Total pages in book: 37
Estimated words: 33401 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 167(@200wpm)___ 134(@250wpm)___ 111(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 33401 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 167(@200wpm)___ 134(@250wpm)___ 111(@300wpm)
I pad into the living room barefoot, and the man standing next to Porter is just turning to face me. He's tall, and his dark hair is buzzed short. We both freeze.
"Ian?"
Porter sounds more confused than ever, "You two know each other?"
I think I'm going to faint. Ian. My ex. My stalker. Why is he here?! Why would Porter let him in?! I swallow once, twice, putting one hand on the wall to steady myself so I don't fall. When I can finally speak, it's a croak. "He's...he's...."
Porter's face shutters, and he turns his face to the ceiling, cursing. "Fuck, Bailey. I should have told you sooner. This is my son, Ian."
My mind is screaming at me. Porter is Ian's father? My stalker's father is my boyfriend. This is too crazy. Way too much. I feel dizzy, and nausea rises in the back of my throat.
"Bailey?" Porter lunges forward to catch me as I stumble, but I push him away, backing up towards the bedroom. I can't deal with this. I can't. Not right now.
Ian finally catches up with what is going on, and I get at least a tiny bit of satisfaction seeing the utter shock on his face. "What the fuck is this?!" he blurts out, his face turning red. "Dad, why is my girl here in a fucking robe?"
Porter's expression is thunderous as he puts the pieces together. "Bailey, explain what’s going on right now."
He sounds so serious, but when he sees how my legs are shaking and the way I'm pressing my hand against my racing heart, he's there, steadying me with his big warm hands. I look up into his eyes, amber brown, and it gives me a little strength.
"It's okay," Porter tells me. "Whatever it is, you need to tell me, Bailey, before I lose my goddamn mind."
He's here for me. I can do this. "Ian is my ex. The one stalking me. The reason I came to get boxing lessons in the first place. Are you telling me that he's...he's..." The words stick in my throat like glue. They're almost too horrifying to say. "He's your son, Porter?"
Porter looks like he's feeling every possible emotion in the span of a few seconds. The predominant one is shock, but it slowly bleeds away to rage. Not at me, at his son. "Un-fucking-fortunately, yeah. He's my son."
"What fucking bullshit is this?" Ian sputters. "You're fucking my girl, Dad? I've been trying to win her back for months now. I come here to get your advice and you're FUCKING her?!"
Porter rounds on him, and I've never seen his expression so furious. "Watch your fucking mouth, Ian." Once he's sure I can stand on my own, he stalks towards his son with fury in his every movement. "I told you not to come back here until you're a better man, and you show up on my doorstep a worse one than before? A stalker?" He points his finger until it's inches from his face, and Ian flinches back. "She came to me to learn to fight because you scared her so fucking bad."
Ian's jaw tightens. "So what, she's yours now? You're going to mark your territory? Fuck, Dad. She's half your age!"
"She is not a piece of property, and if you're going to act like this, get the fuck out." Porter gestures at the door. "Go home. Figure yourself the fuck out. Get a real job. Don't come crawling back to me again unless you can get your shit together."
For a moment, I'm terrified Ian is going to lash out, but instead, he turns his gaze on me. "Are you happy now? All you had to do was give me another chance. And instead, you decided to destroy my family, you fucking bitch."
Porter's hand shoots out, and his knuckles slam into his son's cheek, throwing him down to the ground. Ian stays where he is, breathing hard. "Get the fuck out. Don't ever come back."
Ian scrambles to his feet and disappears, the sound of the front door slamming echoing through the house. I'm still frozen in place, completely in shock. Porter is Ian's father. It's insane. The only thing keeping me grounded is the fact that he's here, his eyes locked onto mine.
"Bailey…" Porter strides back to my side. "Fuck, Bailey, I am so sorry. I had no idea. If I knew you were his ex, I wouldn't have let him in." He looks down at his hand, his knuckles red and bruised already from Ian's face. "If I'd known he was the one stalking you, I would have..."
"No." I put out a hand and press it to his chest, my fingers gripping the soft fabric of his white v-neck shirt. "Porter, you didn't know. Ian, he's...I didn't even know he had a dad until tonight. He's always kept things about his personal life pretty private, and I didn't really care to know because I broke up with him. You didn't know."