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“Ronnie?”
I blinked at Lucas’s calm but firm voice. At his equally firm hand on my arm. When had he returned? When had I stormed over here? I glared down at Maureen, now directly at my feet.
“I want to hurt her, Lucas. For what she’s done to us.”
“I know,” Lucas murmured. “But it won’t help. Trust me. That path only leads to more pain.”
Grinding my teeth, I nodded. “’Kay.”
“I need answers.” Dad appeared at our side, glaring at us both. Wisely, he didn’t grab at my arm. I don’t know what Lucas would have done if he had. Or what I would have done, for that matter. “And now.”
“Me too,” I shot back, snatching the towel from Lucas’s hand and storming across to Mom and Fluffy. Screw him. He could just follow me. I had things to do. Saving my friend from bleeding out before the paramedics arrived, to start with. “Like how did you know to come here?”
“We saw you on the news.” Oh good, he was following me. “The ship was two hours away from docking at an assigned port for a day trip, so the cruise line arranged a helicopter to be waiting for us on mainland. The helicopter flew us to the closest airport, and then we flew here. None of this would have been necessary if you were at home where you were supposed to be. Or answ
ered your cell. We had to go to the police station you were at and tell them who we are. I demanded your address. They almost didn’t give it to me. Then we rented a car and drove here. You’ve cost us a fortune, young lady!”
“William,” Mom protested, still pressing her hand to Fluffy’s shoulder.
I shot Dad a look over my shoulder. I don’t know what I was more shocked by: what they’d done to get here, or that he was angry about how much it cost. “Are you kidding?”
He glowered, hurrying to catch up with me. “No, I’m not. We were worried. Are worried. What’s going on? Why are you here with Lucas Pratt? Engaged to him? My God, cupcake, he’s no good. He’s—”
“Please don’t say a bad boy, Dad.”
“But he is. He’s a reprobate. An emotional manipulator.” Anger twisted his face, his lips. I’d seen him like this before, on one of his rants, although those were usually directed at whatever Congressman was not doing, in his opinion, “his civic duty”. This time however, the person at the receiving end of his anger was the man I was in love with. If he didn’t stop, and right now, I was going to stop him.
“William,” Mom said again.
Fluffy tried to stand. “Sir…I suggest…you stop.”
Dad didn’t. Eyes wide, he waved his arms around. “Look where you are, Cupcake! Look what he’s dragged you into. Look what he’s dragged us into. Who is that woman on the floor? Who did that to her? Who?”
“I did.”
Both Dad and I jumped at Lucas’s low answer.
Dad’s eyebrows shot up his head. It was as if he’d forgotten Lucas was still in the room. “Of course you did. I always suspected you’d be the kind of man who didn’t have a problem with hitting women.”
I hit him.
I hit my father. Slapped his face. “Enough.”
He gaped at me, mouth wide, the left side of his face red.
And then he made the biggest mistake he could; he grabbed my arm. “That’s it,” he snarled, jerking my face closer to his. “I’m taking you home. Now.”
“No, you’re not,” I snarled back. “I’m already home.”
“William,” Mom cried. “Stop this!”
“Let her go.” Lucas grabbed Dad’s other arm and swung him around. “Or I will make—”
Dad punched him in the jaw. Again
All hell broke loose. Again.
And while Dad was trying to beat up Lucas; while Lucas was doing everything he could to not beat him up in return; while Mom was wailing at them both to stop, even as she continued to press her hands to Fluffy’s bullet wound; while Fluffy—still bleeding and ghastly gray—was struggling to get to his feet to protect Lucas; and while I was trying to grab at either Dad or my fiancé…
