Complicating things

When Jackson arrived in his neighborhood, everything seemed ordinary and calm.

Feeling a bit relieved, he packed the vehicle in front of Miya's home, got down from the car, and headed on the porch.

After banging on the door for a while, Miya came out with Lucas following closely behind her.

The moment Jackson stared at both of their faces, he knew something was off.

"Why are you back so early?" Lucas aggressively asked with a cigarette resting between his two middle fingers.

As Jackson struggled to mask the rage that was pumping through his veins with a calm appearance, he gazed at Miya and said, "Mila been crying a lot since we left. Can you please check her and see what's wrong?"

All Jackson got from Miya was a nod as an answer. Then she stiffly walked past him and headed over to the car.

"You hit her, didn't you! You ass!" Jackson angrily shouted before his fist slammed against Lucas's cheek, causing him to drop to the ground.

"I knew something was up with the both of you, and I guess I was right. Well, now I don't feel bad for knocking some sense into her." Lucas rudely said before a chuckled escape his bruised lips.

In horror, Miya looked away from her daughter and stared a Jackson and Lucas with her heart pounding rapidly in her chest.

"What are you doing?" Miya cried with her voice trembling in fear.

"Stay back! If you don't want me to kill him, you will get in the car and shut the door now!" Jackson yelled.

"Wow, she must really have you wrap up around her fingers." Lucas mockingly said, then a smirk crept onto his lips.

After getting up on his feet, Lucas sput his bloody saliva on the floor. But right at that moment, the pain from Jackson's second punch rushed through him as he fell back to the floor.

"Okay, I am doing it! Just stop, please!" Miya screamed as tears rushed down her face.

As terror coursed through her like electricity, Miya hurried into the backseat, closed the car door, and lock it.

"If you were not taught by your parents to not hit on a woman, then count this as a lesson from your close neighbor. Touch her again and I will make sure you become toothless." Jackson coldly said.

Then he walked away from the porch, got into his car, and drove off.

A few minutes later, Jackson brought the vehicle to a stop in his yard. Then he pulled the key out and got down from the car.

"What's going on!" Miya screamed after she had got out.

But Jackson walked past her and begin to gently pull the babies' car seats out. Then he held all three of them and headed inside.

Confusion settled in Miya's eyes as she stared at the lock gate, then back at the front door, and after hesitating for a while, she followed after Jackson and the kids.

When she arrived inside the mansion, her stress subsided a bit as the breathtaking luxurious interior design of the house caught her attention. But its effects on her only lasted for a second, then her worries came rushing back in full swing.

After searching around for a while, Miya found Jackson and the babies in the living room, and when their eyes met, he casually stared away from her.

Anger instantly settled over Miya, and she felt her heart pounding in her chest like a drumbeat.

"What's all this about? Have you lost your damn mind! You can't just assault my husband and kidnapped my kids and I." Miya screamed while rage rushed through her like hot lava.

"Assault? Haha, the one who you should be using that word on is not me but your so-called husband." Jackson coldly said as he stared back at her.

The anger in Miya's eyes quickly faded, and she gently rubbed her arm while avoiding Jackson's gaze. Then she took in a deep breath and nervously said, "I don't know what you are talking about."

For a second, Jackson said nothing as he intensely stared at her. Then he stood up from the couch and walked over to Miya.

Her first instant was for her to take a step back, and yet she stood still without blinking her lashes or moving a muscle as her panic increased.

When they were only a step apart, Jackson drew his hand closer to Miya's face. Then his thumb gently rubbed the lipstick off her mouth.

"Shss!" She mumbled beneath her breath while striving to cover up her pain with a calm face.

"The cut at the corner of your lips tells me that you know exactly what I am talking about," Jackson said.

"I mistakenly bit my lip. This is not Lucas's fault." Miya mumbled in self-defense.

However, Jackson ignored her response as he reached for her hand, but Miya drew it behind her back. Yet that didn't stop Jackson from grabbing her arm and pulling her hand towards him. Then he slowly rolled up her sleeve.

"And these bruises also explain what I just said. I am sure there are others on your body. Do you want me to check those out too?" Jackson casually said while gazing deep into her eyes.

It grew quiet between them for a second, then Miya forcefully yanked her hand out of his grip when she felt her face got hot and her heartbeat increased.

"So what! Every couple fights. It's not something strange." Miya mumbled while hastily rolling down her sleeve.

"You call this a couple's fight? This is straight-up abuse! What is wrong with you, woman!" Jackson yelled before realizing that he was angry, and he hated that he was because that meant he cared, and the last thing he wanted to do was care.

"Why does it concern you what happened to me? We are not that close."

"You are right. It doesn't concern me."

The atmosphere felt a bit awkward as Jackson gazed at Miya. Then he slowly turned around and walked over to the couch.

"This is all stupid Chris fault," Jackson mumbled underneath his breath as he sat down.

"Great, we both understand that what happened in each other life is none of the other person's concern, so open the gate. I and my kids are going home." Miya said, feeling a bit annoyed.

"No."

"What?"

"You heard me. You are not taking these babies back to that madman. You… you can go, but not them."

Rage throbbed in Miya like a heartbeat as she stared at the stubbornness on Jackson's face and it took her a second to restrain her anger.

"They are my kids, not yours, okay! So stop acting like their dad. Sure Lucas is a madman or whatever, but he's their father, not you! It is mine family, so stay the hell out of it."

It took all of Jackson's might to suppressed his rage as those words sent a wave of fury crashing through him.

"That gate is not opening and that's final, so make yourself comfortable. There's a first aid kit upstairs if you need to treat your bruises." Jackson said as he stood from the couch.

"I am that staying here!" Miya screamed while he walked past her.

As darkness took over the sky and the moonlight glowed, Miya sat in the dining room of Jackson's home.

'Arrogant jerk! I can't believe I thought he was a good guy when we first met.' Miya thought with a frown on her face.

After a few minutes had passed, Jackson returned from the kitchen with a tray and set it on the dining table. Then he gently took the dishes off it and placed them in front of Miya.

Afterward, he got seated and began eating without uttering a word to her nor did he make eye contact with her.

Once he got done, he stood up from his chair and placed the empty plates on the tray before staring down at Miya.

"Are you going to eat?" Jackson mumbled.

"Am not hungry," Miya replied.

At that moment her stomach let out a loud growl, and she felt the weight of embarrassment crashed down on her.

"Suit yourself," Jackson said as he reached for the plate, but Miya grabbed his wrist before slowly letting go of his hand when he questionably gazed at her.

"I changed my mind." She whispered while looked down at the table to avoided him seeing the shame on her face.

"Okay. If you need anything, I will be upstairs in the first room at the right corner of the hall. The kids are asleep in the next room which is where you will be sleeping."

"Don't you feel scared?"

"What?"

As Miya lifted her head, she pouted and said, "Isn't it frighten to stay in this huge house all by yourself?"

"If you are asking why are don't have servants, it is because I don't need one. I grew up doing things for my own and that's not gonna change. My life has had enough changes at it is, I don't need more." Jackson said.

Then he picked up the tray and walked out of the dining room while Miya stared behind him.

"I guess he's not a total jerk." She mumbled as she picked up the fork.

Silence flowed through the house for a while. However, after Jackson had stepped out of the bathroom wearing only a towel, his phone buzzed on the nightstand.

So he ignored getting dressed, picked up his phone, and answered the call.

"Hey bro. How did your meeting with Mr. Harper when?" Jackson asked.

"Great. Well after he had called me a lot of diminishing names and tried to hit me with several of his baking appliances, Mrs. Harper was able to stop him from killing me, and things when smoother afterward. No thanks to you." Steven's voice echoed out of the phone speaker.

"I am sorry, dude."

"What was so urgent that you left me hanging on such an important day?"

As his fingers slipped through his hair, Jackson sighed and said, "I can't say."

"What? Does it have anything with the kids that I saw in your car! What's going on man?" Steven's angry voice flowed out of the phone speakers.

As he was about to reply, his bedroom door suddenly opened and Jackson turned around to see Miya staring back at him as her eyes widened in shock.

The sight of her half-naked neighbor wasn't what Miya was expecting to see when she walked into the room, and now that she had seen it, she couldn't stare away as her eyes focused on the stitches marks on his muscular stomach and built chest.

"Do you need something or do you want to keep looking?" Jackson asked after waiting for a while without getting a word from Miya.

"What are you talking about?" Steven's voice echoed into Jackson's ear, yet it didn't draw his attention away from Miya's face.

For a moment, Miya's mouth went dry as panic flared in her expression while her eyes darted from left to right to hide the fact that she was embarrassed.

"I was wondering if you could borrow me something comfortable to wear." Miya boldly said while struggling to conceal her nervousness.

"Is that a woman talking in the background? What's going on?" Steven's loud voice rushed into Jackson's ear, causing him to draw the phone away from his head for a moment.

Then he deeply exhaled and said, "check in the closet at the top shelf, and take whatever suits you."

"Thanks," Miya mumbled.

Without hesitation, she hurried to the enormous wooden closet, opened it, and grabbed the first thing her hand touched on the top shelf. Then she ran out of the room and slammed the door behind her.

"Congratulations, and good night," Jackson mumbled as he placed his focused back on the phone., but Steven ended the call without responding.

"When did things get this complicated." Jackson mumbled as he tossed the phone on his bed.