Page 32 of White Hole

“I’ll talk with Dad. Hey, I need to tell you something. If Gianna tries to contact you, stay away from her. Okay?”

“Gianna? Gianna Cunningham? Our ex-stepmother?” he asked.

“Yes. If she reaches out to you in any way, make sure to let me know. Immediately.”

“Why? What’s happening?” He sounded suspicious.

“Nothing you need to worry about. Hang in there. Are you doing what they tell you? Is anyone bothering you?”

“It’s just… it’shard, man. I’m doing what they say. No, no one’s bothering me. Not really.”

“Not really?”

Aaron sighed. “Nothingyouneed to worry about. I’ll stay away from Gianna, butpleasetalk to Dad. Try to get me out. I want to come home. I won’t use anymore, I swear.”

“I will. Love you, bro.”

“Love you, too, George.”

When I pulled into the manor, Xavier was getting out of his Maserati in the stable garage. Our TRZ meeting was in an hour, and he was early, for once. He’d been spending all his time with his new girlfriend.

“Hey, man,” he said with a smile.

I gave him a head nod.

“What’s going on with you? Do you want to talk about it?”

He always knew when I was on tilt. “Nah.”

“Is it Kinsley?”

Grabbing my gym bag fromSerenity’sbackseat, I slung it over my shoulder as we walked to the house. “Maybe.” Sort of. I mean, was she fucking with me? Xavier knew about Gianna. After the incident in high school, I knew he’d kept fucking her for a while. He ended it once I confessed to him what she had done to me. “Gianna’s back.”

Xavier’s eyebrows raised. “Oh? Whatever for?”

“She’s trying to—she wants me to impregnate her.”

Xavier snorted and held the front door for me. “And why would you be dumb enough to do that?”

I shook my head.

“You’re not considering it?”

“No way.”

“So what’s the issue?” Xavier furrowed his brow and we headed upstairs to the bedrooms.

If there was anyone who could keep things on the down low, it was Xavier Cardell. Our secrets were deep. I clenched my jaw and pointed to my room as we passed my hall on the second floor. We entered, and I tossed my bags on the bed. “She’s threatening to squeeze out Dan’s or Aaron’s sperm if not me.”

Xavier huffed. “No way Dan would fuck her. Aaron… he may be an issue.” He paused and his eyes darted up and to the left. Xavier would figure this out. “She’s blackmailing you?”

He was always smart as a whip. I took a deep breath in. “Yeah, well, my father.”

Xavier nodded. “Has she been hurting Aaron like…” Neither of us spoke for a minute. He cleared his throat to try again. “Has she been hurting Aaron like she did with you?”

Someone said it out loud. It was strange to hear it that way. “No, I don’t think so. It was just me.”

“I can have my people—”

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