Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 70445 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 352(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70445 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 352(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
He straightens up, eyes brightening. “What’s the deal? Tell me, maybe—”
“No,” I say sharply and shove a finger in his face. “You stay the fuck away. You stay as far away as you possibly can.”
He narrows his gaze and turns his beer glass in a slow circle. “I don’t like your tone.”
“And I don’t like the fact that you owe gangsters over two million dollars. I don’t like spending my whole life saving you from shitty situations, over and over again. I don’t like that I had to drop out of school because you lost all our money, and because Mom spent her entire inheritance on bullshit, and I don’t like that I tell the world you two cut me off, when really I’m the one funding your mistakes. So please, spare me the fatherly bullshit and stay the fuck away.”
I’m seething. I’m breathing hard. I feel my edges starting to crumble and crack and break apart. My dad’s staring at me like he can’t decide if he wants to stand and storm off or if he’s going to strangle me. I welcome either outcome, anything to give me an excuse to finally end this toxic relationship for good. He’s the reason I’m trapped in place, him and my mother, because the second I finally cut myself off from them is the second my father ruins my mother for good. Whatever she has left, he’ll suck it all down and make it vanish into his bad luck and stupid decisions.
And as much as I hate him, I can’t let it happen. I won’t let them end up washed out and pathetic, living on nothing, a ghost of their former selves. It’s bad enough my mother’s down to just the townhouse in Austin, the last property my family owns, everything else having been sold off to pay debts years ago. It’s bad enough I’m taking these ugly jobs, conning my way through high society, pretending to be something I’m not and won’t ever be.
Unless I can convince Melody to marry me.
That’s my only chance at making things right. If I can get her family’s money, I’ll be able to cover my father’s debts and make sure my mother’s safe and taken care of. I’ll even throw more cash at Dad to make sure he disappears and never resurfaces again. Let him snort his way through Amsterdam and end up dead in a canal. So long as he doesn’t leave a mess in his wake.
Melody’s my way out. She’s my best chance.
And I despise myself for it so deeply it’s like a shard of glass in my heart.
But at this point, I have no other choice.
“All right,” Dad says finally, sounding calmer than I expected. “You have a good thing going. I can respect that and I’ll leave you to it. But listen to me, Warren. Kazan won’t stay quiet forever. He’s going to find me sooner or later, and when he does, it won’t go well for me.”
“I’ll do what I can.”
“Good. Make it fast.” Dad pushes his chair back and stands. “You got this? It’s good seeing you again, Warren.”
“Don’t go visit Mom.”
“She’s my wife.” He shows me his teeth. On anyone else, it might be a charming smile. On him, it’s the smirk of a shark. “I should visit.”
“Leave her alone. If you won’t divorce, at least don’t drag her down with you.”
“Good luck, son. We’re rooting for you.” He winks and walks off, whistling softly to himself. I watch him go and feel like I’m falling off a cliff, spiraling into the dark, rushing down toward black churning waves.
And hoping I hit a rock hard enough to make my end quick.
Chapter 8
Melody
The vet’s in with Bomber for a few hours. Equipment, a portable X-ray machine, casting materials, and several helpful techs all fill the stable. The vibe feels frenzied but calm. I pace across the paddock feeling horrible, an ugly stone in my throat. Kat sits nearby, back against the fence, alternating between watching me and trying to read. There’s nothing else to do at this point, nothing else we can do. Ford brought in the best horse doctor in the area and told him to do whatever it takes, and now we wait, hoping the grizzled old Texas veterinarian can manage a miracle.
“They’re going to save him,” Kat says as I slump down beside her. She puts an arm across my shoulder. “I promise, they will.”
“You don’t know that.” I close my eyes and lean against her. “Poor Bomber. Even if the break’s clean and they can set it and he heals right, he’ll never race. I doubt anyone will be able to ride him ever again.”
“We’ll figure out what to do with him when the time comes.”
I take a deep breath and slowly let it out, trying to manage this terrible feeling lodged deep in my chest, but it’s like a splinter in my heart.