Page 91 of The Damaged Billionaire's Obsession

“Now, see here—” my mother begins but is interrupted by my father.

“Get out!” my father booms at a smirking Twiggy, and I flinch involuntarily, springing up from my seat. The terror that bark always induces in me is not something I can rationalize.

I can’t stay here.

“Excuse me.” I slip out of the door before anyone can react. Although Twiggy is the one being thrown out, I’m the one who leaves.

Back in the Rolls-Royce, I sit there confused and not knowing where to direct the chauffeur, who is currently looking at me in puzzlement, but my head is scrambled.

Should I just go back to New York then?

Twiggy taps on the window, and the chauffeur lets him in at my nod.

The door opens, and he sits down next to me. “Bonnie, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said all that. But seein’ them... your folks... I can't believe ye put up with all that shite for two decades.”

“It’s okay.” My head is still spinning. “I just need to go, maybe I can come back when they’re not here?”

“Where are ye stayin’?”

“I don’t know.” I’d planned to stay in Nan’s, but I can’t anymore.

“Right, so, head to my flat in Dublin.” He fishes a key out of his pocket. “I'm stickin' by ya through all this, no matter what yer ma and da think. And to be honest, I wouldn't put it past him to leave ya out of the loop for the funeral."

“I don't think they’ll want me there. Sect folks might be there, and I don’t want to cause them embarrassment.”

“Tough fucking luck. Yer goin' to give yer granny the send-off she deserves, whether they're happy about it or not,” Twiggy orders.

“I didn’t think they’d be here right this moment. I guess I didn’t think about anything other than getting here. And Ethanonly told me about the car after I got here. I didn’t know it was going to be a Rolls-Royce!” The tears come freely now. “I didn’t mean to show off or anything.”

“Lass,” he coos and cups my face. “Ye don't owe me or anyone an explanation. Especially not them! Okay?”

I nod. “Okay.”

“By the way, ye never mentioned havin’ a fella. Ethan, is it? Sounds like a catch, good on ya, lass.”

“He’s not my boyfriend. He’s my boss, and he was being nice.”Why does that statement depress me?

“In that case, I think I’ll need to shoot me gaffer.”

“You don’t have a boss.” I smile

“Aye, but if I did, I’d off him. Look how yers puts ye up!”

I bite my lip. I’m still too raw from my father’s scathing comments to want to hear anything about being “put up” by a man. I take a deep breath before continuing, “I have to go. I can’t stay, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be silly, I’ll get the details off yer parents and see ya at the house later.”

Chapter 27

Bonnie

I thought I'd exaggeratedhow horrible it was living under their roof, and had imagined some sort of reunion over the coming months or years. I now know without a shadow of a doubt that there is nothing left for me in Ireland.

I stare at my reflection in Twiggy’s bedroom mirror. It’s the morning of the funeral, and Twiggy is already waiting in the lounge for me, but I can’t make myself move faster. Which is surprising because for the past eight days, all I’ve done is wait for this day to come, counting down the seconds until I can return to New York.

It reminded me of those days when I’d listen to the endless dripping of water into the puddle of the old warehouse where we preferred to stay rather than go home to Nan’s all those years ago.

The woman staring back at me looks much better than I feel. My eyes aren’t bloodshot, no bags under my eyes. There’s even some color in my cheeks. I’m surprised, considering I haven’t stepped out of the apartment in eight days.

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