Page 120 of The Pinkie Pact

"But why?" Kara asked. "You had no idea that Brie would bail."

"Not for sure. But from everything Sky told me," he said, his eyes darting between the two of us, "well, I thought it was a high probability."

"But all that work," Kara argued. "What if shehadn'trun out? You would have done all that for nothing."

I was curious about his answer too. That was a ton of time devoted to something that might not even happen.

Returning his gaze to me, Kieran shrugged his shoulders. "I was going to surprise you with it at some point anyway."

Kara snorted, pushing him in the arm. "You're crazy."

"Yeah, maybe I am," he admitted.

Something about the soft way he said that then looked at me, my fucking word, it made me completely melt. Kieran had found a way back into my heart, a heart that was nearly whole again.

Now, I just needed to figure out a way to get him alone because I wanted this boy all to myself to make up for all the time we'd missed.

But it wasn't meant to be at the moment.

Kieran and Kara's phones both made noises at the same time, and after sharing a concerned glance, they checked their messages in silence as my heart started to thud.

His face creased in a frown, Kieran turned toward me. "It's our mom. She says she needs to talk to us in person right away. It's something very urgent."

Truths

Sky

And that was when the shit truly hit the fan. Several hours after they left to go to their parents' place, Kieran texted me an article that was set to go live tomorrow. The headline?

"Carl Emerson, Husband of Senator Kathy Emerson, Caught in Sexual Harassment Scandal at Law Firm"

Holy fucking shit!

I sunk down on my bed, my head spinning in circles. Skimming the article, I couldn't quite take it all in. But certain phrases popped out at me—inappropriate sexual advances and relationships, toxic workplace environment, repeatedly pursuing women after they made it clear they weren't interested.

Running to the bathroom, I splashed cold water on my face. Fuck! I couldn't even believe it. But I alsocould. Of course, I could. I'd known instantly what he was,whohe was, and then, he'd proven it himself.

And I'd also known that if he'd done it to me, he'd done it to others. But what had I done about it? I should have fucking done something. But someone else had, thank God.

After drying my face, I glanced at my ghostly reflection. I couldn't even imagine what Kieran, Kara, and their mom were going through. My chest ached with sympathy, thinking of them all huddled together in the living room or kitchen, upset and probably crying, being betrayed by this prick of a man they called father and husband.

My phone pinged, and I rushed back out to my bed, fumbling it in my hands before I could read it.

"Just wanted to let you know about this whole thing so you don't wonder what happened to us," Kieran wrote. "The three of us are staying here for the night and maybe a few more days."

"Of course. Are you okay?"

"I'm okay. Kara's destroyed."

Oh, God, I felt dizzy again. But that text was also weird. Why wouldhebe okay?

I had no idea how to respond. What could you possibly say to someone in this situation? No fucking clue. So I finally wrote back the only thing I could think of. "I am so incredibly sorry. I wish I could hug you both."

"Thank you." A moment later, he wrote me again. "Are you doing okay?"

He was so thoughtful to even think of me right now. Besides feeling awful for the three of them, I felt fine. A big part of me was happy that the asshole had been found out and wouldn't get away with it anymore. It just sucked that the rest of the family had to suffer so much.

"I'm fine, love," I texted.

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