Chapter 19

 

Chase got to the house and jumped out of his truck. Before he got to the door Brooke was storming down the steps toward him. Her eyes blazed with anger but he saw beyond the rage to the pain. “How could you let this happen?”

“Look, I’m sorry,” Chase said. “I had no idea.” Even if he did, he had no power to stop it. Everything was out of his control, and his sister was hurting. Agony shone in her features, the fight she was battling on the inside to keep all emotions but anger buried deep beneath the surface.

“Sorry isn’t going to fix this, Chase. Sorry isn’t going to keep that bastard from going on national television and saying god knows what about us.”

Overwhelmed, he threw his arms up in the air. “What the hell do you want me to do?”

“You couldn’t just keep your dick in your pants, could you?”

“Shut up!” he yelled. He hated that Brooke was hurting but he couldn’t let her say things like that no matter how hurt and angry she was.

“This is all your fault. If you stayed away from her, none of this would be happening.”

“You should talk! You were just out shopping with her the other day.”

“Because you already brought her home. It’s not like I sought her out.”

“She’s not a freaking dog, Brooke. She’s a person, and I’m sure she’s feeling just as guilty about this as I am.”

“Good! She should be.”

She lifted her finger, pointing at his face as she walked closer to him. “You’ve done a lot of stupid shit, but I think this takes the cake.”

Her finger stopped inches from his face, and he forced it away. “Oh, and you’re just a goddamn angel.”

“I’ve never brought that lowlife piece of trash back into our lives. Poor Layla is beside herself.”

Chase’s heart broke as he thought about all Layla had sacrificed for them after their father abandoned them and their mother died. She didn’t deserve that bastard going on TV and acting like he knew any of them. He didn’t.

“Where is she?” Chase asked, swallowing down the regret.

“She had to go to work.”

He was mad at himself for not getting here sooner. Maybe that’s why the photographers had been swarming the firehouse. They knew the story was about to break, and they wanted his first reaction. He should’ve known something was up. He should’ve been here for his sisters.

Chase hadn’t seen his dad in over a decade, yet the man was still ruining his life.

“I bet we won’t even hear from him after this. He’s in it for the payday,” Chase said, a sad attempt at sugar coating the terrible situation.

“Too bad the damage is already done.”

The sound of a car zipping up the street caught Chase’s attention. He turned to see Bex’s convertible pull into the driveway.

“You have got to be kidding me. I swear to god, Chase, if you bring her in this house it won’t be pretty.” Brooke stormed off and slammed the front door, rattling the hinges.

“I came as soon as I heard,” Bex said, jumping out of the car before he even suspected it was in park. “I’m so sorry. This is all my fault. I can’t even imagine what you must be feeling.” She stepped toward him, reluctant in the way she moved. “I already called my publicist. She’s ready to do damage control and bury this story as fast as she can. I’m going to fix this.”

He stepped back. “Fix this? You can’t just slap a band-aid on this and call it a day. It doesn’t work that way.”

“I know,” she said, reaching out to him but he stepped back before she could touch him. He was too angry right now and he had every right to be. He didn’t want her to take that away from him.

“I warned you,” she said and he could hear the tears in her voice.

“You never told me they’d track down my deadbeat father and give him a voice. A voice that he doesn’t deserve. He has no right to talk about my childhood.” Frustration took over and Chase’s voice continued to rise with each word. “He wasn’t there. Even when he was, he wasn’t.” The anger spun inside of him, mixing with other emotions, a combination so strong he couldn’t keep it in a second longer. “He wasn’t there!” He choked on a sob, hating himself for letting that asshole get the better of him.

“Chase,” Rebecca said, moving toward him. This time he didn’t step back. She wrapped her arms around him, pulling his head down to her. Her gentle touch soothed his soul and he closed his eyes, letting the calming sensation of her hands on him wash away the rest of his anger.

She held him until he finally regained his composure and drew back.

He’d been so angry and had directed some of that anger at her, but now seeing her, concern in her eyes, unease creating lines across her forehead, he realized this was not her fault and his ire slowly faded.

He could see his own pain reflected in her as if she was helping carry his burden. He lifted his arms, securing them around her and pulling her back to him.

“It’s going to be all right,” he said as he stroked her hair. The words not so much for her as they were for him. He needed to believe everything was going to work itself out.

She looked up at him, a worried expression on her face. “How is Brooke?”

“Angry. Upset.”

“She must hate me.”

“She hates everyone.”

Bex shrugged, a sadness passing through her eyes. “I actually thought she liked me, though.”

“She’ll get over it,” Chase said even though Brooke had been known to hold onto a grudge forever, but Bex didn’t need to know that. “The best thing to do is just give her space.”

“Okay.”

“Come on,” Chase said. “Let’s go back to your place, cuddle up with Willy, and pretend this day never happened.”