Chapter 6 #2
“Well, you got your revenge for my shitty behavior, didn’t you?” he growled. “Congratulations, you win! You felt like shit for a few days and I missed ten fucking years!”
“So, that’s my fault?” she snapped. “I wouldn’t have kept her away from you, Austin! You just had to get in touch…”
“Get in touch?” He slammed his fist so hard on the metal table next to him that one of the vases, created that day, jumped off the countertop and shattered on the floor. “Why would I have gotten in touch if I didn’t fucking know about my own daughter’s existence?”
“You… What?” Her heart nearly leaped out of her chest and her lungs gave out. “You didn’t know?” she croaked, a chill running down her spine.
She stared into his angry eyes, trying to understand what he was saying…but it was impossible. It couldn’t be.
No! He was just trying to get out of this shitty situation because he hadn’t believed her that the child was his and then apparently forgot about her.
“How can you stand here and claim you didn’t know?
” she whispered, her voice breaking. “I sent you a letter, emails. Okay, fine, maybe you ignored them, convincing yourself I was lying. But God, after I gave birth, she looked exactly like you, and I thought the photos should at least convince you… But since you didn’t get in touch, I assumed you weren’t interested! ”
“Funny,” he said dryly, narrowing his eyes. “I didn’t picture you as such a bad liar. Obviously, my memory’s a bit fuzzy.”
God, she wished she could say the same thing. “It’s not a lie!”
“I don’t believe a word you say. If you really wanted me to know, I’d damn well know! Shit, no woman voluntarily waives alimony from a millionaire!”
“I didn’t want any money from you!” she lashed out, growing angrier with every condescending word he uttered.
“I didn’t want anything from you! You used me to distract yourself from your marital problems. You didn’t even have the decency to be honest with me or leave me a damn note on my nightstand… ”
“And you hated me so much you believed I deserved to be punished!”
“No!” she cried out angrily. “I couldn’t punish someone that would also harm my daughter!
I gave you a chance — shit, I gave you five chances!
You wanted nothing to do with her and I didn’t want to burden my daughter with destroying a marriage.
My best friend was the other woman’s daughter, and she still suffers to this day!
I didn’t want to burden Delfina with the same responsibility.
So, I gave you your chance, and when you didn’t take it… ”
“Oh, my marriage destroyed itself just fine on its own, thank you — and that’s no fucking excuse. What kind of chance is an imaginary letter that I never received!”
Nausea churned in her stomach. Why was he still claiming that? Why…
“I divorced five years ago, so there were five years in which you wouldn’t have broken up a marriage!” Austin continued angrily. “You didn’t want me to know, so…”
“I sent you a letter, Austin! I sent you fucking emails. I sent you photos!”
He slammed his fist down on the table again, making the glass clink. “You didn’t do a damn thing. I never had any idea. I had no fucking clue!”
Stunned, she opened her mouth. He was lying. He had to be lying. She had contacted him at least five times through various channels. She had received confirmations that her emails had reached him. She had requested read receipts! She…
Fuck.
“Okay,” she said, her voice shaking as she raised her hands. “It’s irrelevant. It’s not important right now. I was actually planning to visit you with Delfina; she wanted to meet you but I kept putting it off. I didn’t know she went alone…”
“I don’t believe a word you say,” he answered, the chill in his voice tightening around her heart like a layer of ice.
“I’m not lying, Austin!” she said harshly, her eyes burning. She was angry, frustrated, and…she was scared. If he was telling the truth that he didn’t know… “Either way.” She straightened her shoulders. “Let’s talk privately, okay? This isn’t about me or you, it’s about Delfina, and…”
“I don’t want to talk to you,” he whispered bitterly. “Right now, I just want to destroy you.”
With that, he turned and strode out of the workshop.
Her eyes widened as she stared after him. Cold washed through her body and her hands trembled uncontrollably. He wanted…he wanted…to destroy her?
Oh shit, he had the means and ways to keep his word.
Tiny needles pierced her heart and lungs, forcing the oxygen from her body until she felt dizzy. Her feet moved as if on their own, and the next moment, she was running after him. She caught him on the boardwalk outside the door and grabbed his arm.
“Wait!” she gasped. “Please, wait. I won’t stop you from seeing her if you do it on my terms! I’ve never lied to her. She knows who you are, but we should be careful. We can’t overwhelm her and…”
Austin turned abruptly, causing her hand to fall from his arm. Moving dangerously slowly, he stepped toward her. He towered over her, using his height to make her feel insignificant as he calmly leaned down toward her, until his face was so close she could feel his breath on her lips.
“You won’t be able to stop me, Lilly, and I don’t give a shit about your terms!” he whispered darkly. “Whatever you say, what you think, what you want, I don’t give a shit.”
She didn’t back down. She stared up at him, not giving an inch. “She’s my daughter…”
“She’s no longer your daughter,” he said coldly. “She’s ours. You’ll wish you’d treated her that way from the start!”
Then he disappeared.