Blinking to clear the sleep from my eyes, I jerked upright, my grip on the phone tightening. “What the fuck are you calling me for?”
A humorless chuckle sounded through the speaker, followed by, “Can’t a father call his son?”
Father?
Not even close.
“We’ve been over this, Clyde,” I spat, my blood pressure skyrocketing. “You are not my damn father. Never have been. Never will be.”
His heavy breaths bounced between us, and I had no doubt he was close to putting his fist through whatever wall he was closest to. “You listen to me, you ungrateful little bastard,” he growled, making his disdain for me obvious. “You and I need to meet, and it needs to happen soon, else there will be consequences.”
He had to be shitting me.
Dropping my head back, I fisted my free hand. “Let me go ahead and cut you off at the pass, old man. I don’t have any money, which I’m sure is what you want, so save your bullshit, yeah?”
Silence.
Then, “Saw that article in the paper.”
He’d lost me.
“I don’t have a clue what you’re rambling—”
“The one that said you were gonna skip your senior year and enter the draft,” he interrupted, making my blood boil. “Newspaper even said you were expected to go in the first round.”
Madder than hell, my eye twitched. “Yeah, and what’s that got to do with you?”
Another humorless chuckle. “Like I told you some time ago, I intend to get what’s owed to me, one way or another.”
A ways back? I hadn’t seen or spoken to the sperm donor who’d helped create me in over two years. Matter of fact, the last time we’d been in contact was the night Ashley thought I ditched her for that snake, Bianca.
He’d harassed Ty since then.
But he hadn’t come directly to me.
Mainly cause my brother ran interference.
Which needed to stop.
Now.
“Listen, shithead,” I said, needing to reiterate the point I’d made the night I slammed my hand into his nose, likely breaking it. “I’m going to say this one last time. I don’t give a damn what you threaten me with, you will never get a dime from me, whether I make it to the NFL or not.”
I didn’t care if I landed a trillion-dollar payday, I would set fire to every last penny I received before he got his scumbag fingers on a single cent.
That was a fact.
“I will get what I’m owed, son,” he replied, his voice filled with a mixture of hate and confidence. “One way or another.”
The man was delusional.
Not only did he think he could threaten me into giving him money—why the hell would I do that?—but he actually thought there was a snowball’s chance in hell of making me bend to his will, whatever it may be at the time.
He’d lost it.
Completely.
“Open your eyes, Clyde, because I’m not sure any of this is sinking in,” I said, through teeth clenched. “I’m not a scared kid anymore, and I will not be pushed around by a degenerate gambler with a badge who spends most of his time so drunk he wouldn’t be able to find his ass if he put his hands in his back pockets.”
Grandmama would love that line.
“Not kidding, you twisted fuck. Don’t call me ever again,” I continued, heat climbing the length of my neck. “Or better yet, just drop dead.”
I ended the call after saying my typical good-bye to him and tossed the phone across the room. It bounced off the wall and landed in a pile of dirty clothes on the floor. Thankfully it didn’t shatter, but at that moment, I wouldn’t have given a shit if it had.
Madder than I had been in a long time, I was close to letting the anger that simmered beneath my flesh get the best of me. Like many times before, my hand twitched with the urge to hit something. But I wasn’t going to do it. I refused.
I will not be like him.
I am better than that.
Needing to get up, to move, to do something in order to calm down, I jumped off the bed and slipped on a pair of basketball shorts. Then, I headed into the living room where I nearly ran straight into Ty, who was coming up the hall, his face covered in smoke and soot.
Even though I was twenty, his presence still calmed me the same way it did when I was six and continuously pissing the bed out of fear every night. It was something that continued to happen until I was eight, and Ty moved out, taking me with him.
Clyde hadn’t given a fuck that I was gone.
Never even came and looked for me.
Why would he?
He didn’t give two shits about me.
Even when he tried to shake me down now, he didn’t pretend to care. He just flat-out demanded what he wanted and expected it to be handed to him for whatever reason.
Said a lot about his mental state.
The psycho was losing his grip on reality.
And right or wrong, I hoped he’d break completely before long.
The world would’ve been a lot better off if he no longer existed in it, sucking up precious oxygen and polluting the air with his toxic bullshit.
Quirking a brow, I looked at Ty, who was carrying a duffle bag over his shoulder. “Rough night?”
He nodded, dropping the bag to the floor. “You could say that. Had a three-alarm fire over in Garrison.”
Garrison?
That was like twenty minutes from his station.
“How bad was it?”
Ripping off his smoke-laden shirt, he tossed it past me, toward his room. “It was at one of the old cotton mills. Cap thinks the fire started in one of the processing rooms, and it went up from there. Ended up catching two neighboring buildings on fire too. There’s nothing left to any of them now.”
“Anybody get hurt?”
He shook his head. “Nah, but Cole’s dumbass about died trying to save a mama cat and her litter of kittens,” he said, referring to Hendrix, Ashley’s uncle. “He got them out, but an incinerated beam fell just as him, Kyle, and I made it to the exit. Missed him by an inch.”
Well, shit...
“The cats alright?” I’ll admit, my brother may have been a fireman, but I didn’t know much about fires or smoke inhalation except that they were both bad. “’Cause if they died, he better not tell Ashley. She’ll cry for a month.”
That was no joke.
My girl had a hard time coping with some people, but not animals. They were the balm that soothed her. Hell, I was certain she loved Ziggy more than people most days.
Not that I blamed her.
The giant marshmallow may have been a disgruntled dick at times, but he was one of the best dogs I’d ever encountered.
And damn if he didn’t love my girl.
He wasn’t a trained therapy dog by any means, but he’d still learned to quell her panic when an anxiety attack was coming on.
The first time I saw him do it, I couldn’t believe it.
“All the critters are fine,” Ty replied, wiping his eyes. “Cap dropped them off at the emergency vet as soon as the scene was under control. Last I heard they were stable. Just had a little smoke inhalation.”
“Good.” Relief washed through me. “You going to shower and sleep now? Or you got something else to do?”
He rubbed his palms down his face, then looked over at me, his blue eyes—ones identical to my own—staring into mine. “I gotta eat first. You want to grab breakfast? Ruby’s will be packed, but we can go down to the Coffee Hut on Main.”
Unable to help it, I smirked.
I knew exactly why he wanted to hit up the Coffee Hut. “Bug is down at the Hut, isn’t she?” His eyes narrowed, and I chuckled in response. “Still can’t believe you haven’t put a ring on her finger.”
Though he may put me in a headlock for it, I couldn’t resist teasing his brooding ass. The fact was, my big brother had been in love with Heidi, Ashley’s best friend for a while now.
But she’d blown him off at every turn.
Things were starting to change now though, and I had no doubt they’d be married before anyone could blink. Call it a feeling, call it a premonition, whatever, but despite their hang-ups, those two were meant to be together.
Just like Ashley and me.
One day we’ll get there.
Baby steps.
“Yeah, she probably is there,” he said, a knowing smile on his face. “And if she is, it means Ashley is too.”
That was all I needed to hear.
“I’ll get dressed.”
It was his turn to smirk. “Thought so, dipshit.” Shaking his head, he unbuckled his belt and ripped it free of the loops holding it in place before tossing it on the floor at his feet. “I gotta shower first, so give me twenty minutes, and I’ll be ready.”
I nodded, indecision stirring inside me.
Still irritated as fuck, I wanted to tell Ty about the phone call I’d gotten moments before because I needed to vent to somebody who understood before I blew a gasket. Problem was, if I told him, he’d be the one who lost his shit.
And I couldn’t let that happen.
Ty had already received more than one phone call from Clyde over the same bullshit I’d just dealt with, and he’d dealt with the deluded fuck each time. The man needed a break from fighting my battles.
I’d handle this one myself.
Reading me like a book, he lifted his chin in the air. “There something you want to tell me? ’Cause you look all sorts of twisted up.”
I wasn’t a liar—not in the least bit—but that day, I looked my big brother in the eyes and lied my ass off. “Nah,” I said, forcing a smile. “Just ready to see my girl.”
He jerked his chin down once, not buying my bullshit for a second. “If you say so.” He nodded back toward my room. “Go get dressed. I’m going to hop in the shower.”
Doing as he said—like always—I turned and headed back to my room without saying another word. Well, not until Ty decided to be a dick.
“Chase!” he hollered, making me look back at him over my shoulder. “Heard Shelby almost killed you last night.”
My eyes narrowed. “How did you—”
“She called Cap at the station,” he said, referring to Shelby’s dad. Most called him Pop, but the guys down at the station all called him Cap because that’s what he was; their Captain. “Told him she may need help hiding a body.”
Great.
Just fucking great.
Everybody knew Pop was nuts when it came to Ashley. The man loved his entire family, but Ashley was special. She’d been remarkably close to him since day one, and I had no doubt he’d tear me to shreds without thinking twice if the need called for it.
He was temperamental like that.
“How did you get out of there without her murdering you?”
That was a simple answer and one which made me smile big as hell. “My Sweetness,” I replied. “Shelby spoils her, and even if she wanted to shoot me, she wouldn’t hurt Ashley like that.”
And thank Christ for that.
Because for a minute, I could’ve sworn I was a dead man. Especially after Ashley jumped in the shower and I opened the bathroom door, only to be greeted by a murderous looking Shelby.
I was lucky she didn’t rip my eyes out.
Ty shook his head. Yet again. “One day, Chase,” he said, toeing off his boots. First one, then the other. “That woman is going to beat you black and blue.”
Most likely.
“Yeah, but—” My cell phone suddenly rang, echoing through the apartment. Irritation prickled my skin once more. Better not be Clyde calling again. Jaw ticking, I pointed toward my room. “I’m going to get that. Shower, assmunch. We’ve got places to be.”
Ty flipped me off in reply but said nothing.
After returning the gesture, I headed back into my room.
Grabbing the phone from the dirty pile of clothes where it had landed—I really need to wash that shit—I picked it up, and unlike last time, I looked at the screen.
A smile spread across my face.
Lifting the phone to my ear, I answered quickly. “Hey, beautiful girl,” I said, leaning a shoulder against the wall. “Missed the hell out of you.”
“Missed you too.” Like magic, her sweet voice soothed me, calming the anger that still held me in its clutches, its hold unrelenting. “Heidi and I are headed over to the Coffee Hut. Want to meet us there?”
My smile grew. “I’ll be there in about thirty minutes.”
“Good,” she replied, blowing out a small breath. “I’ll see you there then. Bye, Jock.”
“Bye, Sweetness.”
She ended the call, and I tossed the phone on the bed.
Then, with excitement stirring in my chest, I got dressed.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Ashley
It was outreach night at the shelter.
Everyone, including all the ladies' families, were gathered in the storage room, preparing care packages for the people who lived on the streets surrounding the shelter.
In less than an hour, we would split up into teams and deliver them on foot. The entire thing had been my idea—go me!—and I was excited to see it put into action.
Knowing full-well what it was like living on the streets, I wanted to do anything I could to ease people's pain. It didn't matter if the people we encountered were prostitutes, drug addicts, or whatever else, they needed someone to care.
And that someone would be me.
Like I told the ladies when I pitched the idea to them, no one deserved to go hungry just as no one deserved to go without basic hygiene products such as tampons, deodorant, and toothpaste. All of which were included in each package, along with snacks and other small items such as condoms, an item that sex workers desperately needed access to.
"Ashley Jo!"
I snapped my head up from the package I was preparing and looked across the room, instantly finding a beaming Hope. "You might want to head upstairs," she continued when our eyes met. "You've got company at the back door."
My belly flipped at her words, excitement racing through me.
But my Mama, who stood beside me, didn't share my amusement. Growling, she shook her head. "That damn boy. I can't run him off no matter what I do. Threaten to cut his nuts off, and yet he just keeps coming back. It's like he has a dang death wish or something."
She was only joking.
Well, sort of.
Shaking my head, I hollered back at Hope, "Thanks, Itty Bitty!"
Sealing the package I held in my hand tight, I gently bumped my shoulder into my Mama's. "I'm going to let Chase and Ty in. You want to come?"
Eyebrows nearly reaching her hairline, she looked at me with an amused expression. "Depends. Are you going to let me toss him down the stairs on the way back?"
That was a hard pass from me.
"Nope," I said, smiling. "Since I'd like to keep him, I'd rather you not break his neck in a forced fall."
Her eyes bulged. "Keep him?"
Anxiety stirred in my chest at her expression.
Crap, crap, crap!
Why did I open my mouth?
Blowing out a pent-up breath, I slipped the package into a plastic bag. "I like him," I replied, my voice a mere whisper. "And I have since the beginning. Don't really see that changing anytime in the future."
She blinked, an emotion I couldn't read brewing in her eyes. "Ashley Jo, I'm about to ask you a question, and I want—"
"—nothing less than the truth," I finished for her, having heard the same line a hundred times before. "That's what you were going to say, right?"
Jerking her chin down, she nodded. Then, "Are you in love with Chase?"
It was a question that stole my breath.
Not because I didn't know the answer—I surely did—but because admitting it to myself, much less aloud, was hard.
Like, really hard.
"I care about him," I replied, fidgeting in place. "A whole lot. But I'm—"
I nodded. "He still doesn't know," I told her truthfully. "Not about what I was. I mean, he knows Dominic abused me, and he knows he hurt me... in those ways"—I paused—"but he doesn't know the rest." My vision blurred thanks to the tears rapidly filling my eyes. "If he did, he'd walk."
Fully expecting my Mama to agree with me, I was nearly knocked right off my feet when she shook her head and cupped my cheeks with her soft, warm hands. "I'm fixing to say something, and I want you to listen to each word carefully."
Oh Lord.
I could only imagine what was coming.
"Ashley Jo Moretti, you are one of the most beautiful people I've ever met. You're strong, you're sweet, and you're smart as a whip." Her eyes glossed over as tears filled them. "You're also my daughter which makes you extra special." Chin wobbling, she smiled. "But what you are not, is what those men did to you, sugar."
She was wrong.
I was every bit what they did to me.
At least what they'd made me become.
Tainted.
Broken.
Used goods.
"And I will not stand by and watch you potentially throw away one of the best things that has ever happened to you because you're scared." I opened my mouth to speak, but she kept talking, not giving me the chance. Big surprise there, right? "Dominic," she snarled, "and those other men have taken enough from you already. Don't allow them to take another damn thing. Do you understand me?"
I froze, unable to reply.
Even if what she said what true—and that was a big if—I still had so many secrets, most of which I could never reveal.
Heart twisting, at that moment, I wanted nothing more than to tell her about Carmen and Jade, and then Ellington. But above all, I wanted to tell her about Addie.
Doing so was impossible.
Dominic would never be brought to justice over Carmen and Jade's deaths—it just wouldn't happen—and if I told her about Ellington, it would open a can of worms that I'd never be able to close.
And Addie...
My sweet baby girl.
If Shelby knew my biggest secret, the one that weighed heavily on both my heart and soul, she might never forgive me.
Every Kiss You Steal: A Redeeming Love Novel (Book 7) Page 20
