Chapter 69 Not like a person
JAXON’S POV
By the time I got home, it was already dark outside. The world has quieted in a way that reflected calm, as though every single being in the world was at peace.
But, only I knew how conflicted I actually was.
Nathan had come to me earlier, asking that I protect Nancy, and even if he hadn’t, I would have done so anyway, but what bothered me now was how strongly I felt about that.
It wasn’t just merely a desire to protect; for a brief second, I felt possession too, and it was a disturbing emotion, mostly because I had just condemned Hudson for trying to do the same.
Long after I pulled up in my driveway, I didn’t get out of my car and just sat there, head laid back, with my eyes closed, deep in thought.
Suddenly, the sound of the front door opening grabbed my attention, and my eyes snapped open.
It wasn’t even that loud, but years of alertness made me sensitive to things like this.
“Dad.” Diana’s voice reached me before she even got to me.
I rolled the window next to the passenger seat down, watching as she poked her head in. “I heard your car pull up. Why aren’t you coming in?”
“I was just taking a call,” I lied without batting an eyelid, then signalled for her to step back.
Afterwards, I locked the windows and then got out of the car, walking around to where she stood. My gaze swept to the house, “Nancy’s asleep?”
“Yes, she went to bed early, must have been exhausted after all that talk…”
“What talk?” I cut in.
“Oh,” Diana’s lips parted, and then she gave me a nervous smile, as though she had just realised she said too much.
“It’s nothing. Chloe just came over for a visit, and then Mason showed up too. He was here to see Nancy.”
She didn’t say more, but from the look on her face, I could roughly guess what went down.
“I see,” I muttered, feeling discomfited by the feeling that arose after her words.
Diana and I headed in, then parted ways at the top of the stairs. She went to her room while I went to my study first before returning to my room.
On my way back to my room, I ran into Nancy in the hallway.
She gasped quietly, as though I’d shocked her, and then she went quiet for a couple of minutes.
“I didn’t know you were back.”
Even though she was addressing me, she looked everywhere but at me.
My brows rose.
She had avoided me earlier, too. I couldn’t help but wonder why.
“Yeah, I came in a while back,” I said in response to her statement.
We stared at each other for a couple of minutes, or rather, I did while she kept on avoiding my gaze.
A few seconds later, she gesticulated vaguely, “I’ll go on now, I was on my way down and…and…Goodnight, Mr Landon.”
Without waiting for my response, she scurried past me. It felt like she was escaping me.
“Nancy,” I turned, stopping her before she could get far.
Her figure stilled for a couple of seconds, and then she turned around slowly, “Yes?”
“Can I talk to you for a minute?”
Her gaze flickered for a second, and then she nodded, “I guess so.”
“What do you want to talk about?” She asked, stealing glances at me.
“Hudson.”
Immediately, she stiffened.
Her eyes bulged, and her mouth dropped open. It took a while before she recovered from shock.
“Hu…Hudson?” She spat out.
“Yes, Hudson." I nodded, studying her face carefully.
Different emotions crossed her face all at once. She swallowed, then lifted her gaze to me, “How do you know Mr Hudson?”
There was a tremble in her voice that caused my face to crease in an instant. I could sense fear, and for a moment, my blood boiled. I was angry, not at her, but at him.
Her eyes were still huge, and I could see the fear deepening. It filled me with an urge to pull her into my embrace and soothe the emotion, but I curled my hands into fists instead, tightening them to restrain myself.
“Nathan told me.”
“Oh.”
She stared at me, then bit down on her bottom lip before lowering her head again.
Silence filled the space, heavier and pressing this time. I didn’t like the fact that she wasn’t relaxed, and a sigh rolled out of my lips.
Naturally, my voice softened to ease her nerves as well.
“He’s the reason you left, right?”
Her head snapped up, and she stared at me, as though she was trying to ascertain my intention in asking her that.
I kept my face neutral, waiting for her response.
Finally, she gave me a soft nod, “Yes.”
“Why?”
Her fingers curled ever so slightly by her sides, and my face softened even more.
“It’s okay,” I said, a little more quietly. “You can tell me.”
She still seemed unsure, so I kept waiting patiently.
“I was scared.” The word came out small, and her voice sounded fragile.
It made my chest tighten.
She swallowed, then continued speaking, “My parents were going to force me to marry him. They owe him, and my Dad thinks he made the right choice…I didn't want to, I refused, and that’s why I…”
She didn’t finish, but I could already guess the rest of what she wanted to say.
That was why she ran.
Because she refused to submit to her parents' thoughtless decision.
The mere thought of her being intimate with him made my head pound. I couldn’t even bring myself to visualize the scene.
I forced the thought out before it could progress further, then glanced at her.
“It was just too…”She paused, then looked at me, seeking the right word to say. “It was just too much.”
Well, I guess that was one way to put it.
A wry smile crossed her lips, “I mean, he’s older than my father and he…he doesn’t even look at me like a person.”