Page 123 of Wild Blades

But the rest of them; they were to blame.

Miranda, for not being able to stay faithful and having an affair with her husband’s best friend.

Lola’s father, Ritchie, for taking a machete to their family, ripping them in two.

And Marcus for not doing the right thing and stepping in to be the father he should have been to Wade. Not to mention the damage his mother did. Depriving that beautiful boy of a childhood.

Wade and Lola—even Zane—are the innocent ones who got caught in their crossfire.

When Wade finds out Zane is his half-brother, that’s going to go down like a shit sandwich. I’m getting a headache just thinking about it.

“There are three innocent people involved and I don’t know much about Lola yet, but I know her well enough, and I’m going to make sure she gets the family she deserves.” I continue, “Zane, well, you know how I feel about him. Regardless, he has a brother you haven’t even told him about. And Wade.”My poor man.“Had it not been for Gretchen, he would never have been taken care of. Miranda was and still is a terrible mother. Do you have any idea the things she has said and done to that poor boy?”

He stares down at his shaking hands. “I told you, I didn’t know. I never wanted that for him. If I had known?—”

“Don’t finish that sentence because you don’t even know yourself what you would do. You can’t be certain, Marcus.” I tear up, feeling sad for my beautiful Wade. “You can’t change the past.” But how I wish Wade’s were different.

“You’re right, Kali.” He sounds defeated. “Our lie just got bigger and bigger and as the years went on, I could never work out how to tell him. I signed a stupid NDA.”

“Which Ritchie broke so he could tell his daughter the truth. I understand why you never wanted anyone to find out about you and Miranda. I know you were protecting the businesses you have and Nicki from the heartache. But if you had really cared about him, you would have claimed him. He’s yours, Marcus. Yours by blood, and he’s a beautiful, talented man. With a gorgeous soul and a huge heart, which we have Gretchen tothank for. You should build that woman a temple and worship the shit out of her because she deserves it. He is who he is because of her. Not you. Not Miranda. Her.”

I can tell torment is eating him from the inside out when he says, “Miranda told me that she blamed Wade for everything. Some days, she said she couldn’t even look at him. I didn’t think she actually meant it literally. I thought it was a feeling, not how she treated him because of her guilt or anger because him being born was the reason her marriage ended. I didn’t know she was verbally abusive until Wade told me. I thought…”

I open my mouth in dismay. “You were wrong about everything, Marcus.” My words are vicious. “And the only ones at fault are you and Miranda. An innocent child is not to blame for your adultery.” I throw words of hatred at him like stones, and his silence sends my temper soaring. “And the worst part is Wade can’t work out what he did to make his mother hate him so much. Turns out he did nothing. It was all on you two. Is that why you put together a support team for him? Was it out of guilt?”

“No.” His voice is strong and confident.

I was right. It’s only ever been about one thing. “The Eagles reputation.” I state, pushing my chair back and get ready to leave. I feel sick to my stomach.

“How much money do you want?” Pulling open a drawer from his desk, he lifts his checkbook and lays it on the table.

I let out a maniacal laugh. “You’re joking, right? Marcus, none of this is about money.”

“God, I’m sorry.” He looks disgusted at himself. “I just thought.”

“You thought wrong. I will not be bought. I step forward and lay my hands flat on top of his desk, leaning over him, and through a tense jaw, I set the record straight. “I don’t want any of your money, however, what I want is for this to be kept quietuntil the season is over because this...” I stab the piece of paper with the DNA results in it. “Will destroy Wade. And I will not let anything, or anyone stand in his way on the road to success. I’m going to make him a star this season. And take this as my notice. I don’t want another cent from you. I will work with Wade for the rest of the season for free and I want you to cancel my contract with you and your other businesses. Working together is an issue for me and I can’t forgive you right now for what you’ve done. I might do with time, but for now and always, my priority is Wade.” That contract is worth over a million dollars a year for the business, but I don’t care. Once we launch the talent management side of the business, we’ll be fine. And if not, I’ll go back to modeling if I have to. My stomach churns like a blender at that thought. I don’t want to go back to modeling, but I will if it means doing the right thing by Wade.

“Kali, please don’t do this.”

“We have until the end of the season to work out how to break this news to your family. More importantly, Wade. But right now, I have a plane to catch.” I straighten my spine. “You will agree not to tell Miranda about this conversation.”

“I agree.”

“And Wade and I are dating.”

“I thought as much.”

“You will turn a blind eye to our relationship. It will not affect Wade’s position on the team.”

“It’s a non-issue. You have my word.” Which doesn’t appear to count for much these days.

“He’s a great man.”

“I know.”

“I’d like to think that you are still one of those too.”

“I’m not a bad man, Kali. I’ve just made some pretty bad decisions.”

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