Page 77 of Ashes of Saints

The familiar shadow that crossed her eyes, as it had many times, appeared. I knew she’d shut the conversation down.

It was like I knew she’d never tell me.

Not as long as she lived.

And I was right.

“I’m not going to warn you again. Stop asking questions. Some answers should never see the light of day,” Mom warned. “Now I need to get ready, so see yourself out.”

That was the last time I saw her.

“Did you grow up here?” Parker asks, snapping me back to the present.

“No. Mom purchased this home a few years ago, but I grew up in New York. I actually didn’t know my mom was rich.” Then I remember I’m talking to a billionaire. “Well, you know, rich-ish.”

Parker frowns and tilts his head curiously.

“I don’t understand. This is a multi-million-dollar property, Aurora. You didn’t know she had this type of money?”

I shake my head.

“Did she win it? Inherit it?” he asks.

I shrug.

He lifts his ankle to his knee. “You didn’t ask?”

I draw in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Mom was very secretive. She never told me who my father was. I was homeschooled until college and before that, who I socialized with was very controlled.”

His eyes widen.

“I don’t know why.”

Those blue eyes watch me, and I hate the judgment he’s carefully hiding. This is where I share more, but there isn’t more, so I smile sadly and wait for him to realize I’m just a shell of a person.

Suddenly a kind of insanity comes over me and I snort.

“Not much of a catch, am I? No career goals, fuzzy childhood memories, and no father.”

Parker blinks, casts his eyes around the penthouse, and then returns to me.

“Is that what you think of yourself?”

“It’s what I know. It’s all I know.” My eyes fill before I can stop them.

His hands grip the arms of the chair as if stopping himself from crossing the room to soothe me.

I want him to.

But...I also don’t. It’s such a stupid thing to get upset about. Boo-hoo, I was homeschooled and don’t have a dad. Many kids have much worse lives.

Mom told me she loved me once or twice, but...I don’t...it didn’t feel like she was telling the truth. It never felt real.

My control breaks, and suddenly tears are pouring down my face.

“Fuck.” Parker is across the space in seconds, pulling me into his arms.

“Sorry.” I sob against his solid, warm chest and close my eyes. Nothing in the world has made me feel as safe as his arms. It’s wrong to let my guard down so early into this relationship, but my feelings for him are growing.

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