Fierce-Jade (Fierce Family Book 6)

by Natalie Ann

  She laughed. “Do you think he’s someone that will stay with you long?”

  “No. After he and Tammy talked—which was pretty fast—they decided to pack and move this weekend. I’m sending him the paperwork to fill out his background check tomorrow. It will take a week or so to come in and other paperwork. My guess is they’ll find a place by January first and just be in the guest house until the end of the month.”

  “So your parents aren’t coming for the holidays?”

  “No,” he said. “They were just here. I’m not going to see them either. My mother made a comment about it and I was fast to turn it down. They decided to spend the holiday with my uncle in Arizona.”

  At least she didn’t have to worry about another holiday like Thanksgiving. “I hope that means you’ll spend the holidays with me and my family?” she asked.

  “If you want me to.”

  “You know the answer to that,” she said, then turned her head when she saw her cousin Ryder walk in the door with some blonde on his arm. “Seriously.”

  “Ryder,” Brock said, pushing a chair out with his foot. “Have a seat and join us.”

  It was the first time this happened. Her cousin was being invited before he could actually crash the dinner.

  Ryder looked at his date who was snapping her gum and hanging on his arm, then at her, and back to Brock. “We’re good,” he said. “Got ourselves a nice private booth in the back. Don’t think you two want us snuggling at your dinner table.”

  “Have a good dinner, Ryder,” she said and watched him walk away. “So that’s the secret. Ask him to join us and it takes all the fun out of it.”

  “If you think that is what happened,” he said.

  “Oh, you don’t think it had anything to do with you staring him down?” Jade said, laughing.

  “He doesn’t know what to make of me,” Brock said. “When his brothers or cousins are around he’s more comfortable. On his own, he’d rather not hang with me.”

  “You make him nervous. Ryder is always pretty confident and cocky, but sometimes when he’s unsure of things or people, he makes excuses to leave or jokes.”

  “There are a lot of people like that,” he said.

  “But not you,” she said. Brock was one of the most confident, in your face people she knew. He may have demons or secrets, but she knew they weren’t horrible or bad.

  She’d know if they were.

  Brock always seemed to do the right thing. He helped those out that needed it.

  He put others before himself.

  He was loyal.

  He was sweet.

  He was caring.

  And he was hers.

  “What are you smiling about?”

  “Just thinking of you.”

  “What about me?” he asked.

  “How perfect you are.”

  “Please. I’m far from perfect.”

  “What, you aren’t going to say how perfect I am?” she asked, batting her eyelashes at him.

  “We know you aren’t either. You like to look it. Like right now in that dress you’re wearing. I can’t wait to get you out of it.”

  She pursed her lips. “That’s not very boyfriend-like on your part to not say I’m perfect.”

  “You don’t want me to lie, do you?”

  “No,” she said. “Which is another thing I love about you. You have no problem putting me in my place.”

  “As long as that place is on your back...my favorite place to have you.”

  She giggled. “Well then. Let’s get this dinner over with so you can show me.”

  33

  Fears or Worries

  It’d been a few weeks and life was going pretty well for the most part.

  Jade wasn’t staying as much at Brock’s because Andy and Tammy were in the guest house and he’d been working with Andy and spending some time with them.

  She’d met them both. They seemed like nice people but not very outgoing. Or at least Andy wasn’t. Tammy was sweet and when Jade found out that Tammy used to substitute teach years ago, she’d gotten the information from Noah on how Tammy could apply within the district. Her background checks had gone through and she’d be ready to go the first of the year too.

  Overall, life was going great. With the exception of one thing.

  Her period was late.

  Not really late. Just a week. And she never was that much of a regular person to begin with.

  But she wasn’t usually having sex like she was now either.

  Then she had to worry about the fact that she’d made it known more than once she wanted kids and felt she was getting old. Would Brock think she might have gotten pregnant on purpose?

  If she was even pregnant.

  She desperately wanted to be, but on the other hand had a fear if she was.

  But since it was Christmas Eve she was going to put it from her mind.

  The office was closing down at noon, everyone going on their way to get ready for the long holiday weekend.

  Brock even said he wasn’t working late, which was good. Her parents didn’t do much on Christmas Eve, but Drake and Kara decided to have a get-together with the siblings and she was looking forward to it.

  “What time do you want us over?” Jade asked Kara when she popped her head into her future sister-in-law’s office. “I still can’t believe you wanted to do this with the wedding just a few weeks away.”

  They’d had the bridal shower less than a month ago, a joint one for Kara and Paige since Kara had no family and Paige not a huge one. It was better this way for the Fierce family as everyone was crazy busy.

  “Whenever you want. I’m leaving in about twenty minutes. And the truth is I haven’t done much with the wedding and you know it. Your mother has taken over and I’m fine with that. Paige and I are both pretty simple and appreciate your mother and aunts being involved.”

  “My mother is loving every minute of this.” She’d thought for sure her mother would be driving her nuts with details but she wasn’t. Paige and Kara were each other’s maid of honors, like Noah and Drake were each other’s best man. Then Jade was the only other bridesmaid and Wyatt the only other groomsman for both sides.

  Wyatt would probably have the biggest wedding since Adriana had a large extended family even though they didn’t really live around here.

  “And I love that she loves it and though I’m a control freak like you, I’m surprisingly calm over this.”

  “I guess that is the way to be. Anyway, I’m glad you’re leaving when the office closes in twenty minutes and not staying longer to work,” Jade said with a laugh. Kara worked more than anyone she knew.

  “That is when Drake said I had to leave. We rode in together. Adriana and Wyatt are working, but they said they’d be there no later than five.”

  “If they aren’t held up in surgery,” Jade said.

  “No timeline,” Kara said. “When is Brock getting out?”

  “He’s leaving early this afternoon.”

  “Are you spending the night at his place?” Kara asked.

  “I think so. We haven’t really talked much about it. Tammy and Andy were going back to her mother’s tonight when he gets out of work so it will feel like we’ve got the place to ourselves again.”

  “That was nice of Brock to find a job for his friend,” Kara said

  “I think so, but if you say that to Brock he insists they aren’t friends but rather have a mutual respect for each other. Either way, Brock is a great guy.”

  “You’re in love with him, aren’t you?”

  “I am. We are. We said it to each other a few weeks ago.”

  “And you haven’t said anything?” Kara asked, looking hurt.

  She’d never had a lot of close friends growing up. She’d always been able to tell Ella anything, but in her relationship with Brock she’d been more tight-lipped than normal due to Travis and Brock’s friendship.

  But she had told her cousin she loved Brock and then she asked Ella to n
ot let her parents know. She still was suspicious of how Brock and she got together and Ella even agreed to a point. She was more than willing to keep her lips sealed for that reason.

  And though she’d gotten really close with Kara, Paige, and Adriana, she still had kept a lot of her and Brock’s relationship quiet.

  Her older brothers were nosy and meddling and though everyone seemed to have calmed down, she wasn’t in the mood for them to get involved anymore.

  Especially if they knew she might be pregnant.

  Which she was trying not to think about.

  “It’s kind of hard to say. You’d tell Drake,” she said. “Then I’m sure he’d have a few things to say about it.”

  “Drake really likes Brock. You know your brothers all do,” Kara said.

  “I do. But I don’t want anyone to say or do anything to ruin this. It seems like whenever I get close to someone it gets ruined.”

  Which was another reason she was nervous about being late with her period.

  “I’ve got to imagine it was hard growing up with them, but the truth is you guys all have this great relationship. I know Drake is very happy for you. We all are.”

  “Thank you, Kara. That means a lot.”

  By the time she was home and assembling her stuffed mushrooms and salmon rolls, Brock was walking in her front door and coming right over to kiss her. Welcomes like this were things she’d dreamed of her whole life.

  “Now that is the way to let someone know you missed them.”

  “I miss you all the time, but in this case, I’m starving. I missed lunch too.”

  She shook her head. “Don’t,” she said, slapping his hand. “Those are for tonight. I’ll make you a sandwich.”

  “You don’t need to,” he said.

  “I know, but I will if you want to take a shower.”

  “Do I stink or something?”

  “I’d tell you point blank if you did, but I know you shower when you get out of work.”

  “Because you know me so well,” he said, winking at her and walking to the stairs.

  If she only knew how he’d react, which was why she wasn’t saying anything just yet. She just wasn’t there yet to voice her fears or worries, nor did she have the guts to take a test. After the holidays, she’d told herself.

  A few hours later she was walking into Drake’s house and realized it was the first time Brock had been here. “This is a nice area,” he said.

  “It is. Noah is about a mile away.”

  “Why doesn’t that surprise me in the least? How close is Wyatt to you?”

  “Not that close,” she said. “I don’t need to be within walking distance of my twin.”

  “Do those need to be cooked?” Kara asked when they walked toward the back of the house with the snacks in their hands.

  “Nope. I just took them out of the oven and they are still warm.”

  “I think this is the way to do parties,” Kara said. “Lots of finger foods. Help yourself. Wyatt just texted he’s on the way. He had to stop to get antacids for everyone. I’m kind of scared.”

  “Do I even want to know?” Brock asked.

  “It’s a joke. Adriana likes spicy foods. He’s probably busting on her, but she won’t go too crazy for all of us. She just likes to torture Wyatt.”

  “I can handle spicy food. Hell, you should have seen some of the things I’ve eaten in my life. That’s why I’m not too fussy.”

  “So, did you decide what you’re doing with your box? Toh?” Noah asked Brock. “Jade said you were thinking of trying to pitch it to businesses?”

  She looked at Brock, as they hadn’t really talked about it much lately. She hadn’t wanted to bring it up, but he’d finished his actual work with the firm.

  “Cade is working on the patent paperwork. It’s pending from what Travis said. He’s got some connections and the two of us are thinking of pitching it to some businesses that do a lot of work with the military. It’d be nice to get production lined up with costs before we went elsewhere.”

  “You didn’t tell me that,” she said. Why hadn’t he?

  “Because I just found out a few days ago. My father has been gathering some companies he is aware of that do a lot of work with the military too. A few not for profits. I guess at this point I’ve got people collecting information before we go further. I just can’t turn this into a business. I don’t have the head for it or the time. I’m not a salesperson or a businessman.”

  “Jade loves sales,” Wyatt said, walking in the room. “Where is she taking you now?”

  “Not that kind of sales,” she told Wyatt, then turned to Brock. “I’ll gladly write or help write any proposal you have or need.”

  “Travis mentioned Ella said the same thing.” He started to grin at her. “I guess we are both assuming you two will work on that for sure.”

  “Of course,” she said. “I’ve love to. You know that. Anything to help.”

  “You might be the new millionaire,” Sebastian said.

  Brock laughed. “I’m not sure about that. It’s not about money for me. It’s more about bringing some joy to the servicemen and women.”

  “So you aren’t going to sell this product?” Kara asked, looking pained.

  “The businesswoman has come out. No more work talk,” Drake said. “Now that we are all here, let’s just enjoy our first Christmas Eve dinner with the siblings and not the parents.”

  “Why didn’t you want to ask Mom and Dad?” Jade asked him.

  “Because they like having this night to themselves, you know that. But they’d come if we asked and then Mom would want to do a lot of work,” Drake said.

  “And being the oldest of the group,” Noah jumped in to say, “Drake likes to keep Mom happy so he stays on her good side.”

  “You’re Mom’s favorite,” Wyatt said. “You two are always talking shop.”

  “It’s because our careers are similar. You and Jade and Kara always talk about work and bore the rest of us,” Noah argued.

  “You all bore me,” Wyatt said.

  She looked over at Brock to see how he was holding up. “Not too much for you? Much different than a holiday with your parents, huh?”

  “Remember, I saw all of this at Thanksgiving.”

  “But we were on our best behavior then,” Wyatt said. “Not tonight.”

  “You better not do anything bad,” Adriana said. “Or you’re getting coal on your spicy omelet for breakfast.”

  “Good. The charcoal will ease the heat from your food,” Wyatt said and then dodged his fiancée’s hand.

  This was the life she’d lived and this was what she wanted for her future family.

  Looking over at Brock’s smile on his face, she hoped he felt the same way.

  “That was fun,” Brock said later that night at his place. “You were probably laid back more than I’ve ever seen before and you weren’t even drinking.”

  “It’s always like that when the four of us get together. Having significant others doesn’t change it but rather amps things up. I’m glad of that.”

  “You guys have a good strong foundation. I have that with my parents,” he said.

  “And you don’t want to lose that,” she said when they walked to his bedroom. It was a little after ten and they were going to be at her parents’ house around nine in the morning.

  “I won’t. But I won’t have my feelings or emotions played either. My mother is aware of that. She needs time to come to terms with things. That is on her, not me. I know what I want and feel.”

  He’d talked to his mother a few more times and she tried to put a guilt trip on him that she’d never done before in his life. He had no idea where it was coming from or why it was happening.

  He was only willing to tolerate it for so long.

  He’d told his mother he was in love with Jade and what they had was the real deal. He’d like them to get along but if she wanted to be stubborn then they’d have to work around it.

  She wanted
to know what he meant by that, and he didn’t have any answers for her. He hoped it didn’t come to that.

  “And what is that?” Jade asked, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him down for a kiss.

  “You. Only you,” he said.

  34

  Love To Give

  “Wake up, sleepyhead.”

  Jade turned to look at Brock leaning over her. “Morning.”

  “Merry Christmas.”

  “You too. It’d be merrier if you let me decorate your house with more than that little tree.”

  “Don’t start on me again,” he said, then placed a little kiss on her lips. “I’m going to go start breakfast.”

  “No,” she said. “We’ll be at my parents’ place in a few hours and my mother is going to have the kitchen stocked with more food than any of us can eat. Coffee is good enough.”

  “Here I had this idea of treating you. I’m going to take a shower, then at least make the coffee.”

  “I’ll join you in there,” she said, throwing back the covers. “Then we can have our coffee together and open gifts. You seem awfully excited today.”

  She hoped that was a good thing since he was spending the day with her and not his parents. “I am. This is the first Christmas I’ve been home for in years.”

  Which made her feel worse that he wasn’t with his parents. “Do you wish you were with your mother and father?”

  “No. It’s better this way. I’ll call them before we leave, but they’ve had plenty of holidays without me. They are used to it by now.”

  “I’m really sorry they don’t like me.”

  “It’s not that. And my father adores you. He really does. My mother is just...she’s struggling with things. I’m sure it’s nothing more than she thought I was home for good and she could coddle me. She forgets I’m not the coddling type. My father, on the other hand, she can pamper him and he loves it.”

  “Do you think it’s because she didn’t do it for years with him too?” Jade asked, grabbing some clothes and following him into the bathroom.