Page 79

Minutes pass between us, and if it wasn’t for the change in her breathing, I would’ve thought she fell asleep.

Her finger draws soothing circles on my stomach, and she trails a path along my abs and back again. “When my mom died, my father changed.”

I nod, because she’s told me this already, but the way her chest hitches tells me she’s going to maybe divulge more of their feud and his clear hatred for his daughter.

“He wanted me to become a replacement of my mom.”

I find her words odd but don’t ask more, and when she turns to face me, I see it written all over her face, and I hate myself. How did I not see it before now.

“In every sense.”

Vomit builds inside me, followed quickly by a burning anger that has my entire body pulling tight. “He abused you?”

She licks her lips. “He did,” she says.

A pang of pain grips my heart in a viselike grip. “Jesus, Gia.”

Her tears don’t fall, instead she remains steadfast. “I became pregnant, and I didn’t know who the father of my baby was.” She closes her eyes as if it pains her to remember, and I wince. When she opens them, I see the torment in them, the pure self-loathing she has no place feeling. “I had to admit everything to Jaxon. Just in case.” Bile swirls in my stomach for her.

She’s the strongest woman I’ve ever known. But just how the fuck do you ever deal with that?

My throat is dry, scratchy when I try to speak. “I’m so damn sorry, baby.”

She shakes her head. “He didn’t care. He said he’d put his name on the birth certificate either way. Protect us, no matter what.”

My eyes fill with tears, with gratitude for the man he was, and it makes me prouder than ever that my son holds his name. “He was an incredible man, Gia.”

Her tears fall as she continues to play her finger up my stomach and along my chest. “He didn’t want a DNA test.” She looks up at me through damp lashes. “But I insisted. I needed to know. Bryce is his, thank God. We thought we’d gotten our happy ending, but then he left us.”

My chest rises uncontrollably as I struggle to fight back the tears now falling. “I’m sorry.”

Her head snaps up, and she meets my stare. “The funny thing is, I’m not. I love you, Reed Johnson, and if I had the chance, I’d always pick you.”

My heart skips a beat. It’s everything I could have asked for, hoped for, and as much as I don’t feel worthy, I’ll fucking take it, cherish her words, and never let them go. My lip twitches. “Yeah?”

She nods, and I tangle my fingers in her hair and pull her toward me into a scorching kiss. One that promises her a lifetime of love and security. One that promises a lifetime of everything.

CHAPTERFORTY-EIGHT

REED

A groan eruptsfrom me as I throw my legs over the side of the bed and ruffle my hair. Jesus, after not sleeping for days on end, I’ve done some serious making up for it. I can see why Gia and Bryce like the cabin so much; it’s a little piece of solace in a ramshackle, bug-infested roach motel.

I wonder how she’d feel about me flattening it and rebuilding? Or if the subject would be too touchy for her right now. Given how I wanted to flatten the community center, it’s probably best I keep the thought to myself for the time being.

Reaching over the dresser, I grab my cellphone and switch the silent mode off, then grimace at the number of missed calls from Owen. Numerous messages pop up on the screen one after the other.

Owen: Call me now.

Owen: Call me ASAP.

Owen: This is an emergency.

Owen: Fucking call me back, Reed!

“Shit.” I quickly press Owen’s name and dial him back.

“Finally! What the fuck are you doing going radio silent on us all?”