Page 129 of Contract of a Billionaire
The only reason I came was for Autumn and our son. I’d burn the world for them. Crawl on my knees for them. Bottom line, there wasn’t anything I wouldn’t do for them. So if Senator Ashford wanted me to come directly to him - for them, I would.
As if sensing my gaze on him, Senator Ashford turned his head and our eyes met. It was the second time I’d been in the same room with him. The last time was ten years ago when he sought me out.
For fucking money for his campaign.
He excused himself, leaving the young bimbo behind, and made his way over. The closer he got, the tighter my grip was on the glass I held.
I was a fucking forty-two-year-old man and I still couldn’t move past the fact that the fucker left my mother when she needed him the most. Left me to be raised by a sadistic bastard.
“Alessio,” he greeted me.
“Senator Ashford.” His bushy brows furrowed. He despised that I refused to call him by his first name. “I won’t waste your time,” I started. “Nor mine. My wife– ”
“She’s not your wife,” he stopped me.
My teeth clenched so hard that it felt like my molars were about to crack in half.
“Not yet. But she's the mother of my child,” I gritted. “If she wasn’t stuck in Afghanistan, she’d be my wife right now. So you’ll forgive me if I don’t turn my back on a woman as easily as some other people.”
His jaw ticked. Ah, finally! I hit a nerve. “I didn’t turn my back on your mother.”
My eyes roamed the room, seemingly casual. “Is that what you tell yourself to sleep better? I imagine lying to yourself is probably even easier than lying to everyone else.”
“Alessio, your mother was better off without me.”
I took a step forward, standing up straighter. My frame towering over him. “Yeah, my mother was so much better getting beaten by a sadistic bastard. She was so much better getting whipped and raped. She was so much better seeing her own children being terrorized and being so beaten down that she couldn’t even gather enough strength to defend them.”
“If I knew– “
“Don’t,” I hissed, my muscles rigid. I was ready to snap and that wouldn’t help Autumn. “Spare us all your lies. I want to know if you can help me or not,” I continued in a cold tone. “Other than that, I’m not interested in anything else from you.”
The icy silence followed and permeated the air along with an understanding crossing Senator Ashford’s expression. There could have also been some pain that crossed his face, but I didn’t care. It was too late. Forty-two years too late.
There would be no repairing this relationship.
“I’ve kept tabs on you,” he said, his voice suddenly tainted with fatigue. “You and Autumn Corbin.” I tensed, and Senator Ashford’s lips tugged up. Barely. “When I got news of her departing for Afghanistan, I reached out to an old friend who owes me a favor. He owns a security protection agency. They kept tabs on her. Unfortunately, when all the chaos broke loose there, so did all my communications with them. But the last report I had from him indicated he had her and she was safe.”
“When?” I croaked.
“Two weeks ago.”
“Where were they headed?” I demanded to know.
“For the mountains,” my father answered. “With all the technology left behind, the new regime has a way of monitoring all communications. My guy said he wouldn’t be able to call again until they could find a safe spot.”
My heart sank.
If he hadn’t heard from him again, it meant they weren’t safe.
Chapter43
Autumn
Six weeks away from my son. Six weeks away from Alessio.
Another cave. We’ve been hiding in caves, moving every few days. I was sick and tired of caves and mountains. And this cold that seeped into my bones.
My muscles ached. My heart hurt even worse. And I was so fucking hungry. I had no idea what time it was. Night. It was dark outside. My teeth chattered from the cold.
