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“What’s he talkin’ about?”
“She didn’t tell ya?” My father’s amused voice is followed by a chuckle.
“I was just about to,” Laney whispers. “Before he showed up.”
“How convenient.” He laughs. “While you were busy playin’ rancher boy, I was here—supportin’ your child.”
“You mean the one you threatened to take from her mother...” I hiss.
This makes no sense. Why would he try to get custody and then give her money for Serena?
Control.
If he couldn’t take her, then he’d play puppet master instead.
“How much?” I ask Laney.
She blinks. “What?”
“How much has my father given you? I’m gonna pay him back every penny so he has nothin’ to hold over us. So...how much has he paid over the years?”
“I don’t know...” she murmurs, shaking her head.
My father chuckles devilishly. “Well, let’s start with the house. Fifty thousand for a down payment. Even with a fake husband, you didn’t think a twenty-year-old single mom with a part-time income could buy her own house, did you?”
“What else?” I ask firmly, ignoring the urge to bash his head into the door.
“Four years of private school at ten thousand a year.”
Another forty.
“Keep goin’,” I say, adding it up in my head.
“Twenty thousand in supplies, clothing, and private tutors. Sixty thousand for her SUV.”
“That it?” I keep my lips in a firm line, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of how pissed off I am.
“Pretty much. We’ll call the rest gifts from her grandfather.”
“Great, I’ll send ya a check. Don’t come near me or my girls again. I’ll be the only one to support my family from now on. Not that you ever knew how to be a part of one.”
“You can’t afford their lifestyles from workin’ up in Tennessee shovelin’ horse shit. You should be grateful, son. I’m the reason they didn’t end up homeless or eatin’ out of a dumpster. They live in a nice, safe neighborhood. I’ve kept them protected.”
In exchange for what?My father does nothing for free.
Narrowing my eyes, I keep my feet glued to the floor so I don’t do something stupid that’ll get me thrown in jail. Knowing my father, he’d press assault charges the moment I touched him.
“I’ll begratefulthe day I get to bury you six feet under and spit on your grave,” I tell him, then step back and slam the door in his face.
“Ayden, that’s a hundred and seventy thousand dollars.”
“I know.” I walk to the kitchen, grab the empty glass on the counter, and fill it with juice for Serena.
“You don’t need to pay him back. He gave me that money because he felt guilty knowin’ he’s the reason you left in the first place. He’s just tryin’ to ruffle feathers now that you’re back.”
I slam the jug of grape juice down. “I do not want to give my father any leverage over me. He didn’t do it because he felt guilty. He did it because it was his way of controllin’ the situation.”
“What’re you talkin’ about?” She folds her arms, leaning against the counter.
