JAY JAY POV
The next morning, it felt like we were having a mini-reunion in the living room.
Atmosphere today was heavy and serious. Jare, Mia, Amy, Percy, and Aries had all gathered at our house.
"Are you really gonna tell them?" Aries asked Keifer, his voice laced with hesitation.
The guy clearly wasn't on board yet. He was pacing back and forth, while Amy watched him with one eyebrow raised, looking like she was ready to smack him if he didn't sit down and shut up.
Keifer just nodded, leaning against the long table where laptops and various folders were spread out.
He glanced at me—that look of his, making sure I was really ready for this. I just gave him my fiercest stare, the kind that said, 'Try hiding something from me again and see what happens.'
I crossed my arms over my chest. "Well? Are you guys going to talk, or are we going to wait for me and Mia to actually give birth before you let us in on the secret?"
"Grumpy," Percy muttered under his breath, though he made sure not to look at me because he knew I'd probably kick him.
Keifer took a deep breath, his expression hardening. "Jay-Jay is right. We're in this together. No more hiding."
The room went so quiet you could hear the hum of the air conditioner. Keifer looked at our friends, giving them one last silent warning before his eyes settled on me.
"The thing is... Yuri and Ella are plotting against us," he said, his voice low and gravelly. "Together."
The girls and I froze. My heart skipped a beat, and I felt a chill run down my spine that had nothing to do with the temperature of the room. Yuri? And Ella? The two people who had caused us the most pain were working as a team?
"Yuri and Ella... they both want revenge," Aries added, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. "They aren't just looking for a way back in. They want to tear down you guys to get to us"
Mia's face went pale. She turned to Jare, her eyes wide with hurt and disbelief. "Why didn't you tell me?" she asked, her voice trembling. "How long have you known they were working together, Jare?"
Jare took a step toward her, his expression full of that same guilt he'd been carrying for weeks. "Mia, I was just trying to keep you out of stress," he said softly, trying to reach for her hand. "All three of you. We didn't want you guys worrying about things that we thought we could handle behind the scenes."
"Stress?" I snapped, looking at Keifer. "You call a partnership between a obsessed psycho and an ex-assassin a 'stressor'? That's a death threat, Keifer! And you guys kept us in the dark!"
"We had it under control, Jay!" Keifer countered, his voice rising in defense. "Or we thought we did. We've been tracking their movements, intercepting their calls—we wanted to end them before they even got close enough for you to notice."
"But they've changed tactics," Percy chimed in, pointing to a file on the table. "They aren't just sending goons anymore. They're hiring professionals. People who know how to bypass our standard security."
I looked at Mia and Amy. We weren't just being 'protected.' We were being handled. Like assets. Like we couldn't handle the truth.
"Stress is being trapped in a house like a bird in a cage and not knowing who's trying to open the door," Amy said, her voice sharp as she glared at Aries. "If I knew Yuri was back, I wouldn't have fought you on the bodyguards. I would've been the one telling them to double the perimeter!"
Keifer let out a frustrated sigh and turned a laptop screen toward us. "Well, now you know. This is their map. These are their safehouses. And this is exactly why we haven't let you out of our sight."
I leaned in, my heart still racing but my mind finally clicking into gear
After everyone left, the house felt too big and too quiet. The information was still swirling in my head—Yuri and Ella, a alliance made in hell. I stayed in the kitchen, focus-cutting some fruit just to keep my hands busy. The sharp thwack of the knife against the cutting board was the only thing grounding me.
I didn't need to turn around to know Keifer was there. I could feel the heat radiating off him before he even touched me. He wrapped his arms around my waist from behind, pulling me flush against his chest, his chin resting on my shoulder.
"What are you thinking about?" he asked softly, his breath warm against my ear.
I stopped cutting and let out a long breath, finally putting the knife down. I turned around in his arms, forcing him to look me in the eye.
"Why do you guys always do this, Keifer?" I asked, my voice tired but firm.
"Do what?"
"You, Jare, Percy, Aries... the whole Section E," I said, gesturing vaguely toward the door where our friends had just exited. "You guys think you're protecting us, but in reality, you're just keeping us in the dark. Again."
Keifer started to open his mouth to defend himself, but I put a hand on his chest.
"You treat us like we're delicate, Keifer. Like we'll break if we hear bad news. But have you forgotten who I am? Have you forgotten what Mia and Amy have been through?"
I looked at the bite mark I'd left on his neck yesterday—it was already starting to bruise. "When you keep us in the dark, you don't make us feel safe. You make us feel helpless. And feeling helpless is the scariest thing in the world for a woman in my position."
Keifer's expression softened,
His grip on my waist tightened.
"I don't think you're delicate, Jay-Jay," he whispered, his eyes searching mine. "I know you're a fighter. I know you're probably better at spotting a trap than I am. But when I look at you... especially now..."
He lowered his hand to rest gently over my stomach.
"My instinct to protect you overrides my logic. I don't want a single dark thought to cross your mind. I don't want you to have to look over your shoulder because I want to be the one doing it for you. It's not about not trusting you—it's about me being unable to live with myself if I let you carry even an ounce of this burden."
"But we're a team, Keifer," I argued, my voice softening. "If Yuri and Ella are coming, they aren't just coming for you. They're coming for us. You can't fight a war for two people if one of them is blindfolded."
Keifer sighed, leaning his forehead against mine. "I know. I realized that last night when you shut that door. I'm sorry, Jay-Jay. Truly. No more blindfolds. From now on, you see what I see."
"Promise?"
"Promise," he murmured, before leaning in to kiss me—a slow, lingering promise that this time, he meant it.
+++++++++++4 months later++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
JAY JAY POV
Time flies so fast. Four months. I'm only four months away from my delivery date, and man, it's getting close. My belly is huge, I walk like a penguin, and everything—literally everything—hurts. If before my biggest problems were Yuri and Ella, now my biggest enemies are back pain and the constant urge to pee.
The situation with our "enemies" had quieted down into a cold war. Section E was still on high alert, and I was still overseeing the legal side of things, but most of my energy was spent just trying to stay comfortable.
"Keifer," I said, sighing as I sat heavily on the edge of our bed. I felt like a ticking time bomb of exhaustion.
Keifer looked up from his phone and chuckled, seeing the look of utter defeat on my face. He walked over with that annoying, handsome smirk of his.
"What is it?" he asked, sitting down beside me.
"Massage," I said. It wasn't a request; it was a royal decree. My lower back felt like it was being squeezed by a vice.
"Take off your clothes," Keifer said calmly.
I raised an eyebrow at him, giving him a suspicious look. "Excuse me, Watson? A little blunt, don't you think? I'm in pain here, not in the mood for your games."
He laughed, reaching for a bottle of lavender-scented massage oil on the nightstand. "Relax, Jay. I said take them off so I can actually get the oil on your skin. Unless you want me to just massage your t-shirt?"
"Oh. Right," I muttered, feeling my face heat up. "I knew that."
I carefully pulled my shirt over my head, leaving me in just my bra. Keifer poured the oil into his hands, rubbing them together to warm it up before pressing his palms against my lower back.
I literally groaned the second his warm hands hit my skin. "Oh my god... Keifer, don't stop. Ever."
"You're so tense, Jay-Jay," he murmured, his thumbs working deep into the knots near my spine. "You've been sitting at that desk too long. I told you to let Angelo and the boys handle the latest reports."
"I'm a lawyer, Keifer, not a porcelain doll," I winced as he hit a particularly sore spot. "I need to make sure the paperwork for the restraining orders is airtight."
"And I'm the husband who has to deal with you being grumpy when your back hurts," he countered, his voice softening as he moved his hands up to my shoulders. "Just for tonight, stop being a lawyer. Just be my wife."
I leaned my head back against his chest, closing my eyes and finally letting out a breath I felt like I'd been holding for months. Despite everything—the threats, the fear, and the chaos of our lives—this felt safe.
His hands were strong and steady, a reminder that no matter what Yuri or Ella planned, they'd have to go through the King of Section E first. And judging by the way he was looking at me, he wasn't planning on letting anyone get close.
After the massage, I felt like a puddle of jelly. All that tension had melted away, but it had been replaced by something much more demanding: a sudden, frantic hunger that made no logical sense.
"I want mango and pickles on top... and whipped cream," I said, looking at him with wide, dead-serious eyes.
Keifer stopped mid-motion, the bottle of oil still in his hand. He looked at me for a long beat, his eyebrows slowly disappearing into his hairline.
"Anything else?" he asked sarcastically. "Perhaps some fried chicken dipped in strawberry jam? Or a side of charcoal?"
"Actually," I said, ignoring his tone because my stomach was currently calling the shots. "Yes. Also some chips. But with chocolate syrup on them."
Keifer let out a defeated laugh, shaking his head. He set the oil down and moved his hands from my shoulders to my protruding stomach, his large palms covering the space where our little one was currently somersaulting.
"What are you making your mom eat?" Keifer asked the belly, his voice dropping into that soft, private tone he only used when he thought I wasn't teasing him. He leaned down, placing a kiss right on my navel through my thin leggings. "You've got your dad's expensive taste but your mom's weird cravings, little guy. You're going to be a handful."
"Don't blame the baby," I huffed, though I was smiling as I ran my fingers through his hair. "The baby wants what it wants. And right now, it wants a mango-pickle-cream-chip-chocolate disaster. Now, go."
Keifer grumbled something though he was already standing up and reaching for his hoodie.
"Go!" I laughed, throwing a pillow at him.
He caught it with one hand, winked at me, and headed for the door. I watched him go, feeling that familiar warmth in my chest.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++