Page 91 of All for her Forgiveness

"And when she died, you decided it was your duty to take care of Kennedy."

"Yes. She ate meals at my house. I always made sure she got home safely from work. I was never wealthy, but I saved everything I had to leave to her as an inheritance. I have an inoperable aneurysm."

"Damn!"

"Don't worry. Kennedy already knows," he says, as if guessing what I'm thinking, how devastating it will be for her to lose him. "The fact is, I took care of her as best I could."

"Did Balantine know about Kennedy's existence?"

"He always knew but never wanted to seek her out. I'm a proud old man—I told myself she didn't need the bastard, but I used all my savings to take care of her while waiting for King."

"I'll reimburse you for everything you spent."

"I don't want that. It's for my daughter and my grandson. I love them as if they were my own blood. When Kennedy came out of the coma, I knew I couldn't let her fall into the hands of a public defender. I blackmailed Balantine. I told him I'd reveal one or two of his dirty secrets and his career would be ruined forever if he didn't fund a team of lawyers and also the house we live in."

"He's the damn secret 'protector.'"

"Yes."

"Kennedy doesn't need that bastard anymore. I'm going to marry her."

"You are?"

"Yes, she agreed, as well as to let me replace her team of lawyers." All I can think about is what she told me earlier, that she spent a childhood in deprivation when she actually had a billionaire father.

"Are you going to tell her?" he asks.

"At the right time, I will. We've had too many secrets and omissions between us. It's time we start clarifying things."

Kennedy

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

"I don't needyou to tiptoe around me," I tell Amber, Hades' friend's wife and also the owner of the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen. She's the first person I've met with yellow eyes, and when I mentioned it to her, she explained that she inherited them from her mother, as did her siblings.

I've never been one for instant infatuations. On the contrary, Pam's almost forced friendship towards me, to be honest, bothered me. However, it’s only taken a little chat with Amber for me to feel like we've known each other for years.

Maybe it's because she’s done everything she can to make me comfortable and has treated Ernest and King so well. Maybe it's because she doesn't ask questions. She's the kind of person you naturally like without needing to make an effort.

Now, Hades has locked himself in the office with Beau, and Ernest is watching King, who hasn't stopped for a minute, excited to be in a different place. At the same time, my friend is talking to one of Amber's daughters, Lilac, a beautiful girl.

"I don't know how to say what I'm thinking without sounding nosy," says Amber.

"You haven't so far."

"Because I'm holding back."

I laugh, and to my own ears, the sound is strange. How long has it been since I laughed? I smile all the time at my son, but I only laugh when King does something funny.

"What's wrong?" Amber asks.

"I was thinking that I must have forgotten how to laugh, but then I quickly came to the conclusion that I never knew how," I say.

"What do you mean?"

"I didn't have any reason to laugh while growing up."

"Me neither, but my sister, Elodie, is very temperamental, so I ended up laughing at her nonsense."

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