Love Me Enough To Hurt Me

Chapter 14: In Need of Space

"What did your family do to her?" Janessa questions her husband. She had never met someone with nothing but hurt in their eyes. She could tell Nailani wanted to turn the other way when they approached her but commended her for staying and actually communicating with them.

Xavier shakes his head at his wife's question. His family did their fair share of hurting his sister, but he had a feeling that she might be dealing with more than just what she viewed as betrayal.

"We messed up, hun," Xavier says, still shaking his head. His mother was the primary source, but as an adult, he's come to learn that they all played a role in the way she was raised, even their grandparents. They never actually held their daughter accountable for her actions or how she abandoned Nailani. He should have tried harder to keep his relationship with her. Now, he lived in an in-between where he wasn't really close to any of his siblings. He wanted to remedy that with Nailani because the two were close growing up. She was Bubbles, the person who always had a smile on her face no matter what and when she was comfortable. Her bubbly character shined. She was someone who could burst into giggles and would cause everyone around her to laugh. He didn't realize that their mother coming back and taking him and leaving her was the start of bubbles going away, and the woman she grew to be is one riddle with hurt and distrust. He knew they had no one to blame but themselves. Xavier didn't know how he would fix this, but he knew he had to try.

"Xavier, I thought your family was supposed to be out of that house months ago?" Jamila says, breaking him out of his thoughts

Xavier lets out a sigh.

"They were, but Mom had other plans," he replies

"Other plans?" Jenessa asks

"She wants the house now," Xavier tells his wife

"Xavier!" Janessa exclaims

"I didn't think she would try to take the house, and it was just sitting there. Why do you think I've been trying to get her to come in and accept her inheritance all this time," Xavier says defensively.

"Wow, Your mother is really entitled," Jamila says, shaking her head.

Jenessa can't help but agree; she never met a woman like Xavier's mom and can't help but wonder how someone like her husband was brought up by a mother like her and his other two siblings were as spoiled and entitled as can be. She also would never forgive that woman for suggesting he leave her when she got sick. Janessa looked at her husband and saw the wheels turning in his head. Outside of the family stuff, he was under a lot of pressure. Jamila says goodbye to the couple just as Janessa taps Xavier and wraps her arms around him. He hugs her tighter, kissing the top of her head.

"I don't know what to do," he says so low that Janessa isn't sure she heard him at first. Looking into Xavier's eyes, she can see the pain and guilt that he tries to hide.

"You'll figure it out, and I'm right here with you," She replies. Xavier walks her to her car; the two share a sweet kiss before she gets in, and he watches her drive away. Xavier heads back into the law firm's building and into his office. He would find a way to fix this; I have to, He thinks.

At the Jacobs house

Caiden sits with his sister on his sofa, complaining to her about the fact that their grandmother was hiding his wife from him. Caitlyn had come over to check on him and see if he had an update since Nailani had yet to answer her calls. That's when Caiden practically lost it and told her that Nana G was hiding Nailani and couldn't believe that she would betray him like that.

"You sure she's hiding her Caiden that's a bit extreme," Caitlyn says to her brother.

"Every time I ask about Nai, she gets all evasive and changes the subject," Caiden replies, frustration evident in his voice.