Page 55 of The Stepbrother 2: Noah

I narrowed my eyes at the screen, bristling at her bluntness. She was right, but it still pissed me off.

“And when she doesn’t accept my apology? Creed was always so stubborn when she wanted to be. She’s gotten married and is planning on having my first blood grandchild without me being involved.” I folded my arms across my chest and leaned into thesofa cushion. “Even if I grovel, she might not be receptive, so what’s the point of groveling?”

Ms. Avery let out a hard sigh, clearly frustrated. "Scarlett, you seem to be purposely missing the point here. The issue isn't about whether Creed will accept your apology or not. It's about you acknowledging your role in this situation and genuinely trying to make amends so she will at least think about accepting your apology. You’re speaking from a selfish place; take accountability." Her voice was firm, almost scolding.

I blinked, taken aback by her tone. Ms. Avery dropped her head for a second, letting her hair fall forward to cover her face. She took a visibly deep breath, then sat back in her chair, composed once more. “I’m not trying to be harsh with you, Scarlett, but we’ve been doing this push and pull for weeks. You have a breakthrough, then talk yourself out of it. It’s not groveling to admit when you've hurt someone, especially someone you love. It's being responsible.”

I opened my mouth to say something, but she cut me off. “That’s our time for today, Scarlett. I hope you think about what I said.”

Troy had been sitting quietly in the corner of our bedroom, shaking his head as he listened in. “So, what are you going to do?”

I had wanted him to sit in on the session to show him I was trying. He had not been happy with me for months because when Creed shut me out, she shut him out too. Now, I almost wished I hadn’t let him listen.

“I’m going to apologize. Just give me time to figure out what to say.” I knew my tone was defensive, but I couldn’t help it.

Troy’s face started reddening. He pushed up from where he was sitting, his voice hard. “Don’t take too much time. I want to be there for my daughter as she prepares to become a mother. If I have to choose between that and you, I’ll choose her, and when I leave this time, I won’t come back.”

I gritted my teeth to keep from saying something that would truly anger him because, deep down, I knew he was right. Everybody was right. I owed Creed an apology, but a part of me still felt like she owed me one too.

It wasn’t the fact that Troy knew about the divorce that hurt. It was the fact that Creed was the one who had told him. The secrets we kept for each other were a part of our relationship dynamic that worked. All the times I’d kept secrets for her when she wanted to remain perfect in the eyes of her precious daddy—those were still locked away. Even now, angry at her, I wouldn’t tell him. She hurt me, and I needed her to understand that too.

As for Troy knowing… he had a lot of nerve being angry at me for even weighing my options after he sprung the news that I’d be raising another woman's baby. He only had a little bit longer to hold that over my head before I said, "fuck him." I could leave too.

Troy-

Ms. Avery smiled when she appeared on the screen. I let my lips curve upward, trying to smile back, but I wasn't feeling it. I'd been up all night. Even the good news that Scarlett’s charges had been dropped by the prosecutor didn’t make me feel better. I was running on empty and didn’t know how to fix the mess my family was in. I usually fixed things—with money, through violence, or with my fame. None of that would help me now.

"Good morning, Doctor."

"Good morning, Troy," Ms. Avery replied, resting her elbows on the arms of her lounge chair and steepling her fingers. "Are you ready to begin today's session?"

I nodded. Even if I wasn’t ready, I would say yes. I was tired of being in limbo with my family.

Her brows arched above her black-rimmed glasses, and then she dropped a bombshell.

"You're a manipulative narcissist with the temper of a teenage boy. How do you feel about that?"

Eyeing her angrily, I tensed in my seat. “What the fuck did you just say to me?"

Ms. Avery didn't flinch. "You heard me, Troy," she replied calmly. “Now answer me. I asked how you feel about that."

I took a deep breath to calm myself before I ended up saying something that could cost me the one therapist Scarlett and Creed were both willing to talk to. "I feel like you're making unwarranted assumptions about me."

"Let me make them warranted then." She straightened in her chair to look at me directly through the camera. She was wearing a blue caftan-style dress that made her look like someone’s grandma, but I had a feeling what she was about to say was not going to be very grandmotherly.

“You practically forced yourself into the life of a girl you bullied for years because of her mother's actions. Lied to her so you could keep her close, participated in an affair rather than tell her you were having mental health and addiction problems, then brought the evidence of that affair into her home. And then you feel entitled to her undying devotion? Doesn’t that make you everything I accused you of being?”

I shifted uncomfortably because it hurt to hear her version of the truth. "I know I've messed up, but I'm not to blame for everything." She was talking to me as if I were a monster. I just went after what I wanted. That's how you're supposed to live life.

"Troy, this isn't about blame. This is about accountability. I told Scarlett she needed to take some, and you also. You hurt Scarlett, then you placed burdens on her shoulders before she even had time to heal from what you did to her. Quite frankly, if it were me, I would have left you, very loudly and publicly, the same way you embarrassed her."

My head jerked back like she'd just hit me. "Damn, don’t therapists usually adopt a gentler approach when confronting their paying clients with hard truths?"

She chuckled. “What did you ask of me when you hired me?"

"But that was—" I began.

She held up her hand, stopping me. “You said you wanted me because you heard I wasn’t a traditional therapist. You said youneeded me to help you and your family mend, you said don’t sugarcoat anything. And here we are. If you would like, I could refer you to a colleague who might be more to your standards." She chastised.

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