Total pages in book: 139
Estimated words: 127146 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 636(@200wpm)___ 509(@250wpm)___ 424(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 127146 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 636(@200wpm)___ 509(@250wpm)___ 424(@300wpm)
"I'm fine, baby. Just don't tell your grandpa, okay?"
I freeze and stare at her. "Grandpa?"
She pats my hand. "He'll be so angry I left, that I ran away. But we're safe now, and I never got to tell him that."
"Grandpa," I whisper to myself. Then louder. "Who is grandpa? I thought your father was dead."
She makes a sleepy noise and snuggles against the covers. "Don't worry. They can’t find you. He's dead too. No one can find you. But especially not your daddy."
Something old and bitter cracks open in my chest. "Daddy?"
Another noise, another slow blink my way. "Yes, he's dead too. Don't worry. There aren't many left."
All of this is news to me. Whenever I brought up anything related to her family or my father, she always brushed it aside. Told me they had passed away tragically. Now she’s saying her father is dead, and my father is dead, but what does she mean about keeping me safe, then?
I gently shake her shoulder. "Mom. Who else is out there who would want to hurt us?”
There’s no point. She's dead asleep now, her mouth already parting with a small snore.
I knew my mom kept secrets, as all parents do at some point in your life, but to keep a secret regarding our lives being in danger? Why would she keep that from me?
CHAPTER 31
DREW
My father went all out on this one. The ballroom at the estate is sparkling and gleaming, and I think good ole dad got a new chandelier installed. I stare at the crystals reflecting the soft candlelight bulbs throughout the room. Tiny rainbows spiral over the walls, and it's enough to calm me down for a second. To have a moment’s peace from the hole in my chest where Maybel should be. It’s not love. I’m not stupid enough to believe it’s love. There’s no such thing. But it’s like she’s taken something from me, something vital, and I fucking want it back.
Just as quickly, the panic returns. Is this where the money is going? Why he's pimping me out to a client's daughter? It makes me grit my teeth and drag my eyes to the already large crowd. It's packed in here, and the waitstaff circles with trays of food and drinks. At least I don't have to endure a formal dinner. I spot Lee’s parents on the other side of the room and Sebastian’s parents lingering near the bar. Not unusual for them. They’ll stay there all night, probably. I snag a glass of something brown from a passing tray and throw it back in one huge gulp. It burns all the way down, but it's nothing more than an uncomfortable heat.
As I move to grab another, I spot my father on the other side of the room with his client and her daughter. The parents are talking, but the girl already has her eyes trained on me, locked and loaded. She knows what she wants, I'll give her that, but if she thinks she can just have me, she'll be mistaken.
I turn and head in the opposite direction, needing a little more time to put on my game face. The mask that saves me at these things. I spot a sulking Lee over in the corner, clutching a drink to his chest as he keeps his eyes open. If any of his father's friends are here, that explains his desire to hide. Which is for the best because he's gained twenty pounds of muscle this year, and I'm not sure he wouldn't kill one of them if they tried anything.
There's too much history there.
Sebastian is near the door, scanning the scene, assessing as ever, playing the part of dutiful son. It makes me roll my eyes. Fuck him and how easy he makes it look.
We still haven’t talked about the fight. About whatever the fuck is going on with him. When I walked in the other morning, he’d been shouting at his phone. Something serious has happened, but he’s not talking to any of us about it.
I shift my gaze and spot my father, his client, and my fucking date crossing the ballroom to my side. My father smiles and claps me on the back, and I barely contain the flinch his touch always causes.
"You remember my client and her daughter, Spencer?" He waves at the woman.
I smile, barely showing teeth, and turn to the younger woman. "Ahhh, yes of course!”
She looks pleased. "Oh, you do remember me. I wasn't sure you would."
Since she almost had her hands down my pants the last time we met, of course I fucking remember. Her mother beams down at her and then up at me. "You two go dance. It's a party, right? Get into trouble."
My father laughs. "Not too much trouble, though, am I right?"
I lead her toward the floor, but she winds her arm around my elbow and tugs me around the dancers. "I missed you."