Page 172 of Between Never and Forever
“Yep. Is Sharon okay? How did he find her? What does he even want with her.”
Silence.
“Levi. Is Sharon okay?”
“Yes. She’s okay. Shook up, but okay. But he didn’t initially come for Sharon.”
I gasp.
“For me? Fuck, this really is all my fault. Fuck.”
“Not for you. He didn’t even mention you, actually.” He pauses. I hear him inhale and exhale. “He came to see Brynn.”
What? For Brynn...
“That doesn’t make any sense. Why would he show up wanting to see Brynn?”
More silence.
“Levi, Jesus, just talk.”
“He’s claiming to be Brynn’s biological father.”
Now I’m the one who is speechless. I just gape, staring at the floor in front of me. I try to say something three times, but I can’t form words. When I finally speak, it’s only one word. That’s all I get out.
“No.”
“Yes. I didn’t want to believe it, but it lines up. I just spent the last several hours with my lawyer and some police officers. The Larks found him and bribed him with Jules’s life insurance policy. Terry was going to petition for custody and then give Brynn to William and Helen if he won.”
“You’re fucking kidding. There’s no way that would work.”
“Especially after this bullshit. But the Larks are desperate and desperate people are dangerous and impulsive. They think sharing blood gives you a claim on a person. They’re wrong. Genetics don’t guarantee a relationship. They don’t want to know Brynn. They want to control her just like they tried to do with Jules.”
He’s right. Shared blood doesn’t make a family. It’s like Mabel said. The band is my family. Levi is my family. I don’t know why more people don’t understand that. Family can just as easily be something you build and not something you were born into. Sometimes, the family you choose is better.
“I’m so sorry, Levi. If we could have kept this out of the tabloids, this never would have happened.”
He lets out a dark laugh.
“Ironically, the tabloids probably had little influence over this fucking mess. This one is all thanks to my mother.”
I gasp. “Yourmother?”
“My father’s old notes. Counseling files. She’s been cleaning out his old office and took it all to the Larks.”
Bitch.
What an absolute disgusting human being. I can’t even speak due to the anger surging through me. I could choke on the venom. Of all the times I’ve hated Levi’s mom, none of them compare to how I feel right now.
“When do you land?” Levi’s voice cuts through the torrent of hateful thoughts filling my head. “When do I get to see you?”
I tap the screen in front of me and check the in-flight countdown clock.
“Nine-ish hours.”
“Alright. I guess I’ll see you soon, then, Brat.”
I grin.
