Page 164 of The Renegade Billionaire
“We all thought he’d sell it, but he goes up there to putter around sometimes. He says it makes him feel close to Lilly.”
I turn left onto the home’s long driveway, and dread settles heavily in my stomach when we pull up to the house and all the lights are on.
Madison doesn’t say anything as I put the truck in park, or when we walk up the steps, or even when we enter the home and find Grey has commandeered the great room with Pops and Sage each working at his side.
The scents of Christmas linger in the air. The joy that pine trees and cinnamon evoke are at complete odds with the concern on everyone’s faces.
“What’s going on?” I hesitantly ask, taking Madison’s coat and hanging it on the hook.
Sage comes at me with a large cotton swab. “Open,” he says while jabbing it at my mouth.
I have no reason to argue, so I open, and he swishes it all around both cheeks.
When he’s finished, he tucks it into a little tube and returns to the table.
“Anyone want to tell me what the hell that was about?”
“Tell him,” Grey says, tossing his pen onto the table. He always has one behind his ear when he’s nervous, and he plucks that one and chucks it to the table too. I’m guessing his lucky coin will make an appearance any moment now.
“Tell me what?” I search all their faces. It’s Pops who appears the most uneasy, so I focus on him.
“Pops, what did you do?” Madison takes the seat next to him.
I’m too on edge to sit, so I stand across from them, waiting for someone to start talking.
“Well,” Pops says, ringing his hands together in his lap. “He wasn’t sure. And he wanted you boys to decide.”
“Decide what?” It’s difficult to remain calm when every hair on my body is standing on end and my stomach has that freefall sensation you get when bad news is coming your way.
“It’s not bad, exactly,” Sage says, staring at a point over my head. If they told him, it can’t be too bad, so I start to relax.
“Ace thought that maybe you and Grey were related.” Pops speaks so fast, it takes me a moment to register his words.
“Related.” I drag out the word as though I don’t quite understand its meaning. “Related how?”
It takes him a moment, but when Pops lifts his gaze to mine, I already know.
“He thinks something may have happened between your mother and Grey’s father. That’s why they named you Reyes and not Montgomery. I think he was going to tell you all of this in the will but, well…you haven’t read it yet.”
“And you’ve known this the entire time we’ve been here?”
“It wasn’t my story to tell,” Pops argues.
“Pops. You should have said something,” Madison says gently.
“I called Mr. Coop,” Grey says, interrupting my spiraling thoughts. “He confirmed that there is a letter for the both of us, but he isn’t at liberty to say anything until we’ve met all the stipulations Ace set.”
My legs turn to Jell-O, so I finally take a seat across from them.
“Then I called your mother.” Grey’s tone gives nothing away, but the tightness in his jaw and the way he works his coin through his fingers speaks louder than words.
“What did she say?” I’m not sure my lungs are working properly. My head is a little woozy, and the tension in my neck begins to ache.
“Nothing. I asked her how well she knew my father, and she went silent. Then she told me he was a horrible man and hung up.”
“The swab?”
“A DNA test. Uncle Grey and I both took one. Wouldn’t it be tight if you were actually my uncle?” Sage is taking this news in a vastly different direction than I am.
