Page 13 of Katie 3

I have nothing to fall back on. I’m living with my men and relying on them. I can’t get a job now just to take off in a few months on maternity leave. I can’t… I just…

A sharp slap on my thigh pulls me out of my thoughts. Another one makes me suck in air. My third breath comes after a deep and hungry kiss from Carter. I stare at him as he holds my face between his hands.

“You have every right to panic. I get it. I do,” he says with a heavy breath. “But you cannot let it consume you, doll.”

I gulp as I stare into his eyes.

“Feel everything. Feel it all. But don’t you dare let it take over,” he says sharply. “It’ll be tempting, but you’re letting your mind slip further and further into things that might not happen.”

“How do younotgo to the worst?” I demand.

“Because I know what I’m capable of. I know what Brad is willing to do for you. And I know my dad. I also know that you are the strongest of us all.” He takes another breath. “You don’tknowthat Brad is going to jail. My dad isn’t going to blame you for something Brad did. Neither will I. You’re not going to be alone with a baby and no one to help you. That’s fear talking, not reason.”

“Reasonable fears!”

“For everyoneexceptyou,” he says darkly. “You want to know what I’m thinking? You want to know what I’m feeling? I’m hurt you think I’d simply leave you. I’m insane over you. You didn’t ruin a marriage. You didn’tforceany of us to want you. You didn’tforceyourself to get pregnant. That took all of us.”

“I…” I want to say something, to argue in a way, but I can’t.

“Don’t you dare minimize how often we fucked you or how determined any of us were to have you. Don’t you think that we’re simply going to leave you now. If you think I’m going to let you go, I’m just going to have to fuck you until that thought rolls out of your head.”

I press my forehead to his. This is a new side to Carter. A good side. A side I need right now.

Chapter eight

Brad

I’m over all this bullshit. I went to work and didn’t get any looks, but the entire time, I just wanted to be with Katie. I’ve worried about her. Worried about our baby. Worried about my girl being grabbed by Dan or any of the guys he was plotting with.

And now I’m stuck waiting on my father in his office. My foot taps. I’m eager to get out of here, to move on, to get to Katie. I need her. I need to wrap myself around her, bury myself inside her, hold her in my arms. She has to know she’s not alone.

The door opens and shuts with a click.

It’s more damning than a slam.

Well, maybe. If my father were slamming doors at work, it would be earthshattering. I lean back, trying to embody a man unworried by anything. By the time my father sits down, I know I’ve failed. He glowers at me.

“Dan is moving forward,” he informs.

“He shouldn’t. I have plenty on him and he has no evidence,” I reply with a shrug.

He scoffs. “A recording?”

“Have you even listened to it?! He wanted to…” I can’t say the word. Saying the word would mean his plan has some weight.

He sighs. “He wanted to do what?”

I tell him a shortened version of what I let Carter hear. My dad pauses and just stares at me. There’s no answer. I’m not even sure he’s breathing. There’s so much tension in him that I think he’s turned to stone or something.

Then he closes his eyes and massages his temples. He sits back and I see the lawyer mask drop on his face. “He didn’t do it.”

“Because I stepped in!”

“It doesn’t matter. You committed a crime before another crime could be committed. Vigilantism is a crime.Youcommitted a crime. He planned one. He didn’t go through with it. He wasn’t able to move forward with it. His friends haven’t touched her. You’re still in the wrong.”

I stand up and put my bruised hands on his desk. I want to slap them down, but I resist the urge. I exhale slowly. “So you’re okay with someone plotting—”

“Of course I’m not, but I wouldn’t tie someone to a tree and beat the hell out of them. That’s a hostage situation—it’s assault and battery. It’s attempted murder in the right hands. It’s torture in lesser hands. It’s years upon years of a guilty verdict.”

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