell of lavender still clung to the air, soft and lingering, like a ghost of Gia. Jake leaned against the bathroom counter, fists braced on the cool tile, trying to wrestle control over the fire burning beneath his skin.
His breath came shallow. Not from exertion, but from the fury simmering beneath his skin since the moment he glimpsed the bruises on Gia’s face. A shadowed imprint along her jaw, under the concealer she thought hid it. But it was the ones on her neck that gutted him. Big, deliberate, finger-shaped marks. Like someone had wrapped their hand around her throat.
And squeezed.
His stomach turned. The fire turned into an inferno. It made him sick to think he could have lost her forever.
She’d worn the oversized sweater like armor, like camouflage, like shame. And he hated that she felt the need to hide.
Whoever had hurt her, whoever thought they could put their hands on Gia, was going to regret it. Jake didn’t know how or when, but he’d make sure of it. He wanted vengeance. Blunt, brutal, and merciless vengeance.
Jake was hardly the type to throw punches, to act outviolence, but for Gia? For her, he could see himself crossing lines. For her, he could commit murder without a second thought.
She wasn’t his. Hadn’t been for a long time. Maybe she had never really been his.
Butdammit, she was something.
Gia had always been tangled up in his life. Thao’s little sister. The Lien family’s golden child. Off-limits, or so he’d once told himself.
But whatever brotherly affection he was supposed to feel for her never took root. Not really.
And now? There wasn’t a single innocent feeling left in his body where she was concerned.
But the rage he felt wasn’t about possession. It wasn’t about jealousy.
It was aboutprotection.
Jake could almost feel the way her skin looked under the bruises—hot, tender.Violated.He couldn’t stand the thought of her flinching, of her crying, of her enduring whatever the bastard had done to her.
He turned to the sink and twisted the faucet hard. Cold water burst from the tap, and he splashed it on his face again and again until the chill reached his bones.
He looked up at his reflection, which stared back, jaw tight, water dripping from his chin, eyes darker than he remembered. There was guilt there. Buried deep, but undeniable.
This wasn’t rage. It was regret.
He had let her go.
He hadn’t chased her. Not hard enough. Not when it counted.
Years ago, she left Willowbrook. No calls. No letters. No explanations.
He hadn’t blamed her then. Still didn’t. She’d lost her brother. Her anchor. And maybe… maybe Jake had been too much of a reminder. Or maybe he’d failed to be what she needed in the aftermath.
