Page 83 of Harmless Scandals

“You sound like you admire her.”

“Yes, I do, but this is more about identifying with her. You have no idea what a shitty childhood is like. I do. I know what it’s like to have a parent who doesn’t give a shit about you. I know the feeling of worthlessness that wells up inside of you. I’m thirty-three years old and I still have to deal with it. Not every day, but more often than I would like to admit.”

“Adam,” he said, his eyes widening. “I had no idea.”

“How could you? You grew up in the safe shelter of Estelle McGrath. She made sure you had food. I bet you never worried about eviction notices either. Think about things from Serenity’s perspective.”

He crossed his arms over his chest. “I can’t. She lied.”

“Oh, Jesus.”

He needed to step away because there was a chance he would punch Mick if he stayed. Neither of them needed that. But someone did need him.

Turning, he strode to the door.

“Where are you going?”

“I’m going to check on Serenity and leave you some time to deal with being a complete and utter asshole.”

He left without waiting for Mick’s answer.

As he hurried over to Serenity’s house, he texted Estelle. They both needed a heads up just in case the scandal did hit the tabloids. He knew that her sweet baby boy wouldn’t think to let her know. He would think about it later, but Adam knew Mick wasn’t prepared to just now.

He sent the text just as he stepped up on Serenity’s lanai. That’s when he heard her. Quiet sobs filled the air. The soft sound broke his heart even more. This pain came out of her childhood. He understood. Show any kind of weakness and your enemy could use it against you. Only, for a neglected and abused child, their enemy was the person who should have been their protector. He kicked off his shoes, and without knocking, he stepped inside of her house. She wasn’t in her front room, so he had a feeling she was in the bedroom. He followed the sounds of her weeping and found her curled up on her bed. She was facing away from him.

If Adam had any doubts whatsoever of his feelings for her, they would have ended right then and there. His chest fucking hurt.

“Serenity.”

“Please, just go away.”

Instead of arguing with her, he walked around so he could see her face. It was red and her eyes were puffy and still filled with tears.

“I can’t go.”

“Yes, you can. Just turn around and go back to that idiot.”

He chuckled. “He is an idiot. If I go back right now, I’ll punch him.”

He wanted her to laugh, but instead, a fresh wave of tears filled her eyes. “I’m sorry. You should go back to him. I couldn’t bear it if I broke you apart.”

He couldn’t wait any longer. He pulled her forward, picked her up, then he sat down on the bed with her on his lap. He was happy when she didn’t try to get away from him.

“You could never break us up. If we did break up, it would be on us, not you. Secondly, when Mick gets like this, you just need to leave him be. I’ve discovered that if you push, he pushes back.”

She sniffed. “It isn’t like him at all.”

“Yes, it is. You’ve only seen happy Mick. He has some dark moments, and it often happens when he realizes that life isn’t perfect.”

She opened her mouth, but his phone rang.

“That’s Mom.”

“Your mother?”

“Our mother, but Mick’s by blood.”

“Why did you call her?”

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