CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE: ATHENA

"What are you doing? Let me go "I said as I glared at him, wishing I could wipe that stupid grin from his face.

"Acting coy doesn't suit you Athena, I know you want me, every girl does," Adam said as he leaned in for a kiss, but I pulled away from him before he could.

"I'm not acting coy," I said, glaring at him, wondering if he was delusional or something, because I hadn't shown any signs that I was interested in him; I was just being friendly because he works with Uncle Jerry.

"You should consider yourself lucky, I'm interested in you," he said as he took a step towards me and I took a step back putting enough distance between us.

"I don't consider myself lucky because I'm not interested in you, Adam, so find someone else to bother."I said, making sure my tone conveyed my annoyance with him, because he clearly can't tell the difference between being friendly and flirting.

"You're just playing hard to get; I'm everything any woman wants; I'm rich, handsome, and famous; what's not to like?" Adam said smugly, which annoyed me even more because, like Dylan, he believes he can do whatever he wants without consequence.

"Think what you want Adam, I really don't care, I'm going inside, Sophia might be looking for me," I said as I turned to walk away from him, but he grabbed my arm and pushed me against the railings, his nails digging into my arm skin.

I hissed in pain as I tried to pull away from him because his grip on my hand arm hurt. While I was struggling to break free, he moved closer to me, trapping my body between him and the railings and preventing me from leaving.

"It would have been easier if you had been interested." He said this as he tried to kiss me again, this time reaching up my dress to grab my thighs and spread them apart.

I could feel my eyes getting wet from the tears that threatened to fall, but I held them back, crying won't save me, I need to think of a way to escape. During the struggle, I was able to free my hand and lifted it up to slap him in the face, but he caught my hand before I could reach his face.

"You think that will work on me, Athena, I'm a fighter, I'm by far stronger, so it's better you stay still, I don't want to hurt you." Adam whispered into my ear, which was followed by a low growl that made me sick to my stomach.

He used his other free hand to keep my face in place while trying to kiss me, but I managed to get my left leg free while struggling, and kicked him in the groin, causing him to stumble backwards holding onto his crotch, but before I could get away, he recovered from my attack, grabbing me by the arm again, in an attempt to stop me from running, but I kicked his knee and ran to the door, but I ran into someone in the process.

When I looked up, Jackson was staring at me with a worried expression, and the next thing I knew, I was crying in his arms. Jackson rubbed his hands down my back to comfort me.

"Come on, little butterfly, tell me what happened." Jackson questioned in a calming tone.

"I told him I wasn't interested, but he kept coming on to me and trying to kiss me," was all I could say before feeling a kiss on my forehead and looking up to see Jackson smiling at me.

"It's okay, Athena, he can't hurt you, I'm here now," Jack said as he pushed me behind him and faced Adam with a murderous expression on his face.

"How dare you, motherfucker? Do you think I'll let you go without a beating after you've hurt her?" Jackson said while glaring at Adam.

"I didn't do shit, she was the one who came on to me and got scared when things got serious" Adam said, sporting a pained expression

"I find that difficult to believe because I saw you follow her in here and not the other way around, Adam," Jackson scowled, "what I understood from this situation was that she said no and your ego couldn't take it so you attacked her instead like the worthless cheater you are."

"You're still fixed on that match, I won fair and square, your ward is a shitty fighter by the way," Jackson said, holding on to the knee I kicked while trying to get away.

"No, I'm not, what happened then and what happened now are two different things, you were the coward who tried to force yourself on an innocent girl," Jackson said, his tone disgusted as he looked at Jackson.

"No one is going to believe her; I'll just tell everyone she's a slut who came on to me." Adam said with a broad grin on his face.

"I dare you to repeat that," Jackson said, as he tried to attack Adam, but I stopped him because that's what Adam wants, for Jackson to attack him so he can use it against him. I know guys like him very well because I go to school with three of them.

"Jackson, please let's go, I don't want to be here any longer," I pleaded, grabbing his arm and pulling him away from Adam, who was smiling in an attempt to provoke Jackson.

"But-" Jackson said

"Please," I pleaded as I tightened my grip on his arm.

"Get out of here, I don't want to see you around Athena anytime soon, because if I do, Rage will be the one to beat the shit out of you," Jackson explained, and when he mentioned my uncle Jerry, fear registered in his eyes.

"Fuck this, she's not worth the trouble," Adam said as he ran back into the house, leaving me with Jackson, who looked worried as he turned to look at me.

"I'm fine, Jackson," I said, smiling to reassure him.

"I find that challenging to believe, little butterfly, because you're still shaking from fear; I should've hit that jerk instead of letting him go," Jackson said with a furious look on his face

"It won't solve anything, so promise me you're not going to go after him or tell Uncle Jerry about what happened."

"He needs to know what that jerk tried to do. Athena, so he won't try it again."

"Jackson, you know what he'll do if he finds out what Adam tried to do; he'll definitely beat the shit out of him."

"Yeah, I support that because the asshole deserves it for trying to hurt his trainer's niece in his own home."

"I know and I will tell him, but I don't want to ruin Vera's party; I promise I'll tell him before I leave."

"Okay, I'm not going to push you, but you still have to tell him because Adam's punishment will be worse if Jerry finds out on his own," Jackson said as he kissed my brow. "Do you want to go back in?"

"No, not yet, but you can go in and join the party; I need some fresh air, so I'll stay here for a while,"

"I can't just leave you in this state." He said with a worried expression on his face.

"Seriously, Jackson, I'm fine; if I need anyone, I know where to find you."

"OK then, take care, little butterfly," Jackson said hesitantly before turning to walk away, leaving me on the balcony to collect my thoughts.

I stayed like that for a few more minutes before rising to my feet and fixing my gown, then I took a few breaths before going back into the house, people were already leaving, and since I wasn't up for socializing after what happened, I walked up to Uncle Jerry, Sophia, and Vera who were talking in the corner of the living room, I couldn't see Jackson anywhere so maybe he left or is somewhere around here but I hoped he didn't go after Adam.

"Can I go to bed now, guys? I'm not feeling well "I said, with a small smile,

"Of course you can, my beautiful butterfly; do you need to go to the hospital?" Uncle Jerry asked, a concerned expression on his face.

"No, it's just cramps, uncle Jerry, I'll be fine after I rest," I explained.

"OK, dear, I'll check on you before bed," Sophia said, looking at me with concern.

"Happy birthday, Vera, it was a lovely dinner," I said, smiling.

"Thank you, dear, and please take care of yourself," Vera said. I gave them one last smile before returning to my room and locking the door behind me.

I removed my gown before entering the bathroom to shower. I fell to my knees and cried, "Why was I so weak?" Why couldn't I fight back? I wondered as my tears subsided.

I came out of the bathroom, changed into my nightgown, and went straight to bed. I didn't bother checking my messages because I didn't have the energy to talk to anyone right now, so I let the darkness take over and fell asleep.

The next day, I discovered that Jackson did not leave the night before. He had just gone out to get something the night before and returned immediately to the party, so I did my best to avoid him.

Sophia and I went into town after breakfast to get some items she wanted to take back to Anwood, so I decided to follow her and get something for Shane.

While she was getting what she needed, I went to a toy store around the corner to look for something Shane would like. Then I discovered a set of Lego building blocks. Shane loved building and always talked about becoming an engineer in the future, so it was the perfect gift for him.

After paying, I proceeded to the car, where Sophia was waiting for me. Her attention fell on the Lego box, she smiled and asked "Aren't you a little old to be playing with Lego? Athena"

"It's not mine, Sophia; it's for Leo's little brother; he got hurt in school, so I'm trying to make him feel better when I get back and go visit him," I explained, giving her a shy smile.

"Do you like this boy Leo?" Sophia questioned, a mischievous smile on her face,

"That's not the case; buying a present for his younger brother means nothing?"I said, as I felt my cheeks warm up,

"Yeah, keep telling yourself that, Honey, come on, let's get going," Sophia chuckled as we climbed into the car.

'Will I come across as desperate because I bought something for Shane?' I thought as we drove back to the house.

Jackson was sitting outside with Vera when we returned to Uncle Jerry's. His eyes met mine, and he smiled,

"How are you girls doing?" Jackson asked as he rose to his feet and walked towards us and offered to assist us in unloading everything we had purchased.

"I'm good, how about you?" Sophia asked, smiling as she gave him a quick hug.

"And what about you, Athena?" Jackson asked, his worried gaze fixed on me, but I don't think anyone noticed.

"I'm fine, Jackson," I replied, and moved on to another topic to divert his attention away from why he was asking if I was fine. "I thought you'd already left because I didn't see you at breakfast."

"I went for a run, you don't look this good without hard work," Jackson said as he flexed his muscles, making Sophia, Vera, and I laugh.

"You don't look that good," I commented.

"Tell that to my 1 million fan base," Jackson said smugly, his face lit up with a huge grin.

"I hope you got everything you wanted," Vera said, smiling as she approached us.

"Yes, Vera, we did, and thank you for recommending the store," Sophia said, pulling her in for a hug.

"Aren't you too old for Lego? I'm not passing judgment, but what are you doing with it?" Jackson asked,

"It's not mine," I said, laughing at his curious expression, "it's for my friend's little brother."

"Oh, I see, and this friend, is the friend a boy or a girl?" Jackson inquired, sounding slightly like Uncle Jerry. I now have two overprotective MMA fighters looking over my shoulder.

"He's a boy, Jackson, and he's a good guy," I said.

"Trust me, little butterfly, no guy is 100% good."

"You sound like Uncle Jerry," I told him, sticking my tongue out.

"How mature, Athena," he laughed, "do you need help carrying these things upstairs?"

"No worries, I can handle it thanks Jackson, see you guys later," I said as I grabbed my bags and ran up the stairs before Jackson could take them from me because even if I said I could handle it, he would still insist on helping.

"No running on the stairs!" yelled Sophia from behind me.

"OK, mum," I joked as I entered my room and shut the door behind me.

I went up to my room, not paying attention to my surroundings, and as I closed the door and placed the bags on the bed, I was grabbed from behind.