She blinks, mouth open, with her dark hair in perfect curls to her shoulders.
And then her face transforms from confusion to pure, unfiltered, diamond-hard rage.
“Wow,” she snaps, voice sharp as she folds her hands over her chest. “Justwow, Brody.”
Georgia scrambles upright, pulling the sheet up to her chin. Emmett and Miles quickly jump up and look for their clothes.
“What the hell are you doing here?” I reach for my jeans, but Catherine walks right in.
She stops at the foot of the bed, shaking her head. “It doesn’t even fuckingmatterwhy I came here now.” Her gaze rakes over all of us again.
I sit up straighter. “Listen, Catherine?—”
“This is what you’ve become?” she spits, cutting me off as Miles goes for his boxers. She throws her hands in the air, disgust written all over her face. “The brilliant entrepreneur, the Navy hero, and this is—what, your littleharem?”
I open my mouth to say something in our defense, when she furrows her brow, suddenly scrutinizing Georgia.
“Is that…” She makes a face, shakes her head, and then lets out a dry, incredulous laugh. “Oh my god, youhaveto be kidding me. Is thatRobert’sdaughter? What the hell, Brody?” Her pitch goes shrill. “What is wrong with you?”
My jaw tightens, and I’m at a loss. This is bad. This is really fucking bad.
Georgia pulls the sheet closer to her body and Catherine continues to go off. “Don’t even try to explain, sweetheart. You’re achild.” She jabs a finger in my direction. “You have no ideawhat men like him are capable of. The only thing you’re going to get out of this is humiliation.”
She turns her fire back to me. “And did you lure her in with the same tired lines, or did you just throw money at her until she felt like she owed you a blow job? That’s what you do, isn’t it, Brody? Buy everyone, everything. Even when it’s not for sale. Andyoutwo,” she turns to Miles and Emmett, who are sitting in shock. “You two are just as disgusting as he is.”
“Catherine, you don’t even know what you’re saying—” I try to speak, but she just plows on, her voice echoing in the tiny cabin.
“You’re pathetic,” she rips into me, venom dripping from every syllable. “A sad, middle-aged man who couldn’t handle a real woman. Who had to scrape the bottom of the barrel for a fuck doll half his age, because the ones his own age know what a joke he is.”
Emmett, never one for subtlety, says, “Hey—” but she cuts him off with a glare.
Miles, holding up his hands, says, “Catherine, maybe we could talk about this like rational adults.”
She rounds on him, eyes brimming with hatred. “Miles, you’re just as bad. What, you couldn’t find anyone in Boston to humiliate, so you just hopped on your buddy’s boat and started banging this teenager?”
Emmett laughs, a short, ugly bark. “She’s not a teenager.”
Catherine glares at him and then lets out another dry laugh. “You know what’s sad? I actually hoped you’d all grow up one day. But look at you—circle jerking over some poor girl whose daddy issues are bigger than this goddamn boat!”
Georgia’s face goes white, her mouth a hard, tight line. I want to reach for her, but I know if I do, Catherine will only make it all worse.
“Are you done?” I grit out, voice so calm it feels like someone else’s.
“You’re disgusting,” she frowns. “And this reminds me why itneverworked out between us.” She then points at Georgia. “I hope you get what you want out of this, because trust me, it won’t last. And when he leaves you, remember this moment. Remember that I tried to warn you.”
With that, she spins on her stilettos, storms out, and slams the door hard enough to rattle the glassware.
Silence falls between us, and it stays that way until Emmett lets out a sigh.
“Well, that was intense.”
Miles closes his eyes, rubbing the back of his neck. “Jesus Christ, you think?”
Georgia stays frozen, fists clenched in the sheets. She stares at the door, and I can only imagine what’s going on in her head.
I want to say something that will fix it. I want to fixallof it.
But I can’t come up with anything to say.
