Page 12 of Finding Redemption

ChapterSeven

Brooke

With each step,that feeling of loneliness that I barely paid attention to these days tried to suffocate me.It had been a while since I’d allowed myself to think about my uncle.His abandoning me had hurt more than the betrayal I’d felt when my father and stepmother had dropped me off on the front steps of St.Andrew’s.

Blinking against the sting of tears I refused to let fall, I paused outside the double doors of the great room where Bella’s party was going strong.Trying to stay out of sight, I chanced a peek inside.The instrumental versions of Disney princess songs continued.Adults were mingling, drinking glasses of champagne, wine, and something amber-colored, while the catering waitstaff tried to blend into the scenery with their trays of drinks and hors d’oeuvres.Around them, little girls dressed as princesses were swinging their own lightsabers, some of them dueling.

Their giggles lifted my heart for a moment, but when I spotted Bella, it sank again.She was standing with a group of five other girls, all of them chatting animatedly.Even with the distance between us, I could tell her smile didn’t reach her eyes.She kept glancing around as if searching for someone.

She was surrounded by at least sixty people, yet she looked like she was all alone in the world.Remembering the pain in her voice when she’d said she didn’t want to be lonely anymore, I had to curl my toes in my shoes to keep from going over there and pulling her into my arms.

I didn’t want to be one more person who made her feel alone.She didn’t need me—but rather, the adults in her life—to step up.They needed to be there for her instead of expecting the money they had to fix everything.

A big part of me wanted to be someone who eased that loneliness for Bella.But it was more than likely I would never see her again.Fresh tears blinded me at that thought, and I determinedly put one foot in front of the other as I walked to the front of the house.

Outside, two men with communication devices in their ears stood beside the entrance, security that looked like the secret service.Neither of them moved as I passed, as if they were statues and not actual humans.Expensive cars lined the long driveway as I walked down to the front gate after ordering a ride.The gate was closed, but the guard in the little shack stepped out and then through the door on to my side of the fence as I neared.

“Ma’am?”he said with a frown, glancing over my shoulder repeatedly.

I gave him a tight smile.“My ride is picking me up down the road a bit.After how disgruntled everyone was about my arriving in an Uber, I figured it would be best not to expect one to pick me up at the front step.”

“Ride shares aren’t safe, ma’am,” he said, not moving aside to let me through the door or even attempting to open the gate.“Boss said his driver would be taking you home at the end of the party.”

“He’s your boss, not mine,” I dismissed.“Please move so I can leave.”

His eyes flickered over my head again, and I turned my head to follow his gaze, curious what kept drawing his attention.My breath caught when I saw Paxton Foster walking down the driveway.He didn’t have one of those excessive swaggers, the kind of power walk most guys used because they wanted to pull attention their way.He didn’t need one.Something about the man just attracted the eye, and it wasn’t only how tall and broad he was.

Linking my fingers together in front of me, I pretended like I wasn’t frustrated at the continued delay to my escape.Was it too much to ask to be left with a little bit of my dignity so I could go home and cry in peace?

Paxton stopped a foot away before thrusting his hands into the front pockets of his black slacks.I lifted my chin, not afraid to meet his gaze.No one would have enough power to intimidate me ever again.One side of his mouth tipped up, just a ghost of a smile, but it was enough to let me know he was amused.

There he was, towering over me in all his muscled glory, staring down at me with his head almost touching the clouds, he was so tall.But I’d perfected the ability to give the illusion of staring down my nose at people.The majority of the adult population might have been taller than me, but I’d never allow anyone to make me feel small and weak again.

“Tell your minion to let me out,” I instructed, striving to hold on to my patience.

“I won’t stop you from going home, but at least let my driver take you,” he urged, his tone gentle.

I liked every tone I’d heard him use since meeting him, except for the way he had initially spoken to Sariah, but that gentleness brushed up against something I’d buried deep, deep in the abyss I’d fallen into when my father and stepmother had left me with a smirk on the steps of what had become my prison.

Shaking the thought away, I extracted my phone from my dress pocket.“That isn’t necessary.I already have an Uber on the way.According to the app, my driver is five minutes away.I would rather not keep them waiting.It’s rude.”

“You would trust a complete stranger over my hired driver?”

“Yes,” I said without hesitation.

“Why?”

I had plenty of reasons I could have given, but the truth came down to one simple point of contention.Control.Mine had been taken away once.I would die before I ever willingly gave it up again.

“They’re both strangers to me,” I answered with a shrug.“But I feel like I’m the one in control when it comes to an Uber.”

“And control is important to you,” he murmured with a nod, understanding flashing in his hazel depths.

Since it was a statement and not a question, I didn’t respond.He gave me a long appraisal before speaking again.“Let’s compromise.You and I are no longer strangers.Let me drive you home.”

“No.”It made me angry that he was even offering.“It’s Bella’s birthday.You should be in there with her, celebrating.I’m no one to you.She’s your daughter.Pull your head out of your behind and focus on what’s important.After today, you’ll never even see me again.”

He made a low, growling sound that I studiously ignored.

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