Page 99 of Unlawful Seduction

It was extremely difficult not to choke. Lightheaded, I pushed the coffee away. I needed a drink, not caffeine. “In exchange for what, Mr. Zephyr? No one just gives away that kind of money.”

“Well, as you might imagine, a DNA test will be needed to ensure my client is actually the boy’s father. That’s the only stipulation I’m aware of.”

“Of course. Why would he have the balls to tell me that himself?” I laughed, but my stomach ached. I looked away, on the verge of tears and I hated myself for it. “What about his parental rights?”

“What about them?”

“Is he willing to give those up as well? I mean it’s clear to me he wants nothing to do with getting to know Brady at all. But he doesn’t mind tossing around money as if that’s all I care about.Or all my son would care about. Do you know how many times that little boy has asked me about his daddy? Do you know what I’d been forced to tell him time and time again? That God needed extra angels. I find out now after spending night after night crying over the loss, fearful that I couldn’t give my son all the love he needed and deserved that everything was a fucking lie.”

His jaw was suddenly clenched. It was apparent he wasn’t used to having a woman call him on the carpet. “It wasn’t a lie, Dr. McGregor. My client was simply attempting to keep you safe. Now, he wants to do the right thing.”

I leaned back in my chair, folding my arms as I’d done before. This time, to protect myself. Not from the man, but from the rush of emotions tearing through me. “I wouldn’t know that since Beckett didn’t say a word to me the other day.” Then again, I hadn’t said a word either.

“As far as terminating his parental rights, that’s something you’ll need to speak with my client about.”

“Tell me,” I said, half laughing. “Is he bothering to stay long enough so I have an opportunity to speak with him?”

“From what I understand, he’ll be in town for a few days.”

“He’s staying at the mountain cottage?” I used his word. He’d obviously never seen the beautiful home. Another sickening feeling pooled into my stomach. I wasn’t certain I could stand seeing the home again. Not under the best of circumstances.

“No, he’s staying at a local boutique hotel. Now, if you’ll just sign the paperwork agreeing to the DNA testing, we can get everything moving forward.”

I threw out my hand. “Hold on. Not so fast. I’m not the kind of woman who can be bought. I do very well on my own and don’t need a man for anything. You can tell your client I’m not interested.”

“That’s not wise.”

“Yeah, well, it would seem I’ve done a few things in my life that were definitely unwise, but I managed to come out on the other side. I don’t need Beckett’s money.”

“Think of your son.”

I raked my hands through my hair, becoming completely exasperated. “You don’t seem to understand English very well, Mr. Zephyr. I don’t want the money. Period. Not under any circumstances. My son doesn’t need to know about his father, not this way. I’ll allow him to grow up thinking the man was a hero. Not a criminal, which is also what we know the man to be. So please just accept my apologies, but I need to get back to work.” I stood to make a point, but he remained seated.

“Dr. McGregor. You didn’t spend much time with Beckett when he was here. Did you?”

“Enough to know the kind of man he was. Don’t get me wrong. He risked his life to save mine and that’s something I will forever be grateful for, but he allowed me to believe he was dead. As you might imagine, that nearly destroyed me. I still hurt today.” I don’t know why I was admitting my feelings to the man.

“Did he tell you he was in the military?”

“He might have mentioned it.”

“He saved his entire unit, receiving the medal of honor for his deed. In doing so, he was severely injured resulting in a lengthy hospital stay and intensive rehab.”

“I assume that was before he got himself involved with the Valenti crime family.”

He shook his head and finally stood. “He did so to alleviate a debt created by his father.”

“I don’t understand.”

“His father had a serious gambling problem, finding himself in debt to the tune of over half a million dollars with the Valenti family. Beckett’s mother was threatened, his father beaten, and the only way he could save and protect his family was to agree to work as an enforcer for Lucian Valenti. Fresh out of serving his country, he was forced into that kind of terrible decision. What choice did he have?”

I moved against the desk to keep me standing. “Shouldn’t the debt be paid by now?”

“I know a person of your obvious intelligence can understand that sometimes even the best of us can fall into murky waters. I assure you that Beckett paid his dues, suffering so his family wasn’t required to do so. Their trust was earned and by then, Beckett felt he had no choice but to continue living what he’d once believed was a lie. Life isn’t always easy, Dr. McGregor. I’m certain you’re aware of that. Sometimes we fall in love with the wrong people, which leads us to making ill-advised choices.”

I seriously doubted the man was talking about my former life. “You’re saying he fell in love with the wrong woman.”

“I’m saying he overstepped his bounds. After that, he ultimately chose to return to listening to his conscience. The Valenti family are ruthless and unforgiving.”

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