Page 66 of Breaker

I grin and state, "I can't pinpoint it, but they spend a lot of time together."

She chuckles, shaking her head, as Paul catches Noah, who whispers, "Momma found out about Daddy and you moving her in. I think we're inbigtrouble."

I laugh as Quinn mock glares at her dad, who shrugs, before taking a seat next to her with Noah in his arms.

"We all know that was the next step; he's claimed you." I smile at his words, before he gets serious and asks, "Are you ready, Pumpkin?"

Quinn sighs, burrowing herself deeper into me, causing her to wince. I scowl at her, not that she can see.

"I don't think I am…" she mumbles against my chest.

I sigh as I make eye contact with Paul, who looks to be struggling. He loves his wife and wants his family whole again after so long apart, but he also knows the trauma his daughter has been through and the years they've missed because of his wife's actions. After this meeting, he could be waiting a while.

My girl is ready to blow.

I give Paul a nod before gently kissing my girl's head and state, "I think, after you've had this conversation, you can start healing. Look what happened with your dad. You finally spoke about everything, and now look at you." I squeeze her to me. "I'll be with you, and so will your dad and your brother. You need to get your anger off your chest, Goldie, and I know you don't want to hurt your momma, but she needs to see what she put you through, trying to punish your dad."

Noah cuts in, "And I'll be with Auntie Lola," which makes me laugh. Lola has been spoiling him a little too much lately.

"No more candy, Noah," Quinn mumbles, and I laugh while Noah grins. She sits up and takes a deep breath. “Okay, I'm ready."

I smile at her, kissing her nose, then I stand. Then, gently helping her up, I wrap my arm around her waist and guide her inside, where her momma is waiting with her brother. Her dad hands Noah off to a happy Lola.

I clear my throat and look at my girl, who is still looking at the table. We've been sitting here for about twenty minutes, and no one has said anything. Her momma watches her like a hawk, waiting, while her dad and brother sweat.

Quinn needs to blow; we all know it, and so does her momma, which is why she hasn't said anything. We literally sat down, and it's like a Mafia standoff without the fucking weapons.

I make eye contact with Snake and Tats, who are both sitting at the bar in support of my girl, while everyone else is in the yard.

Jack taps his finger on his leg, his eyes firmly on his sister, waiting, while I keep my hand on her thigh, keeping pressure so she doesn't jolt and hurt her shoulder when she explodes.

"Fuck, all we need is some ammo, and this would be like a Mafia standoff," Tats mutters, and I suck my lip ring into my mouth to stop my grin because, yep, that's what I thought, too.

Quinn's breathing picks up as Tats' voice snaps her out of her head. Everyone at the table stills while my brothers behind us stand and get ready. Quinn grabs her glass and chucks it, barely missing her momma's head. I silently curse for not moving the glass before she could grab it.

She grabs my glass, too, then throws that at her momma next, skimming her shoulder. Finally, she points at a shocked Janet and sneers, "You're a selfish, spoiled, little bitch, and you don't deserve to have kids." My eyes widen as Jack's mouth drops while my brothers move behind me. Paul sits back and crosses his arms over his chest, knowing his wife needs to hear this. Quinn continues, anger radiating off her from years of pain, "Noah isn't even my blood, and yet just the thought of doing to him what you selfishly did to mekills me!"

She stands, and I quickly stand with her, wrapping my arm around her waist to steady her as her momma sits with tears in her eyes, taking her daughter's rightful anger. "I spent years,years,showing disdain and anger to my father and—why? Huh, Momma? Becauseyoudecided to pretend to kill yourself to get my father's attention, but I interrupted that, didn't I?" Her momma flinches. "Yeah…you got a new idea in your head. Why not make daddy's confused little girl hate him? You said all that bullshit to hurt me, and I was seven…seven!"She shakes her head in hurt and disappointment, causing me to hold her tighter, giving her the strength to carry on. "It worked a little too well though, huh Momma. Not only did you traumatize me to the point that the thought of falling in love terrified me, but you ruined my childhood—my relationships!"

Janet sniffles before rasping, "I-I wasn't well darling, I was hurt?—"

Quinn cuts her off and shouts,"I was only seven, and you used me for revenge! I would never do that to Noah! Never!"

She flinches. "I blanked it out. For the first few days, I felt justified. I thought we were better off without him, but then your daddy and I, we finally came back together, and I-I put what I did to you to the back of my mind. I-I couldn't understand your hate after so long…. I'm so sorry, baby."

I shake my head at her excuses, and just as Quinn is about to scream again, her brother speaks up, "Momma, your excuses suck," causing everyone to look his way. "You knew, deep down, why she wanted nothing to do with Dad, but didn't want to address it because of this reason right here. She has spent years hating him, and you were the sole reason. I know what he did was wrong, but you chose to forgive him, you chose marriage counseling, and you chose to guilt trip your daughter to keep her mouth shut about what you did. Your excuses are not justified, because you chose to forgive then try and force Quinn to do the same when, in her mind, dad didn't just cheat. In her mind, her momma had a breakdown and cried about how she had nothing to live for while blood poured down her hands."

Quinn flinches, and I hold her tighter to me as she looks at her mother, who silently sobs. I can feel the pain coming from my girl as everyone stays quiet as my girl deflates against me.

"I don't want anything to do with you," Quinn whispers, causing her father to drop his head and her mother to cry out. "I couldn't ever imagine hurting Noah the way you hurt me. You continued to live that lie, knowing what you put me through…. I don't want a relationship with you right now, if ever."

With that said, Quinn turns out of my hold before making her way to our room. Janet sobs, begging me to get her to listen, but I ignore her and go after my woman. Snake and Tats pat my back, looking sad for my girl, as Jack slumps down in shock. Paul follows me.

When I get into my room, my eyes soften at Quinn sitting on the floor near the window. I walk over to her and kneel beside he.

I grip her bent knees and murmur, "Goldie?"

She sniffles and asks, "Am I a bad person?"

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