“How much is there?”
“In total, from what I’ve been able to trace, just under two hundred thousand.”
“How much?” Orsen sat up straight and stared open-mouthed at Santino. “How is there that much money and I starved?”
“Most of it comes from Allison’s side. She was an only child, and when her parents died, they left her everything. I can’t say for certain, but she never touched the account, so I’m left wondering if she knew about it or chose to keep it away from Ambrose.”
“But she had money, so why did we stay? Why couldn’t she have taken me and left?”
“I can’t answer that question for you. I’m sorry.”
Orsen blinked rapidly, his hands curling into fists. “She could have saved us! We could have lived a life away from here. He killed her.” Orsen blinked, letting the tears fall. “She died when she didn’t have to. He used to beat the shit out of me! He tried to kill me! All those years of being punched and kicked, and I could have been taken away from it all.”
“I’m sorry, Orsen.”
“Fuck off with your sorries,” Orsen sobbed. “Just fuck off! I hate you. I hate you all.” Orsen ran inside and slammed the door shut behind him. He hated them all. All of them.
Chapter Six
“How are things between you and Orsen?”
“Tense but easing.” Santino glanced at Cody’s wrists, and noticed him pulling the sleeves of his shirt down.
“You want to know.”
“It’s not my place to know.” Santino picked up his cup of tea and watched pedestrians walk past the window of the tea shop. “That’s for you to decide.”
“You know some of my past.”
“I know of your relationship to Cass and Emily Paarman. A name you no longer share.”
“I came out, and they didn’t handle it well, but did a great job of appearing to accept it. When a specific type of camp was found, they reserved a place for me.” Cody sipped his tea and hummed. “I like this one.”
“Which one did you go for?”
“Green tea and lime. I blame Toni for getting me hooked on them. I made a pass at TJ when I was fifteen and then ran away.Spent a year messing up my life in every way I could think of, then one day it bit me in the ass, and I almost died. In those moments, I knew I wanted to live, and I knew I still loved TJ.”
Now Santino understood. “Your back.”
Cody nodded. “Yeah, and I wasn’t willing. I managed to get away, learned to accept who I am, and I found a family I could call my own.”
“What about Carter? He’s your uncle.”
Cody frowned and stared at the cup in his hand. “He is, but I don’t have that type of relationship with him. My family lives in Carrington on a beautiful ranch.”
“They saved you.”
“A horse named Freya saved me. We’re going to visit next week. Apparently, she misses me.” Cody smiled. “I miss her too, but my place is here with TJ.”
“You made a pass at him when you were younger, and he turned down your advances.”
“That’s a nice way of saying he told me no.”
Santino smiled, nodded. “I guess it is, but if he turned you down, why come back?”
Cody watched him, then murmured, “because he is the only man I have ever loved. No matter what I went through, he was my reason to keep going. I came back for him.” Cody chuckled softly. “You should have seen his face when I told him.”
“I imagine he was shocked.”
