Page 41 of Tempted

“That’s the part that doesn’t make sense to me. Why would she do that if she knew that we would find out the truth because she’s knocked up?”

“Unless she’s planning on getting rid of it, or cornering us each, one by one. She probably knows how much us Scots love our kids and want plenty of them. She’ll bribe us to keep the fucking bairn.”

“I don’t know why my da didn’t see how much of a raging, lunatic bitch she is. Why did he ever want you to marry her is beyond me.”

I shrug. “Hey, maybe he’s going to get out of this what he wants. Maybe she’ll insist that they get married, and then they both win. Either that or he’ll see her for the raving nutjob that she is and tell her to take a hike.”

“You wanna lay a bet?”

“You wanna wager against your own da? You’re even fucking crazier than she is.” I scoff.

He laughs. “Okay, we’ll talk to my da and bring him up to speed.”

“Get a clue, Ethan. Your da already knows. He knew before you did. Before we all did. Hell, he might have even known beforeshedid.”

“You think my da is that powerful, huh? Psychic even? That’s bullshit.”

“It doesn’t take a psychic to breech medical records, Ethan. They did it for Moira, when they found out that her da was lying about having cancer, remember?”

He’s silent. Point for me.

“But, how would he know to get into her medical records?”

“Your da leaves no stone unturned, my man. You know this. We all know this. Like I said, get a clue.”

“Alright, fuck!” He says, half humored, half frustrated. “But,you’retalking to my da. And do it before Rush sobers up, too. If he remembers anything about what he said, then he’ll be the first one on the phone, backpedaling.”

“Fine. I’ll call him right now. He’s in Scotland. It’s not the middle of the night there.”

“Good. Call me later and let me know if he blew your head off or not.”

That pisses me off. Sometimes Ethan can be a bit of a pissant. And if I know my brother Rush well enough, he’ll sleep for the day if you let him, which I’m sure Ethan will do. From the sounds of it, he’s not very impressed with my brother, and I think that a small part of him wants to see him fry. I’m not going to lie, since he’s been fucking my ex and got her knocked up, I’m not exactly running to his aid, either. And the fact that Uncle Dougall’s plan is about to be shot to shit sort of gives me a certain satisfaction. As I hang up to Ethan, I head to my own room, so I don’t wake Steph. I have no idea what is going on in her head, but I’ll find out soon enough...

Steph

Malcolm is fast asleep in his room. He put off calling his Uncle Dougall for some reason. Lord knows why. But it doesn’t matter right now. All I can think about is the conversation that I just overheard. I can’t believe that bitch would go to such extremes to hurt the Harris family. This Uncle Dougall sounds like a relentless, crazy asshole, who would risk his family to further the business, and it makes me twitch. What’s worse is that he’s setting his nephews up for a lifetime of misery, or at least he’s trying to. And this Clare bitch is going to bask in that.

...until now.

...in I come.

Me and Moira have been there for each other for a lot of things, including in our own pursuit of relationships, and in that endeavor, I’ve learned a few tricks. And so has she. But one thing I do remember is that everyone has a weakness. I just have to find Clare’s. I’ve seen some of her social media content but have so far failed to find something that will work here. I’m feeling significantly better than I was even six hours ago, and although the storm is still crazy strong outside, I’m completely oblivious to it. I find myself immune to outside circumstances when I’m properly focused. And right now, all I can think about is finding an angle to drown this bitch in her own fucking blood.

As I pull out my phone, I scroll through social media again and take a really close look. Stupidly, she has her profiles completelyopen, like an idiot. But as I click on photos and past posts, not just content that relates to anything to do with the Harris boys, I can see that she does have a penchant for something, and it could be used as an angle. In fact, it could really be helpful, if I’m able to dig a little deeper. And then I find something. But I’m not sure if it’s a strong enough something to really pull it off. Until I find a post from a couple of years back, that really tells the tale. I just have to wait for the right moment to execute it...

Malcolm

When I wake up, in my own bed, to the sounds of the wind, although calmer, the first thing I think of is Steph. She’s not coughing, and strangely, I find her in the kitchen, making breakfast. “I see the storm is passing.” She says as she sees me.

“Wow. You weren’t kidding.” I say to her.

“About what?” She asks, pouring freshly brewed coffee into mugs. She’s made scrambled eggs and toast, and it smells fantastic in here.

“About you bouncing back. Jesus, I thought that you’d be down for the count for at least a couple of days.” She doesn’t even sound all that congested. Her voice is a little hoarse, but it just sounds like she went to a loud concert last night or something.

“I take very good care of myself, Malcolm.” She informs. “If I’m not healthy, then neither is my business.”

“Aye. You aren’t kidding.”

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