Act Like You Love Me (Jessica) novel Chapter 120

Chapter 120

Hey loves, I’m sorry for not updating yesterday. I promise to make it up to y’all this weekend.

Facebook disabled my account, and it was honestly a really devastating moment for me.

Anyone can reach out to me- Angel Rose

Enjoy the read.

Jessica’s POV

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“Auntie, here I wrote everything down,” I said, handing her the notepad with my scribbled instructions, my voice a bit too high-pitched from the nerves buzzing inside me.

The living room smelled like fresh laundry and the faint herbal tea she’d been sipping, a comforting reminder that she was home now, discharged from the hospital just yesterday.

Sunlight streamed through the curtains, casting warm patches on the worn carpet, but it did little to ease the knot in my stomach.

“A schedule for your pills is right here. I’ve color-coded and labelled everything so you don’t even have to think. I even put the bottles of water in a row, so you won’t have to reach too far. And I made sure your lunch and dinner are prepped in the fridge, labeled and everything…”

“Jess,” she interrupted gently, grabbing onto my arm. Her touch was soft but firm, stopping me mid-ramble.

I froze mid sentence, our eyes meeting. Hers were tired, the lines around them deeper after the ordeal, but a weak smile crept onto her lips, warming her face like it always did.

“I’m not a vegetable, honey,” she teased, her thumb rubbing gentle circles on my arm. “I can take care of myself.”

I let out a breath I felt like I’d been holding all morning, and I sank onto the edge of the mattress.

My shoulders slumped, the weight of the week finally sagging into my spine.

“I know that, Auntie. It’s just…” I sighed, looking at my interlaced fingers.

“I thought I’d lost you. I can’t even fathom the idea of a world without you in it. You’re the closest thing to a mother I’ve ever had. If you go, the last bit of home I have goes with you.”

She reached out, tucking a stray hair behind my ear with a soft chuckle.

“I understand, sweetheart. Fear makes us want to build cages for the people we love. But I’m still here. And I intend to stay here long enough to see you stop looking like you’re waiting for the ceiling to collapse.”

She patted my hand.

“Now, look at that clock. You’re vibrating like a guitar string.”

15:04 Tue, Feb 3

Chapter 120

I glanced at my watch and jumped. I was already ten minutes behind.

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“Okay, Auntie. I have to go. Aaron is already… well, he’s beyond mad. I can’t afford to press his buttons any further. Not today.”

She nodded solemnly. She knew the stakes, even if she didn’t know the full, dark depth of the war brewing with the Tyrone family.

I rose to my feet, grabbed my bag, and pressed a lingering kiss to her cheek.

“Don’t hesitate to call. I don’t care if I’m in a meeting. If something feels wrong, you call me.”

“Jess, go. I’ll be fine. Shoo.”

I dashed out of her room and peeked into my bedroom. Adrian was still sprawled across the bed.

He hadn’t wanted to go to school today-he was drained, the emotional whiplash of the events lately finally catching up to his small body.

Normally, I was strict about his education, but today, I let it slide. He was an overactive, brilliant kid, but he was still human.

He needed a day to just be, to let his nervous system reset.

One day of missed math wouldn’t take anything away from a mind as sharp as his.

I tiptoed in, and kissed his cheek softly. “Sleep tight, Addie,” I whispered, brushing a lock of hair from his forehead.

He stirred but didn’t wake, and I slipped out, hurrying to the front door.

I was practically running by the time I got out of the elevator.

My mind was a tangled loop of excuses to give Aaron, wondering which version of him I’d meet today: the cold stranger or the man who had looked at me with haunting intensity in the hospital hallway.

Just as I stepped out of the apartment, I found a sleek silver Mercedes Benz idling at the curb, its polished chrome gleaming under the morning sun.

A driver in a crisp black suit approached me, his posture straight and professional.

“Miss Reid?” he asked politely.

I blinked, clutching my bag to my chest. “Uh, yes?”

“Mr. Tyrone asked me to fetch you,” he explained, gesturing to the car.

I swallowed hard. My first instinct was to decline-to snap a ‘no thank you’ and walk away just to maintain some shred of my pride.

I didn’t want to be handled like a piece of cargo, moved from point A to point B at his whim. But then I

Tue, Feb

Chapter 120

looked down the street toward the train station.

Between the walk and the commute, I’d be nearly an hour late.

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Aaron was already hovering on the edge of a breakdown; being late would be like throwing a match into a pool of gasoline.

“Thank you,” I murmured, allowing him to open the door.

I slumped into the expensive leather, my head resting against the glass as I watched the morning rush unfold outside. It felt surreal to be shielded from the noise and the heat in this silver bubble.

I found myself wondering about Aaron’s motive, but the answer felt cold: he’d sent the car for Adrian.

He probably figured out that I’d be dropping him off at school before coming to the office, and he wanted his son to arrive in a Mercedes instead of a dented city bus.

It was his way of reclaiming the fatherhood he’d missed, a way to make up for the six years of bus rides and rainy walks I’d put Adrian through.

There was no room in Aaron’s current heart for a gesture this soft where I was concerned. He was too consumed by rage, too hurt by my choices to do something this thoughtful for my sake.

I was just the chaperone to his son’s life in his eyes.

A shaky sigh escaped me, rattling in my chest.

I didn’t even realize I was crying until I felt a heavy, warm wetness soak through the fabric of my trousers at the knee.

I wiped my face quickly, but the tears were stubborn, leaking out from a reservoir of exhaustion I hadn’t realized was so full.

That moment cracked something open inside me, and suddenly, the hatred for Kennedy surged like bile in my throat.

He had seen me at my most vulnerable and used it as a playground for his cruelty.

How had he been so sure I’d believe his lies?

That day, when he pointed toward the deck and whispered that Aaron and Fiona were together… he’d done it because he saw me wavering, because I’d dared to say no.

He saw that I wasn’t going to betray Aaron, so he decided to break my spirit instead. He’d gambled on my insecurity, and he’d won.

He had forced me into a flight that cost me six years of my life and cost Aaron his son’s childhood.

The audacity of that man-to play God with people’s lives just to prove he held the upper hand.

I stared out at the passing glass buildings, my jaw tight enough to ache.

15:04 Tue, Feb 3

Chapter 120

41

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I didn’t care about “moving on” or “turning the other cheek.” I wanted the universe to be just.

I wanted a front-row seat for the day Kennedy Tyrone finally reaped the rot he had sown. I wanted the harvest to destroy him.

“We’re here, ma’am,” the driver’s voice cut through my thoughts, pulling me back to the present.

I snapped out of it, peering through the window at the towering glass monolith of the Tyrone building.

I took a deep, shaky breath, smoothing my hair and checking my reflection in my phone screen.

I had to keep it together. I couldn’t walk in there looking like a victim.

I thanked the driver and stepped out.

Inside, the lobby was a hive of activity. Marilyn, the receptionist, waved at me with a bright, caffeinated smile.

“Morning, Jess! Welcome back-hope everything’s okay?”

“Morning, Marilyn,” I replied, my voice sounding thin and hollow even to my own ears.

I tried to mirror her caffeine-fueled brightness, but it was a clumsy, desperate imitation.

But anyone paying close attention would see the gloominess shadowing my eyes, the slight slump in my shoulders.

I really hoped no one did; I just needed to get through the day.

In order for that to happen, I planned to hole up in my office, buried in work to avoid Seth.

He was one of those intuitive types who could look right through you, crumbling your defenses with a single probing question.

I couldn’t handle that today.

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