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CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

I try to fight the hollow feeling after he leaves, telling myself it’s not a big deal.

I’m an adult, and I agreed to a no-strings situation. In a few days, he’ll come back and we’ll pick up . . . whatever this is, until one of us realizes the physical attraction is gone.

I get up and head into the bathroom of his suite, unable to shake off everything we experienced in this house since Thursday night.

Not even seventy-two hours together, and yet it feels like we’ve always known each other.

I glance at myself in the mirror above the sink and smile at the sight of my flushed face and the shine in my eyes.

"You’ve got this, Alexis. Enjoy it while it lasts, and then let it go."

I take a quick shower, as I plan to swing by my home before heading to work.

A pang of guilt hits me when I realize I didn’t visit Mom yesterday. Then I remember what she said on the phone: Live one day at a time. We never know if there will be a next one.

I’m lucky to have someone like her to turn to. Maybe a friend would be starstruck hearing I’m seeing someone like LJ—but my mother is grounded. She’s been through too much, and while she told me not to miss out on life, she also warned me to watch out for the first signs of danger to my heart.

That makes me think of the look on LJ’s face when he said goodbye. He seemed shut down, distant—so different from the man I spent the last three days with. Then he kissed me before leaving, and my anxiety eased slightly with his promise that we’d see each other again next week.

I walk into the bedroom and hear a buzzing sound. It takes me a moment to realize it’s my phone, and I clutch the towel around me as I run to grab it—even though I’m alone in this giant house.

I frown when I see it’s a message from Badger, but before I can read it, the phone rings.

"Alexis, where are you?"

My cheeks burn. "Close by. Why?"

"At home?"

"No."

"Give me the address. I’ll come get you."

"Did something happen?"

He sighs—and it comes out like a growl. "Yes."

"My mom?" I ask, and bile rises in my throat.

"I need the address, sweetheart."

"I don’t know it. Hang on."

I rush down the stairs and look for a piece of mail. I find one addressed to Morrison Seymour—must be his cousin’s name.

Only now does a light go off in my head, and I connect the dots. Seymour. LJ’s last name is well-known. Oh my god, does he belong to that family? The Seymours ?

I push all that aside and focus on reading the address to Badger.

"I’ll be there in half an hour," he says.

"Tell me she’s okay."

Another long sigh. Then finally, the answer. "She’s going to be okay. I’m sure of it."

"How could this happen?" I ask, shocked, unable to stop the tears. "She was supposed to be safe! How could someone stab her with a goddamn knife?"

I want to destroy everything around me. I want to hit someone. I want to find the person who hurt my mom and do the same to them.

"It looks like the woman turned on Delores, and Marla stepped in to defend her."

"Yeah, I got that part. The first strike might’ve been a mistake, but after that, she knew she was hurting my mother. And anyway, both she and Delores were supposed to be safe. They’re under the care of the state."

"I know, Alexis."

"I hate the family that put my mom in there. I’m going to get revenge on them. I swear I will."

"Get in line. I’m not going to rest until they lose a kidney in court."

"Money isn’t enough. I want public humiliation. I want an apology. On their knees, preferably." I have so much rage in me right now I can’t stop trembling, even with Badger’s arms around me.

I can’t get the image of my mom lying in a hospital bed out of my head. The cut wasn’t deep, but only by sheer luck, according to the doctors. The woman had aimed for her heart, and only because my mother managed a quick defensive move was the injury limited to her arm.

"I hate life and everyone in it," I say—and right now, it’s true. "What kind of messed-up world is this where good people are locked up and pay for crimes they didn’t commit?"

"We’ll get her out, Alexis. I’m not stopping until Marla’s cleared of this ridiculous accusation."

"I’m not sitting still either. Until now, I’ve left everything in the lawyers’ hands, but I’m done just waiting. If I want justice, I need to find a way to prove my mother’s innocence."

"Alexis—"

"I will find a way," I say between sobs, angrier than ever at myself for being so vulnerable.

"Alexis, what’s really going on? This isn’t just about Marla getting hurt."

I hide my face in his chest and let the tears fall. "I’m the worst daughter in the world. I should’ve gone to visit her yesterday."

He pulls back to look at me, and there’s no judgment on his face—just shock. "You didn’t?"

"I . . . I was with someone. I was going to, but Mom told me to live my life."

"Hey, there was no way to know. And even if you had gone, it wouldn’t have changed anything. This happened earlier today."

Rationally, I know he’s right—but right now, I’m an emotional wreck. I just want my mom’s hug and the promise that everything will be okay.