How fucking humiliating.
Things between us are going to be rocky for a while, and I have no one to blame but myself. Fuck, I could’ve had my daughter in my life if I’d have kept my damn dick in my pants.
Jacey
I don’t know what he’s so up in arms about. He’s the one who decimated me, not the other way around. I shoot him an evil glare before continuing. “Before I had a chance to get away from that fun scene, Jameson stopped me.”
“How did he stop you?” he sort of asks. I can’t really tell if it was posed as a question or a demand. He’s like a rabid dog, full of barks and growls. I’m intently looking at him, wondering if at any time now he’ll start foaming at the mouth. “Jacey,” he snaps.
“He didn’t lay a hand on me if that’s what you’re asking, Rayne. He saw me standing there, heart in my throat and decided that was the perfect time to talk some shit to me is all.”
“What kind of shit, Jacey? As close to word-for-word as you can remember.”
His eyes are fully focused on me, intently watching me as I recall that unpleasant memory.
“I told him I was pregnant after he accused me of coming back to break up the band. I told him that wasn’t my intent, but he pointed out how happy and free you were after kicking me to the curb. Jameson said he’d never seen you so alive and I would do nothing but bring you and the band down if I returned. He reminded me how miserable I made you and offered me cash if I proved to him I was pregnant. I shoved my ultrasound picture in his hands before walking away, after promising to stay away from you all.”
“What?” Rayne bellows, and I swear the walls shake with his ire.
“Shh, you’re going to wake Hadley up and we aren’t done,” I say to him as I look down the hallway and place my eyes on her bedroom door. I wait a few minutes before I continue with everything I have to say to him.
“Sorry,” he abashedly states. “But damn, that pisses me off. My fucking manager hid the fact that you were pregnant from me. He fucking knew I had a kid out there and buried that shit deep.”
“Yeah, he did. I don’t know how he found out that I’d given birth to Hadley, I never reached out to him. I didn’t want a fucking dime from him or you. I knew I could do it on my own, but as soon as I made it home from the hospital, there was a check for five thousand dollars sitting in my mailbox, and like clockwork, one arrived the first of every month.”
“At least he did something, right,” Rayne mumbles.
“I haven’t touched a dime of it. I’ve put it all in a separate account for Hadley when she gets older. She can use it for schooling or to begin her life when she comes of age.”
“That’s admirable of you, Jacey, but that money is for Hadley’s support—to help put a roof over her head, clothes on her back and food in her belly. I will pay for her education personally, and I’ll make sure she has a nice nest egg to build her life on.”
“We don’t need your money, Rayne,” I sharply state. I don’t know why taking money from him upsets me as much as it does, but I do just fine taking care of our daughter on my income.
“I know you don’t, Jacey, but I need to feel as if I’m contributing to our daughter as well.”
“Sorry, Rayne,” I apologize. “I’m on edge after my surprise visit from Jameson this morning.”
“Excuse me?” He hisses the question out.
“I was building up to telling you that, Rayne.”
“Well, you can tell me now, Jace.”
“He threatened me, told me if I didn’t find a way to make you leave then he’d do something to Hadley. And Rayne, I don’t think he meant legally. I’m scared for our daughter.”
“No one’s gonna hurt her, either of you, Jacey. I will hire an entire fleet of around-the-clock bodyguards if I have to.”
“I don’t want us to live that way, Rayne. We have to make Jameson go away, but I’m not sure how we can do that without him coming around and retaliating.”
“You let me and my sisters take care of Jameson, Jacey. He’s going to be drowned in lawsuits. He won’t have enough money left to his name to piss in a toilet, let alone enough money to come after any of us. I’ll send him home then get my attorney to freeze his accounts as we get the paperwork going. He’s going to pay for all of his sins, that I can guarantee.”
10
Rayne
The next two weeks manage to fly by in a blur of activity. I’ve had little, miniscule amounts of time to work on my music, much to Jameson’s dismay, as I get to know my daughter. On the advice of our attorney, we’re letting him stick around long enough to build a case against him. He’s being followed, his shit has been bugged, and since I pay for all of his electronic equipment, it’s legal.
I went ahead and hired a firm to watch Jacey and Hadley. They are discreet; Jacey knows they’re there, but we didn’t want to scare or worry Hadley, so the guys stay out of sight. I have an entire team at my disposal twenty-four-hours a day. If I can’t be with my family, they are. It makes things easier when I’m working on new pieces for our upcoming album.
Each day has been enlightening as I learn new and exciting things when it comes to my baby girl. Her mind is always a whirlwind of activity and she’s full of endless questions. Jacey’s and my talk about the situation that sent her running away without informing me about our daughter’s existence runs in loops inside my mind daily.
Jameson won’t know what hit him as soon as I have all my ducks in a row.
Sibley and Justine have slowly started coming around where Jacey is concerned. They cried and were astounded by Jameson’s outlandish treachery once they had the entire picture laid out before them. Jacey didn’t hold back as she spoke about her run-in with Jameson and the things she witnessed at the club.
Billie, on the other hand, is still holding her at arm’s length. She’s not as angry as she once was, well, not at Jacey, but her trust was broken and it’ll take a while to get her back to the same level as my other two siblings. Patience and time, that’s what it’ll take for Jacey and Billie to re-form their now-shattered bond.
Jacey has been at the bank today, gathering up all the photocopies of deposited checks. I’m delighted with the knowledge that they’ve all gone into an account for Hadley’s future. My woman has always been a hard worker, but this goes to show that she’s never been about my money. It’s gone a long way in proving to me the type of woman she truly is . . . one I’ve always known but my staff has always questioned. I can’t wait to shove this down their fucking throats.
My little girl is sound asleep in my arms when Jacey comes home. “She never naps for me like that.” She places her things down on the coffee table in front of us. The envelope she set there is burning a hole in my retinas.
“That it?” I question her.
“Yes, every photocopied check for the last two-and-a-half years. It’s all there for your viewing pleasure. I hope you nail Jameson to the cross for this, Rayne.”