Page 65 of Mad As Hell

His lips pressed together in a tight line. “I’m talking about what happened with you and your dad, Maddie. I think it’s time you told me everything that happened that night after I left.”

CHAPTER 18

MADDIE

“He’s not my dad,” I blurted out with more venom than I probably should have.

Ryan winced. “Maddie—”

I held up a hand. “No. He’s not my dad, Ryan. He’s Gary.” It was crucial I made that line in the sand as clear as possible.

“Okay, baby,” he said softly, his tone cajoling, like he was talking down a spooked horse. I didn’t even bristle at the term of endearment.

The freaking Behave text was burned in my mind.

For a second, I played out the fantasy of standing up and screaming. Of hurling my purse and both the phones out the picture window before hitchhiking to the nearest airport.

And then all the oxygen rushed out of me as I imagined Gary turning on Mom. Maybe the police would find her body dumped in some remote ditch in a few days.

Or maybe Bex would go missing and end up in some sadist’s home overseas where she would be…

Oh, God. I shouldn’t have gone there, but now it was all I could picture. Mom dead and Bex hurting. And it would be all my fault.

Panic began to spiral in my chest, coiling so tight that spots began to dance in my vision.

I jolted as Ryan’s hand covered mine.

“Breathe, Maddie,” he added, his gaze concerned as a waiter stepped up to our table. Ryan didn’t stop looking at me as he said, “We need a minute.”

The waiter slipped away with practiced ease.

I struggled for breath and slowly pulled in air as I looked into his crystalline blue eyes.

“Breathe, baby,” he encouraged. “In and out.”

The air came through my lips in shaky pants as I did as he instructed.

“Sorry,” I mumbled when my numb lips could form words again.

“I think that’s my line,” he teased gently before squeezing my hand. “Maddie, I think we should talk about what happened with Gary.”

I stiffened and tried to pull away. “No.”

His fingers tightened around mine, but not to the point of pain. “I know that he hit you, and Bex made it sound pretty bad.” Ryan swallowed, his gaze darkening before he locked down whatever demon was rattling the bars of the cage he was keeping it locked up in. “What happened after I left?”

“He hit me,” I said in a detached voice, simply echoing what Bex had said. I tried pulling away again, but Ryan wouldn’t let me go.

“Maddie, come on.” He was practically pleading, or as close to pleading as Ryan Cain could get. “I can’t help you if you don’t tell me.”

I finally managed to free myself. “What are you going to do to help, Ryan? Magically undo the last two weeks? Maybe yell at Gary for hitting me?”

His eyes flashed. “More like break his arms. Or at least make sure all his bruises match your old ones, and then some.”

“Don’t,” I snapped, my tone sharp enough to cut diamonds. “Just leave it alone. Let me handle Gary. You’ve done enough.”

He reared back like I’d slapped him, but then his hands balled into fists on the table before he discreetly tucked them under the tablecloth. “Maddie, I’m sorry. I fucked up. I want to fix this.”

“God, don’t you get it?” I hissed, slapping my palm on the table and making the water splash. “You can’t fix this. You can’t throw money at it, or sexy smiles, or beat it into submission. Not this time. You left me standing there. Alone. You can’t undo that, or what happened next.”

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