Chapter 137 Jaxon's visit
Sage's POV
I was still standing in front of the mirror, staring at the stranger in the wedding dress, when someone knocked on my bedroom door.
"Come in," I called, expecting Elena to return with some last minute detail.
But it wasn't Elena who stepped through the door.
It was Jaxon.
He stopped when he saw me, his expression shifting through a look of surprise and approval before landing on something that looked like pride mixed with sadness. For a long moment he just stood there, taking in the sight of me in the wedding dress with my hair and makeup done.
"Wow," he said finally, his voice rough. "You look beautiful, Sage. Really beautiful."
"Thanks." The word came out flat and automatic.
Jaxon closed the door behind him and moved further into the room, his hands shoved in the pockets of his suit pants. "I wanted to talk to you before the ceremony. Just the two of us."
"Okay." I turned away from the mirror to face him properly. "What's on your mind?"
"I wanted to tell you that I'm proud of you." He met my eyes, his expression sincere. "For doing this. For making the hard choice even though it's not what you wanted."
There it was again. That same line he'd been feeding me. You're doing the right thing. Dad would have wanted this.
"You keep saying that," I said, keeping my voice neutral. "That you're proud of me for doing this."
"Because I am. I know this isn't easy for you. I know you didn't want to marry Diego." Jaxon moved closer. "But you're doing it anyway because you understand that it's what's best for everyone. That takes strength."
"Best for everyone." I repeated his words back to him. "You've said that before too. That this marriage protects everyone, not just me."
"It does." Jaxon's voice was firm. "The alliance with the Blood Sisters gives our club security we wouldn't have otherwise. Your marriage to Diego cements that alliance in a way nothing else could."
"And what about what Dad wanted?" I watched his face carefully. "Are you sure he would have wanted this for me?"
"Yes." Jaxon didn't hesitate. "Dad understood the importance of family alliances. He understood that sometimes we have to make personal sacrifices for the good of the club. This protects everyone, Sage. You, me, the entire Steel Wolves family. That's what matters."
The certainty in his voice made something twist in my stomach. He sounded so convinced, so sure that this was the right choice. Like he genuinely believed Dad would have approved of forcing me into this marriage.
"I wish I could believe that," I said quietly.
"You can. Because it's true." Jaxon reached out and squeezed my shoulder. "I know you're scared. I know this feels overwhelming. But I promise you, this is going to work out. Diego will take care of you and you'll be safe. That's all that matters."
Safe from what, I wanted to ask. Safe from the consequences of our dad's federal cooperation? Safe from whoever killed him? Or safe from something else entirely that you're not telling me about?
But I didn't say any of that. I just nodded and tried to look like I believed him.
"There's something else I wanted to tell you," Jaxon said, pulling his phone from his pocket. "The club is planning something special for Dad. A memorial ride to mark three months since he died."
The mention of my dad made my throat tight. "Three months now. It feels like both forever and no time at all."
"I know what you mean." Jaxon's voice was softer now. "We wanted to do something to honor his memory properly. A ride with all the brothers, maybe ending at his favorite spot up in the mountains. I thought you should know about it, in case you wanted to come back from Arizona for it."
"When is it?" I asked, even though part of me didn't want to know. I didn't want to think about being back here after the wedding, facing all the brothers and pretending everything was fine.
"We're still finalizing the details, but I wanted to give you a heads up now." Jaxon started typing something on his phone. "Let me send you what we have so far so you can put it on your calendar."
My phone buzzed on the dresser where I left it. I walked over and picked it up, opening the text message from Jaxon without really thinking about it.
And then I saw the words.
"The memoryy ride for Vincent Romano. Everyyone is invited. It'll be on the anniversaryy of his death, three months exactlyy from the dayy we lost him. Let's make it memorable."
The phone nearly slipped from my fingers as I realized what just happened.
Every single Y was doubled. The same pattern I'd been staring at for hours in those emails from RC. The same distinctive quirk that had haunted me.
My mind went completely blank for a second, and then everything started clicking into place so fast I could barely process it.
RC. Jaxon Carlos Romano.
Not Ryder Christopher Kane. Not Robert Cordova who'd been dead for years.
Jaxon Carlos Romano. My brother. The person I trusted most in the world.
Oh God.
"Sage?" Jaxon's voice cut through the roaring in my ears. "You okay? You look pale."
I forced myself to look up from the phone, to meet his eyes, to paste something resembling a normal expression on my face even though my entire world had just shattered.
"I'm fine," I managed to say, my voice coming out steadier than I felt. "Just emotional about Dad. The memorial ride is a nice gesture."
"I thought you'd appreciate it. He deserves to be remembered properly." Jaxon studied my face, concern creasing his forehead. "Are you sure you're okay? You really don't look good."
"Just pre-wedding jitters." I put the phone down carefully on the dresser, my hands shaking slightly. "Elena said every bride gets them."
"Well, you don't have anything to worry about. Diego seems like a solid guy. He'll take care of you." Jaxon smiled, and it looked genuine and warm, and it made me want to scream.
Because how could he stand there smiling at me like a concerned brother when he clearly was RC and he watched me run around trying to investigate and find out who it was.
I turned away before he could see the horror on my face, pretending to adjust my dress in the mirror. My mind was racing, trying to process this new terrible truth while simultaneously figuring out how to get through the next hour without falling apart completely.
RC was an acronym for Romano Carlos, not Ryder Christopher.
And I was about to marry Diego Vasquez to escape from the wrong man entirely.