Page 110 of Breaking His Law

I jump in. “I know all that, Nathan, please let me ex?—”

He cuts me off. “I had an accident reconstruction specialist analyze whether the report aligns with the physical evidence and I’m sure you’ll be saddened to learn, because you would have loved nothing better than to screw with my family and ruin my father’s good name, that he confirmed Julie’s was a fake. To get to us, she set you up, and you fell into her web of deceit.”

I figured out that Julie had been lying to me all along. I studied the report against the real one, and the PI I hired confirmed it was a fake too. She fabricated the crash report, twisting the truth to serve her own agenda—revenge. All because she lost her job after Max filed a police report for the damage she caused to his car and home. Looking back, it was so obvious.

And then there was her connection to my old boss—a man I wouldn’t trust to care for a guinea pig, let alone defend me in court. I should have seen it from the start. She played the part well—friendly, eager to get to know me—but the moment she learned about my family and how Daniel Hart had defended the man I thought was responsible for their deaths, something changed. She latched onto me, took me out for drinks, made it seem like she was on my side.

That’s when she told me she could help me take the Hart family down. That we could get revenge. But it wasn’t my revenge—it was hers. She persuaded me to get a job at Hart Law. She used me. And like a fool, I let her. Because I wanted that too.

Nathan’s stare becomes razor sharp, locking onto me without blinking. “If you had come to me, been straight with me from the start, I would have investigated the case for you. And this is what I would have shown you.”

Cole passes me another piece of paper.

It looks like the redacted letter from the archive file. Only this time there are no black lines disguising the words because it’s the original and not a photocopy like there was in the archived case file.

I read the first couple of lines, and my chest tightens like someone is squeezing all the air out of my lungs, making them burn like the fires of hell, and I sob my heart out, my tears soaking the neckline of my dress.

“What you’ll find there, Ms. Donovan, is a letter from Kevin Taylor to my father, confirming the funding that secured your placement in what was supposed to be foster care. But it wasn’t foster care at all. Jean O’Neill was not just some foster guardian—she was a highly qualified child development specialist, privately employed by Kevin Taylor himself to care for you until you turned twenty-one. Jean’s death was unfortunate timing because she made a vow to Kevin to take care of you past the time set at the beginning of your care, because she loved you like her own. I took a visit to your old neighborhood and asked around. You never went without. Your clothes, books, your first car. All provided for by Kevin.” His voice steady, he continues shocking me with his words. “As you’ll see from that letter, my father had planned to personally offer you a job once you were old enough. However, your determination and drive led you to secure one on your own before he ever got the chance because you were convinced that working within the legal system, you could somehow access records that don’t even exist. No one hid anything from you. There was no bribery, extortion, or foul play involved with your family’s unfortunate deaths. And my father and Kevin were both rooting for you to be successful and not fall between the cracks in the care system. Kevin, the man you’ve spent years believing murdered your family, was found not guilty because he wasn’t guilty. It was an accident. The crash wasn’t caused by negligence or malice, but by a perfect storm ofconditions—dense fog, oil on the road, and your father driving twenty miles per hour over the recommended speed limit that night. He lost control and crashed into Kevin’s car. And Kevin? He didn’t flee the scene. He didn’t abandon you like you’ve always believed. He went to get help.”

I cover my mouth with my hand, in complete shock.

My PI uncovered great things about the random acts of kindness Kevin Taylor did throughout his life confirming I was wrong about him too.

I can’t believe how badly I got it all wrong. I ruined everything, and I don’t know how to fix it.

Nathan adds, “Kevin Taylor put people in place to take care of you, not because he felt guilty but because he cared about your welfare. The case file was labelled Attorney-Client Privileged because he never wanted you to find out what he did for you. It was his good deed, an act of kindness, and he expected nothing in return. He wanted to give you a chance at life, which you grabbed by the balls, and it got you to where you are today. I admire that about you, Ms. Donovan.” Taking a moment, in slow deliberate movements he pushes back his chair and stands up. “But I will never forgive you for trying to take my family down. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m due in court in an hour. Please leave the building immediately and do your best not to make a scene. I think we’ve had enough excitement for one day.”

I hang my head in shame.

He stops next to me, the heat of his silent anger tangible, and he asks, “Just one thing before I go. Was making me fall in love with you some sort of sick game?”

I shake my head, unable to look him in the eye, and fix my eyes on the paperwork on top of the desk.

He’s never told me he loves me, but I always knew he did. I felt it.

And now he thinks I double-crossed him and that my love for him isn’t real, when it is. It’s the most real and honest thing I’ve ever felt.

Calmly and deadly serious, he asks, “Do you have any idea what you’ve done?”

“I’m sorry.” What else can I say? He’s already made up his mind about me and whatever I say he’ll never believe me.

He turns his back to me before reaching for the door to leave. “I’m sorry too, because you see, my brothers and I are no longer on speaking terms because I investigated the case and doubted my father a millisecond too long for them. The bond we have is broken, and it’s what always mattered the most to us—law, legacy and above all, loyalty. We are bound by blood, and we fight for justice as a united unit, but you, Ms. Donovan, broke that, because I fight for the people I love, I fight for what I believe inside the courtroom, but you made me fight outside of it, and not only did I lose you, I lost them.” A beat passes before he speaks again, his tone much lower now. “Did you really think I wouldn’t find out?”

I push my chair back and rush to him, laying my hand on his shoulder to make him turn around, but he doesn’t. “Please, Nathan, you have to believe me. I figured it out—I wasn’t going to do anything, I swear. I swear on everything.” My voice breaks, raw and desperate, tears streaming down my face. And I try to coax him again to turn around, but he still doesn’t move. Doesn’t flinch. Just stares ahead at the door. “I love you, Nathan. I love you more than anything. Please… please don’t do this. Please look at me.” A sob racks my body, my chest heaving. “I made a mistake, but I swear I wasn’t going to do anything. You have to believe me. Please.”

“I should be angry, but right now all I feel is disappointment. I knew something was off the first day you sat here in this very boardroom. I felt it but I just couldn’t put my finger on it andI hate myself for the major lapse of judgment. You’re fired.” He opens the door, then slams it behind him before I can stop him, leaving me staring at the space where he just stood.

“I wasn’t going to do it.” My voice trembles, thick with desperation. I turn to his brothers, my vision blurred with tears. “Please, believe me. I swear on my life—I took the time off to go over everything, every piece of evidence. I hired a PI to help me. I know the truth. But I didn’t know about Kevin looking out for me, but everything else… I see it now. I believe it. I do.”

I clutch my chest as if I can physically hold myself together, my breath shuddering. “I wasn’t going to sell my story. I wasn’t going to tip off a tabloid because it wasn’t the truth. I know Julie was lying. Please, why don’t you believe me?” My knees nearly give out beneath me, but I force myself to stay standing tall, even as my heart fractures into a million pieces.

I look between them, pleading, my voice cracking. “Punish me if you have to.” I’m already being punished; I lost the man I love. “Hate me. I deserve it. But don’t take it out on him. Please don’t make him pay for my mistakes. He had nothing to do with this.” A sob rips through me, raw and uninhibited. “I love him andyoulove him. And I’m begging you, please… please forgive him.”

Max runs his hands through his hair, looking tired and completely deflated. “I’ll give you one chance to explain to us exactly what Julie said to you, and any other information she provided to you including what you know about her dealings with your ex-boss. Tell us everything. Then I want to know your exact intentions before you got the position here, and then what led to you changing your mind. You have ten minutes. I suggest you use this time wisely.”

“Okay.” I wipe my face with the palms of my hands and sit back down in my chair before telling them everything I know to ensure they mend things with Nathan. They have to; they’re hisbest friends. Their bond is too precious to break, and I won’t let that happen.

Nathan thinks I was going to betray him. I couldn’t even if I wanted to because he would’ve given me the world, and that’s the torturous reality I will have to live with.

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