When Jackson and I arrived late to Francesca's manor, his arm was across my shoulders, guiding me through the sea of people already inside.
"Jackson, everyone is staring at us."
I mumbled, alarmed, as we weaved through the crowded room.
"Because they're seeing us together again. Normally it's a new girl every time."
He answered coolly, causing me to roll my eyes.
Once we'd reached a less crowded area, we began scanning the room for our friends, who were nowhere to be found.
"Oh, I'll be back in a second, Valerie. I just saw an old friend."
Jackson murmured, before I absentmindedly nodded, picking up a glass of champagne from a nearby table.
"So, you're the girl everybody has been talking about..."
I heard somebody say from beside me. I slowly turned to face the man, and stared up at him.
"What?"
"You're the one Jackson has been parading around like some trophy, aren't you?"
He questioned, giving me a dark chuckle.
"Uh...No, I-"
"Relax, love. You're too pretty to be stressing."
His eyes were glued on mine with a cold intensity, and he barely blinked.
"Um...Who are you?"
I asked, staring up at him, though I was mildly uncomfortable.
"My name is Frank."
He answered, smirking.
"Val! There you are, we were looking for you."
I heard the familiar sound of Luke's voice and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Hi, Luke."
I smiled, as he began walking closer towards us.
"Hey, Luke...We were just-"
Luke cut off Frank, giving him a fake smile.
"I've gotta speak to her, see you around."
Frank groaned and left Luke and I standing alone.
"Are you okay? Frank is not good news. Where is Jackson?"
"I don't know, he said he went to go see an old friend. Who's Frank?"
Luke began scanning the room for Jackson, but turned back to face me and shook his head.
"Jackson got into a fight with Frank because he slept with Frank's girlfriend. He's one of Pete's boys."
"Oh."
I glanced into the general direction that I saw Frank leave in and saw him leaning against the wall, staring at me.
"Jackson is on his way. Meet us in the courtyard in five minutes, I think you'd better give J another fake kiss or something, Frank is a persistent one."
"Wait, how do you know we've been faking it?"
I asked, worried that everybody could tell we were faking our situation.
"I just guessed. It looks believable enough, but I've seen him in love before, and it was nothing like that, so..."
I nodded, understanding.
"Alright, see you in a bit."
Luke exited the room just as Jackson appeared from inside the crowd and made his way over to me. I took the opportunity to give Frank a message by cupping Jackson's cheek and leaning in for a kiss.
He met me in the middle, kissing me passionately enough to make it look real, then moved his lips to my ear.
"What was that for?"
He asked, sounding amused.
I let his hands rest on my waist, and gazed up at him.
"Your best friend, Frank tried to talk to me. Now he's watching me, so I thought I'd give him something to look at."
Jackson chuckled at my answer, tracing circles on the curve of my back.
"Fuck, I hate him."
He scowled bitterly, before glancing over at Frank and kissing me again. It was more intense this time, possessive even. I kind of liked it.
"Jackson, there's people watching."
I murmured, after I'd pulled away from him.
"I hope they all got the message."
He then took my hand and began to lead me into the courtyard to meet the others. I glanced over my shoulder on the way out, seeing Isabella glaring at us from one corner, and Frank glaring from another. Great.
"There you guys are, what took you so long?"
Will asked, looking stressed.
Jackson's brows furrowed, taking in the others' worried facial expressions with concern.
"Why, what's wrong?"
He questioned, seemingly ready for some action.
"Francesca wasn't responsible for Mr Morrell's death."
Another man, who was standing by James, told us. He seemed to be around James's age, with brown, almond shaped eyes, black hair and a golden tan.
"Then who did it?"
Jackson questioned, as the others fell silent.
"We don't know, we're thinking either someone associated with Pete, or one of Morrell's own guys."
My brother wore a blank expression, concealing his emotions, but Alicia, Will and Luke all looked like they'd seen a ghost. The other man just looked uncomfortable.
"This is Sebastian, by the way."
Jackson told me, causing the man to shake my hand. I smiled politely, though I was extremely confused.
"I've gotta go start asking some questions, then."
Jackson muttered, before excusing himself from the group and wandering off.
"Can one of you guys get her out of here?"
James asked the other boys, referring to me.
"I can stay out of trouble-"
"Nah, I'm not risking it."
James told me with a sense of finality. I sighed and allowed Will and Alicia to guide me to his car.
"Who do you think did it?"
Alicia asked Will, getting into the backseat with me.
"I don't know, probably one of Morrell's own boys. I don't think Pete's guys would go as far as to get rid of Morrell."
I stared out the window as Will drove, watching the trees as we passed by.
"So, Val...You and Jackson, huh?"
Alicia teased after a few minutes, making me roll my eyes.
"We're just messing around."
I told her casually, causing her to chuckle.
"I fucking knew it. So, is he keeping you happy in the bedro-"
"Oh my god, stop."
I laughed, shaking my head.
"We haven't got to that."
I told her, causing her to gasp.
"You're tell me Jackson hasn't tried to-"
"No."
"God, he must actually care about you."
"He doesn't like me that way."
"But I saw the way he kissed you before..."
I sighed, shaking my head.
"No way."
I answered shortly.
"Do you like him? Even just a little? You can tell me, I'm no snitch."
I locked eyes with Will in the rear view mirror. I considered the possibility for a moment. Did I like Jackson? I mean, I didn't hate him anymore, but did I have any feelings for him?
"Nah, I don't like him like that."
I answered with what I thought was the truth, but I don't know why I felt as though I was lying. Sure, I found him extremely attractive, and didn't hate his sarcastic comments or detached nature anymore, but did that mean I liked him? I liked how he could make me forget about the bad things that were happening, and I liked how mysterious he was, but I wasn't sure. I hoped I didn't have feelings for him.
"Yeah, it's best to keep it that way. It'll complicate what you have right now."
Will told me, speaking for the first time since we'd got into his car.
"Exactly."
I murmured, though I wasn't sure I'd even convinced myself.
"That's a shame, I think you guys would be so cute together. It's been a while since he's had something to care for, other than work and that dog he always talks about."
I chuckled at Alisa's answer, just as we'd arrived at the house I shared with James.
