Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 141251 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 706(@200wpm)___ 565(@250wpm)___ 471(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 141251 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 706(@200wpm)___ 565(@250wpm)___ 471(@300wpm)
Julian clenches his jaw and stands, openly annoyed that she wants me to stay with her over him. “I’ll go then,” he says. Firmly.
“Julian,” I sigh.
“It’s fine,” he snaps before he kisses Willow on the forehead. “I’ll be back in the morning.”
With one last look at the both of us, he takes Samuel’s hand and leads him out into the corridor.
Willow squeezes my hand, and I push the hair back from her forehead, smiling softly. “You should try and get some sleep, pumpkin,” I whisper.
“You’re not leaving me, are you?” She frowns with worry.
“No, I’ll be right here all night.”
She relaxes and closes her eyes, snuggling into my hand.
I take out my phone and text Julian.
Goodnight, Jules
I love you
xx
I wait for my reply but it never arrives.
I exhale heavily and slink back into my chair. It’s going to be a long, long night.
Chapter Twenty-Three
I wake in the chair with a start. It’s early morning and Julian is sitting beside Will with his hands are clasped in front of him. “Hey,” I whisper.
He smiles. “Hey.”
“You okay?” I ask.
He nods. “Sorry about last night.” He shrugs his shoulders. “Tough day yesterday.”
My eyes roam to Will. She’s sleeping peacefully.
I gesture to the bathroom and make my way inside. Moments later, Julian follows, shutting the door behind him. He takes me into his arms and we stand in an embrace.
“I missed you last night,” I whisper.
“Me, too.” He kisses me softly. “Did she sleep okay?”
“Yeah, she was zonked out the whole night.”
“Have you slept?” He looks down at me and tucks a piece of hair behind my ear.
“No, I just napped. I’m fine, though” I kiss him again. “I’m sorry she wanted me to stay last night. I’ve felt bad about it all night. You should have stayed with her. She’s your daughter, not mine.”
“No, it’s okay. I’m just not used to having someone else to rely on.” He blows out a deep breath. “I acted like a spoilt brat last night when she didn’t want me.”
I smile up at him. “I love my spoilt brat.”
He smiles as his hands squeeze my behind. “Let’s get the hell out of this place.”
“Brell?” I hear Will call.
Shit. I take off out the door. “Here I am.”
She frowns. “I thought you’d left.”
“No, I’m here, baby. I was just talking to your dad in the bathroom. We didn’t want to wake you up.”
Julian walks out of the bathroom. “Hey.” He kisses her on the forehead and takes her hand in his.
Watching him be so caring and gentle with his children really hurts my ovaries.
“Hi, Dad,” she whispers. “Sorry about all this fuss.”
He smiles sadly. “This isn’t your fault, Will. Please don’t think this is your fault.”
She falls silent.
“I spoke to the doctor. You can come home now,” he tells her.
“I can?”
“Yes.” His eyes rise to mine. “You have to have a few appointments over the next few weeks, but all is fine.”
She smiles sleepily. “Good. I’m really missing Maverick.”
“Hmm.” He rolls his eyes. “You’ll be pleased to know that I couldn’t find that damn cat when I got home last night. I had to spend three hours outside searching for it, only to come in and find it had been asleep under my pillow the whole time.”
I find myself grinning.
“I was tempted to smother it with said pillow when I found it there.”
Willow giggles. “Thanks for looking for him.”
He widens his eyes and he flashes a little smug smirk. I really have to stop myself from grabbing his hand.
Who is he kidding with this tough guy act? He’s a big pussycat underneath it all.
He pulls Willow up by her hand. “Let’s go home.”
The house is quiet, the weight of yesterday playing heavily on our minds. It’s 3:00 p.m. and Frances and Joseph are picking Samuel up from school and then dropping him home. Julian has been down to the police station, determined to press charges against whoever locked his daughter in that cupboard. The police are interviewing kids at the school right now hoping to get some answers and find out who is responsible.
We’re sitting at the kitchen table drinking coffee, both lost in our own thoughts.
“What happens if they don’t find out who did it?” I ask.
“They will.” He blows into his coffee cup. “The police will get to the bottom of this.”
“We need to look for a new school for her.” Julian frowns. “What for?”
“Well, she can’t go back there.”
“Why not?” He shakes his head dismissively. “The person responsible will be charged and expelled. After that, she can return.”
“Julian, twenty-five children were in that class. Not one of them stepped in and told someone she was locked in there.” His brows furrow.
“This problem runs much deeper than a few mean girls.”
“Don’t be so dramatic.”
My face falls. "Can you hear yourself? Teenage depression is the number one cause of suicide in the world right now. Your daughter is being bullied. She's trying to find herself."