Total pages in book: 55
Estimated words: 50840 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 254(@200wpm)___ 203(@250wpm)___ 169(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 50840 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 254(@200wpm)___ 203(@250wpm)___ 169(@300wpm)
He jerks his chin in a nod. "Montaque found out about her somehow and has been sniffing around, asking questions. He knows enough about her history to know she's been institutionalized in the past. I figured if I gave him something else to chase, he'd back off, at least long enough for me to figure out what the fuck I'm going to do." He sighs. "I have to find a way to tell her, and I need to ensure that her and Lachlan don't suffer for whatever bullshit he decides to print. It'll destroy her if she loses Lachlan because of him."
"Lachlan is your nephew, right?"
"Yeah. He's eleven months old." Logan sighs. "He's the reason I requested to be traded to the Carvers. She was struggling right after he was born and ended up in treatment again. His dad has a construction company and travels a lot. She doesn't trust herself to stay alone with Lachlan yet, so when Roland is out of town, she and Lachlan come and stay with me."
"You switched teams to be here to help with your nephew?"
"Yeah," he says, shrugging like it's not a big deal as he merges with traffic headed away from the city. "They needed me."
I stare at him silently for a long moment, anger dying a swift death. It's impossible to be angry at a man willing to change his entire life around for a baby that isn't even his. And I accused him of being like my father, who couldn't even acknowledge the baby that was his. I feel smaller than small.
"I'm a jerk," I whisper, regret heavy in my tone.
He glances over at me, a question in his eyes.
"I accused you of being a cheater and an asshole and a terrible person." I swallow hard. "I thought you were like my father."
"You didn't know, angel."
"Doesn't excuse the way I acted."
"I happen to like the way you act." He arches a brow, shooting me a smirk. "Your little attitude is sexy as fuck, Peyton. You don't take any bullshit, and you call me on mine. You know how many people are willing to do that? Not many. Most people let motherfuckers like me do whatever the fuck we want. They roll over and take it simply because we are who we are. You have a voice and a spine, and you know what you are and are not willing to tolerate. It doesn't matter what my name is or how many people know it. In fact, that doesn't mean a goddamn thing to you at all. That's sexy as hell to me."
"I spent my whole life being bullied by guys like you, Logan," I mutter, glancing out the window as we crawl through traffic. "Eventually, you learn to stand up for yourself or you keep getting knocked down. I got tired of being knocked down."
"Why the fuck did they bully you?" he asks, a growl vibrating in his voice.
"Because I'm me?" I shrug. "Because I'm everything they aren't? A lot of reasons, I guess. I'm mouthy and combative and I didn't fall at their feet. I was awkward and made things uncomfortable. I didn't just go along just to go along. And…" I lick my lips nervously. "And I guess because my father made it easy. When you're a news story every few years because your father hates you, it makes you an easy target."
"Hold the fuck on." He glances at me, his expression sharp. "What do you mean, you were a news story every few years?"
"Michael Keller is my father," I whisper.
His eyes widen with shock. "Michael Keller? You mean…?"
"Yeah. Senator Keller."
"Jesus Christ, Peyton," he whispers.
I glance down at my lap. "Every single time he's up for reelection, I'm the skeleton people drag out of his closet."
"That's fucked up."
"I'm not mad about it." I shrug. "Honestly, as much as it sucked for me, I appreciated that his opponents never really let him forget that he had a kid he just threw away. Especially after…"
Logan growls, and I know he's worked out the rest of the story. The stuff I didn't tell him back in the conference room. Refusing to acknowledge me wasn't the worst of what my father did, not by far. Sending me to foster care after my mom was killed by the guy who robbed the convenience store where she worked?
Well, there's a special place in hell for him for that.
"That fucking prick," he rasps. "He abandoned you after your mom was killed."
"He abandoned me long before she was killed, Logan." I rest my head against the window with a sigh. "You can't re-abandon a kid you never bothered to meet in the first place."
"How the fuck is he a senator?"
"Because the truth about who he really is only matters when it's convenient. The rest of the time, it gets swept under the rug. People see what they want to see. He talks a good game and trots his perfect little family out to play the perfect husband and father. That's what they see. Not the daughter he never wanted. Not the woman he cheated with and then abandoned. They see the lie. It's all they ever see."