Page 172 of Push

“And there’s my answer. We’re not ready for this yet.” The kiss I gave her was ten out of ten good, but lifting her off my lap and the part of me that wasveryhappy she’d been there was like handing back the keys to heaven. We couldn’t rush this. Fireworks and kissing and making up? We were great at those. Talking through the bumps? We were terrible.

“Tease,” she grumbled, pouting as she wriggled up the bed to collapse against the mountain of pillows piled against the headboard.

“Quit distracting me, doll. We need to start talking.” I plumped the pillows next to her. “You promised me an explanation, but let me go first. I’ve got a confession to make.”

Her head turned, eyebrows up.

“It was Liam,” I said. “He called me tonight. He was pretty pissed off that we’d called the cops on his bodyguard.”

“That son of—” she huffed. “Okay, Liam hadn’t been on my radar. I’d convinced myself that Romeo was some pathetic standover tactic for the hearing or the charges pending against Kayleigh.”

“Liam seems to think you need protection. He hinted it was something to do with Ian, but he said he’d only spill his guts if I didn’t tell you.”

“Toby!” Gwen swatted my shoulder. “So, tell him you won’t breathe a word, get all the details, and then tell me anyway.”

“That’s lying!”

“You’re such a boy scout.” She rolled her eyes, but she was smiling. “You’ve got to play his game. Tell him what he wants to hear.”

“He’s your brother.Family.”

She scoffed a laugh. “He’s also an interfering know-it-all who underestimates me. Lots of people make that mistake. I’ve dealt with dangerous criminals and big players in this city—even bigger thanhim. You’ve got to have a thick skin as a prosecutor. You can’t be scared. You can’t back down.”

“Gwen, it’s not like it used to be. We have Noah to think about now.”

“If he was in any danger, do you honestly believe I’d be sitting in this hotel room doing nothing? No way. Let Liam play protector and have his quilt-loving Italian follow me. I’m notscared of Ian or Kayleigh or any tactics her lawyers have come up with. I’m going to be okay.” Gwen curled around me, her hand stroking down my chest as she tried to reassure me—or distract me—with kisses up my neck.“Promise.”

“Promise noted. Well, that’s all I’ve got on your dumb brother. What’s the news you need to tell me?”

Gwen’s hand stilled on my chest. Slowly, her gaze lifted, her eyes shadowed with guilt.

“What?” I laughed, uneasy. “It can’t be worse than what I shared.”

She took so long to answer that I knew it was worse. “Toby, how much do you know about your dad?”

“Enough to know he was a shit person,” I offered cautiously. “Why?”

“He…had…affairs.”

“That’s hardly a secret. What does this have to do with seeing my mother, doll? Was she talking trash about him?”

Gwen wriggled up higher against the pillows, her hair fanning her face as she looked down at me. “Your mum and I got into a bit of a…thingtonight. She went for the low blows at me like always, but I managed to wrong-foot her this time.” Her face scrunched up. Whatever her triumph had been, she wasn’t relishing it. “I was cruel to her, Tobes. I know how much it hurts to be cheated on, but I threw your father’s affairs in her face. And she dropped her guard… Just for a second.”

The fact Gwen had found any level to empathize with my mother made my gut churn, but I shoved the feeling aside. “So, my mother said something…about Dad?”

Gwen nodded. “She told me he’d promised another woman the world.”

I grunted. Was that all? He’d probably promised that to a hundred women. “Who?”

“Your mother said it was…” Gwen exhaled a slow breath. “Abigail.”

It took a few seconds for the name to sink in. “Abigail…as inIan’smum?” I laughed in complete disbelief. “You think my father had an affair withthatAbigail? Nah. No way. She’s so quiet and…and…nice. Dad got around, but…” My mother probably led Gwen down that path for some other screwed-up reason. Maybe this had something to do with Kayleigh, too? They were practically besties after their cooking classes. “What exactly did my mother say?”

Gwen took a deep breath. “She said she’d won. She said she got all the money, and Abigail ended up with nothing…” She bit her lip. “Except…”

“Except…?” Silence stretched between us. “Gwen?”

“She said your father paid for her little boy to go to your school.Hisson…withAbigail.”

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