Total pages in book: 113
Estimated words: 107115 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 536(@200wpm)___ 428(@250wpm)___ 357(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107115 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 536(@200wpm)___ 428(@250wpm)___ 357(@300wpm)
“I’m doing something necessary. I’m too close. I’m compromised. We both know it.”
“But—”
“No. I’m making the problem worse. Think about it. If I wasn’t around, would Todd have drugged Madison at that rally? Probably not. Badgered and bullied her in private? Yeah, at least for a while. But if I wasn’t here, she wouldn’t have traipsed home looking well-pleasured, which set off the asshole. In fact, if she’d avoided him, like she did for months before she demanded a divorce, he probably would have written her off as the usual thorn in his side and ignored her. But because I’m here, she risked herself to break into his penthouse and find dirt. Without me around, she would have hated the prick stifling her, but she wouldn’t have felt compelled to find leverage so she could spend more time with me. You see that, right?”
“We can only speculate what Todd would have done if you weren’t here.” Ethan looked pissed. “Think hard about what you’re doing…”
“I already have.” And Matt was resolved. “Do you think I want to leave? Fuck no. There’s a greedy-ass part of me that would love to just grab her and run, but she’s right. We’d constantly be looking over our shoulders. That’s no way to live, and that’s no way to raise a kid. And this isn’t about what I want; it’s about protecting her and the baby.”
The kid just shook his head.
“Look, I’m not leaving her forever. I’m not even leaving the area,” Matt argued. “I’ll be working in the background to free her permanently.”
“Will she see it that way? Or will she just feel vulnerable, alone, and abandoned?”
Before Matt could answer, the kid stomped back into the apartment, shaking his head and slamming the door behind him.
With a curse, Matt shoved down his frustration and marched on with his plan, calling Nash’s older brother, Trees.
The big tech expert sounded surprised when he answered, kids crying in the background. “Hey, man. What’s up?”
“Sorry to bother you at home on a Sunday night. Can you help me track down someone’s phone number and locate the associated device?”
“That’s no bother at all. That shit’s just fun.”
“Mi esposo, Wilder is repeating every word you say,” Laila, his wife, pointed out. “He already has a dirty mouth, and he is not yet three. Magnus and Landon emulate their big brother, so they will follow suit as soon as they are able to talk.” She huffed. “And I would not be surprised if this baby in my belly is another boy who comes out cursing the very day he is born.”
“Sorry, little one. You’re right,” Trees placated. “We don’t need any more angry phone calls from preschool. I’ll do better.”
Listening to their conversation felt like a hatchet to the chest, hollowing out Matt’s hope for the future, along with his heart. Based on what he’d seen, Trees and Laila had endured a more-than-rocky path to the happiness they now shared. Zy and Tessa had also somehow managed to come out of a year of torment to embrace their happily-ever-after, too. And Matt knew first-hand that One-Mile and Brea had survived a nightmarish road before finally sharing love and marital bliss. In fact, the danger and strife had only made them stronger.
What were the chances he would ever share this day-to-day closeness with Madison and their child?
“Still there?” Trees asked.
“Yep.”
“Sorry about that. Whose phone do you need me to find?”
“I’m texting the name from a different device.” He dragged out the burner phone he’d brought for sensitive communications and sent the name, along with everything he knew about the person he needed to contact.
“Got it,” Trees assured. “What else do you want to know?”
“Anything you can tell me.”
“Give me a minute.” While Nash’s older brother went to work. “You okay there? The bosses are tight-lipped lately, especially after yesterday’s news. Madison okay?”
“Fine. She’s recovering.”
“Can’t talk more? I understand.”
Matt was grateful. He was being forced to walk away from the one light in his life, and he didn’t fucking feel like chitchatting. But he needed information. “Nash good? I haven’t talked to him since we left Lafayette.”
“Yeah. He’s recovered—and pissed that he’s been grounded this long.”
That would be changing pronto. “Glad he’s better.”
After a silence that grated on Matt’s nerves, Trees finally hummed with satisfaction. “Gotcha! Sending you the information now. Need anything else?”
“No. Thanks.”
“Anytime. Hey, I’m getting another call. Looks like it’s Nash.”
“You should get that. Tell him I’ll see him tomorrow.”
With that cryptic message, Matt hung up, then let out a pensive sigh. The sun was sliding under the horizon, which meant Todd would be back soon. And…cue whatever bullshit would ensue. Matt had managed everything necessary. All he had left to do was tell Madison.
At the thought of leaving, his heart jolted and his gut churned. He’d have to manage his own emotional shit, but this wasn’t the fucking time for second thoughts and regrets. He couldn’t afford them.