The Blackmail Bride

Chapter 56 Part 1

Distrust

The 'week or so' Jace had said became the longest 'week or so' I had to emotionally deal with after the confrontation with our parents.

As Jace prepared to leave, he became distant. We came home to the house where only the two of us lived and he suddenly detached himself from me.

I had thought for a moment that we were finally starting to communicate. But after coming back from the 'vacation', the man had done a complete one-eighty on me.

Simply put, Jace was... busy.

He threw himself into work as soon as we got back.

That was fine. That was expected. He was going to the other side of the world, of course he had to prepare. But in these last four days, he would come home at strange hours of the night and hole up in his office. And when I woke up in the morning, he would've already left.

The only reason I even knew he came home was because of the half-full coffee mug he would leave on the counter.

The first two days, I left it alone, pretending I didn't notice I was becoming a ghost in the house.

It was the third night that I stayed up and waited for him. I sat in bed at two am, listening to his footsteps... only for it to pass our bedroom door and go to the next room which was his study. By the time he closed the door, I had flung off the covers and was marching out of the bedroom. My patience hanging by a thread, I managed to knock on his office door.

"Jace, can I talk to you for a second?"

A pause. Too long of a pause. But before I could open my mouth again, he replied.

"Come in."

The relief I felt from hearing his voice immediately dropped when I entered the door. Jace stared at his computer screen in the dark, not even bothering to look up.

I switched on the lights in the room. Somehow, that made him look up but with that annoyed expression on his face.

"What is it? Make it quick," his eyes turned back to the monitor.

The cold demeanor... was too familiar. No. I shrugged it off.

Somehow, I approached his desk and observed him.

In the calmest I could, I asked, "How's work?"

His face distorted at that question. His head snapped up, "Isla, do I look like I have time for small talk? Say what you need to say—"

"Alright, why are you avoiding me?"

We stared at each other. I refused to be intimidated by this behavior from him. I stood there, firmly waiting for his reply.

"I'm not avoiding—"

"You are," I cut him off calmly, "There's no point lying."

Jace glared at me, "If you haven't noticed yet, I'm busy."

I pursed my lips, "I distinctly remember you having time for me the last few days even when you're busy."

"And maybe that's why I'm even more busy now, Isla. What do you think?"

The confidence I came in was chipping off bit by bit at the hard wall I was facing with Jace.

"You..." I started before rethinking what I was going to say, "You really don't want to talk to me right now?"

"No," was the sharp retort.

I nodded even as I saw him already turn back to whatever it was that was so amusing on the computer, "When do you think you would have time to talk to—"