Total pages in book: 63
Estimated words: 62695 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 313(@200wpm)___ 251(@250wpm)___ 209(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 62695 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 313(@200wpm)___ 251(@250wpm)___ 209(@300wpm)
I shake my head. “I don’t owe you shit, Enzo. I don’t have to tell you a damn thing. You’re going to act like a dick instead of just walking up and asking me what it’s about.”
“I’m actin’ like a dick because you fuckin’ lied to me, June. You outright lied to all of us, and now you’re avoiding the question. Are you goin’ to answer it or are you goin’ to dance around the subject all night?”
I shake my head.
“What’s goin’ on here?” Rhett asks, approaching the two of us.
“I’m askin’ her about the tape.”
“I thought we said we’d call her in to discuss tomorrow,” Rhett grinds out.
“So you all know?” I snap. “And not one of you wanted to talk to me about it?”
“Seemed like you were havin’ no problem keeping it from us,” Enzo barks.
“God dammit, that’s enough. Meet me at the main house. We’ll sort this out now,” Rhett orders, and then turns and goes over to Lei, leaning down to murmur something in her ear.
I stare at Enzo, and he turns, walking off without another word.
Well, this should be fantastic.
“OKAY, YOU WANT TO EXPLAIN what we saw on that tape?” Rhett asks, sitting down at the table with Elias beside him, and Enzo sitting as far away from me as he can get.
Jerk.
I know there is no point lying now –they’re going to figure it out and it is already something that’s out there. If I lie, it’ll only make things that much worse and, right now, I can’t afford for things to get much worse. They could help me, at the very least, they can take me to the police so they can help me.
I sigh.
“Joel is my ex fiancé; we broke up over six years ago. He was abusive, controlling, and obsessive. He wasn’t a good man. He didn’t take to me leaving very well and has never accepted it or left me alone. He is that kind of crazy. I have moved a handful of times, and the only rest I had is when he was arrested for armed robbery a few years ago. I thought he was still in prison, but it turns out he isn’t.”
Enzo’s eyes narrow. “And why would he be stalking you so obsessively?”
“Because he’s fucking crazy, and also ...”
“What?” Rhett asks.
“He’s convinced my son is his, and he’s never going to stop until he gets what he wants.”
Saying those words out loud makes my heart thump against my chest.
The fear alone has me wanting to vomit.
“Is your son his?” Enzo asks, his voice low, hard.
I close my eyes, swallowing.
I guess all secrets have to come out eventually.
“Yes,” I whisper. “I found out I was pregnant, and I left him. I never told him, I just ran. He figured that part out on his own, or at least, he took a guess. Hudson ... looks a lot like him.”
“Ronnie knows this?” Enzo asks, shaking his head a little, mostly out of confusion.
“Yes. Ronnie was –is – my best friend. He loves Hudson, he supported me when I was pregnant and alone, and we both decided then and there that he would raise Hudson as his own, and that’s what he has done. It’s not just to protect my son from the monster that is his father, it’s to give him the kind of love he deserves. Ronnie adores our son, and I’ll never let anything come between that.”
“So you’re sayin’ that you were with an abusive dick, you had a son but didn’t tell him, ran off, chose to let another man raise your son, and now that abusive dick is out of prison and is comin’ after you, because he has suspicions the child is his?” Enzo mutters.
I nod. “He’s certain of it, is more the phrasing. He wants any way he can to prove Hudson is his, and if he ever finds out ... I can’t let that happen.”
The fear in my voice has Enzo leaning across the table. “Will he hurt your boy?”
“Joel is a monster, a manipulator, a cruel, cold human. He might not physically hurt Hudson, but the thought of ever having to send my son to that man, and leaving him alone, makes me want to scream. Joel has a way of getting what he wants, my fear is he’ll do just that, and he’ll end up with partial custody of Hudson.”
“Surely the justice system is a little better than that?” Elias says, looking pissed at the very thought of someone sending a child to a man like Joel.
“I’ve not heard good stories. It’s not worth the risk,” I say, softly.
“So now he knows where you are and he’s playin’ games with you?” Rhett asks.
“Yep, that’s what he does. He wants to scare me, torment me, let me know that he knows where I am. That’s how he works. He loves fear, and he knows just how much I fear him. I have restraining orders against him, but I know that doesn’t mean a single thing to him.”