Page 66 of Unveiled Wounds

“Hey,” I sighed softly, standing the phone up on the counter in front of me.

“Hey, baby. Where were you?” Grizz looked good, but tired. The man bun was still in place, but there were dark shadows forming underneath his eyes.

“In the main room. We’re pretending to watch movies.” I twirled a piece of my hair, trying not to be obvious that I was looking for injuries.

“Stop that.” He smiled. “Really, baby. I’d tell you if there was something wrong. I’m good. The rest of the brothers are good, but your condo is smaller than I remember.”

“You’re not all staying there, are you?” I didn’t care, but I didn’t know how to be strong for him. There was a part of me that yearned for him when he was gone, and while I thought he might suspect something, I wouldn’t give him a reason to tease me.

“Yeah, we are. You don’t have a lot, so we pushed the couch back and spread blow up beds out. As long as no one’s touching, there shouldn’t be any fights.” He leaned forward into the camera. “You’re mine, so I get your bed.”

“You’ve spent enough time in it, but you might find indentions from other men.” I was kidding myself if I thought he believed that. I’d barely functioned over the breakup, only going to work and the occasional doctor’s appointment.

“Ha fucking ha. There wasn’t anyone else but me, and we both know it.” He smirked. His good humor didn’t last long as I watched the planes of his face shift. He appeared to be calm, but there was something dancing underneath the surface. Fear gripped me. “I need to tell you something, baby.” He paused. “So, we were somewhere, doing something, and Clara showed up.”

I gasped. “Clara? My cousin, Clara?” My mind raced, trying to comprehend what was he was trying to tell me without outright saying it. The puzzle pieces slipped into place quickly. “What the fuck was she doing with the cartel?”

“You’re not supposed to know that, but you were right. Clara had a baby.” His head tilted, silently telling me to calm down.

“What the fuck? You don’t drop shit like that without some lube, Jonathan. I know you don’t use any, but you should be familiar with it.” Clara’s lack of foresight enraged me. Hadn’t she learned how much damage the cartel could inflict? Theyhad killed Brandon. Matt was gone. She was delusional if she thought she was safe.

“You don’t need lube.” He looked at me through the camera, making sure I caught the meaning before continuing. “Clara handed her baby over to a cartel soldier for fresh papers.”

“Papers, like a new ID? She left her baby with the cartel and ran?” I couldn’t believe what Grizz was saying. Clara had always been flighty, but I’d never believed she was capable of this. Each new revelation sent me into a tailspin, forcing me to reevaluate my life choices. I’d been selfish, and I could have easily been another Clara. “What happened to the baby? If you left it with the cartel, I’ll…I’ll… I don’t know what, but I’ll be livid with you.”

He laid his head back against the headboard, laughing.

“This isn’t funny, Jonathan.” If he didn’t start talking soon, I was going to reach through this phone and strangle him. My rage simmered, bubbling under the surface of my skin, and fear was gripping my heart. I needed to know what had happened to the baby. It shouldn’t have to go through life without a mother, and I wasn’t sure what was worse—abandonment or death. Fucking Clara!

“Did you tell her yet?” I couldn’t see him, but I recognized Sabre’s voice. He must have been close to my bedroom door.

“She hasn’t given me the chance, and now she’s getting pissy with me.” Grizz’s eyes raised above the phone.

I wouldn’t have been pissy if Grizz had talked faster. I heard boots shuffling on my hardwood floors, and I took my emotions out on them. “Of course, no one took their boots off. It’s not like it’s my condo or anything.” In all honesty, I didn’t give two fucks. The floors needed buffing anyway, and I was worried about the baby.

“Oh, I think she’s gone past pissy to bitchy,” Sabre said, appearing at the top corner of the screen.

“You haven’t seen bitchy yet.” They both cracked up laughing, but they were loud, and somewhere, a baby wailed.

“Fuck,” Grizz said. His eyes shifted to his lap as he reined it in.

“You can’t say fuck in front of a baby,” I replied on instinct, but then my brain replayed what I had just said. “Do you have Clara’s baby? Jonathan!”

“Here, give me the phone.” Sabre filled the screen. “Hi.” The camera jiggled as he moved around the room.

“You’re an asshole.” I rolled my eyes, not caring he was the president. I probably should have shown him respect, but he was helping Grizz hide secrets from me.

“Eh. I’m going to flip the camera around, Meredith.” Sabre left the screen, and in his place was Grizz, holding a baby, while sitting on my bed in the condo.

“That’s a baby.” There was no filter from my brain to my mouth. “What the fuck?”

Sabre zoomed in on the two of them. Grizz leaned down, making soothing sounds as he held the baby’s hand against his cheek. I’d never questioned having children with Grizz, but seeing him like this made me want a dozen right now. My vagina didn’t think that was a good plan, though.

“What’s going on?” Grace came into the kitchen. “We heard loud noises in the main room, and the brothers wanted me to come check and make sure you were alright. It’s Grizz, so they weren’t worried about an intruder.”

“Can you withhold sex?” I asked her, looking over my shoulder at my sister.

“What?” She was confused, and there was another round of laughter coming through the phone.

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