Page 87 of Call it Fate

Zach shook him off. “I want to know, Em. I thought we were past secrets, but there’s something you’ve been keeping from me, isn’t there?”

“Zach, you know I love you. I didn’t tell you because I couldn’t see what good it would do.”

“Tell. Me.”

I drew a breath. “Your father knew I was pregnant,” I answered quietly, knowing my words would be like a knife to his heart.

I waited for him to shout, to curse, to throw something—any kind of physical reaction.

Instead, Zach stood so still he could have been a statue. It was as if my revelation had stopped time. All of us were frozen, waiting to see what would happen next.

“Where’s your bathroom?”

Chase pointed down the only hallway and Zach bolted. Throwing a worried look at my cousins, I followed him. From the hallway, I heard the sounds of retching.

I tried the door, but it was locked. From the corner of my eye, I saw Cam and Chase talking softly, then Chase left. I hoped it was to find Iain and keep him away from the fracas that was happening here. I waited for a few minutes, then leaned my head against the door and knocked softly. “Zach? Please let me in.”

The toilet flushed and water ran for several minutes. I tapped again. “Please, honey.”

I heard theclickof the lock being released. Drawing a deep breath, I opened it and went inside, shutting and locking it again behind me.

Zach was sitting on the toilet seat, hunched over with his head in his hands.

“Zach…” I wasn’t even sure what to say at this point. “I’m sorry.”

His head shot up. I flinched when I saw the anguish that stared back at me through watery eyes. I cursed his father all over again.

“I need to know what happened.” His voice was raspy and raw as if he’d swallowed glass.

I sat on the floor in front of him. “As I already told you, I went to the fraternity house to see if anyone knew where you were after you graduated. What I didn’t tell you was that one of them had a home address for you.” It was quite an intimidating place with gates and a guard.

His lips formed a straight line. “Did they let you in?”

I shook my head. “I kept begging for someone to see me. I’m pretty sure the guard was close to calling the police. I finally blurted out that I was pregnant with your child. That’s when I was finally allowed up to the house. Your father met me at the door. He said I’d already done enough damage, that I had been holding you back from your true potential. He implied you were sorry you’d ever met me and that I should never come back. He told me the baby was my problem, but if I made trouble or tried to contact them or you again, he’d see to it I lost custody.”

“What?” He was so pale I thought he was going to get sick again.

I grabbed his hands. “I couldn’t take that chance, Zach. They obviously have so much money, I knew I wouldn’t be able to fight them. I couldn’t imagine how you came from such a cold home, but I wasn’t going to allow my child to have anything to do with them. After what I thought I saw at the hotel, I thought maybe there was some truth to what he said. I’m so sorry. I know that isn’t true.”

“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me this earlier.”

I bowed my head. “I’m so sorry, Zach. In the beginning, I was scared. I’ve spent Iain’s entire life looking over my shoulder, terrified they’d try to take him from me. I was just starting to relax and then you showed up. Until I knew why you were here and what your motivations were, I had to be careful. When I realized you didn’t know about our child, I didn’t want to make things worse for you by telling you about how awful your father is.”

He rubbed his hands over his face. “All that time, you thought I didn’t care.”

I didn’t answer. He’d put the pieces together.

“Fuuuck,” he moaned. “Fuck me. Fuck my parents. Fucking fuck my father.” He fell to his knees in front of me and rested his hands on my thighs. “I’m so, so sorry you had to go through all of that alone. I’m sorry I wasn’t here for you.” He rested the top of his head against my chest. “And most of all, I’m sorry for my son of a bitch father who manipulated you and did this to you, to me, and to Iain.”

I brushed my fingers through his hair. “As you can see, we came through it just fine. I wasn’t alone. We had my mama and other family. And now, we have you.”

His jaw was tense as he lifted his head, staring into my eyes with his own that still glistened with tears. But his lips were pressed into a straight line, and his shoulders were drawn back. “I’ll never forgive him, Em. Never.” The words bit harshly through the quiet of the small room.

There wasn’t much I could say. I felt the same.

CHAPTER38

Zach

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