Page 16 of The Comeback Road (Leaving #2)

Jace

I strummed my fingers along the bed of my truck as I waited for Jess.

She had texted me earlier that morning, asking if we could meet for coffee.

Years of no contact, and suddenly, she couldn’t stop blowing up my phone.

I thought I had made it clear that I was willing to see if we could get past what had happened, not that we would be going straight back into being married.

Jess positively threw a fit when I informed her that she wouldn’t be staying with me and stormed off.

Clearly, she cooled off. She was as sweet as pie when trying to get me to meet her.

“Jace!” She appeared seemingly out of nowhere, and I couldn’t help but frown. There used to be a time when I would have felt her presence anywhere, but she just felt like a stranger.

“Jess.” I nodded at her, and she looked around in confusion.

“Did you not grab the coffee?”

I couldn’t help but chuckle. “You asked me . I thought you’d take care of that.

” I knew I sounded like a bit of a dick, but I wasn’t just going to forgive and forget that quickly.

Her cheeks heated red. “Sorry, I guess I just assumed…You used to always take care of that kind of stuff.” She wrung her hands together, and I immediately regretted my words.

“Shit, Jess, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean…” Before I could finish my sentence, I saw a man fly toward the park. I thought it was weird, but turned my attention back to Jess. “I didn’t mean to be that much of a dick.”

Her deflated shoulders ticked back up. She started rambling about something, but I couldn’t pay attention. There was a distracting awareness buzzing around me, and I didn’t understand what it meant.

Until I heard someone shout “Raya!” My head snapped back in that direction. What I saw had the blood draining from my face. Lexie.

She was far from me—too far. I took off.

I was unsure exactly how I made it across the street because I definitely didn’t look.

My only focus was getting to her. To them.

In a move that had me a bit miffed, Lexie somehow moved Raya completely behind her and further away as she shoved the guy away.

He started to charge back at her, I had no choice but to shout to bridge the gap that my steps couldn’t.

“What the hell is going on here?” Lexie never took her eyes off her opponent, but I swore I saw her body tense.

I felt the bile rise. Her body was more on guard with me around instead of more relaxed, and I felt my mouth dry in shame.

The guy still wasn’t letting her out of his sight, and it was unsettling.

“Who are you?” I questioned him, and the more I looked, the more there was a familiarity there I just couldn’t put my finger on.

“That’s my kid.”

My blood started to boil. This prick. That was why he looked familiar.

I didn’t know it all, but I knew enough.

“One who signed his rights away and isn’t involved.

” And I moved to stand between Lexie and Raya, and Lance.

Now that I knew who he was, I had a face to put to his name.

Lexie shifted so we were shoulder to shoulder.

Stubborn woman. Although, I never expected anything less.

Lexie was a force to be reckoned with when she was in your corner.

I couldn’t help the unease that crept in, knowing that she’d never be in my corner again.

I wanted to reach for her, to beg her to give me some time to figure it all out.

Lance shot a few parting words at Lexie that had my hackles rising, but I was so lost in my thoughts of losing her and her fierceness forever that I couldn’t speak.

I felt like the air was laced with glass, and I was struggling with each inhale.

I was only vaguely aware of Lexie bending down to talk to Raya, but completely alert when she stalked off in the direction in which Lance just departed. I tore after her after losing her hand once. “No—would—you—stop,” I panted out after her.

“No, and how is it that you had no idea that prick is Raya’s dad?” she shot at me with all venom.

“Remi isn’t the most forthcoming. She’s very private.

I didn’t pry. Sloan hasn’t even met him, and most of what I know about Remi is from him.

” Remi had always been very skittish. She worked hard, took care of her daughter, and that was it.

She didn’t tell me, and I didn’t ask. I didn’t think it was my place.

Lexie wasn’t slowing down, and I knew I needed to get her to just stop for a minute and think about what she was doing, “Lexie, stop . You can’t just leave Raya. ”

I saw the moment the realization washed over her, and she pivoted so fast I got dizzy just looking at her.

I was close enough that I tried to reach for her, and she sidestepped me without a second thought, recoiling like the thought of my touch pained her.

I wanted to rip my hair out at the pain in her eyes.

“Lexie…” I was about to reach for her again, tell her I was an idiot, that I was wrong.

“Jace, what the hell, sweetheart?” Jess’ voice washed over the moment, and I felt my body go ramrod straight as I shot Lexie a look, begging her to understand that it wasn’t what she thought it was.

“Sweetheart, you just took off. Is everything okay?” I felt Jess’ eyes sweep over me, but my focus was on Lexie, begging her to look at me, to understand.

I finally looked over at Jess— glared at her—and shook her hand off my arm, shaking my head, doing my best to try to tell her to buzz off without having to say it. But she still stayed locked in on me.

“Jess. Not now,” I bit out, annoyed that she didn’t catch on. Lexie was leaving.

No.

“Lexie, this isn’t done.”

The look she shot me had me reaching out for her, afraid she was about to become a living ghost, haunting me and my memories.