Chapter 42
ADAM
In the morning, Fletcher and I ordered room service. We ate a delicious breakfast of French toast, scrambled eggs, bacon and orange juice, plus coffee, made just right.
Neither of us spoke about the elephant in the room, even though I was well aware that we couldn’t hide out here in the hotel for the rest of our lives.
I didn’t want to leave him, though. I was afraid that if I did, something bad would happen and I’d lose him all over again. I knew I needed to go back. I needed to pack our things and move them to the new house—or hire someone to do the heavy lifting for me.
That gave me an idea.
I leaned over and kissed Fletcher. “Why don’t you go soak in the jacuzzi while I make a few phone calls? I’ll join you in a little bit.”
“Okay, baby,” Fletcher agreed.
While the tub filled, I stepped out onto the balcony and checked my phone for the first time since last night. Aria had called and texted a handful of times.
There was also a single missed call from my father. One call. No voicemail. It surprised me. I fully expected him to blow my phone up overnight—that’s why I’d put it on silent.
Leaning against the bannister, I texted Aria a quick apology and that I would call her soon, then got to work. A few Google searches turned up exactly what numbers I needed, and I made some calls.
I managed not only to get the new house closed—a little extra monetary incentive could go a long way—but I also called a moving company who claimed they could have everything done in six hours or less.
I arranged for them to meet me at the manor at noon.
By the time I called Aria, my hands were trembling a little. She answered on the first ring. “Adam? Is everything okay?”
“Hey. It’s a long story, but yeah. I think so. To say Father flipped out is the understatement of the century,” I told her. “Fletcher is safe, though, and that’s all that matters. Could I get you to do me a huge favor?”
“Damn. I had a bad feeling,” she murmured. “Sure, whatever you need, I’ll do my best to help. What’s up?”
“Go to my home and let yourself in with the door code that I’m going to text you.
Could you just chill there until I arrive?
” I asked her. “I have the feeling that Father is going to start shit, and I need someone to record everything, just in case things get out of hand. I need evidence if I end up having to go to the police.”
“Of course, Adam, but don’t think you’re getting off the hook that easily,” she said, a hint of teasing to her tone. “I want the details. All of them.”
“And you’ll get them on my drive home, promise,” I said. “I’ll call you when I head out. Talk soon.”
I ended the call before she could get another word in. I tucked my cell into my pocket, then let myself back into the hotel room.
The bathroom mirror was fogged with the steam that hung heavy in the air. Fletcher was already submerged in the gently-bubbling water, his cheeks pink from the heat.
I grinned down at him. “Room for one more?”
“Please. I think this tub could probably fit three people, easy,” he joked, but his expression smoothed into a pleased smile. He bit his bottom lip. “But please, join me.”
I needed no further prompting. I undressed and slid into the tub beside him, and we spent the next forty minutes cuddling and splashing and washing each others’ backs until our skin was wrinkled and water-logged.
Towels wrapped around our bodies, I pulled him to me and kissed him sweetly. “I need to go, but I’ll be back soon. Please, promise me you won’t leave the hotel room.”
He pouted, but there was a twinkle in his green eyes. “I promise, Adam. Don’t worry about me. I’ll be safe. Just do what you need to do so that we can start our new lives together.”
“I will.” I kissed him again, my lips lingering for a moment longer. They tingled when I finally pulled away. I cupped his cheek in one hand. “I love you.”
He beamed up at me. “I’ll never get tired of hearing that,” he murmured. “I love you too, Adam. So much. Be safe, and be careful. Your father’s insane.”
“I know. I’ve got a plan, though,” I told him. “See you tonight.”
I made the drive back to the manor with Aria on bluetooth, and I didn’t spare a single detail. I told her everything. Every damn thing, including the fact that I had killed one of my packmates in order to save Fletcher’s life.
“Jesus,” she breathed.
“Are you at my place?” I asked her.
“Yeah. Shit, your father just pulled in.”
“Don’t open the door,” I instructed her. “No matter what he says. I’m almost there. When I get there, start recording.”
“Okay. He hasn’t gotten out of his car yet, but someone else just pulled into your yard. A box truck. A moving crew?”
I glanced at the clock on my dash. Noon. “Right on time,” I murmured. “Yeah, let them in. They’re going to start packing things up to move them to the new place.”
“Got it. Okay, I see your car pulling in down the street. I’ll get ready,” she said, sounding a little breathless, like this drama excited her. “Be careful, Adam.”
“Always,” I told her.
Sure enough, Father’s car was in the drive, parking in Aria’s Porche. The moving truck had backed up to the front door through the front yard—not that I gave a damn.
The minute Father saw me pull in, he threw his door open and got out of the car.
He began pacing in the driveway, still wearing the dress-suit from yesterday, wrinkles and all, as if he hadn’t slept a wink.
His salt-and-pepper brown hair was mussed from where he’d been yanking at it.
I knew my father’s idiosyncrasies well, and he always tore at his hair when he was stressed or pissed.
No sooner did I get out of the car, did Father lunge at me with a howl of fury. I raised my arms in front of me, warding off the blow. “Stop!” I barked, my voice sharp with authority. “Just stop it. It’s over, Father.”
“WHERE IS HE?” he screamed, half-crazed, and I realized he meant Fletcher. He was still out for blood.
Anger blistered through me. I gritted my teeth and let loose a low growl. “He’s safe!” I hissed back. “Far away from you!”
Father’s hands balled into fists, like he might try hitting me again. “I should’ve handled this my damn self, then that little whore would be dead, and—”
“Do you even hear yourself right now?” I asked him, incredulous. “You attempted to have my mate assassinated! Over what? The fact that he isn’t a millionaire? You’re pathetic. You care more about your perfect bloodline and your money than you ever have about your wife and kids.”
I shook my head. “You know what? I want more than that. I want love. I want a family to cherish, not because they’re royalty, but because they’re mine.”
“And you think a CAT can give you that? A MAN, ADAM? You’re just as disgusting as him! A disgrace to the Sinclair name—”
“Don’t worry about it,” I told him. “I won’t be keeping your name. Once Fletcher and I get married, I’ll be taking his. Problem solved for both of us.”
“ARGH!” He swiped at me again, his fist colliding with my shoulder. It smarted, but I could handle a little pain if it meant I’d get my point across.
I shoved him back, throwing up my hands to ward off another attack.
“I’d stop, if you know what’s good for you.
” I pointed over to where Aria stood between the two white pillars of the manor, holding up the cell phone she was using to record all of this with.
“Unless you want the pack—and your company—to know that you tried to kill someone based on their species and sexuality.”
Father’s face mottled red as he gaped at me. He opened his mouth, then closed it again, like a fish out of water. Stunned. “You wouldn’t dare!”
“I would.”
“Adam! Listen to me—”
“No, Father. You listen to me. I know you can’t comprehend love, but I can, and I love Fletcher Rose. I don’t care that he’s a man or a lynx, or that he was a homeless orphan. He’s the sweetest, most beautiful soul I’ve ever met, and I’ll be damned if I let you ruin that. Do you understand?”
Father growled at me, baring his fangs, but he said nothing.
“I will keep this recording, and if you ever step a foot out of line? If you so much as retaliate or come after me or my mate, I will blast it so damn publicly that your head will spin. You’ll be ruined.
I’m not fucking around, Father,” I said.
“This is it. I’m done. With you, with the pack, with the family name—all of it. I’m choosing my own future.”
Father stood there shaking and red in the face, but he said nothing. He grunted, then turned around and stomped over to his car. He backed out so fast he nearly hit my vehicle, then sped off down the road with a puff of exhaust.
“Oh my god, that was amazing!” Aria threw her arms around my neck, squeezing tightly.
I hugged her back. Relief flooded my body, making me a little weak in the knees.
“Thank you,” I said, solemn. “So much. I couldn’t have done this without you.”
She winked at me. “Anything for love. I’ll email you the video tonight, when I get back to my computer. Keep it close, and keep a backup copy, just in case. You never know what that jerk might try to pull.”
“Trust me, I will,” I assured her.
But strangely enough? I had the feeling that Father wouldn’t try anything else. He realized he’d been defeated, and I wasn’t worth losing his precious company over—and for once in my life? I was okay with that.