Page 14 of Wreck Me Gently

“No.” He stares down at a white scar on his forearm. “He, uh, he walked in on Dad in one of his rages, and Cam had to pull him off me.”

I’ve seen a lot of violence but thinking about Parker in that position feels worse. He was so young. “Did your dad not try to get you back?”

Parker shrugs. “I’m sure he eventually would have, but he robbed that convenience store just a month later. Someone from child protective services was sent out, discovered I was already living with Cam, and let it go. Cam had to fill out a ton of paperwork proving he could take care of me.” His voice turns a little soft with the memory. “I was so lucky I had him and that he was willing to keep me.”

“It sounds like he loves you a lot.”

Parker smiles, light filling his eyes for the first time since we started talking. “We’re pretty close.”

I start to respond, but the words get caught in my throat. Hearing Parker talk about his brother makes me miss Jack so much that it’s like a physical ache. I should be there for him. Knowing I’m only two hours from my family and not being able to see them nearly kills me. I feel like I took that life for granted. I never could’ve seen myself in this position at twenty years old.

“You know you could go to the police about Tony,” Parker says, interrupting my thoughts. “Even if he’s not hurting you anymore, he can still be prosecuted for several more years.”

“Oh, no. No, I could never do that.” Just hearing those words sends a spike of fear through my chest. If Tony knew I had even had that thought, he would punish me. “I-I know that doesn’t make sense…”

“It does,” he says, reaching out and placing a hand on top of mine. “You don’t owe me an explanation for your answer.”

I swallow back all the words struggling to get out. To admit that I’m still trapped with Tony and most likely always will be. Telling Parker about that won’t change anything. He can’t stop Tony.

No one can.

Eight

Parker

It’s hard for me to concentrate on work over the next few days. I can’t stop thinking about my father being out of prison so early. When I glance out the window in the morning, I can swear I see him walking by. But when I check again, it’s just a stranger.

So I push my mind to focus on something else, and it goes automatically toward Rhys, which is what’s been happening over the last couple of days. Even though he talked about Tony with so little emotion, I could see the pain in his eyes. I hate the idea of him being jerked away from his family—his whole life—to be thrown into that situation. No wonder he’s so wary of everything and everyone. He’s been fighting to survive since he was fifteen years old.

A knock sounds on my door, startling me back to the present. For a heart-pounding second, I expect to see my father there. But it’s Phil who leans into my office. “You have a minute?”

I’d really rather not spend even a second with this creep, but I wave him into my office anyway. I didn’t tell anyone else about what happened at the party because I didn’t want to make a big deal about it. If Cameron heard about it, he’d probably fire Phil for the way he acted, and Phil would probably bring a lawsuit against the company because he’s the kind of guy who never believes anything’s his fault.

“Look,” Phil begins, sitting in the chair across from me. He crosses one leg over the other and steeples his fingers together. “I’ve spent the last few days thinking about what transpired at the party.”

I stay silent during his pause because I’m pretty sure I’m not going to like what comes out of his mouth when he opens it again.

“I know your brother is the CEO of this company, but that doesn’t excuse unprofessional behavior on your end. You interrupted my date and threatened me. I haven’t brought this to Leigh’s attention yet because I wanted us to have the chance to talk it out first.”

My eyes widen when he looks at me expectantly. He can’t be serious.

But as he keeps staring at me, I realize he is fucking serious. He thinks I owe him some kind of apology because I made him stop beating an innocent guy he brought to our company party.

“Are you aware that as COO, I outrank you by a mile?”

He laughs a little, and the small sound reminds me of every reason why I’ve never liked this smarmy bastard.

“I’m aware that your big brother appointed you COO right after you graduated college with little qualifications,” Phil says, his tone sharp despite his laugh. “Are you aware that I worked at this company for the last twelve years and know more about this business than you ever will?”

Irritation prickles under my skin, but I don’t let it show on my face. I shadowed Cam the entire time I was in college. I know how to do this job.

“Do you want to know the real reason why I’m COO and you’re not?” I don’t wait for him to form an answer before I continue. “Because you don’t have the temperament for it. Clients have to be able to count on management. No one can count on you. If you were worthy of a higher position, you would’ve been promoted at some point. Twelve years is a long time to work in the same starting position.”

He opens his mouth, but I press on before he can say anything.

“As for the New Year’s Eve party, I witnessed you assault someone. It was caught on our security cameras too. That man could decide to press charges against you and maybe the company as a whole. You’re lucky you weren’t fired on the spot for committing a misdemeanor by hiring a prostitute.”

His face pales. “I…”

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