Page 74 of A Fallen Star (Shattered Cove 1)

Remy approached him on shaky legs as he stood. A current of electricity lit the air between them like a live wire.

“Where have you been?” Her voice wavered.

“Everywhere. Nowhere. What … why didn’t you tell me at the hospital? Why did you let me believe she was dead?” Anger cut from his words as his fists clenched.

“What the fuck is this asshole doing here?” Andre’s voice boomed from behind Remy as he rushed towards him, seething.

“Andre, calm down,” Bently said.

Andre didn’t slow, getting right in his face as Remy tried to push them apart. His world was spinning, tumbling into an abyss of confusion as he tried to make sense of everything.

“Fucker abandoned my pregnant sister, almost got her killed, and left me in the lurch with our business. I had to cancel contracts and work twice as hard to keep my reputation. And you want me to calm down? Nah, this has been a long time coming.”

“Dre, he didn’t know. I told you, he didn’t know,” Remy argued, but it was no use.

One minute he was looking into the angry snarl of the man who used to be his best friend, the next he was somehow facing the clouds. His eye burned and throbbed as Remy’s scream erupted. Andre’s blow had knocked him to the ground.

Bently was quick to drag Andre away, leaving Remy and Mikel alone in the backyard.

“Are you okay?” she asked, her soft fingers touching the tender spot that was sure to bruise. A jolt of energy shot from her hand—the overwhelming chemistry that was all too familiar with her. She dropped it as he sat.

“We have a lot to talk about.” She bit her bottom lip.

“That sounds like the understatement of the fucking century,” he growled.

* * *

Remy handed him the pack of frozen green beans as they sat in the kitchen. Bently leaned against the counter while Jasmine played in the grass outside with his daughter.

My daughter.

“I’m gonna take Lyra home,” Remy said, getting to her feet.

“The hell you are. I want some answers,” he snapped.

“You think I don’t?” she yelled, her fierceness surprising him.

“Settle down,” Bently warned.

Remy swallowed the tears forming in her eyes. His chest tightened. How could he love someone and be so angry all at the same time?

“Lyra is my first priority. I’m sure she has a lot of questions because of you just showing up like this. Let me get her settled. If you want to talk, you can meet me after work tomorrow,” she said.

“Where?”

“The Stardust Café—used to be Dolly’s.” The name was like a trip back in time. She’d really done it—made all her dreams come true. She had everything, including his child. He had nothing.

“How did she know who I was?” he asked.

Her eyes fluttered closed momentarily. “I have pictures of you.”

“What did you tell her about me? About why I wasn’t here?” His voice trembled, fearing the answer.

Remy sighed and shook her head, crossing her arms across her chest protectively. “I told her that her daddy was sick and getting help. That someday when he was all better …” She swallowed, wiping away a stray tear that had rolled down her cheek, past the walls that she’d built in his wake. “He promised me he would come back. Then she could meet him.”

His chest tightened as regrets filtered through him, snaking around him, masked in shame and guilt.

I abandoned them.

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