Page 201 of Between Regrets and Promises

Mr. Holt sits up straighter and swallows. “It’s your lawyer,” he says, his tone quieter than before.

“What?” I say. At the same time, Mason says, “Excuse me?”

“Serena. She’s pregnant.”

I gasp, my jaw nearly falling to the floor. I hadn’t expected that news in a million years. Mason looks like he’s chewing glass, and he has every right to be upset. His friendship with Serena is special, but this is unreal. He looks betrayed.

“Get out,” Mason says in a tone that sends shivers down my spine, and not the good kind. “Get the fuck out of my house before I call the cops and have you removed.”

Mr. Holt stands, not the least bit shaken by his threat. In fact, he chuckles darkly. “Think about it.” Then he buttons his suit jacket and shifts his gaze to me. “Thank you for the coffee, Sophie.”

I nod but don’t move. I want to slap his shit-eating grin off his face. The woman he knocked up wasn’t just a random nameless homewrecker. The person I worried wanted Mason and had the potential to interfere in our relationship is now the woman who could ruineverythingfor him—for us.

Our perfect Saturday together ended the minute Mason’s father came knocking. Liam comes stumbling down the stairs in only his boxer briefs, hair sticking straight up, looking all kinds of fucked up. He came home from his work trip late Thursday, slept most of yesterday, and partied last night. Then he stumbled in at six this morning.

“What’s with all the yelling?” He raises his arms above his head, stretching as he lazily makes his way to the couch. “You two?”

Liam looks worried, and I quickly shake my head but don’t say anything.

“Mason? What is it?”

I look at my boyfriend who hasn’t blinked in the past few minutes. His jaw is set tight, and I don’t know what to do or say to him. I feel helpless. His father put him in an impossible situation.

“Soph?” Liam turns toward me again. “Who was here?”

Inhaling a deep breath, I release a sigh. “Mr. Holt.”

“What was that fucker doing here? Was it about you?” he asks me. “About the Westbrooks?”

I shake my head. “Not directly.” I guess it could be if this scandal breaks and people look into the cases he worked on or assisted, inevitably anything to do with me or Mason.

“Serena’s pregnant,” Mason blurts, grabbing Liam’s attention. “Withhisfucking child.”

My heart breaks for the man I love so damn much. I see his pain and can feel and hear it in his voice.

“As if my father could infuriate me anymore, he has an affair with the only person I trusted after Emma’s death. One of my friends. Someone I lived with and confided in for years.” Mason’s head falls as he rests his elbows on his knees. “I can’t believe she’d do that to me. She knows how much I hate him.”

“Holy fuck,” Liam says, blinking. “Serena and your dad? There’snoway.”

“According to him, there is…already has,” Mason says. “The worst part? You ready for this?” Mason’s voice switches to a crazy high-pitched tone. “He wants me to claim it, tell the press it’s mine to cover up his goddamn affair.”

“Jesus Christ.” Liam brushes a hand through his hair, shocked. “And why would he think you’d do that?”

“Oh, he thinks if news gets out, they’ll question his character and dig into his history. They’ll look for anything suspicious, and once they find it—which if he’s so concerned means there is something for them to find—they won’t stop. He’s suggested it could come back to me, considering he’s been a key player in allof my legal cases. I’m being coerced to cover his ass or have my skeletons dragged out of the closet too.”

“Can they do that? Can they reopen cases and charge you?” I ask.

“You know he’s full of bullshit,” Liam says before I get an answer. “They’d have to find something first to give them probable cause to re-investigate everything. He’s just trying to rattle you, so you’ll do it.”

“Well, it’s fucking working. This is the last thing we need right now. Not to mention, it’s not fair to Sophie. Lying for my father…it makes me fucking sick to even think about.”

“Mason…” I move closer and wrap my arm around him. He’s so worked up, he’s shaking. “I’m not leaving. You have me by your side no matter what, okay?” I lean my head on his shoulder, but a second later, he pulls me into his chest and hugs me.

Liam stands in front of us and cracks his knuckles. “Want me to rough him up a bit? Tell him he made his bed and now he can lie in it?” He flashes a knowing grin, but I roll my eyes at his awful timing of a joke.

“What I really want is to hear it from Serena. She owes me an explanation,” Mason says. “Because until then, I won’t believe it.”

CHAPTER FORTY-SIX

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