Stolen Identity: Mute Heiress

Chapter 374: Impatient And Complicated

After talking with her father, Mari lay on her bed, staring at the ceiling. Her phone lay beside her, silent.

Her mother’s words echoed in her head then finally, she picked up the phone, hesitated, then sighed and pressed Jax’s name.

It rang twice before he answered.

"Babe," Jax said, his voice cautious. "Hi."

Her heart twisted. "Hi." Mari paused before asking, "How are you?"

Jax sighed. "Honestly? I’m not very okay. It’s been a crazy day. The police visited over Diva’s accident. Venita was shocked to hear about that and mentioned she’d been at the house the night before. Diva’s father believes I’m involved in whatever happened to her so I had to go to the station. I was there with my lawyer for most of the day. Got back a while ago to see that Chad’s wound was bleeding again and we had to get the doctor to handle it. Venita has been upset the whole day and won’t talk to me because I didn’t tell her about Diva."

Mari’s brows pulled together as she listened to all he had to say. "I’m sorry you had such a shitty day. I don’t suppose I’ve crossed your mind all day."

Jax paused, wondering why she would think that. "No. You haven’t crossed my mind all day. You were in my mind all day, Mari. You don’t need to cross my mind."

Mari’s heart skipped a beat at that but she snorted, "That doesn’t seem like it. If you thought about me, you’d have called."

"I wasn’t sure if I should call," he admitted quietly.

Mari closed her eyes. "Why not?"

"Because I wasn’t sure if you wanted to hear from me."

She sat up. "Why wouldn’t I want to hear from you?"

"I don’t know. Maybe because of the way I walked away," he said. "You didn’t even call to find out if I’d gotten home. I know you were mad I left that way and didn’t let you go with me. And honestly, I hate that I did. But I didn’t know how else to handle it. I didn’t want to make things worse between you and your dad," he said honestly.

Mari swallowed. "That hurt, Jax."

"I’m sorry," he said softly.

"I’m sorry I didn’t call to find out if you’d gotten home safely," Mari said quietly.

"I’m also sorry for not calling all day. I should have checked on you. But I had a really shitty day and I just... I wasn’t cut out for any more drama today. I was trying to do the right thing for everyone."

"You don’t have to do the right thing for everyone," she said softly. "And I need you to talk to me. I can’t keep guessing what’s in your head. I don’t want a relationship where I have to always be the one making moves to communicate. I want a partner who understands how to communicate. We should learn to communicate whether we are mad or not."

There was a long breath on the other end. "You’re right. I’ll do better."

She smiled faintly. "Yes, you should. Don’t shut me out. Don’t keep me guessing. And don’t leave me hanging."

"I’ll do my best," he said. "But I’ll need you to be a little patient, and maybe you can draw my attention to it whenever I start messing up."

"I can give you that," Mari replied. "But you can also text when you don’t want to talk."

"Although I prefer talking in person over texting, but I’ll do it. I missed you today, Mari," Jax said softly.

Her chest warmed. "I missed you too. You know, I thought our relationship would be perfect and drama free considering how we started, but I’ve come to realize that living together and apart are two separate things. Living apart requires more effort."

"Yeah. I’ll put in more effort. I promise."

"I will too," Mari promised.

"So, what’s going on? Is your Dad still upset? Have you apologized to him?"

Mari sighed deeply. "We talked. And we reached an understanding. Yes, I apologized."

"Good. I’m relieved to hear that."

They were quiet for a moment, the tension easing. "So," he said gently, "how was your day? What did you do?"

Mari smiled, relaxing into her pillow. "For what it’s worth, you it wasn’t shitty like yours."

Jax chuckled at that. "I’m glad it wasn’t. So, what’s did you do?"

"You mean other than mope at my phone all day and wait for your call?" She asked dryly making him smile.

"I’m sorry..."

"Yeah. Yeah. I know you’re sorry. I went to the spa with my mom. We had a pamper session. Facials, mani and pedi, hair, massage, waxing, et cetera. We then saw a movie and had lunch. It was a good day. Would have been perfect if only I’d heard your voice," she added the last part with a pout.

Jax chuckled knowing she wanted yet another apology. "Mari, I’m sorry. Babe, I’m sorry. My love, I’m sorry. How many I’m sorrys do you need me to say?"

Mari giggled. "Very many."

Jax smiled. "I’m glad you called. Seeing your call lifted my mood."

"Mine too," she replied, then added hesitantly, "How are you? I know you broke up with Diva, but how do you feel about what happened to her? Are you okay?"

Jax was silent for a moment. "I was mad at her for all the nonsense she did, but I didn’t hate her. Things didn’t work between us but she was still an important part of my life. So naturally, hearing about her death made me a little sad, but reminding myself that if she’d not been stopped, it’d have been you, makes me feel okay. So, I’m okay."

Mari sighed, "I’m glad you’re fine then. My Dad said I’m not allowed to come anywhere close to your place until he’s certain there are no more threats lurking around you. But he said you can visit me here and we can go out together."

"He did?"

"Yeah. So, make sure you come see me as soon as you can. By the way, how did you resolve the issue with the police?" Mari asked curiously.

Jax sighed. "Well, I told them the truth. I don’t know what happened to her. It’s not like they saw her car around my place. I didn’t see her when I came out to find you. I saw you and brought you back home but I didn’t see Diva. Venita and Chad and even the security camera at the compound proved that."

Mari smiled. "Well, that was what happened."

"Exactly."

"You talked about Chad. How is he doing now? Was the bleeding stopped? I hope it wasn’t anything serious?"

"He’s fine now. He moved too soon when he should have been resting his hand," Jax explained.

"I’m glad he’s fine. And Venita?"

"Well, she lost her best friend. She’s not okay. But hopefully she will be."

"Hmm. That’s going to be tough," Mari said thoughtfully, imagining what she’d do if she ever lost Emily. She shuddered at the thought and immediately shook her head to get rid of it.

"So when are you coming to see me?" She asked, changing the subject. "We haven’t been out on a date you know?"

"Soon," he said without hesitation.

"Is that the name of a day, week or month?" She asked dryly and he laughed.

"Tomorrow or next."

"Good," she replied. "I’ll be expecting you."

There was a small pause, then Jax added, teasing, "Just so you know... I’m calling you first tomorrow."

Mari laughed. "You’d better."

"Alright, I need to go check on those two. Good night, my impatient girlfriend."

"Good night, my complicated boyfriend," she replied, laughing.

She ended the call with a smug smile, hugged her pillow to her chest, and let out a happy sigh.