Page 70 of Selfless

“He knew about her too,” I say softly. “He knew about our sister, and that was how Rosie found out about her.” I take another step toward him. “Maggie is safe,” I say, and my words cause him to fist his hands down by his side.

“Your mother wants her,” he says through gritted teeth.

“What? How do you know that?” I ask.

“Your father told me when we had our talk outside at Rosie’s earlier tonight. She’s been threatening him about her.”

I start shaking my head. “But why all of a sudden?”

He snorts. “Your father has filed for divorce. To her friends and the town, she looks like an idiot who couldn’t keep her husband. But if she has a child.” He shrugs. “She has sympathy.”

That’s exactly what I had told Ashlyn. “What is he gonna do?” I ask.

“He’s going to give her what she wants, so she’ll leave Rosie and Maggie alone.”

I run a hand through my hair, letting out a breath. “How much does she want?” She had wanted him to step away from the company, so he did, but he can always go back to it. After the divorce is final, we can sign some more papers and everything be undone. What is the price she wants in order to walk away from Maggie?

He looks at me and says, “She doesn’t want money.” I frown. “He’s called off the divorce.”

ASHLYN

I sit on the couch in Becca’s apartment as she sits beside me crying. “He’s so mad.” She sniffs.

I reach over and grab some tissue for her. “At your mother?” I ask.

She shakes her head. “At everyone.”

I place my hand on her back and start to rub it. “He’s not mad at you, Becca.”

She nods. “He is. On the way home, he was talking all this nonsense. About my dad and then Conner. And then he was yelling about me going to Seattle …” She sobs.

I pull her to my side and gently rock her from side to side. “He didn’t mean it,” I assure her. “There’s just so much going on right now …”

The door to the apartment opens, and I look over my shoulder to see Jaycent walk in with a pissed-off Ryder behind him.

Now what?

Jaycent comes over to us and bends down in front of her. She sniffs and then wipes her nose with the tissue. Without a word, he takes her into his arms, and she sobs into his chest. “I’m so sorry, baby,” he tells her softly.

**

We make our way up to our apartment without saying a word to one another. I walk in and go straight to our bedroom. I’m getting undressed and climbing into bed when he enters, holding a glass with dark liquid in it.

I hold in a sigh. “What’s wrong?” It’s a stupid question to ask because there is so much that isn’t right at the moment.

He ignores me as he walks to the bathroom and shuts the door behind him.

I stare at it for a few seconds, debating whether to go in there or to just lie down and go to sleep. The stubborn part of me decides to get out of bed.

Storming into the bathroom, I find his white t-shirt on the floor while he bends at the waist to push down his jeans. He looks over at me as he straightens and kicks them to a corner. “Thought you were going to bed,” he growls.

I come over to him and lean my hip up against the countertop. “And I thought you were in a good mood?”

He snorts. “I’m so fucking done with this day.” Picking up his glass, he takes a big swig.

“Then come to bed with me,” I say, reaching out and touching his arm softly. I can feel his tense muscles ripple under my touch. “This past week has been hectic, to say the least. Let’s just go to bed and start over tomorrow.”

He slams his glass down on the countertop. “Tomorrow won’t be any better.” Then he turns to walk over to the shower.

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