Chapter 20 Aurora #2
At the sight of these two together, the tightening in my heart hurts like no other.
I feel like the only person who’s ever folded me into his arms was Everett.
How sad is that?
Cormac turns his head to me as soon as I stand.
No more wallowing. It’s showtime. “I need to use the restroom.”
“Okay.” He shoves his phone into the pocket of his black suit jacket. “Let’s go.”
“No.”
“No?”
“No, as in, I won’t pee if you’re there.” This excuse worked a handful of times on my parents’ bodyguards.
“I’ll wait outside.”
“I won’t be able to go if I know you’re there, period.”
He shakes his head, a sharp gesture that brooks no argument.
“For the love of God.” Showing, rather than telling, usually seals the deal. I spread my arms to the sides. “I don’t have a purse, any ID, or money on me. I have no one. Where and how exactly am I going to run?”
“Your parents could send one of their drivers.”
A mirthless laugh escapes me.
Seriously? Go to that nightmare of a house?
Yeah, right. Everett’s worst is the best time I’ve had in years.
My face says I would never.
When it dawns on him that I hate my parents, Cormac’s expression verges on pity. I don’t need it, but this isn’t about my ego.
“Okay. You’re good to go, but be back here in ten.” Cormac slips to the side, away from the door. “Last thing I want is to come between you and my boss.”
“Got it.” My heels click on the floor as I hurry out of the room.
Doctors, nurses, and other staff members roam the halls of the hospital. New parents and family members are also present. A baby wails from one of the strollers.
The antiseptic smell almost makes me gag. I swallow my disgust.
My mission takes precedence.
I cut to the right, disappearing into a darker hallway. Out of Cormac’s line of sight and earshot.
A red-haired woman rolls her stroller, eyes half-closed. She looks nice but tired. Cormac wouldn’t dare harass her with questions about me. I hope not. That’d ruin my plans and would be incredibly inconsiderate of him.
“Excuse me, ma’am?” I whisper despite our nearness.
“Yes?” She rubs her green eyes with the back of her hand.
“Could I maybe use your phone? My battery died, and I have to call my mom.”
The new mom in the hospital robe nods and hands her phone over. “Sure. Here you go.”
“Thanks.” I grab her phone, going further into the hallway.
That’s an extra twenty feet between me and Cormac, the watchdog.
I tap Molly’s number on the screen, hit send.
And wait.
She answers almost immediately. “I have nothing to say about my daughter’s—”
“Mom?” It’s a habit, calling her by a title she hasn’t earned.
Whenever I called her or Dad by their first names, I was punished. Either by being dragged into the basement or surviving on the bare minimum for a whole week.
“You,” she hisses, her disdain for me rolling off her.
She always hated me worse than Dad. “You have some nerve, calling here. After you humiliated us at the wedding. Not to mention, have you any idea how many calls we get a day? All these reporters asking for comments about the newlyweds? It’s your fault. ”
“I didn’t—”
“You did and you told them, somehow,” she cuts me off. “You’ve always been ungrateful. Always trying to undermine us.”
The hand at my side clenches into a fist. I bite down on the words I have for her.
Years of abuse. Of being held prisoner. Only allowed to leave when I scream like I’m a fucking lunatic woman—which, maybe I am.
None of the accusations leave my lips. There’s no time.
Cormac gave me ten minutes. At the very least, I’ve used up four or five of those.
“Is Everett my biological father?” I blurt out the question before I lose my nerve.
I’m pretty sure he isn’t, yet I have to ask.
“What?” A violent cough attacks her. Secretly, I hope she chokes and dies. Instead, she takes big gulps of air. Unfortunate. “No. No. He isn’t your father. We’re your—”
“Cut the crap, Molly.” Relief surges through me, hot and wild. I’m able to breathe. To think. To use my voice against her. “You were never my parents.”
Shit—I didn’t mean to go there. No time. No. Time.
“Ungrateful little—”
“No, don’t answer that.” I talk over her accusations, over her enraged gasp. “So he isn’t my real dad? Are you sure? Who is my dad, then?”
“You belong to us.”
“Yes, yes. Whatever you say.” I’d do anything to get to the bottom of this. Like being agreeable with her. “Just tell me who he is. Who my mom is. Who Everett is…to me.”
“Aurora Coraline Clarke, I see what this is. My God, I cannot believe you!” Her scream is loud.
I flinch at the deafening sound piercing my ear.
“This call isn’t about learning who your biological parents are.
You’re curious because you think you fucked your father.
You fucked Everett! Who the hell gave you permission to lose your virginity?
Winston is working day and night to help you escape this sham of a marriage.
How is he going to marry you off to someone else now?
What have you done? At least—dammit, at least tell me you’re taking the pills I sent you. My God.”
She’s shocked? Really?
What did she expect from Everett?
The show of possessiveness he put on at the wedding. The fiery kiss at the altar.
He declared I was his.
He made it clear to everyone in the room that he was going to take my virginity.
And as if none of that happened, she’s blaming me. If Everett hadn’t had sex with me already, I would’ve marched home right now, waited until he was back from work, and offered my virginity to him out of spite.
“So if you know it’s not him, does it mean you know who my real parents are?” I swallow my pride, demanding the truth from her. While she’s this shaken, there are better chances of her slipping-up.
As I wait, a sudden feeling comes over me. The hair on the back of my neck stands on end.
I’m being watched.
Ready to run away from Cormac, I raise my head to see where he is.
Nowhere.
The woman who gave me the phone sings to her baby. People in scrubs go back and forth.
“We deserve to benefit from you.” I can picture her cruel scowl. The grinding teeth. “But you just keep failing us. First, as a thief. Then, as a whore. Shame on you.”
“Shame on you.” I’m so over her. Over both of them. At least when Everett’s being mean, he’s passionate about it. If I’m lucky, I get a sliver of kindness from him. She and Dad were always cruel. Always. “You were going to whore me out yourself. You’re just mad I did it on my own terms.”
My own terms.
That’s hilarious.
The truth is none of her business.
All they know is that I went into Everett’s chambers with a sentence hanging over my head and came back out hours later as his fiancée. That’s all she’s getting out of me.
“Hmm.” The clipped sound sends chills up my spine. This is worse than her screams. She’s up to something. “You’ll pay for this. Both of you will.”
The line dies.
I start laughing another one of my weird, untethered laughs.
I keep laughing as I hand the woman back her phone.
I laugh all the way to the room where Gina, Cormac, and ten lonely babies wait for me.
Molly, making Everett pay?
Yeah, right.
He’s the monster who slays other monsters, not the other way around.
My husband is the strongest man I’ve met.
The man who’s slowly but surely stealing my heart.
The one part of me I swore I’d never give to anyone.
No one and nothing will get to him.
For better or worse.
Everett is invincible.