Chapter 4
Chapter four
Barrett
Camryn looks ready to throw up her breakfast. Confusion is clear in her gaze. Did she expect me to just roll over and let her walk out of here with my kid?
“Your attorney?” she asks, her gaze darting between me and Freya.
“I am an attorney, yes, but I haven’t started working on his case,” Freya says, giving me a pointed look, then she looks back at Camryn. “I told him we all should sit down and have a conversation before I do anything in regard to paternity or custody.”
“Right. That makes sense,” Camryn says with a nod, though I can tell she’s nervous as hell and is probably worried that she’s losing control over the situation with every second that passes. She looks at Sydney, who has gone rigid in her seat.
“I don’t want to stay here. I don’t even know him,” Sydney says, looking at Camryn with fear in her eyes.
“That’s not exactly my fault, kid,” I reply, even though she wasn’t talking to me.
I know I should be understanding. Last night was Syd’s first impression of me, and judging by the way she won’t look me in the eye this morning, I’d say she’s already made up her mind about me.
Can’t say I necessarily blame her, but someone here needs to give me a chance.
“It’s not like they were hiding from you. You could have found Samantha any time you wanted,” Camryn tells me. That’s the second time she’s made some vague remark about what happened with Sami.
“I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about, pup. I haven’t even thought of Samantha Fuller in fourteen years.”
Camryn stands from her chair and crosses her arms over her chest, knives flying out of her eyes directly into my chest. “It was just that easy for you, wasn’t it? To abandon my sister and go on your merry way.”
“Don’t act like we had some love affair, pup.
We were no Romeo and Juliet, unless you count the fact that she came from a rich family who thought they owned everyone.
” My gaze travels over her, and my mouth curls into a sneer.
“All you Fullers are the same. Think you own everyone and everything. That you can tell me what to do in my own house.”
“Don’t talk to my aunt like that! You have no idea who she is or what she’s done to help me and my mom,” Sydney yells.
“Okay, I think we all need to calm down,” Freya interjects. “There are a lot of feelings that span years here, and this doesn’t need to be hashed out in front of Sydney.” Her eyes dart between me and Camryn.
Camryn clamps her mouth shut, but she’s still standing with her arms crossed, her pale cheeks now flushed red with anger.
“Sorry, Syd,” I mumble, not really knowing what to say. Shit, the girl has been here for eight hours and those are practically the only words I’ve managed to say to her, at least while sober. Really killing this whole dad thing.
I wish I didn’t take the bait every time Camryn made some rude comment to me, but that’s always been our way.
When I was younger, it didn’t matter. She was just the bratty sister of the girl I was fucking for a couple months.
But looking at Sydney and seeing the anger and fierce protectiveness on her face gives me pause.
“Let’s go to my office,” Ozzy says. “We can talk in private.”
I nod, as does Camryn. She turns toward Sydney and shoots her a serious look. “Stay here,” she says.
“I’ll entertain her,” Lucy offers.
“Keep her away from the shooting range, please,” I say, and Lucy rolls her eyes before turning her attention toward Sydney.
“God, Sydney, your dad’s boring,” Lucy jokes.
Camryn looks ready to grab Sydney by the hand and run the hell out of here.
“Maizie and Wyatt are on their way over with Colby and Pepper,” Charlie says, looking at Sydney.
“Colby is a lot younger than you, but he was so excited to hear there was another ‘kid’ here. He really likes baseball, and we have a little field out back. Figured we could hang out back there, and he can show off for someone new. If you’re okay with that? ”
Sydney relaxes back in her chair a bit. “Yeah. My mom had a boyfriend who played in the minors for a little while. He taught me a couple things.”
The fact that anyone other than me taught her anything about one of my favorite games pisses me the hell off.
Heat races up the back of my neck. Fucking Sami.
I should have been the one teaching my kid how to ride a bike or throw a ball if that’s what she wanted to do—not some pissant minor league asshole.
“You’re about to be Colby’s new favorite person, then.” Charlie turns her smile toward Camryn. “We got her. Don’t worry.”
Camryn nods her thanks, and Ozzy holds his arm out toward the hallway. She gives Sydney one more look before brushing past me to head toward the hallway.
“You need to rein it in, brother. This is not how you want to start your relationship with your daughter,” he says under his breath, then turns to show Camryn where we’re going.
Closing my eyes for a beat, I blow out a breath and turn toward Sydney. “I really am sorry I yelled at your aunt. We have history and…it’s not all great.”
Sydney gets the same look in her eye that I’ve seen from Camryn many times in the past and today. “Yeah, well, not much I can do about it. I wouldn’t have come here if I had known you were going to be a jerk to her, though.”
Fuck, that cuts me straight to the quick.
I can tell Sydney has the same kind of loyalty to her aunt as I have toward my brothers.
She had no problem jumping down my throat for the shit I was saying to Camryn.
Honestly, I respect her for it. But I don’t love the fact that I was the one she needed to defend her aunt against. Actually, I feel like the shit on the bottom of a shoe for it.
I have no idea what to say, so I nod and head back to Ozzy’s office.
When I walk through the door, Freya is sitting behind his large oak desk, and Camryn is sitting in one of the leather chairs in front of it. Ozzy’s relaxed on the couch against the wall, waiting for me to sit.
“Alright, I’m going to start with this,” Freya says as I have a seat in the chair next to Camryn. “What happened in there is not okay. No kid should see the issues you two have play out in front of her. It won’t help either of you, and especially her. Understood?”
I nod and Camryn does the same.
“This case is a little different than the ones I handle. Barrett, is it true that you had no idea of Sydney’s existence?”
Again, I nod, and Camryn scoffs.
“What the hell is your problem?” I ask, the anger rising again.
This isn’t who I am. I’m the guy to tell a joke and make everyone around him relax.
But for some damn reason, Camryn presses my fucking buttons with every dig or eye roll, as though she’s so much better than me, so much higher above me.
“You know exactly what that was for.” Camryn turns to Freya. “He’s lying. He knew all about Sydney. If he accepted a payoff to get out of town and never come back because my sister was pregnant with his child, doesn’t that somehow forfeit any parental rights?”
“It makes it more complicated,” Freya answers slowly.
“That’s not what happened!” I nearly jump out of my seat, but Ozzy clears his throat in warning behind me, and I somehow keep my ass planted.
“Don’t give me that shit. I heard my father tell Samantha that he went to your place and handed you a check for five thousand dollars.”
“That part is true,” I admit.
I want to wipe the victorious sneer from Camryn’s face.
“I’ll be honest, Barrett, that doesn’t look good,” Freya says.
“I had no idea she was pregnant, though,” I say, turning to Camryn.
“I swear to you. If I would have known she was pregnant, I would have been damn sure to be there for my kid. When your father came to our house, he threatened my dad’s job.
My pops wasn’t the greatest dad, not by a long shot, but he didn’t deserve to be blacklisted in a shitty-paying trade because I stuck my dick in the wrong girl. ”
“Real fucking nice, asshole,” Camryn says. “You’re talking about the mother of your child.”
“Camryn, I fucking told you we weren’t some great love story, and we weren’t ever going to be one. But that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t have taken care of my responsibilities.”
I damn sure would have. I was raised by a man who cared more about making sure the fridge was stocked with beer rather than making sure I had shoes without holes in the soles. I would have done everything in my power so my kid never had to go through that shit.
Camryn stares at me with narrowed eyes. “What did he say to you? Because the story he told Samantha was a hell of a lot different than the one you’re trying to convince me of.”
I shake my head. “Fuck, I hardly remember. He showed up one night and told me to stay away from his daughter. That I was a piece of shit and he had plans for Samantha that didn’t include me thinking he could cash in on fucking a rich girl.
I told him to shove it up his ass, and he started with the threats.
Said he’d pay me to get out of town and never answer the phone if she called. ”
“So you were okay with throwing her away for a paycheck?” Camryn asks snidely.
“I was a kid,” I reply defensively.
Jesus, now that I think about it, I was only a handful of years older than Sydney, and the thought of my daughter getting into the trouble I did scares the shit out of me.
“And you expect me to believe my father lied about telling you about the pregnancy?” she asks, her lips twisting in a smirk.
“Do you think he’s above lying, pup?”
“Don’t call me that,” Camryn snaps.