Total pages in book: 119
Estimated words: 112762 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 564(@200wpm)___ 451(@250wpm)___ 376(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 112762 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 564(@200wpm)___ 451(@250wpm)___ 376(@300wpm)
Tears choked my throat. “The worst part was Callie. My whole life, I wanted to protect her from who her dad really was, and then I came tumbling into our apartment, shot, with a girl who was beaten to a pulp.” I swiped at my tears. “Callie was so scared. I brought that into her life.”
“No,” Walker bit out angrily. “Her father did. Do not take that on. You saved that girl’s life, and I’m sure Callie is proud of you.”
“She was nine years old, Walker,” I whispered. “She shouldn’t have to be proud of me for something like that at nine years old. I never wanted her to experience being scared as a kid the way I was scared.”
“You can’t protect her from everything. You will drive yourself crazy trying. Sloane … you are the best mum I’ve ever met.”
I smiled tearfully at his words and tried to ease the tension. “I think Regan takes that award. I swear the woman has the ability to split herself in two.”
Walker didn’t smile at my joke. He pressed, “What happened next?”
“The girl”—I wiped my hands over my cheeks as I held Walker’s gaze—“she was Allegra Howard.”
Understanding dawned. “Wesley Howard’s daughter. Aria’s sister.”
I nodded. “Aria’s younger sister. She’d fallen in with the wrong crowd at school. She was only seventeen, but she’d developed a drug habit. That’s why she was with Nathan. Anyway, Juanita was insisting we call the police and an ambulance, and I didn’t know what the fuck to do because I’d shot Nathan. But Allegra came to and explained who she was, and she called her father. Wesley showed up with his security team, and he took care of everything.” I huffed. “Money and power take care of everything. And he was grateful. So was Allegra. They paid my medical bills, and they got to Nathan. Wesley paid for his medical bills—even though he wanted to kill him—in exchange for his silence. They didn’t want this splashed across the news about Allegra. They wanted to move on.
“But they also knew from Nathan’s threats that I wouldn’t be safe. Aria had taken the job at Ardnoch and offered me a place here. I jumped at the chance. We’d only just arrived when Nathan went back on his word. He started blackmailing the Howards for more money. I told them which clubs he dealt at and helped them set him up. He was arrested for possession, and the police weren’t interested in his story about the Howards. Since it was not his first time being arrested for possession, Nathan got eighteen months.” I sighed shakily. “But Aria just told me he’s out early.”
“And he knows you helped them put him away.” Walker abruptly stood up. “We need to run a check on his passport to see if he’s in the country.” He pulled out his cell. “I need his full name and date of birth.”
I didn’t know what I’d expected after telling him a story I’d told so few people. In fact, the only people who knew about it were the Howards and Monroe. Now Walker. Who barely reacted and went straight into business mode.
Trying not to be hurt or disappointed by that, I stood and rifled through a drawer in the side table for paper and a pen. I was scribbling down Nate’s full name and date of birth when I felt the heat of Walker at my back.
I glanced over my shoulder and grew still. The intensity had returned to his eyes. Was it tenderness or awe or understanding or compassion … or was it all of that? Did it matter? Walker Ironside looked at me like I was worth something, and it should frighten me how much his opinion mattered.
“Callie is the luckiest wee girl in the world,” Walker uttered gruffly, “to have a mum like you. You’re a warrior, Sloane. Never doubt it.”
Fifteen
SLOANE
There was relief in confessing my story to Walker. To have him at my back. To have Monroe and alongside her, Brodan. For the first time, I felt like Callie and I might make it through whatever crap Nathan threw our way. It was selfish, but I was also relieved to hand over the burden of watching my back to Walker. To let him look into Nathan. To trust him to protect me and my daughter.
My burden was to keep it from Callie. I didn’t want her to know unless it was absolutely necessary, and I didn’t think, right now, there was any need to tell her that her dad might be tormenting me.
Instead, I could shove the fear to the back of my mind and concentrate on living my life. Yes, Callie was tailed by a member of the Ardnoch security team whenever she wasn’t with Walker and me, and Walker was my constant companion these days … but I wasn’t really complaining about the latter.