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Shayla sat back down and picked up her napkin. She crumpled it in her hand, unfolded it, then crumpled it again. Okay, so she was nervous, but who wouldn’t be? Taking a deep breath, she slowly released it before saying, “It’s way past time you learned the truth, Vance.”
“I agree,” he replied in a tone that gave no hint to his mood.
“Before we go down this road, though, you need to understand a few things.”
He propped his elbows on the table and crossed his arms on the tabletop. “I’m all ears.”
“You remember my parents?” she asked, jumping right in.
“Who could ever forget them? Your dad was the richest man around. A big-shot lawyer. Your mom was a stay-at-home mom. Nice lady.”
Shayla nodded. “Dad was a district attorney and a very good one. Never lost a case. Mom basically took care of everything else.”
“All really interesting, but what does that have to do with you and me?”
“My dad is the reason we broke up, Vance.”
Vance stiffened. “Come again?”
“He wasn’t just hell in the courtroom. Dad was hell at home too.” Shayla looked down at the table, scared all of a sudden. It was as if that by telling Vance her family’s dirty secrets, her father would come back from the grave and punish her all over again. Even dead he intimidated her.
She heard Vance shifting around, and she looked up to see a dark scowl marring his handsome face. “What are you saying, Shay?”
“Dad’s motto was a little different than your mom’s. He believed that if you spared the rod, then you spoiled the child. Or in Dad’s case, it was the belt he rarely spared.”
Vance fisted his hands on the table. “Are you saying he beat you?” His gaze narrowed. “If so, how come I never saw any marks on you?”
She crossed her legs, then uncrossed them. Her heart raced and her palms grew damp. It’d always been very clear she was never to speak of what went on inside the Riggs home. Her father had drilled it into her head on numerous occasions. “Oh, not just me. My mom too. He thrived on pain, but he was always careful not to hit so hard that he left any permanent marks. A few welts that would go away in a day or two, but that’s it.”
Vance stood and began pacing the room. He was silent for several minutes before he turned and glared at her. “You talk about him in past tense. Does that mean he’s dead?”
She nodded. “He passed away five years ago. A brain embolism. He died sitting in his study going over a court case.”
“Good, saves me the trouble of hunting him down.”
Shayla didn’t know what to say to Vance’s protective attitude. He was an honorable man and would view any sort of domestic abuse as unforgivable. Instead, she stuck to the words she’d rehearsed. “Anyway, Dad’s the one who forced me to break it off with you. He’s the reason I wrote that letter.”
Vance snorted. She watched him go to the refrigerator and take out a beer. After popping the top and taking several swigs, he said, “The prick never liked me. Never liked any of the Jenningses.” He placed the beer on the counter and looked over at her. “Still, you could’ve told me in person. None of what you’ve said so far explains why you chose to take the coward’s way out and send me a letter.” He stepped closer and pointed a finger at her. “A letter, Shay! Do you know what I went through when I realized you were already gone by the time I read that damn scrap of paper?”
Tears stung the backs of her eyes, and she had to work hard to keep them in check. “I’m sorry, but it was the only way I could keep you safe.”
Vance stood there and stared at her for several seconds. Once he was calm, he sat in the chair he’d vacated earlier. “You said before you were trying to protect me. From what?”
“Do you remember that day Dad caught us kissing outside the school?”
“Yeah. He was pretty damn worked up about it.” His jaw went rigid. “Did he hurt you that day?”
Shayla looked down at the table. “No, but he threatened to destroy you. He was in a rage and swore he’d ruin the Blackwater Diner if I didn’t stop seeing you.”
?
??Bullshit,” Vance shot back. “He was just spouting off.”
Shayla’s eyebrows shot up. “What?”
“Think about it. What could he possibly do to me? I wasn’t a juvenile delinquent, and my parents ran a good, honest business. He wouldn’t have had anything on us.”
She quirked a brow, completely flabbergasted by Vance’s uninformed opinion of her father. “You have no idea what you’re talking about,” she muttered. “My dad never made threats. If he said he would destroy you and your family, then he would’ve done whatever it took to make that a reality. When I said he never lost a case, I wasn’t trying to imply he won them by honorable means. You’re measuring his values as if they were the same as yours. Believe me, they weren’t.”
