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How am I going to pay the judgment?
What am I going to do now? Where am I going to work? Will the rumors follow me wherever I go?
Where can I go? I’ve lived here in Ashbourne my whole life.
But most importantly, what about the Hunters?
Because everyone’s been preoccupied with the lawsuit, we haven’t even discussed what’s going to happen at the end of their stay here.
Are we just going to go our separate ways and see one another again when they come home for Christmas? Somehow, judging by how we’re always spending time together, I find it hard to believe they’ll just disappear into thin air.
But at the same time, what if I lose my job and become dead weight? I can’t let myself grow too dependent on them. Even though everything’s been going really well, I can’t give up my ability to take care of myself.
But what if the only job I can get is teaching in another small-town high school? I won’t be able to maintain a job in this line of work, while also seeing the Hunters.
Aw, damn it.
If some parents know about me and the Hunter brothers, I can be sure that my mom’s also found out and told my dad.
“. . . Green?”
I can’t believe it; the day just got a little bit worse. I didn’t think it was possible.
“Miss Green?”
I jerk awake, suddenly aware that the phone call with Principal Morgan hasn’t ended. “Yes, I’m still here.”
“I was just saying . . . You should be careful. Even if the superintendent doesn’t take any action, these parents seemed so determined I wouldn’t be surprised if they also bring this to the media.”
What? The freaking media?
What if this becomes a widely-known scandal and the Hunters’ business gets associated with it?
Ollie
“I’m so sorry there was nothing I could do, Ava,” Liam says as we all sit around Ava’s coffee table. “The judge saw that one message you sent him about paying him back, and he said it was binding. According to him, you already said you were going to pay him, so now you have to do it.”
Ava nods and lets out a sigh. She’s sitting between me and Liam, so I sling my arm over her shoulders and rub her arm, trying to soothe her.
The living room is quiet even though all six of us are here. Nobody feels like saying anything. It’s been such a bad day.
But at the very least, I’m glad Ava wasn’t there at the hearing. It went pretty quickly. It was brutal. The judge didn’t even seem to have gone through all the material Liam had spent so much time preparing.
And that smug son of a bitch, Joseph, looked so fucking pleased with himself. I enjoyed watching his face fall when he realized Ava wasn’t coming, though.
I don’t usually condone violence, but right now it’s not just Mason who wants to inflict some pain on that asshole.
We’ve all seen the signs he left on Ava—no, not physical ones. But we’ve seen the surprise in her eyes whenever she’s being complimented or treated nicely, and the fear in her ragged breathing when she has nightmares while calling his name in the dark.
I’m not a psychologist, but I’ve read a lot on dysfunctional relationships because it fascinates me, and I have access to a wide range of medical literature.
From the way Ava described her relationship with Joseph, it seems to me like he was abusive—that’s a strong word to use, of course, and I don’t want to mention it in front of Ava in case that alone triggers something within her—but the way he verbally abused her and intimidated her was textbook abusive behavior.
Ava also mentioned how he used to punch the walls and grab her wrist to keep her from leaving volatile arguments. Those were early signs of physical abuse, and Ava was lucky to have escaped when she did.
From my time volunteering at the women’s shelter, I know how hard it can be for a woman to escape someone who’s bigger, stronger, and has more money than her, especially if he’s determined to hunt her down wherever she goes.
So now that Ava’s with us, we’re determined to protect her from that asshole. She didn’t need to watch her abuser win in court. She doesn’t deserve to suffer any more of his shit.
“Hey, at least it’s all behind us, right?” Noah asks, trying to stay positive.
“Yeah. We knew, going in, that we could lose,” Nathan says. He’s been spending all day cooking up a storm because he couldn’t go to the hearing and risk having Becky, the judge’s assistant, see him with us.
Yes, that means Noah had to stay home with him because obviously, she would’ve recognized him as well. At least the twins had each other’s company while they were restlessly waiting for some news at home.
