I shake my head. “I got this.”
When Paige told me about what Chad had done—slapping her ass and calling her a whore—she had to stop me from coming out here in the middle of the night to deal with him. I would have dragged myself here on my hands if she hadn’t held me back.
Luckily, I calmed down and took the time to think about the best way to deal with an entitled asshole like Chad.
I push open the door and ease my leg onto the gravel. It smarts as I shift the weight onto it. I overdid it yesterday, and my stump is swollen and painful. I’ll be back in the chair for a week to recover, but I need to do this first.
“I’ll wait here.”
I grab the file Marcus hastily put together for me and slam the passenger door.
Once I’m walking confidently, I’ll need to learn to drive again. We’ll need a family car. Something more robust than Paige’s work van and big enough for the other kids we’re going to have. The ones whose lives I’ll be a part of from the start.
I shake the thought out of my head. I’m getting ahead of myself. I don’t even know if that’s what Paige wants. But I’m damned sure it’s what I want.
I ring the bell, and it’s answered by a stern-looking man in loose chinos and slippers.
“Mr. Huntington?” I ask, not in the mood for niceties.
He frowns at me. “Who wants to know?”
“I’m Ryan Burke. Sorry to bother you so early. Can we have a word in private?”
I’m clinging to the door frame, and his gaze travels down my sweaty face, red from the effort of climbing the stairs with a stump that really needs a rest. When I move my leg awkwardly, his eyes go wide in understanding.
“You’re a veteran?”
“Yes, I am, sir. Recently out of the Navy.”
“You better come in.”
Twenty minutes later, Peter Huntington is seething. The photos and screenshots from the folder are spread out before him on his mahogany desk, and he stands staring at them with his hands on his hips and a thunderous expression on his weathered face.
“He’s had it too easy.” He shakes his head. “I started with nothing, you know. Built my business up from the bottom. But Chad has never known anything but the privileged life we’ve given him.”
“Don’t blame yourself, sir.”
Planting his knuckles on the table, he leans forward, his steely expression pinned on me. I almost feel sorry for Chad and what he’s got coming to him. Almost.
“I do blame myself. He’s had everything too easy. He needs to learn discipline and hardship.”
I press my fingers together, and when I speak, it’s as if the thought has just occurred to me.
“Like they teach in the military.”
Peter’s eyes find mine, and he nods. “Exactly. Chad was never interested in the military, and my wife convinced me we should let him choose his own path.” His expression softens when he mentions his wife. “But I’m convinced that’s exactly what he needs.”
I try not to smile. I hope it’s exactly what a kid like Chad needs too. To learn discipline, to serve, to come back a better man. But he’s eighteen, and it has to be his decision.
“Will you be able to convince him that’s the best path?”
Peter’s lips curl up in a half-smile. “I will when I tell him he’ll be disinherited if he doesn’t sign up.”
I like his way of thinking. Hopefully, it’s not too late to turn him into a decent human being, and the military will do that better than jail time.
“But all this.” Peter indicates the images in front of him. “There has to be consequences.” He lets out a long sigh. “It will hurt my position on the council, but if Paige wants to make an official report, I’ll support that.”
My respect for the man jumps up a notch. He’s prepared to do the right thing, no matter what the personal cost.
