Total pages in book: 113
Estimated words: 105825 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105825 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
JD’s chair scraped as he jumped to his feet. “Now you listen to me,” he ordered. “He was a fucking asshole. He didn’t deserve you.”
My chest was shaking, tears close. “I should have left it alone. Why didn’t I just leave it alone? Cody could still have a father and I’d still think—” I hiccoughed and my eyes went hot. “I’d still think that somebody—that somebody could—”
JD grabbed me by both shoulders and leaned in, looming over me. “Somebody—”
He bit it back. I looked up at him through a sea of tears. Somebody what? I blinked and—just for a second—I saw it in his eyes. And all the self-doubt and self-hate that Adrian left me with just got freakin’ annihilated by a warm wave that took my breath away.
Then the pain returned to JD’s eyes. He screwed them shut and when he opened them again, he was stoic and gruff and back under control. “Somebody will,” he growled.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
He turned and stalked out, leaving my office door swinging wide. I watched him all the way down the hall, barely daring to breathe.
I knew what I’d seen. What he’d been about to say.
Somebody does.
26
JD
I needed somewhere I could be alone so I took the stairs up to the roof. It wasn’t luxurious, like the rest of the penthouse: if you wanted to see the views, you were meant to use the balcony downstairs. But unlike the balcony, it was private.
I crashed through the door and staggered out into the open, breathing hard. The sun was just starting to go down, painting long fingers of shadow from the forest of air conditioning duct and turning the satellite dishes into crimson flowers. I glared left, then right. I’m usually the last one to lose my cool but right now, I just wanted something to break.
I’ve killed plenty of people, more than I’d like, but always because I had to, not because I wanted to. But if Lorna’s ex was here in front of me…it scared me, what I’d do to him. The fucker had used her, stolen her chance at happiness, robbed Cody of a loving dad. And he’d destroyed her self-confidence so completely that she’d spent the last eight years alone. I was trembling, I was so angry with him.
But I was still more angry with myself. I’d so nearly said it, so nearly let slip everything she meant to me. I knew she knew, or at least she must have some idea. But as long as I didn’t say it, we could both keep pretending. And as soon as the words had come into my head, the guilt had hit. I’d seen Jillian’s face, not angry but heartbroken, not understanding how I could betray her.
I stalked around a corner, fuming and—
Cody was in his school uniform, sitting with his back against an air conditioning unit, looking up at the sky. He must have recognized my footsteps because he didn’t look surprised. “Hi,” he said.
I blinked at him. “Your mom know you’re up here?”
“No.” He brushed back his floppy hair and looked at me. “Does she know you are?”
“...no.” I looked around, scowling, then leaned against an air conditioning duct.
“I guess we both had the same idea,” said Cody.
“What’s bothering you?” I asked, getting in first.
Cody shrugged, then seemed to wince. “My mom. I’m…worried that—” He broke off, not wanting to say it.
My anger disappeared, pushed aside by something more important. I crouched down. “I’m not gonna let that happen,” I told him firmly.
“But there’s only one of you.”
“Yeah, but I’m from Texas.”
Cody gave me a weak smile but I could see how close to tears he was. My chest ached. The poor kid was worried sick. I couldn’t tell him not to worry: that’s what you do, when someone you love is in danger. “You talk to your mom about this?”
Cody shook his head firmly. “She’s got enough to worry about.” He looked at me, concerned. “Don’t tell her. She’s already got me seeing the school counselor. I’m not crazy.”
I sighed. “It doesn’t mean you’re crazy. Talking to a counselor can help people.”
“Have you ever been to one?”
I hesitated. He was way too smart to lie to. “No.” Dammit.
Cody adjusted his position against the air conditioning unit and winced again.
I frowned, suddenly remembering the wet backpack. “Something wrong with your back?”
Cody shook his head.
“Let me see,” I ordered.
Cody hesitated. Then he scooched forward and lifted his school blazer and shirt. Bruises in purple, green and muddy yellow covered his back. I’d seen the aftermath of enough beatings to recognize the shapes. Someone had knocked him down and then kicked him, again and again.
Hot rage blossomed in my chest, stealing my breath. I felt my hands curl into fists. “Who did this?”
“Taylor. A kid at school.”
“What’s Taylor’s problem?”
Cody stared at the ground. “I know the answers, in math and science. Back at the start of the year, I put my hand up a lot.” He shook his head. “I don’t anymore but it’s too late.”