Page 40 of Hold My Heart

Chapter 10

He’d stood and watchedher for the longest time, feeling her agony deep inside of him. There was nothing he could do to take it from her. She wouldn’t want him to even if there was. He watched her break down into racking sobs, still telling him to go.

Get out.

That’s what he’d finally done. He’d taken himself home with his tail between his legs. Defeated.

He couldn’t sleep that night and ended up staring at his ceiling until the first streaks of dawn showed through the windows. His mind had spent hours racing in circles, like a snake devouring its own tail.

There was nothing left for him to do. Olympia didn’t want or need his help, and with Renee in CPS’s care, then he was worse than useless. It was a big change, trying to wake up from the picture of his life he’d come to love. He wanted to wake up in the morning next to her. He wanted to take Renee to the park, to cook dinner for them, and watch both their beautiful faces light in similar smiles.

Harlan was on his third cup of coffee when his mind screeched to a halt like he’d hit a roadblock. Why should he give up on the life he wanted, the life he deserved? Why...simply because Olympia told him to get out? She’d told him that before and he hadn’t listened.

Why was he listening this time?

“No,” he said out loud, looking out the window at the leafless trees and the sun shining down in cold streams. “No, this is bullshit.”

He set the cup in the sink. He wasn’t the type of person to roll over and expose his belly. If there was a fight, then he should step up to it instead of backing down. But where to start?

The fundraiser. Today was the big day.

***

HARLAN WASN’T SUREif he was still invited, but he dusted off his suit from his college formal anyway. It was a little tight around the shoulders and hips, but it still worked, fit well enough that he wouldn’t look like a hobo.

As soon as she saw him, she was likely to kick him out. That was fine with him, he fumed, tightening his tie and nearly strangling himself with it. But not before they had a chance to talk.

Maybe it was time to say the words. Words he’d said to no woman before.

It was high time Olympia knew exactly how he felt about her, and he would make sure she heard him. The thought should have terrified him, but it bolstered him instead. Harlan sighed, staring at his reflection in the mirror. Why did he feel so bad, then?

Because Renee had spent the night in the custody of Child Protective Services and there was nothing he could do about it. Not when he wasn’t her legal guardian. He had wanted to charge after Ms. Marshall and rip the little girl from her arms. She belonged at home. She belonged with Olympia.And me, he thought vehemently.

They belonged together.

Now he was faced with a legal tangle in which he was persona non grata, the woman he loved hated him, and he was probably about to ruin her fundraiser with his presence.

Well, too bad.

He would consider this a chance at redemption. It was an opportunity to make right what he’d done wrong. And she could call him pushy, she could call him unwelcome, she could call him whatever she wanted, but she was going to listen. Hopefully when they were done, although they might not see eye to eye, at least they could be on the same page instead of in different books.

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