Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 103356 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 517(@200wpm)___ 413(@250wpm)___ 345(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103356 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 517(@200wpm)___ 413(@250wpm)___ 345(@300wpm)
“We would have been there for you, Ryleigh,” Tanner told her. “I promise.”
Ryleigh turned to him. “I just . . . I don’t know why I didn’t ask to see you. To see some photos. Why didn’t I ask him for that?” She rubbed her forehead.
“It doesn’t matter,” Alec told her gently. “What’s important is that you’re here now. But why didn’t you come straight to us yourself?”
“There were . . . are complications.”
“My brother,” Lilac said. “My brother is a complication.”
“What does he have to do with Ryleigh?” Alec asked.
“He . . . he’s my fiancée,” Ryleigh said.
36
Linc stood up suddenly, making Lilac jolt.
“Fiancée? How can you have a fiancée?”
“Easy,” Opal warned. “You don’t want to snap at her.”
“Ryleigh?” Linc asked.
Ryleigh raised her face, her eyes swimming with tears. “I thought Stefan was amazing. Dad had been diagnosed with stage four cancer, but he hadn’t told me. I knew he wasn’t feeling well, but I didn’t know the extent. Mom died when I was nineteen. Dad said he wanted me to be taken care of and he introduced me to Stefan. Stefan swept me off my feet. Gave me everything I wanted. When he proposed, I said yes straight away. I had some misgivings, but Dad told me that he would feel so much better if I was with Stefan. He was so kind and caring, especially when dad died. He even moved me in with him. Said he didn’t like where I was living, that it wasn’t safe. I thought he was so caring.”
“Fuck,” Tanner muttered.
“Until I discovered one day that he wasn’t.” She took in a deep breath. “Stefan said he wouldn’t sleep with me until our wedding night. I thought he was being kind and understanding since I’d lost my father recently. What I didn’t realize was . . . was . . .”
“That Stefan got his needs met elsewhere,” Opal said. “That would be me.”
“What?” Linc asked.
“Yeah. I was Stefan’s mistress.”
37
Tanner almost couldn’t keep up with everything.
Lilac was Stefan’s sister.
Ryleigh was his fiancée.
And Opal was his mistress?
“Lilac and I had gotten close,” Ryleigh kept talking while they all struggled to keep up. “But I could sense there was stuff she was keeping from me. Anyway, one night, I couldn’t sleep, and decided to go searching for Stefan. He wasn’t in his bedroom or office, but I decided to keep searching. I hadn’t gone into one wing of the house as he said it was for guests and that there was nothing there. I could hear . . . I could hear voices. Muffled sobs. And then I found Lilac and Opal.”
“I was a bit of a mess that night,” Opal said. “He’d been very . . . extra.”
“Extra psycho,” Lilac whispered.
“Yeah. Psycho is the word. I couldn’t believe that Stefan would hit someone like that. A woman. Lilac told me that Stefan was the one who’d hurt Opal. That she was . . . she was . . . ”
“His mistress,” Opal said bitterly.
“You didn’t have a choice,” Lilac said fiercely.
“Wish I’d never met the bastard,” Opal said. “But yeah, I didn’t have a choice then. Earlier . . . fuck, maybe not then either.”
“What did you do?” Linc asked Ryleigh.
“Something really stupid,” she said. “I ran out of there. Through the house until I collided with someone.”
“Stefan?” Alec said grimly.
“Yes. I asked him if it was true. If he’d hurt Opal? If she was his mistress? And he just . . . he smiled. Then he grabbed my throat and pushed me into the wall. He said . . . he said did I really expect that he didn’t have needs? That he wouldn’t get them met from someone else? But I didn’t . . . I didn’t even care that he’d been sleeping with Opal. He hurt her. For the first time, I was really scared. He cut off my air. I thought he was going to kill me.”
“What stopped him?” Linc asked, looking ill and furious.
“Me,” Lilac said.
Fuck. Fuck.
“When Stefan is in a mood, the only person who has a chance of breaking through to him is Lilac,” Opal said.
Christ, he hated that. He wished she’d been able to run and hide, even knowing that she wouldn’t do that.
Fuck. This conversation was the last thing she needed after coming out of the hospital.
His poor girl.
Lilac cleared her throat.
“Alec, can you get Lilac some water?” he asked.
“I’m all right,” she protested.
But Alec was already moving to the kitchen. He returned with a glass of water, handing it to Tanner.
Tanner ignored the blush on her cheeks and the way she tried to take hold of the glass. He held it to her mouth. “Small sips. Good, baby.”
“Fuck. I want that,” Opal moaned. “Without the being in the hospital part. They fucking suck.”
“Back to what happened,” Linc said.