She cries as she cups her hand over her mouth. “I can’t stop him.”
“Don’t give me that bullshit! You don’t want to stop him,” I growl back. Releasing a heavy breath, I say the one thing I came here to say. “I mean it when I say stay away from her!” I turn and walk away from her when she speaks.
“I wanna know my future daughter-in-law.”
Stopping, I turn back around and look up at her standing in the entrance of her million-dollar mansion. “That’s not gonna happen.” I smile. “Besides, she won’t want to get to know you once you’re in prison.”
She lets out a sob. “I haven’t done anything wrong.”
I snort. “The jury won’t see it that way once I put Dad away.” Her eyes widen. “You had every chance to do the right thing. Now, it’s too late!” Then I give my mother my back for the last time and walk away.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
PARKER
I rock back and forth on the couch as I wait for Kat to arrive home. I didn’t sleep all night. Once I got home from confronting my mother, I showered and then just laid in our bed. I smelled her pillow and remembered what that bastard did to her. How much I could have lost if only he had succeeded. Then sometime this morning, I made it to the kitchen for some breakfast. After I had found nothing, I made my way to the couch. I’ve been sitting here ever since softly petting Puss Puss as Boner sleeps on the couch next to us.
Kat has taught me a lot when it comes to love. It’s funny that I never wanted it, and now, I can’t imagine my life without it.
I sit straight up when I hear the front door open and shut. I watch as Kat walks into the living room. A tired smile on her face, she’s still dressed in her dark blue scrubs as she tosses her purse onto the recliner.
I stand from the couch as she continues to walk toward the kitchen. “Kat?”
She comes to a stop and spins around to face me. “Parker,” she says in surprise. “I didn’t see you sitting there.” She laughs to herself. “What are you doing, baby? I figured you’d still be asleep.” She comes up to me and gives me a tight hug. I return it but much more timidly.
“What’s wrong?” she asks now frowning as she pulls away from me.
I sigh as I run a hand through my hair. “I, uh, I need to tell you something.”
“Okay,” she says without hesitation.
I grab both of her hands and pull her down into the couch. “It’s about my dad,” I begin.
“What about him?” she asks as worry replaces her smile. “Is he okay?”
I let out a rough laugh. “Unfortunately,” I mumble.
She shakes her head as she frowns. “I don’t understand, Parker.”
I rub my sweaty palms on my jeans. “He … He was the one who …” I take a deep breath. Fuck, why is this so hard? I stand from the couch needing the movement.
She looks up at me, concerned and confused as to what I’m babbling about. “What did he do?” she asks softly.
My hearts beats faster in my chest and a sharp pain has me taking a deep breath. “He was the one,” is all I can say. How do you tell the woman you love that your father tried to kill her?
“The one?” Her brows pull together. “Babe, you’re not making much sense.” She lets out a little laugh as she stands from the couch. “Come on, let’s get you to bed.” She grabs my hand and starts to pull me toward the hallway, but I yank it back.
“He was the one who had Mason kidnap you!” I shout fisting my hands down by my side.
She stares at me wide-eyed and the color in her cheeks fades a little. “What?” she breathes.
I release a long breath. “He was the one who wanted you dead.” The words are like a knife to my own heart. To say them out loud, to her. It’s hard to swallow.
She shakes her head slow at first as she stares at me still wide-eyed. But as the seconds tick by, it starts to shake faster and faster. “No.” Her voice cracks as she finally speaks. And it shatters my heart.
“I’m so sorry, baby.” I take a step toward her, but she takes a step back.
“How long have you known this?” she demands.
I hang my head. “Since that day. He had a note delivered to the hospital …” I look up just as she spins around, giving me her back. She runs out of the living room and down the hall.
“Kat, please let me explain,” I start as I follow her. “The note wasn’t enough to put him away. But I finally got a lead today. I have every friend I can trust working on taking him down,” I finish saying as I enter our bedroom. She’s running around it like a mad woman. Opening and closing doors. She grabs a suitcase out of our closet and starts throwing clothes into it. “What are you doing?” I ask.
“I’m getting the fuck out of here.”
“Kat.” I walk over to her and grab her upper arm. She stops for a moment as she looks up at me. “Will you stop for a second and just listen to me.”
Her nostrils flare as tears threaten her eyes. “There’s nothing you could say to make me stay,” she declares.
“I’m going to take care of it,” I assure her. “I promise you’re safe here.”
Without saying anything, she jerks her arm free of my hand, grabs her bag, and slams the front door.
CHAPTER TWELVE
SLADE
I stand in the kitchen, placing pancakes on my plate as Angel stands next to me making Sadey her breakfast when the doorbell rings.
“I’ll get it.” I lean down and give her a kiss on the cheek before walking out of the kitchen.
“Kat,” I say in surprise when I open the door to see Kat standing there with a suitcase and a single tear running down her face.
“May I come in?” she asks lifting her chin.
“Absolutely,” I say moving to the side for her.
Angel enters the entryway and frowns when she sees her friend. “What’s wrong?”
Kat’s bottom lip starts to quiver. After a long second, she lets go of her suitcase and places her hands on her face. She sobs as Angel runs to her and wraps her arms around her. “What happened?” she demands harshly looking over at me.
I raise my hands and shrug. “How am I supposed to know?” I ask softly.
“Well, you’re his best friend,” she snaps as if I control what Parker does.
“I …” I start to say, but Kat pulls away from her and speaks.
“I just need to sleep somewhere for a few hours. Then I’ll go to a hotel. I just couldn’t stay home.”
Angel rubs her back. “You can stay here as long as you need.” She soothes her.
I hear my phone ringing back in our bedroom, and I leave the girls to discuss the possibility of having a roommate as I run to get it.
Parker lights up my screen.
“What the fuck did you do, man?” I ask in greeting.
“What?” he snaps obviously already irritated.
I close our bedroom door so the girls can’t hear me if they walk by. “Kat just showed up at our door with a suitcase, and when Angel asked what was wrong, she just burst into tears.”
“Fuck!” he hisses. “Listen, keep her there. I’m on my way.” Then he hangs up.
What the fuck is going on? Keep her here? Did he not hear the part about a suitcase? I don’t think she plans to go anywhere. Which is fine, she is more than welcome to stay here as long as she wants.
“Slade?”
I spin around to see my beautiful wife standing in the doorway to our bedroom. I smile big. “Yes, gorgeous.”
She narrows her eyes at me. This always happens. If one guy in our group fucks up, we’re all in trouble. “Do not call Parker and tell him where she is. He keeps blowing up her phone, but she is ignoring him.” Then she slams the door.
Well, shit!
******
Fifteen minutes later, my mother shows up to pick up Sadey. Angel has to go into the bakery for a little bit this morning, and I needed to go to the office for a couple of hours, but now, I’m not so sure how our day is going to play out.
<
br /> I shut the door after my mom leaves and walk into the kitchen. I look longingly at my now very cold pancakes and decide a banana will have to do. I plop down at the end of the table as the girls sit at the other end. They don’t speak. Kat has her elbows on the table with her head in her hands while Sam lightly rubs her back.
Kat’s head snaps up when we hear the front door open and slam shut. I let out a long breath. Here it goes!
Parker enters the kitchen breathing heavy and hard eyes.
“What are you doing here?” Kat demands.
Angel’s eyes turn to me. “Did you call him after I told you not to?”
“He had already called me,” I say softly. I really don’t wanna start this day off like this, but there’s no way out. Parker is my friend, and whatever he did, I’m sure he had a good reason for it.
“What don’t you understand?” Kat asks. “I don’t want to be around you,” she shouts.
He places his hands up in surrender. “Please let me explain?” he begs.
She stands and crosses her arms over her chest as she pushes her hip out. “Yes, please explain how you knew all this time that your father was the one who tried to kill me,” she snaps.
Oh, shit! Angel gasps, placing a hand over her mouth, and I drop my head to look down at my lap. He told her!
“Please tell me how you have all the guys you can trust on it?” she demands. “Please tell me how you’re going to keep him from doing it again.”
“Guys you can trust?” I hear Angel wonder out loud, and I close my eyes. “Slade?” I open them and slowly look up at her. “Did you know this?”
If I could, I would lie. There are times in our marriage when yes, I lie. But they are little lies here and there. This one, however, I cannot lie about. I nod my head. “Yes.” I sigh. “I was there when Dick dropped off the letter that told Parker he was involved,” I admit.
To my surprise, Angel doesn’t yell at me. Instead, she just shakes her head as she looks at me with disgust. This is just a perfect fucking day so far!
“Well,” Kat snaps. “I’m waiting.”
Parker runs a hand down his face as he lets out a frustrated sigh. “I don’t know what to say,” he says honestly.
“You could have told me who it was that tried to have me killed.”
“What good would that have done?” he asks.
Her eyes bug out, and I know that was not the answer she was looking for.
“What good would that have done?” she repeats. “Hell, I don’t know, maybe give me a heads-up for when he came to see me at the hospital. Maybe I wouldn’t have eaten the strawberries he sent me because I was afraid they were poisoned. Maybe …”
He holds up his hand cutting her off. “He came and saw you?” he snaps. “When?”
“I don’t remember the exact date,” she yells. “But yes, he came and saw me my first week back to work,” she explains.
“Why the fuck didn’t you tell me?” he yells. “Why the fuck would you keep that from me? Don’t you understand ….?”
She reaches back and slaps him across the face. Angel smiles in satisfaction while I just watch as if it’s a replay of the time Angel slapped me.
“No! I don’t understand. Because you kept things from me. So don’t you dare blame this on me, Parker!” she spits in his face. He goes to speak, but she shoves him out of the way and walks past him. “I don’t want you or anyone else around me. That’s why I left in the first place.”
He turns around to face her back as she walks out of the kitchen. His shoulders fall, and his chest rises with a heavy sigh. “Do you think I haven’t tried?” he asks her softly causing her to come to a stop but not turning around to face him. “Do you really think I’m not trying to make that bastard pay?” He takes a step toward her. “Do you think that I don’t think of that day every day of my life? Do you have any idea how fucking angry I was when I read that piece of shit note he left me?” She turns around slowly to face him. A single tear runs down her face. “I hate him, Kat, for what he did to you. And I swear on my life that I will make him pay.” He fists his hands down by his sides. “How many times I’ve sat outside of my parents’ house with a gun in my hand. All I need is one bullet and his miserable life would be over. But you deserve more than that. He deserves to spend the rest of his life locked away knowing that he can’t hurt you again.” He steps closer and another tear falls down her cheek. “I love you, Kat. You are the only person who matters to me.” He takes another step and lifts his hand to wipe away another tear. “I need you, though. You can be as mad at me as you want, but please, don’t leave me.”
She sniffs as more tears fall down her face. “You don’t understand, Parker. This isn’t about you and me anymore.”
“They don’t matter,” he assures her. “My family doesn’t matter to me. It’s all about you and me.”
She takes a deep breath and speaks. “I’m pregnant.”
Well, that just changed things. I look over at Angel and tears are now running down her face. She must feel me staring because she walks over to me, grabs my hand, and pulls me from the table. And I follow her out of the kitchen.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
PARKER
Pregnant? Did she just say she’s pregnant? That can’t be. Can it? I mean we haven’t used protection in a while, but she’s on birth control. Are we overly cautious? No. But ... how could it …
“Say something,” she whispers.
“How long have you known?” I find myself asking.
She licks her lips and speaks softly. “Four weeks.”
I let go of her hand and take a step back from her. “Why haven’t you told me?”
“I didn’t want to be that woman.”
“What woman?” I ask confused.
She throws her hands out to her side. “We didn’t know where we were going, Parker.” She sighs. “I didn’t want to tell you I was pregnant and then you feel obligated to marry me.”
“I love you,” I say without hesitation.
She gives me a soft smile. “You don’t need love to make a baby. Just because you love me doesn’t mean you want a child.” This is the part about her that I fell in love with but also hate. She’s so strong. Whenever she is faced with something, she would rather do it herself than have someone by her side to help her.
“How can you say that?” I ask wide-eyed.
“Look at you.” She lifts her hands to gesture to me. “You’re not all that thrilled about it now. You’re saying four weeks ago, you would have been more willing to be a father?”
I step back to her and place my hands on either side of her face. She looks up at me; the tears have stopped falling, but her eyes are still watery. “I thought that I would want nothing more than to be your husband, Kat. But now, I can’t imagine anything better than you having my child.” Her eyes fill with tears once again, and before they can fall, I lower my lips to hers and kiss her. She opens her mouth, and I deepen the kiss. She presses her body further into mine, and I let out a moan when she runs her nails down my back over my shirt.
When she finally pulls away, she places her hands on my wrists and breaths heavily. “Do you understand now?”
I frown. “Understand what?” I need specifics here. All my mind can think of is we’re having a baby. I’m gonna be a dad! The woman I love is gonna be a mom! And I couldn’t be happier.
“That’s it not only about you and me.” She pulls away from me. “I don’t feel safe at our house anymore, Parker. I love you, but I’m putting our baby first. I can’t be there when your father knows where we live.” I go to speak, but her eyes widen and she gasps. “Your brother. Is that why he all of a sudden wanted to come over? Is he …?”
“Stop. Stop,” I say interrupting her. I shake my head. “No. My brother is helping me. And as far as the baby, I am going to put you two first. Do you understand that?” She nods after a long second. “We won’t go back there until it’s finished. Okay?”
She nods again. �
��But what are we gonna do?” She looks around Slade and Sam’s kitchen. “We can’t stay here. They have Sadey. I would never want to put their family in danger.”
I open my mouth to speak but another male voice speaks. “You’re safe here.”
We both turn to see Slade and Sam standing at the entry of the kitchen. “Oh, no.”
“Really,” Sam interrupts Kat. “We have the best security system, and it will be like a girls’ night every night,” she says excitedly.
“We couldn’t ask you guys to do that.” She shakes her head in protest.
“You’re not. We’re offering,” Slade says with a smile. “And we won’t take no for an answer.”
Sam walks over to us. “Come on, let’s go unpack your suitcase and then you need that nap you were talking about when you first arrived.”
Slade walks over to me. “Well, buddy, let me be the first to congratulate you.” He slaps me on the shoulder.
“Do we get to drink now?” I ask in all seriousness.
He chuckles. “No.” He starts to move around the kitchen, getting a skillet and spatula out of a drawer and cabinet. “I’m gonna make us pancakes, though,” he says with a smile.
I laugh as I sit down at the kitchen table. “Sounds great to me.”
******
I throw my head back and yell, “Noooooooooo!”
Dropping my head to my chest, I openly sob as I sit on the cold concrete while I hold Kat in my lap. Her head lies on my lap, her body on the floor. We’re both covered in blood. Her blood! “Kat,” I sob as my hands dig into her dark hair. “Please, baby!” I beg her to come back to me. But she’s not going to. She’s dead!
The UN Series Complete Box Set Page 191
