Page 57 of My Fixation

My eyes drift closed. And for the first time since Henry’s message arrived, I let myself stop carrying the weight of it. Just for a little while. Just long enough to fall asleep in Conor’s arms.

Chapter 31

Conor

Jaxon and I spend most of the day talking. Not about us. Not directly, anyway. Mostly, he asks questions about everything that came out during the family meeting. About Xavier. Colton. The cult. The rescues. The people we’ve helped over the years.

I answer every question honestly. At least as honestly as I can. There are details no one needs to hear. Some things are simply too ugly to put on Jaxon’s shoulders. So I leave out the gore. But everything else? I tell him. Because trust goes both ways. If I want him to open up to me, then I have to be willing to do the same.

What surprises me isn’t the questions. It’s him. After yesterday, I was convinced he’d start pulling away. The more he learned, the more distance he’d try to put between us. Instead, the opposite happens.

He gravitates toward me. Not in any obvious way. Not enough that I think he even realizes he’s doing it. But I notice, because I notice everything when it comes to him.

When we make lunch, he somehow ends up standing beside me instead of across the kitchen. When we’re watching television, his knee brushes mine and stays there. Yesterday, he was preparing to leave. Today, he’s here, asking questions. Looking at me like he wants answers instead of an escape route. Maybe Xavier and Colton got through to him. Maybe he finally believes we can handle Henry.

I check the clock again. 4:30 PM. Across the room, Jaxon is pretending not to notice. Or maybe he’s genuinely absorbed in his book. At this point, it could go either way.

Colton and Xavier should be here any minute. Declan agreed to let Xavier out of his sight for the evening. Not that he was particularly happy about it. The man looked like he was sending Xavier into a war zone instead of my living room.

In fairness, if someone asked me to leave Jaxon behind while I disappeared for several hours, I’d probably react the same way. Xavier and Colton are supposed to spend the evening with him while Duncan and I handle Henry.

My gaze drifts back to Jaxon. He’s curled up in the corner of the couch with a book in his hands. He looks comfortable and relaxed.

The notification announcing someone at the gate echoes through the house. My attention immediately shifts to the security monitor. Right on time. Across the room, Jaxon lowers his book. One dark eyebrow rises.

“My babysitters are here?”

I snort. “They’re not babysitters.”

“Mm-hmm.”

The look he gives me says he doesn’t believe that for a second. “They wanted to keep you company,” I say. “And get to know you.”

“While you ‘take’ Henry with Duncan.” He does the actual air quotes. It’s not a question, and I decide not to touch that one. Jaxon’s eyes narrow.

“That’s what I thought.” I stand and hold out a hand to help him up from the couch.

I consider who he will be hanging out with for a second. “Just don’t believe everything Xavier tells you.”

Jaxon blinks. “What?”

“He exaggerates.”

“I do not!” a voice shouts from somewhere near the front door.

I sigh. “See?”

Xavier marches into the house looking personally offended. Colton follows behind him, carrying enough snacks to survive a natural disaster. Ollie toddling in with them.

“For the record,” Xavier says, pointing at me, “I tell stories with appropriate dramatic flair.”

“You once described tripping over a garden hose as a near-death experience.”

“It was traumatic.”

Colton immediately turns to Jaxon. “It wasn’t.”

“I almost died.”