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TWISTED STUBBORN LOVE 26
ALEX POV:Something was wrong.I felt it deep in my bones as I pulled into my driveway, my sixth sense blaring.Ava stared straight ahead, her face pale, her eyes unseeing. She’d been like this since the morning after Thanksgiving, when her father found her by the lake and she’d screamed so loud she woke me up from one of my rare bouts of sleep. I’d raced outside, my mind conjuring all sorts of horrible scenarios while I cursed myself for leaving her alone. For failing her.But I found her outside, safe and unharmed—at least physically—while her father tried to soothe her. Lines of distress had marred Michael’s face as she shook like a leaf in the wind, tears streaming down her face. She refused to tell us what was wrong, and it wasn’t until hours later that she confessed she’d freaked out about being that close to the lake. She wasn’t sure why she’d gone out there in the first place, but her aquaphobia had kicked in late.Bullshit.Ava could ente
TWISTED STUBBORN LOVE 27
AVA POV:couldn’t stop throwing up.I heaved into the toilet, my stomach roiling, my skin drenched with sweat as Alex held my hair back and rubbed circles on my back.He was livid. Not at me, but at my father, my past, the entire situation. I could feel it in the tenseness of his hands and the aura of barely leashed violence that’d swirled around him since I confessed my memories.The day at the lake had only been the tip of the iceberg.I’d remembered something else—something that cemented my father’s guilt.“Daddy, look!” I ran into his office, brandishing the paper in my hands with pride. It was an essay I wrote for class on who we admired most. I wrote about Daddy. Mrs. James gave me an A plus on it, and I couldn’t wait to show him.“What is it, Ava?” He raised his eyebrows.“I got an A plus! Look!”He took the paper from me and skimmed it, but he didn’t look happy like I’d expected.My smile dimmed. Why was he frowning? Weren’t A’s good? He alw
TWISTED STUBBORN LOVE 28
Several hours later,Josh and I sat in the back booth of a restaurant near The Archer Group. Alex had booked the entire place and dismissed most of the staff. Other than a waiter who hovered by the entrance, out of earshot, we were the only ones here. Alex, too, had retreated to his office to give us more privacy.“I’m so sorry, Ave.” Josh looked terrible. Lackluster complexion, huge bags beneath his eyes. Stress and worry carved deep grooves in his face, and his usual cocky, charming grin was nowhere to be seen. “I should’ve known. I should’ve—”It’s not your fault. Dad—Michael—fooled all of us.” I shuddered, thinking about how well Michael had played his role. “Besides, he loved you. He treated you perfectly. You wouldn’t have noticed anything.”Josh’s lips thinned. “He didn’t love me. People like him can’t love. He saw me as a…vessel to continue his legacy. Nothing else.”Alex and I had contacted Josh and told him what I remembered a few days ago. He’d been shocked, but he’d believe
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ALEX POV:The iron gates slid open,revealing a long driveway lined with northern red oak trees, their branches bare and brown in the harsh cold of winter, and the large brick mansion looming in the distance.My uncle’s house—my house as well, before I’d moved to D.C.—stood behind a virtual fortress on the outskirts of Philadelphia, and that was the way he liked it.I hadn’t wanted to leave Ava so soon after the shitshow with Michael, but I’d put off this meeting with my uncle long enough.I found him in his office, smoking and watching a Russian drama on the flat-screen TV hanging in the corner. I never understood why he insisted on watching TV in here when he had a perfectly good den.“Alex.” He blew a smoke ring in the air. A half-empty cup of green tea sat before him. He’d been obsessed with the drink ever since he read an article that said it helped with weight loss. “To what do I owe this surprise?”“You know why I’m here.” I sank into the
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AVA POV:He was late.I tapped my fingers on the table, trying not to check the time on my phone. Again.Alex and I had agreed to meet at the Italian restaurant near campus at seven. It was now seven-thirty, and all my texts and calls had gone unanswered.Half an hour wasn’t that long, especially when you took rush hour traffic into account, but Alex was never late. And he always, always answered my messages.I’d called his office, but his assistant told me he’d left an hour ago, so he should be here by now.Worry unspooled in my stomach and gnawed at my insides.Had something happened to him? What if he’d gotten into an accident?It was easy to think of Alex as invincible, but he bled and hurt like anyone else.Ten more minutes. I’ll give him ten more minutes, and then I’ll…hell, I don’t know. Send out the freakin’ National Guard. If he was hurt, I wouldn’t sit here and do nothing.“Can I get you anything, dear?” The waitress swooped by again. “O
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ALEX POV:I paid and left the restaurant immediately after Ava. She hadn’t gotten far, and I followed discreetly to make sure she got home safe before I drove back to D.C.I hated seeing her upset, especially on a night when we should’ve been celebrating instead of fighting. I wanted to run after her and apologize for being an ass, but the clock was ticking, and I needed to finish what I’d started.Only then could I put the past behind me, once and for all.I stared at my computer screen, watching the minutes tick by. 11:55 p.m. I’d given the man a midnight deadline.11:56 p.m.I hadn’t told Ava the truth…about many things. I didn’t have urgent business to take care of before dinner, at least none relevant to Archer Group. Instead, I’d been talking to my family’s killers’ killer.The police had ruled my parents’ and sister’s murders as a home invasion gone wrong, but I knew better. The men had said it was a job and mentioned a “he,” someone who knew
TWISTED STUBBORN LOVE 32
ALEX POV:I made pancakes.I rarely cooked—why waste my time doing something I didn’t enjoy and which I could pay other people to do? But I made an exception today. I was waiting for a visitor, and I didn’t want to miss them by eating out.The doorbell rang.9:07 a.m., according to the clock on my microwave. Earlier than I’d expected, which meant he was eager.I shut off the stove and sipped my tea as I answered the door. When I did, I had to mask my surprise.Not who I was expecting.“What are you doing here, Sunshine?”Not the warmest greeting, but she needed to leave before he arrived.Mild panic shot through me at the thought of them meeting.Ava frowned. She looked exhausted, and I wondered if she was having nightmares again. They’d eased since she recovered her memories, but they still popped up from time to time.Worry and guilt washed over me. We hadn’t spoken in days. She was still angry with me, and I’d been caught up in my plans. It wa
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ALEX POV:My world crasheddown two weeks after my uncle’s visit.I was driving to work when I received a call from Ivan “requesting” I visit him ASAP. He’d been suspiciously quiet since he was dethroned as CEO, but I knew why. I also knew why he’d asked for a visit—I’d been expecting it.I called my assistant and told her to cancel the rest of my meetings for the day and made it to Philadelphia in two hours flat.I slowed my steps as I walked up the stairs to my uncle’s office, sure he had cameras monitoring my every move since I pulled up to the estate’s gates.I found him sitting behind his desk, watching his beloved Russian drama on the TV.“Hello, uncle.” I leaned against the wall and stuffed my hands in my pockets, the picture of casual indifference.Ivan’s eye twitched. “So you finally made it, you little shit.”I suppressed a smile. My uncle rarely cursed; he must have been out of his mind with anger. I could see why; he looked horrible. I spott
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