Page 114 of Mistletoe and the Billionaire Boss

“That’s your stepmother?”

“Yeah. I didn’t know—Kait told Belle at Gaby’s wedding earlier this year. A guy called Tom had been working on one of Kait’s movie sets here in New Zealand, and he’d apparently made a pass at her a few months before, but she’d turned him down. When she found out about Sherry, though, she went straight to him and moved in with him.”

“On the rebound?”

“Yeah, I’m sure it was to punish Dad, although I think he was just relieved to see the back of her.” I sigh. “I’m being harsh. She had genuine feelings for Tom, I know that. She loved him, which just makes the whole thing so much worse.”

Missie frowns. “I’m guessing that’s not the end of the story.”

“Not by a long shot, no. Dad moved back to Christchurch to be with Sherry. Gaby and Belle went with him. But they used to fly up and stay with Kait and Tom most weekends. Mae and Neal suggested I stay with Damon so I had some consistency. I was more than happy to do that. I was about to take my Level Three exams, and we were both working hard. So I stayed here. I didn’t see much of Gaby and Belle for the rest of that year. I was angry with Kait, but I hoped she might settle down a bit now she had Tom. She used to walk all over Dad, but Tom stood up to her more, and I thought that would be good for her.”

Missie’s blue eyes study mine. “What happened?” she asks softly.

“Just under a year after Kait and Dad broke up, I’d finished my exams, and I was on a rare visit down to Christchurch, staying with Dad and Sherry for a few days over Christmas. It was Boxing Day, and the girls were up with Kait and Tom. We were halfway through a movie—it wasMission Impossible. I’ll never forget it. An Uber pulled up outside the house, and Sherry went to the window and said it was Kait with the girls. They came in. Kait was white as a sheet and both the girls were crying.”

I run a hand over my face, still torn up over the memory. “Kait didn’t say hello or even take off her coat. She just blurted out that Tom had been sexually abusing Belle.”

Missie covers her mouth. “Oh, no…”

“Apparently it had been going on all year, from when Belle and Gaby started staying with them. To her credit, when Belle finally told her, Kait walked out with the girls, went to the airport, and got on the first plane to Christchurch—she didn’t stop to talk to Tom. She brought them straight to Dad.”

“What did he say?”

“He just started shaking. He was so angry that he was upset, you know? Belle saw it and started crying and said, ‘I’m sorry, Daddy,’ and he broke down in tears. It was the only time I’ve ever seen him cry.”

We sit in silence for a minute or so while I fight with the familiar hollowness inside me that I always get when I think about that day. Gradually, the sunshine, the music, the conversation and laughter, and the way Missie is stroking my palm with her thumb banishes the shadows, and my heartbeat returns to normal.

“What happened then?” she asks eventually.

I clear my throat. “Dad rang the police, and they came around and took statements. Tom was arrested. They found out that he’d also abused girls at the local sports center, where he worked part-time. He went to prison for ten years. He was released this year on parole.”

“Oh, shit. Does Belle know?”

“No. Damon does. He didn’t know what had happened at the time, but when they started dating and I realized she hadn’t told him, I did. She wasn’t very happy with me about that, but I didn’t care. I thought he deserved to know. I wanted him to be able to protect her if he needed to.”

“Do you know where Tom is now?”

“I know where he is every minute of every day. Damon and I hired a security firm to make sure someone is always following him.”

Her eyebrows rise. “Seriously? Is that legal?”

I purse my lips. “Maybe I shouldn’t have told you that.”

We study each other for a moment. Then her lips curve up.

“He won’t do it again,” I say vehemently. “I’ll make sure of that. And I’ll know if he comes within a mile of Belle.”

“Good,” she says. “I’m glad.”

I blow out a breath and run my hand through my hair. “Both Damon and I have a problem with guilt. Damon was involved in an accident in a sea cave when he was young—one of his cousins died, and his other cousin, Kennedy, lost her arm. He has survivor’s guilt and PTSD and fuck knows what else. Now he’s president of the Women’s Refuge here in Wellington.”

“Oh wow, I didn’t know that.”

“But he still feels guilty. And I…” I hesitate. “It’s why I eventually moved back to Christchurch when I graduated, to spend more time with Belle. Which was dumb really, because when she was eighteen she decided to go to university here in Wellington. Did you know she’s a qualified lawyer?”

“No!”

“I don’t think she’s going to practice, although she is going to help the women at the Refuge with legal advice. Anyway, I was able to spend a few years with her, but it never got rid of the guilt. If I’d been around more, maybe I would have seen what was happening, or even been able to stop it before it began. But I was selfish, and only concerned with my own happiness. And I’ll never forgive myself for that.”

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