Page 27 of Cinderella's Fling with the Off-Limits Billionaire

He ground his teeth together, tried to bring his focus back to the report he’d been reading, but in the back of his mind, a countdown clock was running, ticking away the minutes until she’d be back in his bed.

“Who the hell is he?”

All the colour drained from Skye’s face as she stared at Jay. Harper was on her hip, because they’d been walking back from the park and her little legs had grown tired a few blocks from home.

Fear was a normal response when she saw Jay, but ordinarily, she knew when he was coming and arranged to have her parents home. She avoided being alone with him as much as possible.

He wasn’t violent, but he still scared her. She’d been conditioned to fear him, and it was a difficult training to erase.

“Who?” She asked breathlessly.

“The blonde in the Range Rover,” he demanded. “Bringing you home in the middle of the night, three nights in a row now. What the actual hell, Skye?”

“Jay,” she lifted a hand placatingly even when shock, terror and confusion burst through her. Harper burrowed her face into Skye’s shoulder. Jay didn’t even seem to realise she was there. “Calm down, this isn’t a big deal.”

“You’re screwing around, leaving our daughter home while you’re off spreading your legs?”

“Jay,” she hissed, a warning in her voice. “Cut it out.”

“Don’t you dare tell me what to do,” he responded, ice in his voice. Fear flared in her heart.

But she had to be strong, for Harper’s sake. “We can’t have this conversation while you’re in this mood. Call me when you’ve calmed down.”

She began to walk past him, her knees shaking, but he grabbed her arm, his fingers digging into her flesh. He wasn’t violent, he wasn’t violent, she kept telling herself, but her teeth were chattering. Because she wasn’t an idiot. She knew that violence didn’t come out of nowhere. Abusive behaviours escalated and it was entirely plausible that he’d progress from being emotionally controlling to physically violent. She could see that his temper was holding on by a thread.

Fear was knotting her stomach.

“Jay,” she whispered. “Think of our daughter.”

“I am thinking of our daughter. I’m thinking of the fact I don’t want her being raised by a slut.”

Tears filled Skye’s eyes. “That’s not fair.”

“You’re the one who’s out screwing around. I thought I could trust you.”

“You can trust me,” she whispered. “I’m not involved with anyone.”

“Don’t fucking lie to me,” Jay ground out.

Skye winced. Harper cuddled in closer. “Mama,” she whispered. “It’s okay, mama.”

“Damn you, Jay,” she said quietly. “You’re scaring her.”

“That’s on you. This is all on you.” He got right up in her face, spittle in the corners of his mouth. “I told you what would happen if you stepped out, Skye. You have only yourself to blame when you lose her.”

“Jay, no,” she shook her head quickly. “No.”

“Shut up,” he muttered. “I don’t want to hear it. You’re such a cheap whore. You deserve everything you get.” And he turned and left.

Skye was shaking from head to toe, but she did her best to hide it from Harper, encouraging the little girl to talk the whole way home, while Skye was numb all over from the awful encounter.

She felt disgusted on so many levels.

How did he know what time she’d been arriving home and with whom? Had he been watching her house? All night, every night? Surely not. Her schedule was too unpredictable for that, and he had a life.

So how had he known then? She looked around the street, at all the houses that surrounded their own. She knew their neighbours. She’d grown up here, and the houses changed hands so rarely that she could recite almost everyone’s name and phone number. No way a neighbour was keeping tabs on her for Jay. So how?

And what was she going to do?

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