Page 40 of Against All Odds (Ember Falls #3)

thirty

Violet

“ H ave a good night, Ms. Stewart,” my last student out the door says.

“You too.”

It was a long day, but thankfully I felt great, as though maybe this pregnancy isn’t trying to kill me.

So there’s a plus.

I grab my bag, ready to get the hell out of here, and head home.

My life has finally fallen into a pretty amazing cadence. I usually wake up with Everett, we have breakfast with his mom before both of us go to work, then we come home, eat together, and most nights we end up naked.

He brought over his Doppler last night, and we sat, listening to the baby’s heartbeat for an hour. It was ... magical.

We’ve started trying to guess the sex of the baby too. I’m pretty sure it’s a boy. I don’t know why, but it just feels—male.

Everett warned me that if he is a boy, baseball will absolutely be introduced.

Great.

I’m smiling, thinking about a little boy throwing catch with his superstar athlete father when I pull down my driveway and my entire body freezes.

There are cars and people everywhere.

Immediately I see cameras, and they’re running toward me, taking photos.

No. I left all of this behind.

Why the hell are the paparazzi here, and how the hell did they get my address?

I quickly get out of my car and push forward, knowing I need to get in the house and out of view. I get to my front door, hearing the familiar clicks over and over and them yelling at me. “Violet, how do you feel? Violet! Over here. Violet, are you taking him back? What about the baby?”

My heart sinks at that last one, and I rush inside, closing the door and panting with my back to it.

They’re knocking on the windows, surely taking pictures of the inside of my sanctuary.

Fuck this. I’ve been done with Dylan, why are they here?

I move through the house, closing curtains and pulling down the shades where I can.

The kitchen windows don’t have anything, so I grab a box, covering as best as I can. Once I’m done barricading my home, the tears I fought back are streaming down my face.

They know about the baby.

How? How can they? How is this happening?

I hear my phone ring and I grab it from my purse. It’s Ana.

“Ana, what the fuck? How do they know?” I ask quickly.

“Your fucking husband is a piece of shit.”

“I know this, but ... oh, God, he told them?” I slide down to the floor, out of view of any window. “Why would he do that?”

Dylan was sent the paternity-resolution papers this week, and he was supposed to sign them.

None of this makes sense.

“About fifteen minutes ago, news of their split came. Whitney went on television stating that it was over, and she wanted time to handle this separation. Dylan isn’t the man she thought he was, and it’s best for her to step away while they work on themselves.

She said he’s selfish and his ego couldn’t handle her success since he lost another role.

” Ana huffs a laugh. “Yes, poor mistress, upset because he’s a dickhead. ”

“Analeigh, please,” I say, my stomach churning as I wait for the rest.

She sighs. “I guess Dylan’s team was prepared and ...”

“He leaked it?” The silence is the answer. “He fucking leaked that I was pregnant? Why? What could he possibly have to gain? I wasn’t asking for anything! I just wanted him to be done like he said he was!” My voice goes higher as my devastation grows.

“He released a statement that he and Whitney ended their relationship due to the fact that she wasn’t supportive and wanted him to abandon the child he’s expecting with his estranged wife.”

I laugh once, but it’s more of a sob. “He did it for PR. He ruined my life, my child’s life, my fucking home, and the goddamn safety I had here, for himself!”

My hands are shaking, and the rage that fills me is unlike anything I’ve ever felt before. He’s so selfish. So fucking horrible.

“I’ll kill him or have him killed, don’t worry,” Ana says matter-of-factly.

I love my friend, but she would never make it in prison.

“Ana, they don’t let you get your nails done in jail. I just ...” I sniff. “I can’t believe this. He had a chance to do the right thing. To sign away his rights, to walk away without anyone knowing, and he used this baby to further his agenda.”

Analeigh makes a noise that tells me she’s crying.

“I’m so sorry, Vi. I sent a message to Catherine Cole.

I know you think she was wrong for how she treated you while working with Dylan, but she’s really, really good at her job.

She’s been my dad’s crisis manager for a long time.

Since she no longer works with Dylan, she would like to speak to you, if you’re open to it.

I know you hate PR, but you need to protect yourself, okay? ”

“I can’t think about this. I can’t even think at all. What do I do about Everett? We’ve never told anyone that it isn’t his.” Two weeks ago we started telling people. Hazel was overjoyed, and Penny already knew thanks to Miles. It was all coming together perfectly.

“I don’t know, which is why I think you need to talk to Cat. Let her make the decisions on how to handle this.”

There’s a loud banging on the back door.

God, now they’re trying to come in other ways.

“Violet! Open the door!” It’s Everett.

“I have to go,” I say to Ana. “Text me her number.”

“I love you,” Ana says back.

“Love you too.”

I rush to the back door and pull it open, and immediately he engulfs me in his arms. I grip the sides of his jacket, burying my head in his chest.

Safe.

I’m safe.

Everett won’t let anyone hurt me.

I look up, tears streaming down my face, and he’s shaking. “Hazel called me. I ... came right away. Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

“Not physically.”

“What the fuck is going on? He put out a statement about his unborn child?”

I nod. “I guess so. I just heard about it. I pulled up and there were a dozen photographers outside the house.”

“I saw. That’s why I came around the back. I walked through the field so no one saw. How did they find you?”

“I have one guess,” I say, knowing he’s the only asshole who would gain from this.

Everett rubs my back. “I’ll kill him.”

“You’ll have to get in line behind me and Analeigh.”

“I don’t want you here. Not with these fucking people camped outside your house. Let’s pack a bag, and you’ll stay with me.”

I know he’s worried, but I don’t want to leave my home. “Everett ...”

He stares down at me. “Please don’t fight me on this, Vi.

I need to do what I promised you, and that’s to protect you.

I don’t want you here, where they could hurt you.

I don’t want you here, where I can’t be sure you’re safe and the baby is okay.

I sure as hell can’t go back to my house, knowing that you’re alone, maybe crying, maybe plotting homicide, and I can’t be there for you. ”

I close my eyes and lean into him. “All right.”

His body relaxes, and he kisses the top of my head. “Thank you.”

I turn my gaze to his, and I can see the distress there. “I love you.”

“I love you.”

My phone rings nonstop—my parents, my friends, Dylan, my lawyer, everyone who knows me leaving messages asking what’s going on, what baby, why I lied. It’s continuous.

Dylan did not leave a message, and I had to pretty much restrain Everett to keep him from answering. The only call I answered was Ana, who once again reminded me that I needed to call Catherine, and after a small argument with Everett—he was on Analeigh’s side—I finally caved.

Catherine answers on the second ring, and I put the phone on speaker. “Violet, I’m so sorry.”

I wish I could believe her, but for years she would urge me to do things I didn’t want to do, in service to Dylan. I would ask her for another way, and while I could see she was uncomfortable, she was doing her job.

My nerves are frayed, and I honestly don’t have the patience to weigh my words. “I want to be honest, Cat. I really struggled to call you.”

“I understand that. I’d like to say that I no longer represent your ex-husband, and while he will undoubtedly state that he let me go, I want to be clear that isn’t the case.

Once I heard the news of what he’d done, I released him from my client list. I was unwilling to do what he was asking and felt it was in my company’s best interest to part ways.

While I can’t take you on as a client, I can , as a friend, hopefully, offer guidance and suggestions. ”

Everett looks to me and nods, but I have one major worry. “I can’t afford?—”

“Violet, friends don’t charge friends,” Catherine says quickly. “Hypothetically, if you asked me what I would do, I could ... offer some advice.”

The feelings I had about Catherine start to dim. “You’re sure?”

She’s quiet for a heartbeat. “I know that I wasn’t your favorite person.

I could see how hard the adjustment to Hollywood was, and I hated that.

You were thrown to the wolves, and I was part of the pack.

My job was to help him always, and I knew that would sometimes make you uncomfortable, which was not my favorite thing.

I’d always thought that maybe, after a while, you’d find your footing.

Please know there are some parts of my job that I hate, and this is one.

Ana can tell you, I will do anything to help my clients and their families, and in this case, I’d like to help you. ”

The sincerity in her voice is what causes me to cave. I don’t know what to do. Everything feels like the wrong step. My lawyer has been on the phone with Dylan’s, demanding answers on how we went from one extreme to another. It seems his lawyer is also trying to get those same questions answered.

Right now, all I can do is stay hunkered in the safe harbor that Everett offers.

“Thank you for that. It never felt like you enjoyed asking me to push outside my comfort zone. This, though, it’s not even in the same orbit as what I wanted or thought. I honestly don’t know what to do.”

“Let’s start from the top,” Cat says softly.

I go through it all, from when I left California, to coming here.

I go through all the ways I found out about each new layer of hurt Dylan inflicted.

She has me give dates, times, tiny details that I can remember about what was said and when paperwork was exchanged.

After I’m done with the story, I’m surprised I can even talk.

It feels as though I’ve been through a war, and I’m so battered that it’s a miracle I’m here to tell it.

Catherine sighs heavily. “I hate that you’ve been through all of that and that you’re pregnant, which I remember all too well how freaking emotional that makes you. Okay, well, the good thing is that I can help.”

“You can?” I ask.

“Yes, but I’m afraid you’re not going to love the options.”

I laugh once. “I’m pretty used to that.”

“You’re going to have to come back to California, without your boyfriend.”

I look at Everett, seeing the pain in his eyes, and now I really know what heartbreak truly feels like.