Page 92 of Little Sunshine

Cole made a strangled noise behind me, but otherwise didn’t move.

I did.

Crowding in close, my voice was low and lethal. “Mila was waiting for you. In the location you set. You never showed. Instead, two motherfuckers roughed my woman up. You saying that’s a coincidence?”

“She got roughed up?”

I didn’t know if the concern on her face was genuine or a practiced act, but I didn’t buy it. “Who’d you send after her?”

“No one. I swear.”

“Then why weren’t you there?”

Her cheeks flushed, but she lifted her chin stubbornly—just like her daughter did.

The daughter she didn’t claim.

The dumb sack of shit.

My grip on her arm tightened briefly, and she finally spoke. “I was getting dumped, okay? And it was all that bitch’s fault.”

“Mila?” At her nod, I bit out, “How’s it her fault? And fair warning, I’d watch your fucking mouth when you talk about her.”

“After I borrowed her money?—”

“Stole,” Cole interjected.

She shot him a glare over my shoulder. “After that, Mila hunted me down at my man Harry’s place. He saw me talking to her outside, and I said she was a friend’s kid. But then he caught me borrowing his money to get her off my back, so I had to admit she’s my kid. He didn’t want to be hooked to someone with a grown daughter.”

I would bet he didn’t want to be hooked to a lying cunt who’d ignore her own child, lie about her, and steal, but her relationship bullshit wasn’t my concern.

“So instead of calling Mila to tell her you didn’t have the money, you sent those assholes to talk to her?”

Veronica gave an exasperated sigh before catching the look on my face. Her attitude disappeared. “I told you, I don’t know anything about that. Harry gave me the money if I promised to stop breaking his shit and leave before the cops followed through on their threat to haul both of us in.”

I looked over at Cole who shrugged. “Neighbor didn’t give specifics about when the breakup took place.”

“Harry’s neighbors? Those uppity assholes always thought I didn’t belong there. Like he’s some saint.” She looked angrier at that insult than she did at finding out her daughter had been hurt. “By the time I went to the meeting spot, they were gone.”

“They?”

“Mila…” Her eyes widened as she whispered, “And Abraham.”

“Who the fuck is Abraham?” I bit out, jealousy hitting my gut.

“He’s the one who set that location. I told Mila to meet me there first, and then I was meeting him.”

“You move on fast,” Cole muttered.

“No, you don’t understand,” she said with a frantic shake of her head. “Abraham is not a friend. He thinks I stole from him, but I didn’t. I took what he promised. He found me last week and demanded it back. The money I got from Mila was supposed to be a down payment because he threatened to blow up the good thing I had going with Harry.” Her lip pushed out. “Which happened anyway.”

Figuring she wasn’t dumb enough to run, I released her arm. “How much do you owe Abraham?”

“I don’t remember.” Unlike her daughter, she was shit at lying.

“How much do you have for the down payment?”

“Nothing,” she muttered hesitantly.

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