Page 46 of The Final Straw

“Let him go, Grady,” Kipp calls.

Grady listens, and Van drops back onto the chair. I need to explain, to fix this in some way.

“She didn’t know,” Kipp pipes up. “Well, she knew I was Barbi’s dad, but we have no contact with Barbi. My ex-wife called yesterday and told me the news. We came over and told Olivia right away. She deserved to know the truth.”

“So what? Your daughter is in jail and being charged with rape. My rape. And you’re just okay with it?”

“Yes,” Kipp answers immediately. “If she’s guilty, which if you went to the police, then I’m sure she is. She deserves to do time for what she did.”

“This is so fucked.” Van leans his head back against the chair.

Chapter 24

Van

My head falls back against the chair as my eyes close.

The tension in the room is so thick you could cut it with a knife. No one speaks, but still a million things are being said. The only sound is the humming of the fan.

How is this my life? My head begins to throb, the pounding growing more intense with each passing moment. Lifting my hands, I press my thumb to my face as I rub my fingers up and down my forehead, trying to alleviate the pain with no success.

Barbi’s dad is here, in the same fucking room as me, and he’s not ripping out my heart for pressing charges against his daughter. Not just any charges, but rape. Not to mention, he’s not doing anything to help her. He’s glad she’s being held accountable for what she’s done. If it was my daughter, I don’t know if I would be acting the same way. I’d be full of anger and disbelief at the allegations.

Olivia forgives me and is heartbroken about what happened.

How can I do that? Share her with two other men. It’s not normal.

“Van.” Her soft voice pulls me from my thoughts.

“Yeah.” I don’t even open my eyes.

“Can you tell me what happened?” I turn my head, locking eyes with her as she looks at me pleadingly.

It seems like all I’ve done is recount that night. But I haven’t explained all the details to Olivia. Hell, a lot of it is still a blur to me, thanks to Barbi drugging me. In a way, it’s a blessing. I’ll never have the memory of fucking her.

“Never mind, you don’t have to tell me.” My silence sent her a message that I couldn’t.

I clear my throat. “It’s not that I don’t want to tell you. I do. It’s just hard and I’m not sure”—I look over to where Kipp and Grady are sitting next to her on the couch—“Well, I’m just not sure if it’s appropriate to share in front of her father.”

There I said it. The two of them look at me, understanding in their eyes.

Kipp clears his throat, and Grady grips his knee, squeezing it.

“I might be wrong, but I think you should,” Bre speaks up. “When this goes to court, they’ll be there. Telling them what happened now will not only lessen the shock in court, but give you practice as well.”

“Practice?” I question her.

“You’re going to have to tell your story in front of people. Think of this as a trial run. But they’ve shown they don’t condone what Barbi did to you. They deserve to know that they are right in not doing so. Barbi is a cunt.” She turns to face them. “No offense, but she is. She’s never been a good friend, but Olivia’s been too blind to recognize it.”

“I know firsthand how she can be. She’s never approved of our relationship and has made it known on more than one occasion. Honestly, I’m surprised she hasn’t tried harder to break us up.” Grady leans into Kipp, kissing him on his cheek.

“Fine, I’ll try.” I sit forward, scooting to the edge of the chair, resting my arms on my thighs. I drop my head, gazing at my shoes as if they’re the most interesting thing I’ve ever seen. My eyes fixate on the scuff marks.

I can do this. Breathe in. Breathe out.

“Olivia, you encouraged me to go to the party, the one I didn’t want to go to.” I can hear her gasp, but I don’t acknowledge it.

“Van.” Olivia’s gentle voice fills the air.

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