Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 88841 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 444(@200wpm)___ 355(@250wpm)___ 296(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88841 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 444(@200wpm)___ 355(@250wpm)___ 296(@300wpm)
I’m just pulling into the parking lot when I remember I left without telling Ryder.
“Are you calling me from inside the house?” he says with a laugh when he answers.
“No.” I laugh back. “We were out of bacon for the mac ’n’ cheese, so we ran to the store. I pulled into the parking lot and realized I didn’t tell you. Sorry, my mind is all over the place.”
Between Violet getting signed up for school, filing for divorce, and Brian showing up, my head feels like it’s going to explode.
“It’s okay,” Ryder says. “But you shouldn’t have left without me. You don’t have Jacob with you.”
“Oh shit,” I breathe, having completely forgotten that I’m not supposed to go anywhere without someone to protect us. “I’m sorry. I didn’t even think. I’m already here. I’ll just run in and out.”
We’re already at the store, so it would be dumb to go all the way back, just to have Ryder come back out to get it.
“Okay, but stay on the phone with me,” Ryder insists, reminding me why I love this man.
Growing up, I thought it was normal for men to be selfish. They would take and take from my mom, and I assumed that was just how it was. Especially since both Raymond and Brian were the same way.
But Ryder is different. He puts those he loves before himself. And I want to get to the point where I can do that as well. I feel like he does so much for us, and I want to do that for him as well. He always says that me loving him is enough, but it doesn’t feel like it is.
Violet and I get out of the car, and I take her hand in mine so she stays close to me. The phone is to my ear, but I’m not talking to Ryder, wanting to be aware of my surroundings.
“Look, Mommy! It’s Marie.”
“It is,” I say as Marie walks over. “Grocery shopping?” I ask to be polite.
“Yeah,” she says. “You?”
“Just grabbing some bacon.”
“Did you look at the listings I sent you?”
Not wanting Ryder to hear this conversation, I let him know I’ve run into Marie and that I’ll call him right back.
I pocket my phone and sigh. “Marie, I appreciate everything you’re trying to do, but I’m not looking to move out. I love Ryder, and he loves me. We’re engaged, and once I’m divorced, we’ll be getting married.”
Marie’s jaw clenches. “I really wish you had listened,” she says. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
Without waiting for me to respond, she stalks down the aisle, leaving me wondering what the hell is going on.
Taking Violet’s hand in mine once again, I quickly find the bacon and check out, wanting to get back home.
We’re almost to the car when Marie pulls up and gets out.
“Hey, Kira,” she says. “About earlier.”
I stop to hear her out, but that’s a mistake because I’m not paying attention to my surroundings, and before I know what’s happening, a pair of strong hands grabs me from behind. I try to scream, but a cloth is shoved into my mouth to muffle the sound.
I’m thrown into the back seat, along with my daughter, whose hands are restrained. She screams at the top of her lungs, and Marie leans in and stuffs her mouth with a cloth.
“Shut up, you fucking brat!” she hisses.
I can’t speak because my mouth is stuffed, but I look at her in utter shock, confused as to why she’s doing this.
“They’re good to go,” Marie says to …
Oh my God. The man who restrained me gets into the front seat, and his hazel eyes meet mine.
Brian.
Marie is working with Brian. But why?
“Next time you want to steal another woman’s husband, make sure you know whose husband you’re trying to steal.”
With a glacial glare, Marie slams the door, and Brian takes off while I’m left even more confused. Whose husband was I trying to steal? Ryder? He’s not married … right? There’s no way he would be creating a life with us if he were still married. He told me he was divorced. That Addie’s mom wanted nothing to do with them. Late at night, when we were whispering our truths in bed, he told me he paid her millions of dollars, and she walked away, signing away her rights to that precious little girl.
Could she be Nora, Ryder’s ex and Addie’s bio mom?
I think back to all the times we met for coffee. The way she was pushing for me to take things slow. And the first time she said Addie’s name … oh my God! She called her Adeline.
There’s no way the woman I befriended is none other than Ryder’s ex-wife and egg donor. That would be too much of a coincidence—unless it wasn’t.
Oh God. I suddenly feel sick. All the times I confided in her about Brian, thinking she was my friend. She was gaining information to use against me. She was never my friend. She just wanted me out of the way so she could get her family back.