EDEN

The universe must have hated me.

I watched with a heated glare as Jaxon chatted with Chloe, forgetting that I existed. The fundraiser was great, Jaxon’s appearance had caused the entire city to flood the hall, each man hoping to get the opportunity to have a moment with Jaxon Avner.

But the downside about this was the fact that Chloe Graham, his girlfriend decided to show up.

“Okay, what are you glaring at? You have been looking like a kicked puppy for the longest time,” Isla said.

I quickly turned my gaze away from Jaxon, “Nothing, I am just wondering when Zayn would get here,” I didn’t miss the way she rolled her eyes the second I mentioned Zayn’s name.

“Let me guess he has something important to do and he can’t make it?”

I blew a raspberry, “Don’t do that,”

“Do what?” she said in a high tone.

“Don’t start, you know that if he could be here he would,” I said, sounding pathetic for the umpteenth excuse I would be giving for Zayn.

“I don’t get why you don’t get it… Jaxon didn’t have to do it but he is here,” she said in a higher tone.

I turned my gaze towards Jaxon. He was here because I had begged and pledged my soul.

“Harper, have you called her?” I asked, and it was obvious that I was trying to change the topic.

If Isla had something to say, she didn’t. But rather her narrowed look turned into a frown.

“That is odd, I called her a few minutes ago but she said she was only a few minutes away,” she said.

I frowned, “She isn’t picking up my calls,”

And just like it was on cue, my phone dinged, “Can’t make it, sorry,”

“What the heck!” Isla growled the second she read the message. “What does she mean by that? Couldn’t she give more details on why she is missing the whole…”

“Isla, it is fine, Harper might be busy,” I said.

Gosh! I should be given the award for someone who gives the best excuses.

“Eden, could you please go to the storage room, We need more dog tags,” Agnes, our supervisor said.

“Sure,” I said, grateful for the interruption.

I couldn’t handle staying there with Isla and listening to her talk about everything she thought was wrong with everyone around me.

My feet padded gently on the cold tiled floor as I walked towards the storage room. It felt nice to be away from the noise the people and literally just everything.

My mind wandered back to Jaxon and Chloe, and he had barely spared me a glance. His attention was on Chloe and the rest of the people who stopped to ask for a picture.

“Ugh!” I groaned, looking at the high cupboard that glared at me.

It looked like it was over a thousand feet tall and here I was, standing at 5’3. I could jump, maybe that would help to get the box down, but then I would also bring down a whole other thing.

“Need help?”

I shrieked, jumping a few feet into the air, as I pressed my hand against my chest, trying to hold my heart back from leaping out of it.

“Jaxon!” I hissed. “You scared me,”

He smirked, the same arrogant smirk that always has me weak in the knees, “You looked like you needed me,” he said.

He hadn’t apologised for scaring me. In fact, he looked pleased with himself at the action.

I turned, surprised at how close he was standing, “Wha… what are you doing here?”

He shrugged, leaning against the wall, “Was bored, the crowd was becoming too…” he trailed off, his eyes raking through my frame like he was thinking through his next words.

“Oh,” I mumbled, looking at my feet as I wondered about what I would say.

“Your boyfriend,” he gritted out, his tone low and dark. “He isn’t here,”

How was I going to say this without making Zayn look like the terrible person? I was the bad one here, lusting after her stepbrother while in a relationship with his rival.

“Something came up, he couldn’t make it,” I lied.

If Jaxon saw through my lie, he said nothing, “Cool, so what are you doing in here?”

“Trying to get the box full of dog tags,” I said, putting in the box.

“And they sent you to get it?” he said in a teasing tone.

“Hey, I can totally get it,”

He chuckled, “Please, I would love to see this play out,”

I growled, narrowing my gaze at him, “You are just being mean because you are some giant,”

Jaxon moved closer, his scent overwhelming my whole being. I felt nervous as his dark eyes roamed my body, like he was searching for something.

“Do you need me to help you?” he asked, his deep baritone voice sending vibrations down my body.

I needed him more than he thought, but I couldn’t say that, I couldn’t ruin this newfound relationship we were just developing.

Jaxon stretched his hand, his body trapping me as he picked the box like it was a bag of feathers. I felt my thighs clench at the way his body touched mine.

“Here you go,” he said in a soft tone.

“Th…thank you,” I stuttered.

His hand brushed mine, his eyes not straying from my face, “Anytime princess,”

“Eden!” Isla called out.

Jaxon pulled away so fast that I thought I had imagined our whole interaction.

“Did you get lost in the gateway to Narnia…” she paused, her eyes widening as she noticed Jaxon. “Hey… am I interrupting something?”

“No, no, nothing,” I said.

Jaxon looked between both of us with an amused look on his face, obviously enjoying the way that I was stuttering and making a fool of myself.

“Well, I came to check on you and now I am going to leave,” she said.

She was gone like a flash leaving Jaxon and me alone in the storage room.

“You can leave if you want,” I whispered. The fundraiser was almost over and there wasn’t much that he could do anymore.

Jaxon looked like he was about to protest but just before he could say anything, Chloe popped in, “Hey baby, ready?”

She had barely waited for a reply before throwing herself at him and kissing him like I was invisible. “This place blows, can we leave,”

Her words stung, I had put my whole life into planning this and she said that it was…

“Let’s go,” she muttered, placing more kisses on his neck.

Chloe was here and I was back to being a ghost, invisible— forgotten.

He had said nothing to me.

Silently choosing her over me as he led her out of the storage room.

I fell apart, a million pieces of me breaking as I watched him leave.

Would he ever want me?