[Kendall]Alberto and I play cards and sign while we’re playing.First, we talk about Marco.“We’re doing everything we can to find him,” he signs.“I know,” I sign back.“He’s like a ghost,” he comments, and I nod in agreement. It doesn’t take long for him to win three hands in a row and I curse out loud.He grins at me, gesturing to the cards as if to say we should play something else.I shake my head, and he looks at me for a long moment.“Do you have brothers and sisters?” he asks, clearly happy to have someone to communicate with.“None,” I answer. “You?”He nods his head.I smile a little. “I’m going to have a family, though. A baby,” I sign.Alberto’s eyes widen and he grins. “I love babies. I have three brothers and a sister, all younger.”We sign for a while longer, talking about his family and talking about my baby, and then Camden comes in the back door.Alberto stands, looking a little sad, and I stand up to hug him.“You made me feel very welcome,” he signs, and tears bur
[Kendall]I lean against the doorjamb, watching him. “So, do you think you could get me Alberto’s number? We could text,” I say dryly, and Camden's shoulders stiffen.“You can get it from Elora ,” he barks, and I chuckle but there’s no mirth in it.“All right. Guess I’ll call her tomorrow.”Camden turns to look at me, his sea-green eyes intense. “You’re not really going to get his number,” he says, like it isn’t a question.I shrug. “I think I’m finally realizing what I’ve been missing out on. You never know what I might do. I’m thinking I should strive to be more like my best friend – more...impulsive.”“You’re just trying to piss me off,” he growls, stalking toward me, and I don’t back away, looking up at him defiantly.“You want me to be yours, Camden?”He looks away briefly and then back at me. “I didn’t say that.”“But you don’t want me to be his? Make up your mind, would you?”Camden's hand goes around my throat, not gentle but not so hard that I’m afraid. My breath hitches in a
CamdenI wake up again with a violent hangover and hate myself for drinking so much. I hate myself for what I said to Kendall, too, how roughly I made love to her. She doesn’t deserve to be treated that way, but it was like I was possessed. I’d felt like I needed to own her, like I needed to show everyone how she's mine.She’s carrying my baby, for god’s sake, how can she not be mine?So, there’s this part of me that feels like she is, that doesn’t want another man touching her, but there’s this part of me that wants to go back to my old life. That wants to go back to fucking three women a week, to not knowing any of their names the next week.That’s the life I’ve always lived. My safe life. A life without risk. Without hurt. And I can’t imagine living any other way.Or, rather, I couldn’t. Now I can easily imagine living with a beautiful woman who smiles at me, her hair mussed from sex first thing in the morning. That’s the problem. Now I know there’s another way, but I don’t know ho
[Kendall]I know that I have to keep my distance from Camden. He doesn’t want me. He wants to be part of the baby’s life, but he doesn’t want to be a part of my life, and I have to learn to deal with that. I have to be a part of his life for the next eighteen years but without him actually being part of my life. He’s not willing to change his lifestyle. He’s not willing to let himself fall in love. Not that I’m a prize or anything, but I’m worthy of love in my life. I’m worthy a man who will put me first, and that’s clearly not Camden.It hurts like hell, but there’s nothing I can do about it. All I can do is keep myself protected, keep my heart safe. Or at least as safe as a broken heart can be. I have to at least keep it from shattering completely. I have to keep a little bit of it, so that I may in time heal and have something to give of myself when the right man comes. Because above all, I have to hope that the right man is out there and will come eventually, since it can’t be
Kendal“You don’t have to do anything,” I insist. “You can be as involved or uninvolved as you want to be.”“Of course I want to be involved!” he barks. “That’s my child you’re carrying.”I shrug. “Well, that’s up to you.”“I have a life to live, you know,” Camden says. “It’s not like I want to throw everything away just because—”“Just because you knocked me up?” I accuse, anger rising up in me. The food arrives and I take in a few deep breaths, trying to calm down.“Don’t be like that, Kendall,” Camden says, his voice calm. “We’ll figure something out.”“You’re right. We’ll figure out custody when the baby is born,” I say. “Until then, you don’t have to do anything.”“I want to go to appointments,” Camden insists. “I want to be involved in the pregnancy.”“Like I said, that’s up to you, Camden.” I pick at my fries, still feeling a little nauseous.We don’t talk for the rest of the meal, and when we get back into the car, I pretend to be dozing against the window because I’m fighting
CamdenIt’s nearing dusk by the time Kendall wakes up and she and Elora come down for dinner. I want to grab Kendall’s arm, pull her aside and talk to her, but what would I even say? It’s not like I’m willing to give up everything to be with her.Am I?My chest feels tight every time I think of her not being around. Worse still, the idea of us not being exclusive means that she might start seeing someone else, and that makes my stomach roll.I’m just territorial. It doesn’t mean anything. I care about her, sure, we’ve been through a lot together, but it’s not love.I don’t fall in love.Dante and I have a couple of drinks before dinner and he catches me up on the search for Marco.“He’s underground,” he says. “So far underground that even my toughest men don’t like to go looking for him.”I know that means he’s staying with men who don’t care if they live or die.“And the rest of his family?” I ask.“They’ve given up,” Dante says. “I’ve spoken to his brother and he doesn’t want this
Camden Carlo scoffs. “Some businessman in Chicago happened to her when she was on a trip out there. They ran away together. But I have to admit it was at least half my fault.”“How’s that?” I ask. I don’t know very much about Kendall’s home life, and I can’t help being curious. I want to know more about her, and I tell myself it’s because she’s the mother of my child.Carlo shrugs. “I took her for granted. Ran around on her, didn’t care which mistresses I rubbed in her face. I got too caught up in the wiseguy lifestyle, you know?”I swallow hard. This is beginning to sound really familiar.“But she left you for another man. Aren’t you bitter?”Carlo looks at me for a long moment. “I’m not bitter that she left me for someone else.” He pauses. “I’m bitter that she left Kendall. That little girl didn’t deserve to lose her mother.”I promise myself in that moment that I will never leave my child like that. No matter what happens between me and Kendall, I will be part of that child’s life
KendallI soak in the bath for the longest time, hoping that it will make me feel better. I managed to eat half my plate for dinner, which is progress since I’ve barely been keeping anything down. I’m not sure if it’s the pregnancy or just because I feel so upset.I miss Camden, miss being around him and sleeping next to him, and I don’t know what to do about it. It’s not like I can easily forgive him or go back to being in a physical relationship with him.That won’t work, will it? I wish that I could maintain a relationship with him, at least a casual one, but that’s not me. I can’t handle him seeing other women, and clearly he’s not ready to give up that part of his life. I wish he saw me as worthy, but he doesn’t so I really have to let go.I’m just finishing getting dressed for bed when someone knocks softly on my door.My heart leaps into my throat, hoping that it’s Camden, but instead it’s a different pair of green eyes at my door: Elora .“Hey, you,” she says softly. “Haven’t
Sadie It was hard to break that bond between a child and parent, and no matter what Ralph did, I think there would always be a part of Megan that wanted that connection with him.“I hope so,” Cyrus told her. “He’s going to try. That’s what’s important.”Megan regarded him a long moment before saying, “I’m glad he’s going to try.”Cyrus smiled softly. “Me, too. I promise you, Megan, I’m going to take care of you and protect you no matter what. Okay?”The corners of her lips curled up at that. “Okay. I love you, Uncle Cyrus.”“I love you, too, Megan,” he replied. Then, he looked up at me. I couldn’t help but smile back at him. My heart swelled, and I fell even more in love with him at that moment. I wanted to explain my feelings to him in more depth, but we needed to talk away from Megan. I didn’t want to confuse her even more as Cyrus and I tried to figure out the stuff between us.“All right, is there anything else you want to talk about?” Cyrus asked, turning back to Megan.She blin
SadieA week after Ralph’s arrest, things finally felt as though they were getting back to normal. Ralph was charged with breaking the restraining order. True to his word, Cyrus didn’t press any other charges. Ralph would spend a little time in jail before his trial, and then, it was up to the courts to decide his fate.I didn’t worry about him, though. I focused on Megan and helping her overcome the latest trauma she’d been through. I hated that she’d gone through so much at such a young age. It wasn’t fair. She deserved so much better. I wanted to make it my mission in life to make up for all that she’d suffered. I wanted all this mess with Ralph to fade into distant memories for her. I wanted her to be happy. More than anything else in the world, I wanted her to just be a normal, six-year-old girl.We were out on the terrace one day, coloring, when she looked up at me and asked, “Sadie? Is my daddy gone forever?”I frowned at her and replied, “What do you mean, sweetie?”She hesita
Ralph stared at me. I could tell he wanted to argue.I waited for him to say something, anything, that I could use to shut down any chance he had left of getting close to Megan.To my surprise, though, he reluctantly nodded. “All right…all right. I’ll…I’ll do what you say. So long as you promise you won’t stand in Megan’s way if she wants to see me someday.”I regarded him a long moment before releasing a long sigh. “I promise. I won’t stand in her way. And I promise that I will take excellent care of her.”Ralph dropped his head, looking defeated.“I know you will,” he whispered.At that moment, I heard Sadie rushing back to us.“The cops are on their way,” she gasped when she reached me. She looked between me and Ralph and then gave me a relieved smile. “I’m glad to see everyone is still in one piece.”“Barely,” I grumbled.She wrapped her arm around mine and hugged it.“Thank you,” she whispered.I smiled down at her, but I then caught movement out of the corner of my eye. Turning
CyrusI was at the very end of my control. My temper was about to snap. I kept reminding myself of Sadie’s words. Of my promise to her, but it was getting damn difficult to hold myself back. Ralph would just not give up. He kept pushing and pushing, bringing up Kate’s name and claiming Megan as his.It was infuriating. He kept saying he was a changed man, but he wasn’t taking responsibility for what he’d done. He wasn’t owning the fact that Kate wouldn’t have driven off the road that day if he hadn’t chased after her. I didn’t care that it was an accident. I didn’t care that he thought he loved her.In the end, it didn’t matter. It didn’t matter because Kate was still gone. And she was gone because of him.“You know what, Cyrus?” Ralph growled. “You think you’re so high and mighty. You think you’re so much better than I am, but the truth is, you failed Kate just as much as I did.”My whole body went cold. “What the hell are you saying?”Ralph had the gall to glare at me. “If you thou
I couldn’t comprehend that. It made no sense.“How could you claim to love her and yet hurt her as much as you did?” I asked in a soft, cold voice. “How could you love her, but you put your hands on her? Hit her and scare her? Manipulate her, so she remained submissive and broken?”“I was messed up,” he answered in a pathetic tone. “I know I was. I know what I did to Kate was wrong. If I could go back and redo everything, I would. I’d love her the way she deserved to be loved. I wouldn’t lay a hand on her, and I’d do everything I could to make her happy. There is nothing I want more than the chance to undo all that I did, but I can’t. It’s too late for me to make things right with Kate, but it’s not too late for me to make things right with Megan!”I stared down at him, debating whether or not I believed him. To be honest, he did seem to be truly remorseful. I didn’t think anyone could truly fake this kind of emotion.Still, just b
CyrusI waited until Sadie and Megan were out of the maze and out of sight before I turned back to Ralph. He hadn’t moved, which was smart of him. If he’d tried to go after them, things would have gotten bloody. I didn’t want to break my promise to Sadie, though. She’d been right about needing to keep my temper in check and not attack Ralph. I couldn’t risk Megan’s wellbeing or her placement with me.I also didn’t want Sadie to look at me like I was a monster. I didn’t want to disappoint her. She was counting on me to take care of this matter and protect our…family.Our family.I couldn’t believe she’d said that. It made my chest swell with eagerness, pride, and hope. She wanted us all to be together. She was staking her claim on me and Megan, and it made me happier than I could have imagined. However, that happiness was overshadowed by my anger toward Ralph, who appeared as the only remaining obstacle in the way of the happy and whole life that I knew I could have with Sadie and Mega
CyrusIt felt like an eternity before I reached the estate. Ralph had several hours of a head start, at least, and Sadie wasn’t answering her phone.“Pick up, damn it,” I said, clenching my phone so hard I was surprised I didn’t crack it. “Why aren’t you answering?”I tried one more time, but still, she didn’t pick up.A million thoughts were running through my head, and none of them were good. I couldn’t stop imagining all sorts of terrible scenarios. I was growing more and more afraid that I was going to be too late. What would Ralph do to them if he got to them first? I didn’t want to believe that he’d actually hurt Megan, but Sadie? Ralph had no reason not to hurt her if he thought she was in his way.When I finally reached the estate, I was in a state of utter panic. I sped up the driveway and came to a screeching stop in front of the house. Throwing open the car door, I bolted to the front door and burst into the house.“Sadie!” I called out. “Megan?”When there was no answer, I
SadieThe house felt empty without Cyrus. It was strange. There were still staff members around and security guards, but it seemed as though a significant presence was absent. Like something was missing from the estate.I maintained a cheery expression for Megan’s sake, but inside, I was a mess. I was afraid for Cyrus’ safety, first and foremost. Despite his confidence that Ralph wouldn’t dare do anything to him specifically, I wasn’t so certain. If Ralph was desperate enough, who knows what he’d try and who he’d go after?Apart from that, though, I just missed him like crazy. He’d only been gone a few hours, but it felt so much longer. I didn’t really understand why I was so desperate for him to come back. It was only going to be a couple of days…it wasn’t an unreasonable amount of time. Maybe it was because things between us were so undefined. We were together, but we weren’t, and it was hard not to let my insecurities creep into the edge of my mind without Cyrus around to put them
Cyrus“You listen to Sadie while I’m gone, all right. Be a good girl.”Megan nodded, her big eyes wide as she stared up at me. Morning had come far too quickly, and I was getting ready to hit the road back to the city. Sadie and Megan were standing in the driveway next to my car to tell me goodbye. Megan was still in her pajamas, and Sadie wore a pair of yoga pants and a tank top I desperately wanted to rip off her. She gazed at me with a worried expression, but I could tell she was trying not to let her anxiety show in front of Megan.“Will you come back soon, Uncle Cyrus?” Megan asked, reaching up to grab my hand. “I don’t want you to go.”I gave her a tender smile and lowered myself, so I was squatting in front of her.I patted her head and said, “I’ll only be gone a day or two. I promise, you won’t even notice I’m gone.”She stuck out her bottom lip. “Yes, I will.”I chuckled and nodded. “All right, maybe you will because you’re a very smart girl. You’ll have Sadie, though. You tw