AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I leaned forward, scanning the picture. “Yes. That was him.”
“Shit.” Mom threw the picture back in the box. “That’s Tyler.”
Dad’s head whipped around. “The fuck?”
“But I didn’t know he had a son.” Mom placed her hands on her hips, staring at the box.
“You didn’t know?” Dad asked her.
“No.” She scowled. “How the hell would I know that? I broke up with him and hadn’t seen him until I started dating you.”
“You didn’t know about Tanner. At all,” Dad repeated.
“No.” She glared at him. “What are you accusing me of, Angel?”
I almost laughed, knowing that I got my fiery energy from my mom.
“Nothing. Fuck, woman. The guy is dead and he’s still causing shit. I’m going to get a beer.” He stormed away, stomping into the kitchen.
“Mom.” I went to her side. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize…I just…I’m sorry.”
“It’s not your fault.” She sighed, giving me a small smile. “You may be the baby but you’re definitely not a baby anymore, are you?”
“No, I’m not.” I nodded toward Sunny and Shade. “They love me.”
“And you love them.” She took my hands in hers.
“I do. I would have told you about them sooner to kind of ease you into this, but things happened fast and now Tanner wants information. I don’t know what he wants though. He said you have numbers. He wasn’t making sense. I’m not even sure he knows what he’s talking about. But I know it’s bad. He’s scary, Mom, and he’s not a good guy. At all.” I took a breath, waiting for her to tell me that I was imagining things.
“I figured. Being Tyler’s kid, it doesn’t surprise me that he would be just as bad as him. If not worse.” She shivered. “I don’t know what Tanner could want though.”
“He seems to think that you have something of his,” Sunny said, sitting on the couch. “Did Tyler ever give you anything?”
“A couple of black eyes. Some broken ribs. Heartache.” Mom shrugged. “The usual.”
“Mom.” I squeezed her hands. “I had no idea.”
“We don’t like talking about what happened before you kids were born. All of us had it hard. Even when we had perfect childhoods, something still happened to fuck us up.” Mom’s gaze flicked to where Dad went into the kitchen. “Your dad is my life and I wouldn’t change what I have with him for anything but sometimes, he can be an asshole. He won’t admit it anymore but he’s still jealous of Tyler. Even though he’s dead and gone.”
“I heard that he kidnapped someone, and she took him out,” Shade said. “But no one will say who it was.”
A faraway look passed over her face. “Max shot him, and he ended up in jail. She saved my life. I was pregnant with your sister. She saved us both from him.” She pulled away from me and I knew when not to press for more. Max, Piper’s mom, may have shot the fucker but it was someone else who actually killed him. I knew when to leave well enough alone, so I thought of something else. Anything that could get us the answers we were looking for.
“I had no idea.” I wondered if Piper even knew what her mom had done.
“Of course you wouldn’t.” Mom cupped my cheek. “We wanted to keep all of you safe from our past, but secrets can only stay secret for so long before they’re revealed.” Her gaze flicked over my head. “I promise whatever you’re thinking, it’s not true.”
I followed her stare, finding my dad standing behind the couch Sunny and Shade were sitting on.
“What did Tanner say?” he asked me, ignoring my mom.
My heart gave a start. “Uh…he said for me to ask mom about a set of numbers and showed me a picture of her and Tyler.” I thought a moment. “I’m not…I’m not related to Tanner, am I?”
Mom’s eyes widened. “What? No! God no!” She shook her head. “Is that what you thought?” she asked, going up to my dad.
“I don’t know what to think.” He shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans.
“Angel.” Mom placed her hand on his chest. “I love you and I promise that Tanner isn’t mine. If that’s what you’re thinking or worried about. I never had Tyler’s kid. My babies are yours. That’s it.”
