Page 55 of Pure Seduction (Chamberlin Brothers 1)

Jake’s jaw clenched and the expression that crossed his face could only be described as furious. “That was before. I worked it out, Mom. Your little secret.”

And there it was. My stomach dropped as my suspicions were confirmed. The certainty of those words cleared up any question of why he was so angry.

As I stared across the kitchen at my son, my heart beat so hard that it was a miracle it hadn’t flown out of my chest. Then Jake took a step forward, and I steeled myself for whatever he was about to say next.

“It’s him, isn’t it?”

I sucked in a shaky breath and gripped the back of the chair. Jake glared me down, waiting for a response. But all words had left me. I didn’t know what to say. The lie I’d told so many times reared its ugly head and demanded that I finally tell the truth.

“Mom.”

“Jake—”

“Answer me. It’s him, right? Noah? He’s my dad.”

My eyes blurred as the enormity of those words being spoken out loud for the first time hit me with the force of a shock wave. I felt like I was going to be sick.

“I’m gonna take this bullshit silence as a yes. Is that why he left? Because of me? The rumor was he was a one-night stand. Something you never denied. But it’s not true, is it?”

No, it wasn’t. I stood there trying to think of a way to explain my reasons for doing what I’d done, but came up with nothing.

Jake snatched his coat from one of the chairs and headed for the back door.

“Jake…” My voice cracked as I watched him storm out without a backward glance. As the door slammed closed behind him, the silence that followed mocked me.

Oh God. God. What had I done?

A racking sob left me as tears fell down my face. I barely managed to pull the chair out before I collapsed into it.

I wiped at my cheeks, but it was no use—the tears kept coming as I was thrust back into a different time and place, when the only option available was to take what the devil had offered…

28

Laurel

I STOOD OUTSIDE the black iron gates of Chamberlin Winery, and had never felt more intimidated in my life. The hot August sun was beating down on the back of my neck, but it still wasn’t enough to make me head inside and out of the sweltering heat.

I was nervous. No, nervous wasn’t the right word. I was terrified. But there was no way around what I was here to do, and I’d promised my mom I wouldn’t leave until this was done. So I took in a deep breath, pushed through the gates, and made my way up the gravel drive to the entrance. When I reached the front door, I stopped for a minute and tried think of any way out of this. But when nothing came, I went up the couple of stairs and knocked.

A warm breeze ruffled the hem of my dress, and just as I was about to try again, I heard, “You don’t have to knock. It’s a business. They want you to go in.”

I turned to see Noah’s brother Ryan standing behind me in mud-caked boots, jeans, and a t-shirt.

“Uh, hi.” I gave a quick, self-conscious wave, and he smiled. I hadn’t had much contact with Noah’s family when we’d dated, but I knew Ryan from school, and he’d always been kind. He also bore a striking resemblance to Noah, which made it really difficult to look at him right now.

“Hi. Seriously, just go on in. Mom’s in there somewhere.”

“Oh, I’m not looking for your mom. I’d like to speak to Harry—I mean, your father.”

Ryan frowned but gestured to the side of the main building. “He’s out the back, down at the production facility. Do you want me to show you?”

I looked over to where Ryan indicated and worried my lower lip with my teeth. The last thing I needed was an audience. I had no idea how Harry was going to react to what I had to say.

“Uh, thanks, but that’s okay. I’m not going to take long. You said it’s just behind the house?”

“You mean the villa?”

I glanced up at the double-story Spanish-style building and nodded.

“Yep, just go around the side there. It’s the big, shed-like thing down the back. You can’t miss it.”

“Okay, thanks again.”

I was about to walk off when Ryan stepped forward and said, “Hey, Laurel?”

“Yeah?”

“He didn’t want to go. Just so you know.”

My breath caught, but I didn’t have it in me to say Noah’s name out loud. These past few months had been difficult for so many reasons, and the only way I’d managed to survive was to lock him in a box and forget that I ever knew him. I didn’t want to seem rude, though, so I forced a smile and hoped that would be the end of that.

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