Page 131 of Summer with the Single Dad

The coast was clear, and she was nearly at the base of the hill up to the private property, but of course, she let her guard down and that’s when someone called her name.

“Justine? Is that you?”

Crap. It was Tad.

Every cell in her body caught fire as she steeled herself and slowly spun to face him, plastering on a smile that even the bees and butterflies could tell was fake.

“What are you doing here?” he accused. “Did you follow us?”

Her jaw dropped. “I’ve been here for weeks,” she finally said. It was a bit of a lie. She’d only been there two weeks, but he didn’t need to know that.

“Bullshit.” The briny breeze picked up a swath of his sandy blond hair and flipped it off his forehead.

She glared at him. “What are you doing here, Tad? Did you follow me?”

His sneer made her want to peel off his face with a ten-blade. Sometimes she hated the Hippocratic oath. There were people out there who deserved harm. People like Tad. “I heard you had a mental breakdown after you killed that patient, and took a sabbatical. So you came here to … what?”

That aggravating lump was back in her throat. “I came here for a break,” she croaked. “And no, I didn’t have a mental breakdown. Is that what people are saying?”

He ignored her question. “Your parents called me. Said you’ve been ignoring them. They asked what was going on.”

“What did you tell them?”

“I told them what I know.”

“And what do you know, Tad?”

“That you killed a patient and nobody at the hospital has seen you since. The nurses in the OR that day said you froze.”

“The nurses, huh?”

He squinted at her with his soulless, pale-blue eyes. “So are you staying in one of the cabins or something?”

“I’m staying on the island.”

“Where?”

“What does it matter? We’re not together anymore. Why do you give a crap about anything I do? You didn’t give a crap about me when we were together.”

“You’re coming across as really bitter, Justine. It’s not a good look for you.”

“And your Botox is wearing off, Tad.”

His nostrils flared. “I’m having a … gathering here tomorrow and I just want to make sure you’re not going to bring your bitter attitude and ruin it. It would be best if you steered clear of the pub. In fact, it’d be best if you steered clear of the entire area for at least the next five days.”

“Are you trying to lay claim to private property?”

“I’m paying to be here.”

“So am I.”

He sneered again. “I really thought you’d be more mature than this, Justine. We simply wanted different things. You just refuse to let go and move on.”

“Yeah, we did want different things. I wanted fidelity and someone I could trust. You wanted …” She waved her hand in the air flippantly, searching for an appropriate and effective insult for Ashli. Lord knew the McEvoy brothers had come up with enough of them already.

Tad huffed a haughty laugh. “Just leave our family in peace, Justine.”

The word family was like a someone had just cracked open her chest, reached in and ripped out her beating heart. And judging by the smile on his smarmy face, he knew he’d hit a vital artery with his jeer.

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