Page 58 of Against All Odds

She went pale and took a step away from me.

I wasn’t done.

“You know what, Sable,” I said, my voice loud enough that the crowd could hear, but I didn’t give a flying fuck. “Your tavern is struggling because you’re inexperienced. You don’t know what you’re doing, and instead of fixing that, you’re blaming everyone else. Doyou think this is Alexa’s fault? No, Sable. This is on you.”

I could feel the crowd’s attention, the sharp sting of their judgment. I was making a scene, and I should shut up and take this to a private place. But it was too late now. And the hell with it. Sable started this by confronting Alexa in front of Juno.

Sable’s face crumpled for half a second before she pulled herself together, straightening her spine.

“In case you’re wondering, we’re finished,” I threw at her.

Her lips trembled, and tears brimmed in her eyes. “Well, you certainly put me in my place.”

“Don’t talk to my kid ever fucking again,” I thundered.

She turned and walked away, her shoulders stiff, her head high.

I stood there, my chest heaving, my fists still clenched. For a moment, I felt justified. She’d hurt Juno. I’d done what I had to do.

I turned and saw Juno.

She was standing next to Alexa, her arms still wrapped around herself, her face pale. But it wasn’t Alexa’s usual smugness that caught my attention—it was how Juno looked at me.

With disgust.

My stomach dropped. Fuck. I’d just compounded the shit show by doing this in public.

“Juno,” I started, taking a step toward her, but she shook her head.

“Don’t,” she said quietly, her voice trembling. “Just...don’t. I want to go home.” She held out her hand, and I gave her the Jeep keys.

The crowd dispersed, the volume of the conversations higher. I’d given the town a whole lot of fodder to gossip about.

Alexa stepped forward, her expression carefully neutral, but I could see the glint of satisfaction in her eyes.

“Well,” she said smoothly, “that was...messy.”

“You need to stop doing this in public and in front of our daughter.”

“Well, control your slut, Heath. She started it.”

I wanted to tell her not to call Sable that, but I didn’t. I was still angry as hell with Sable.

I didn’t want to argue with Alexa. The way I felt right now, I would regret what I said. So, I went to the Jeep and drove Juno home.

Throughout the drive, no matter how much I coaxed her, my daughter refused to speak to me.

Finally, when we got home, and before she locked herself in her room, Juno spoke softly, “Today, I lost respect for you, Daddy.”

CHAPTER 20

sable

The sun was too bright for my mood. It filtered through the curtains of my tiny office at the back of the Wildflower, its cheerful glow jeering at the mess my life had become.

Heath’s words kept playing in my mind, looping endlessly like a broken record I couldn’t shut off.

“Your tavern is struggling because you’re inexperienced. You don’t know what you’re doing.”

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