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“Where is all this coming from?” He looks over at me with wild eyes reflecting exactly how he feels about the inheritance.
Desperate.
For once, we’re on the same page. Because I feel desperate too. Desperate for him to tell the truth. Desperate for me to stay strong despite the urge to crumble beside him. Desperate for us not to lose everything we have built, even if it was built on a lie.
“Did your grandfather leave you an inheritance?” I ask point-blank.
“Yes.” Cal does a good job keeping his expression flat, although the twitch of his fingers gives him away.
“He asked you to sell the house,” I say with certainty.
One single nod makes my heart explode. Like a bomb, it detonates, blowing up any chance of me ever trusting another word that comes out of his mouth.
I already knew the truth, but having it confirmed destroys whatever bit of calm I had left.
“I see.” My tongue scrapes against the roof of my mouth.
“How did you find out?” he rasps.
“I overheard your conversation after dinner. Someone left the window open…” A bitter laugh crawls up my throat, making my ears ache from the shrill sound.
“Whatever you heard, it’s not what you think.” He stumbles over the words.
“Of course it’s not,” I reply sarcastically. “Either way, I contacted the real estate agent and told him to lower the listing price. He said it’s only a matter of time before someone puts an offer in.”
“You didwhat?”His voice comes out low, his anger dripping from each syllable.
I stand and brush the dirt off my leggings. “Congratulations, Cal. Hope the twenty-five billion keeps you company at night, because I sure as hell won’t.” When I turn to walk away, Cal bolts to his feet and latches on to my hand, preventing me from leaving.
“Let me explain.”
“What for? It’s not like I trust a single thing that comes out of your mouth.” I rip my hand from his grasp, nearly yanking my arm out of its socket in the process.
His fingers curl into a fist. “I couldn’t tell you about the will.”
“Why not?”
His head drops. “Because Grandpa told me not to.”
“Since when do you listen to what people tell you to do? The Cal I knew and fell in love with would have told me about the will. Regardless of who said what, he would have been honest. Forthcoming.Sincere. He would have reasoned with me rather than gone behind my back, using my love for my daughter to work in his favor.”
He flinches.
There isn’t a single thing I wouldn’t have done for Cal if he had asked me rather than lied, including selling the house.
He takes a deep breath. “There was a lot riding on my secrecy.”
“Not nearly as much as what was riding on your honesty.” In an act of betrayal, the tears I have fought appear, turning my vision blurry.
He pulls me into an embrace. “I’m so fucking sorry, Lana. I swear I wanted to tell you, but the decision wasn’t up to me.” His voice shakes, matching the trembling of his arms locked around me.
If this is the last hug I am going to get from him, then I might as well enjoy it. I lean into his touch, taking a deep breath of his scent, memorizing the notes of citrus and something distinctly him.
My ear presses against his chest. I listen to the sound of his erratic heartbeat and allow the steady thump to ground me.
I trace over the spot above his heart with my index finger. “Did you even want to get sober or were you also just doing that as part of the will?”
“What did you say?” His grasp slips before he corrects himself, securing me to his chest like he is afraid I might run off if he doesn’t.
