Page 19 of Katie 3 (Desires #6)

Chapter seventeen

Katie

I ’m pleasantly exhausted by our midday romp, but I can’t forget the papers waiting for me.

I grab them from the table while Henry and Carter talk in the kitchen.

Carter’s cooking for me—he’s determined to keep me eating.

Both of them have been trying to keep me steady even though I wait to hear from Brad every day.

“It’s not happening again,” Carter hisses. “She’s obviously worried about him. He’s in jail and she’s blaming herself.”

I pause, my brow furrowing. I move closer as I listen in. My eyes flick to the paper. There’s a list of other witnesses being called and someone has been listed as a “maybe.” A girl named Brandy .

“That’s how it started last time. You were sure she wanted all of us, but she wouldn’t engage with us unless Brad was there, watching or participating. You and I didn’t matter nearly as much.”

My fingers clench the page tighter as I listen to Henry.

“Katie isn’t like that and she doesn’t need to—”

“They called her as a witness, Carter. We can either tell her now or she’ll find out in court and then what will happen?” Henry demands.

“It’s Brandy. We both know she’s a flake,” Carter dismisses.

“She was all about Brad and you know it. If she could help Brad, she’d be there. Which means that we need to tell her. Better now than right before she gets on the stand,” Henry sighs.

I crumple the paper in my hand and step into the kitchen. I can read between the lines. They were with someone else the way they’ve been with me. Before my mom probably, but they shared another woman—all three of them.

Carter sighs. “You just told her.”

Henry turns around. “Katie, just—”

“You shared someone else and didn’t tell me? You had another girl just like the three of you have me and you didn’t—”

“Not like how we have you,” Carter says. “Doll, we love you. She was fun, but she only wanted Brad. It was hard to ignore. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to commit to what we were doing because I was sure…”

“That it was going to be the same,” Henry finishes after an awkward pause.

“You never told me that. I thought… I thought I ruined all three of you, that I had made you settle for sharing me, but you like it? You’ve done it before! And you didn’t tell me!” My temper is flaring.

I don’t know if it’s fair to be angry at them for having a past. I don’t know if it’s fair to be angry they didn’t tell me, but I’ve been stewing in my own guilt for so long, sure that I ruined the three men I love the most, that I somehow tempted them into this messed-up situation when it’s not even new to them!

“Katie, it’s not the same and it’s not—”

“Tell me how it’s different other than that we’ve lasted! It was new to me! Do you have any idea how much I blamed myself? For everything with my mom, the divorce, messing up your lives! And I didn’t,” I insist.

“We never said you did,” Carter soothes.

I step back. “How could you not tell me? I thought we talked about everything.”

“Doll,” he whispers.

“Angel, when would it have come up? All it does is hurt you. We all have pasts from before we met and—”

“That works for friendships, not for relationships. There can’t be love without trust and clearly you don’t trust me! Neither of you trust me!” I yell.

“We didn’t willfully… we didn’t sit down and have a conversation and agree to keep it from you,” Carter defends while Henry slips back, looking uncomfortable and introspective.

“You know I blamed myself for the divorce, for the problems, for continuing on with all of you. I’ve called myself a slut and a whore for being so greedy, but I’m not because you all did this before!”

The phone rings and I don’t even look at it. I can’t. Hurt, anger, humiliation, it’s roaring through me and I can’t push it down. The phone keeps ringing and I turn around to head to my room.

Tears roll down my face, but I’m not in any shape to be around these men. I need to think. I need to process this. I need to figure out what it means for me and… and my baby.

Henry

“Answer the phone, Carter,” I finally say, uncomfortable with the constant ringing and lingering silence.

Carter answers with a sigh. “Yeah, I know I’m not who… she’s not going to. She found out about Brandy… no I didn’t tell her everything. She’s been called as a witness… what do you want me to do, Brad? Storm up there and force her to listen? She’s not in the mood to do that… yeah, he’s here.”

I take the phone and Brad’s voice is exhausted. “Fix things with her. She’s our girl and she deserves to know we’re here for her. That this isn’t a kink we wanted to repeat.”

“She can’t think that.”

“She can and she probably does. She’s worked up and I can’t do a damn thing from in here,” Brad grits.

“And you need Katie on your side. You need her on the stand.”

“That’s not important at the moment. It’s important that Katie’s okay.

Let her tell the truth. I’ll deal with it.

But I don’t want my sweet slut thinking the worst and I guarantee she is.

That’s how she is. That’s how she was when I was first with her on campus,” he says sharply. “She needs to be taken care of.”

I sigh and massage my forehead. “I’ll do my best.”

“Good luck. I gotta go. There’s a line behind me,” Brad says.

He hangs up and I end the call. Carter looks at me for a long moment.

“How do we fix this, Dad?”I don’t have a clue.

Too much has fallen on my shoulders for me to be able to think straight.

Divorcing my wife in the second worst way possible.

She never knew about me being involved with her daughter, but I have a feeling she’ll be in the audience so it’s going to come out.

Moving out here and trying to curb Brad’s and my own desires for my angel.

Now Brad going off the rails, Katie getting pregnant, this fucking case.

“I’ll try.”

“Give her a bit to process. She’ll figure it out.”

“She needs to eat,” Carter argues. “She’s been neglecting that unless I remind her.”

“Then try, Carter. Ignore the advice I’m giving and steamroll ahead,” I huff. “I have a case to try to win.”

Brad

It’s easy to lose track of the days. They’re regulated and regimented, filled with guys who want to ask plenty of questions or throw their weight and charges around. I keep my head down, have taken plenty of beatings. My head constantly aches and missing Katie is making anything else impossible.

“Your lawyer’s here,” an officer says, stopping in front of my solitary cell.

My dad walks in, takes one look at me, and shakes his head. “You’re not the kind of kid that wears bruises.”

I am when Katie asks me to be good. But there’s no point in saying that. Dad checks in, then takes a breath. “Dan’s not dropping the case. I can’t even speak to him, just his legal team. They think me pushing for the case to be dropped means it’s solid.”

“When?” I ask simply.

“Two days. We’ll come in and help clean you up, make you look… approachable and appeal to the jury. You pled not guilty so here we are,” he sighs.

He stares like he hasn’t slept in a week. I lean back and narrow my eyes—nearly sealing my swollen one shut. “Katie still hasn’t forgiven you.”

“Us, Brad,” my dad corrects. “She accepts food and that’s it. She doesn’t want to talk. She doesn’t want to hear about anything. You included.”

“Then you can’t say she’s Brandy. No favoritism here,” I sigh. “Fix things with her. That’s most important. She needs all the support she swears she doesn’t need.”

“I’m well aware of that,” Dad grits. “Any advice?”

“Own the problem. We kept it from her. We shouldn’t have.

I got so swept up in her, so in love with her that I didn’t even remember Brandy.

I know we were all focused on other things.

It will be hard for her to hear that, but I’m sure she can understand it.

She forgot all about her other options or past boyfriends with us,” I advise. “I’m fucking exhausted. Are we done?”

“Yeah. Brandy still hasn’t answered. They’re not sure if she’s even at the last address on file. With any luck, she won’t show,” he says. “Your ex-stepmother probably will.”

“Fantastic,” I snort. “Nothing can be easy.”

My dad gives me a long look that he doesn’t need to levy in my direction. I rub the back of my neck. “I know it’s my fault. You don’t have to tell me. If you fix this, if you at least keep Katie from dealing with cross examination… that’s all that matters.”

Dad doesn’t seem to agree, but I don’t care.

I’ll handle prison. I’ll hate every fucking day of it, but Katie’s more important.

She deserves to be comfortable and to know she’s loved even if I can only show her that from behind protective glass in small phone calls where she can see me and I can see her.

I’ve made peace with it. I just hope she can make peace with our past.

“Hopefully she doesn’t flip against you,” Dad says.

That’s an unwelcome thought. That’s she’s so hurt and worked up and angry that she’ll just throw me under the bus in two days. I close my eyes. That would hurt worse than a life sentence.