Page 89 of Pucking Secret

She nods. “Yeah. She dropped it. When I read it, I couldn’t believe you’d given her something so cruel, but if you didn’t write it, then who…?”

I think back to when I first arrived in Denver and we saw each other again. She was so standoffish — so cold. It took her so long to tell me about Millie, as if she were afraid to.

If this is the letter she received, what happened to the one I actually wrote?

It all clicks in an instant. It is a forged letter. Gerald’s smug threats on the phone. His talk about keeping me away from Stacey.

“Fucking Gerald,” I spit, crumpling the letter in my hand.

“Gerald?” Elise asks, wide-eyed. “You think he wrote that awful letter?”

“It’s him,” I say with certainty. “He’s been pulling strings behind the scenes this whole time. This —” I hold up the crumpled paper, “— this is his doing. He forged this letter to push Stacey away, back when we were first together. To keep me from her. This is the letter that kept us apart.”

Elise looks genuinely shocked. “Are you sure?”

“I’d bet my life on it,” I say, my jaw clenching. “He’s been meddling for years. I should’ve known. Now it makes so much sense why Stacey disappeared completely. Why I never knew she was pregnant with my baby…”

“Woah, pregnant?” Elise gasps. “You have a kid?”

“Yeah,” I murmur. “A beautiful little girl named Millie. Gerald kept me apart from her for seven years… I can’t forgive him for that.”

Elise stares at me, her brows drawn tight, her mouth opening and closing like she’s trying to find the right words but keeps coming up empty. Finally, she takes a hesitant step closer.

“What are you going to do?”

I glance down at the crumpled letter in my hand, the weight of everything finally pressing down on me.

“I’m going to talk to my mom,” I say firmly.

Elise blinks, clearly confused. “Your mom?”

“Yeah,” I say, running a hand through my hair. “Because what I’m about to do isn’t just cutting ties with Gerald. It’s cutting ties with the whole family — and that’s going to put Mom in a difficult spot. I need to warn her that things are going to change. I’ve put up with Gerald’s bullshit all this time for her. For her happiness. But now, I’ve got my own family to protect — Stacey and Millie. They’re what matters. She can do what she wants, but if she wants to interact with my family, it won’t be with Gerald.”

“Are you really prepared to give it all up?” Elise asks softly. “Walk away from the Weston name and everything it could give you?”

I regard her for a moment and I see the hesitant hope in her gaze. Does she want me to say yes? Would that make it easier for her to cut ties with her family and live the life she wants?

“For Stacey and Millie?” I say. “In a heartbeat.”

Elise looks away, her lips pressed into a thin line.

She’s quiet for a moment before she finally says, “You’re right. You’re absolutely right.” She looks back at me, her eyes shining with regret. “I’m sorry I risked your happiness, and I risked your family, all because I’ve been too scared to deal with my father myself. Seriously, I’m so sorry.”

I study her for a moment. “Can you help me?” I ask, stepping closer. “We should do this together.”

Her brows knit again. “What do you mean?”

“I’m going to need to go back to Canada for a few days to deal with this mess,” I explain. “If I’m going to blow up Gerald’sworld, I need to make sure everything’s in place first. That means I’ll need your help.”

Elise hesitates for only a moment before she nods.

“Okay, I’ll do what I can,” she says earnestly.

“Good.” I release a long breath. “This ends now. For good.”

CHAPTER THIRTY: PUT ON A HAPPY FACE

STACEY

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