Stepbrother Charming(75)

I manage to open my mouth, but the words won't come. When she sees me struggling, she reaches for a tall glass of water, and holds it to my lips. I must end up spitting about half of it out, all over myself.#p#分页标题#e#

Joan dabs at my lips with her apron. I'm more ashamed and confused than ever, wondering how long it'll be until my throat muscles work again. Hell, how long will it be before I can walk?

I don't know how long I end up lying in her lap like an injured kitten. Time passes in a haze. My body hurts too much to think too hard about what the hell just happened. It doesn't all come back in any coherent way until I hear the voices screaming. I try to make out what they're saying, but it's too far away, and it stops after a couple minutes.

“Come on, Joan. Help me get her into the car. We're leaving right now.” Mom steps out of the kitchen, her voice bright and sharp with the same ferocious spark I've heard her use during House committee meetings.

My mouth moves like a fish when Mom's over me. I can't remember if I should be disgusted or relieved. She runs a gentle hand through my hair, and whatever anger I've got stewing dissipates.

“You're going to be okay, baby. Just give me a couple hours to get us away from this freak show. We'll stop at a real clinic on the way to Seattle too, I promise.”

I think I groan. I'm not really sure what's happening until I hear more footsteps come storming into the room.

Mom looks up, her face tense and angry. “Jesus, you really have the balls to show your face again? After everything you and your lunatic son did to my poor daughter? I told you – we're done. Stay the fuck away from us!”

“Oh, please, Mandy. We both know he'll be locked up for a long time. He's cut off. Over. I'm not responsible for his shameful actions, and you're a fool if you think otherwise.”

Her heels click loudly on the floor. Joan holds my head up higher, and I sense her suppressing a smile. I'm just in time to watch my mom slap the billionaire across his face.

“We're over, Gary. Don't make me say it again.”

“Well, you've had your chance. I can accept that. What I'm not going to let you do is walk out of here having the last word.” The billionaire moves his lips sourly and smiles. “Thank God for the prenup. If you really want to feed the media frenzy and ruin this family, then I guess I can't stop you. I hope we can at least be partners in Washington – assuming you ever make it back at all. Oh, and if you ever scratch me with the tenderly manicured fingernails I paid for again, I'll have my men escort you out. They're plenty eager to move around after everything else that's happened today.”

I don't want to hear anymore. I've already seen the real Gary Sterner, and this is just an overload.

He's suave. Cruel. Arrogant. Maybe it's just the pain in my body fogging everything, but my soon to be ex-stepfather looks like the devil himself.

“Don't you fucking dare!” Mom snaps, before she turns around to face us, clapping her hands. “Joan! Is she all set? Let's go. I don't care how much overtime I'm paying you, we need to get out of here now.”

“Consider these hours off the books, Miss,” Joan says smartly. She looks at her old boss and frowns. “I know perfectly well what he's capable of. I suggest we all go.”

I try to just breathe and rise above the pain while they carefully drag me to my feet. It takes longer than it should for both of them to hold me, walking me out the huge entry door. As promised, Gary's goons are outside, eyeballing us.

Mom gives them a wild look and helps Joan guide me very carefully down the long marble stairs. The soft black car has its door open for me to lay in the back, waiting to swallow me up.

This is the last time I'm going to see this house. Thinking about it chokes me as I'm loaded in and held by Joan.#p#分页标题#e#

It's a relief. The best and worst summer of my life just ended.

The huge mansion disappears through the windshield, and that's when I start thinking about Ty. I don't have a clue what's happened to him, only that he's going to be locked up.

What the hell does that mean? It can't end this way. It fucking can't!

My heart bleeds in my chest, and I have to focus very hard on breathing so I don't have a panic attack. I need to hear his voice as soon as I'm able to hold a phone. I need to know he's okay.

I'm ready and willing to wait my whole life just to taste his lips again, but I start sobbing uncontrollably at the terrible idea that he's been ripped away from me, no different than the memories of his rough lips on mine.





X: Frozen (Ty)


When I wake up, it's like every fucking bone in my body's been broken and fused together again. At first, I think feeling the brutal concrete underneath me means my spine's fucked up and misfiring, but then I stretch.