Page 14 of Unbreak Me
“You guys are fucking insane,” I whisper.
“Watch your mouth dear. A dirty mouth is very unattractive on you. Do as your father says and pack your bags. There is no way a grandchild of mine is being raised in a place like this.”
“Ryder would choose me over his job,” I say quietly.
“Yes, he probably would be dumb enough to do that,” my father sighs.“It would be a shame, though, if his brothers’ tattoo shop were to be taken away. Didn’t the oldest knock someone up, too, and has a child to take care of now? I guess the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. It would be a shame for a single dad to lose his job. We could go on if you want. They have a big family.”
I swallow the bile in my throat. I think of Ryder and the family I love so much. Max just turned three, and Miles started touring with his band this year. Savi has her heart set on college.
“Please don’t do this,” I whisper as tears start to fall down my face. “Just let me stay. You don’t love me anyway. I’m your mistake, remember? I can’t leave Ryder. I love him. This would kill both of us.”
“Of course we love you,” my mother says, rolling her eyes. “That’s why we are here. You’re a Donovan, Eve, and with that comes responsibilities. You’ve been playing house long enough. It’s time you came back to your family where you belong, especially now that you are pregnant. You will thank us later when you’re able to raise this child with everything they could ever want.”
“I will never forgive you for this.” I cry as tears spill down my face. I try and think of something…anything to work my way out of this. This can’t be happening. I should be on my way to the store right now and be excited to tell Ryder about our baby, not standing here terrified of losing him. I look at my mother, and her cold blue eyes stare into mine.
My body freezes in terror, and I know she will stop at nothing to get what she wants. If I don’t go with them, I don’t have a doubt in my mind that they will follow through on their threats just because they can. They’ve always thrived oncontrolling me and bending me to their will. I’m just another object they own. I swallow down the painful lump in my throat.
“Can I at least say goodbye?”
“No. He’s foolish enough to convince you my threats are useless when we both know they are not. He and his family will only get hurt in the end because of your selfish behavior. If you truly love him, you will walk away and forget about him. We have to leave for the airport, so you have twenty minutes.” My father looks at his watch like he’s in some bored business meeting rather than threatening his own daughter and taking away everything that matters.
My body is numb as I walk to our bedroom and pack. When I see one of my favorite t-shirts of his, I bury my face in it, and a sob escapes my lips. I inhale his smell before packing the shirt, along with some of our photos and memories I want to hold onto.
He’s going to think I left him, that I don’t love him anymore. Unbearable pain slices through me as I gasp and sit on the bed. My breaths are becoming shallow, and I’m struggling to breathe. I close my eyes tight and focus on taking a deep breath. I need to be strong right now for our baby. I can’t let anything happen to her.
Her.
I place my hand on my stomach with a knowing that it’s a girl…our baby girl.
I’m going to come back to you Ryder. I’ll find a way to bring your daughter back home to you. My father can’t threaten me forever. He’s bound to mess up, and when he does, I’ll be ready.
CHAPTER SIX
RYDER
“You outdid yourself on this one, Ryder. She’s more beautiful now than the day she was born.” Steve grins and walks around the car. He owns an exotic dealership and has been bringing me gems he finds for the past two years. Most of the time, they need minor work, and just some added extras to make them stand out, but this one was in bad shape when he brought her in.
I grin at the McLaren sitting in front of me. He’ll easily be able to get a million and a half out of her with the restore job I did. She’s brand fucking new, and with the gleaming burnt orange color and exposed carbon fiber elements, she stands out like a jewel.
“She’s a beauty, all right. You should get a pretty penny for her.”
“I’m half determined to keep her for myself, but my wife will kill me if I bring home another one,” he laughs. “Somebody, though, is going to have fun with this one.” His eyes gleam like a kid in a candy store.
“You always do find the best treasures hidden in those auctions you go to. You did good with this one.”
“I have the easy job,” he laughs. “You are the one who brings my vision to life. Let’s get you paid up. I can’t wait to get her on the lot. The boys are going to piss themselves.”
Laughing, I walk him to my office. I try not to grimace at the paperwork strewn across my desk. My least favorite part of owning my own business is having to deal with the office side of things. I’ve gone through three office managers in the past year alone since Mary retired.
Mary worked for Jimmy and was the absolute glue holding the place together. It’s been harder than I thought it would be to replace her. It quickly became obvious that the last three I hired really had no interest in the job but rather more interest in trying to sleep with the owner…me.
When they realized I wasn’t mixing business with pleasure, their work slacked off to the point of me firing them and just dealing with the office shit myself. I’ve got cars coming in and out of here on a daily basis, and I don’t have time to mess with the hassle of training someone else.
I print out the invoice that I typed up this morning and get Steve taken care of before saying goodbye. I know he’ll be back soon with another one for me. It’s the thrill of the hunt for him to find the next best thing that keeps him coming back. It’s clients like that who are golden to me and put more money in my pockets than I can spend.
I shut down my laptop and turn off the office lights as I walk through the workplace waiting room. I wanted my garage to stand out, and I take pride in how clean I keep it. I installed wooden floors in the large waiting area, which has comfortable couches and a full coffee and snack bar. TVs are hung on the wall, showcasing races throughout the day.
Windows line the whole length of one wall overlooking the garage. Often, clients and car enthusiasts come and watch us as we work. The more rare and exotic they are, the more the word gets around in the car community that we have one here.
