Page 29 of Cruel Revenge
“Fair enough.”
“And like…” Carey made a multitude of faces in succession, all of them unreadable because of how they mushed and blended together as she collected whatever thoughts she was having. “If I got you or Dad involved, it would become a Thing that everyone had to deal with when I could handle it myself until this point. I know Dirk doesn’t monitor my phone unless I tell him something happened, so I just didn’t tell Dirk, and no one figured it out.”
Going to talk to Dirk about that…
“Well…” I didn’t like the subterfuge. I put my car in drive and started the trip to Tyler. “Next time… trust us a bit more.”
“I do trust you!” Carey said quickly, her eyes going wide.
I gave her a look.
“You trust me, but you don’t tell me literally everything!” she said, huffing.
“I’m not a sixteen-year-old girl,” I retorted.
“I know this won’t be anything more than a dinner, Jacky. It’s just something I have to do, and when I needed you, I trusted you to help instead of trying to sneak off to do it.”
“Fair,” I conceded. I wouldn’t admit to anyone, not even Heath, that the reason I let her win was because of how pleased I was to hear how this was only going to be a dinner. The implication was that Courtney wasn’t going to become an important piece of our lives, at least not today.
Carey thinks I’m not selfish. She has no idea how selfish I can be, especially with her and her father.
For how immense my possessive feelings were, there was an equal measure of guilt. I didn’t own them. Heath wasn’t my mate, and Carey wasn’t my daughter. I just desperately wanted those things. There was a difference, and I had to recognize that.
It’s not normally this bad. I can’t forget that the curse changes how our minds work, too. Makes werecats more insular and therefore, more possessive when we do let peoplein. Courtney… she’s the one who triggered how bad it is right now. She’s a threat. But I can’t let the curse control me and make me act badly.
We drove silently after that, not for lack of Carey trying to start conversations, I just couldn’t engage anymore. I was riding a thin line of wanting to turn around and wanting to kill Courtney on sight for daring to threaten my little piece of the world.
I will control myself for Carey. Courtney is her real mother. I’m in control of my curse.
Once we were at the restaurant, I was ready for what was coming. I took several deep breaths to center myself, just to be certain.
“It’s okay to be nervous, Jacky,” Carey said softly as we sat in my parked car.
“I should be saying that to you,” I said, shaking my head.
“Are you going to be okay?”
“Yes,” I promised. “The curse is making me have some intrusive thoughts. I am just trying to dismiss them.”
“You can tell me about it.”
“Afterward,” I promised. Remembering the important talk I wanted to have with her after dinner, I also remembered the talk I needed to have right now. “But before we go in, you should know one important thing.”
“What’s up?”
“Your father does know. I told him last night,” I said simply, not bothering to beat around the bush or try to soften it.
“Oh.”
“Obviously, he wasn’t going to stop you from meeting your mother. He also agreed about why you wouldn’t want him to come. He’s glad I’m here with you. He loves you. He hopes you get whatever you need out of this.”
Carey’s eyes filled with tears, and she started nodding quickly.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
“We both love you, Carey,” I continued, trying not to be too emotional either. “We just want what’s best for you and to let you explore what you need to exploresafely.”
“I know,” she said, smiling through watery eyes. She broke eye contact with a strange laugh, wiping her eyes. “Now my makeup is getting messed up. I have to look my best for this. Presentable.” She reached for her bag and pulled out a makeup bag.
