Forced: A Bad Boy Billionaire Romance (The Blackthorn Brothers Book 1) (20 page)

The next several days were a blur as I buried my father. Ash never left my side, and though my father was now gone and Ash was the only family I had left, I still couldn’t be honest with him about what my father had done. And though I hated keeping secrets from Ash, maybe he never needed to know. What difference would it make anyway?

Yet, my guilt never let up. And now, I knew what it was like to lose my father and have him taken from me—and could only imagine how much worse it must be for Ash when his father was taken from him through violence—violence that my father had initiated.

I reached down and pet Sammie as Ash shrugged out of his wet jacket and hung it up in the mudroom, before wrapping an arm around my waist and pulling me to him with a lingering kiss. “You should have been there, Wren.”

I’d sent Ash to deal with the reading of my father’s will, not feeling up to it. “How did it go?”

“As you’d expect, little bird. You’re his sole heir, so nearly everything went to you—except for his vintage cars. Those went to Evan, though it was pretty clear he was expecting something more.” Ash gave Sammie a good long scratch down her back as she wagged her little tail, before we all headed into the great room.

“I know Evan and my dad both enjoyed those cars, and I’m sure they’re worth a fair amount, but…I can see why Evan would be disappointed.” Part of me wanted to reach out to him, but there was another part of me that just wanted to leave my past behind. And what would I say? I could certainly give him some of my inheritance, but I don’t think it’d erase the hurt of my father not thinking to leave him more.

“That’s the thing about wills. They have a funny way of turning sorrow into bitterness.” He sat down on the sofa and pulled me onto his lap, leaving me to straddle him as I draped my arms around his neck and looked into those amazing green eyes of his, even as they darkened, his mood serious. “By the way, the money in your trust is also yours now, free and clear. Your father either lied or didn’t get around to making good on his threats. There are no stipulations. Which means…you have your money now. So…if you want to leave…”

His words were like jagged shards of glass tearing through my heart. “You didn’t just fucking say that… What the hell, Ash?”

He held onto me as I tried to climb off his lap, furious with him, and so fucking hurt. “Wren…you ran just before our wedding day. And it’s not like you ever told me why you tried to leave.”

“So when I say that I love you…when we talked about starting a family…when I let you fuck me…did you think it was all some sort of joke?” It suddenly felt like the last few weeks had been nothing but a lie, and I couldn’t help the tears that stung my eyes, my emotions already too raw from my father’s death and the stress of having to lie to Ash.

“Wren…it’s not like this has been an easy journey.” He let out a huff of exasperation, his shoulders sagging as his brow furrowed and he shook his head. “I had to kidnap you just to get you to Seattle, and then, just when I thought everything was okay, you took off. And I know you’ve said there’s nothing wrong—but I’m not an idiot. Something well beyond your father’s death has been bothering you. And though I get that you might not be ready to open up to me, keeping secrets, especially given our turbulent past, leaves me feeling like you’re just waiting for the right time to run again.”

“I’m not leaving, Ash. I love you.” My anger with him dissipated as I let him gather me up in his arms, needing to hold onto what was between us, when it suddenly felt like it all might be slipping away. “And I’m sorry I’m so broken and fucked up. But I swear, I’m not going anywhere. I’d even been thinking that we should start a family.”

“Wren…” He pressed his lips together as he took me in. “I don’t want you agreeing to such a major decision because you’re trying to smooth things over between us. ’Cause having a baby is only going to exacerbate what problems we might have.”

“Our problems are behind us.” At least I hoped they were. “And I want a baby because I love you.” Which was nothing but the truth.

His gaze searched my face as he cupped my cheek, and I couldn’t help but turn in to his touch and kiss his palm. “Is this really something you want, little bird?”

“It is. I swear, Ash. And after everything we’ve been through, I feel like this is exactly what I need.” Sammie and Ash had already started to help me move past what Steven had done to me. And I knew that a baby would only help to heal the rest of my wounds.

“If you’re sure.” Ash still looked so worried about me. But there was nothing I could do about what my father had done. It was in the past, and it wasn’t something I’d had any role in. I just needed to let it go.

“I’ve never been more sure about anything.” Which was a good thing, since the chaos of the last few weeks meant I hadn’t exactly been consistent about taking my birth control pills.

“You make me a happy man, love.” He smiled as he kissed me, the ache in my heart finally easing.

“I’m going to make you even happier in a minute.” I trailed kisses down his neck, rocking my hips along his hard length, as he bit his bottom lip and groaned—and then my phone went off. I ignored it, pulling Ash’s t-shirt up over his head, before he covered my mouth with his in a passion-fueled kiss that went straight through me.

And then my phone rang yet again. Ash pulled away, breaking our kiss and ignoring my protests. “You should probably get that. Whoever’s trying to get a hold of you clearly isn’t going to be patient about it.”

I dug my phone out of my pocket.
Fuck…Evan.
“Hey… What’s going on?”

“We need to talk. Just the two of us.
Now
. Because if you think I won’t tell Ash that your father was the one responsible for his dad’s death, you can guess again. Meet me at the house.” He didn’t need to specify which house.

“I’ll be right there.” I hung up, trying to keep from shaking. “I’m sorry. Evan’s attempting to go through my father’s things, and he’s got questions… I don’t want him to feel like I’m blowing him off with everything that’s happened. But I promise I won’t be long.”

“Let me come with you, Wren.” Ash’s brow furrowed, and his green eyes darkened as he took me in.

“I appreciate it, but I’m fine. I can deal with this on my own.” Except that I wasn’t sure I could, even if I didn’t have a choice. Ash couldn’t find out about what my father had done.

The drive to see Evan was a blur, my mind plaguing me with one horrible scenario after another, though I was prepared to give him anything he wanted if he’d just go away. And yet…the sinking feeling in my gut had me pulling out my phone and hitting record on the voice recorder app. I might do nothing but incriminate myself, but if it came to nothing, I could easily delete the recording.

I found him waiting for me in the library, pouring himself a whiskey at the bar, and I somehow doubted this was his first glass. “What do you want, Evan?”

“All those years I worked for your father…taking care of everything he needed, running the business, seeing to his every need… And when he got sick…you weren’t the one who drove him to his doctor’s appointments…
I did
.
I
was the one who helped him through it all.” He snarled at me, his eyes narrowing with hate as he closed the distance between us.

“I know…the will… It wasn’t fair. But…I’m happy to give you whatever it is you feel like you deserve…whatever you feel my father should have left you.” I didn’t like being blackmailed, but I could see Evan was hurt and angry—and I couldn’t have him telling Ash.

“What I deserved was
everything
. I worked damn hard to help Turner build his empire, and he should have let me take it over—with you at my side. He should have let
me
marry you, Wren—
not Ash
. Especially when he knew how I’ve felt about you all these years.”

His words left me stunned. I’d never realized he had any feelings for me beyond genuine affection, given that he was a good twelve years older than me.

“I swear, I didn’t know how you felt.” Not that it would have mattered. I’d never felt that way about him. But as he backed me up against the bar, framing me in with his strong arms, I couldn’t help but panic. “Just tell me what you want, Evan.”

His lips curled into a smile as he brushed his cheek against mine to whisper in my ear as he grabbed my hips and pulled me to him, even as I tried to fight him off. “I thought that much was obvious—
I want it all
.”

“Yeah, well, that’s not fucking happening.”

“Are you okay, love? How did it go? Did you get your father’s things sorted?” She’d been gone just a few hours, but I was worried about her. I ran a hand down her arm—and I swore, she nearly flinched. “Hey… What happened, Wren?”

She shrugged and pulled away from me, her gaze refusing to meet mine. “Nothing. It was just hard to be back at my dad’s home with him now gone.”

What the hell was going on?
I could see her being upset—but I didn’t understand why she was suddenly pulling away from me. “I’m sure it was hard, love. But…if you need to talk about it…you know I’m here for you.”

“I think I just want to take a long shower and call it an early night. I’m exhausted.” Her eyes met mine in apology, but only for a split second, before they teared up.

“Wren…”

But she was gone…leaving me standing there, helpless, as I was left wondering if she was upset because of her dad or if something else had happened. I debated whether I should give her some space, and then decided against it. Because I knew Wren, and if I let her pull away, she’d just keep going.

I stripped down naked and stepped into the shower behind her. “Thought I’d join you…help get those hard-to-reach areas.”

I gently caught her hand in mine, but when I turned her to me, it was clear she’d been crying. And now that I was seeing her naked, I couldn’t un-see the bruises on her body. I cursed up a storm, finding it impossible to rein in my anger at the thought of someone hurting her. And yet, I knew I had to keep it together for her.

I pulled her into my arms and held her to me, though I said nothing, knowing she was too upset to talk and not trusting myself to not put a fist through the shower wall. And so she stayed there in my arms, her body sagging against mine as she wept and my heart broke for her, even as my fury threatened to consume me.

Eventually, I reached over and turned off the water before wrapping her in a bath towel, and carrying her to our bed where she curled up against me, though she still wouldn’t look at me even as her tears eventually slowed. I kissed the top of her head, her hair still wet. “You need to talk to me, Wren. Because I’m going to fucking murder the bastard who touched you. Am I making myself clear?”

“It’s nothing. Nothing happened.” Yet her entire body was shaking, and I couldn’t keep my mind from racing from one horrible thought to the next, desperately hoping she hadn’t been raped again.

“Did someone hurt you, Wren?” I tilted her chin up, forcing her to look at me—and fuck, the look in her eyes left me gutted. “Was it Evan?”

I’d fucking murder the bastard if he’d laid a finger on her. And I couldn’t think of who else it might be when she’d made it clear that she’d been heading to her father’s home because Evan wanted help sorting through some of Turner’s things.

“I’m fine. Nothing happened.” But she couldn’t even look at me.

“You’re lying to me, Wren—and I don’t fucking appreciate it.” I shifted her out of my arms and started getting dressed. “If you won’t tell me what happened—then Evan will.”

“
No
. Please…
don’t
, Ash. I’m begging you.” A fresh wave of tears fell, and even at her worst, I’d never seen her look so broken and hopeless.

“Then tell me what’s going on, Wren. I want to be here for you—and for fuck’s sake…
I’m your husband
. I’m supposed to be the one protecting you.” And yet, if someone had hurt her, then I’d failed miserably.

“It’s not that fucking simple, Ash. I wouldn’t even know where to start. Because my life will always be a mess. You should have stayed clear of me and my father from the very start.” She got out of bed and started getting dressed. “I’m going to go. Like you said…I have no reason to be here now.”

“That’s not what I fucking said.” There was no way I was letting her leave. “And if you think I’m just going to let you walk out on us, simply because you don’t want to talk to me about what happened, then you can fucking guess again. You’re going nowhere—and you’re going to sit down and tell me everything, or I’m going to hunt down Evan right now and put a bullet in his fucking head.”

“I’m begging you to let this go, Ash. Because, in the end, you’ll only end up hating me.”

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean? Did you sleep with him?
Did you fuck him willingly?
” I felt like I might be ill. Suddenly, I couldn’t even fucking look at her, my fury and anger tearing at my broken heart. And yet…she hadn’t confirmed that she hadn’t slept with him either. “Damn it, Wren.
Answer me
.”

“Does it fucking matter when you’ll still hate me once you know the truth?”