“There you are! I was afraid I’d missed you when the nurse said you were discharged.”
I stiffen at the sound of Nelson’s somewhat breathless voice. His suit is crisp, and his hair is carefully coiffed, but a closer look reveals tense lines fanning from his slightly bloodshot eyes. He keeps rubbing the back of his neck—a tell that he’s anxious. I start to look away.
“Grace, you have to stop your crazy husband.”
“My crazy husband?” I cock an eyebrow.
“He’s trying to destroy Mick and Viv.”
“So?”
“So?” he blusters. “They’re your siblings.”
“No, they aren’t. They’re bullies.”
Nelson puffs out an impatient breath. “What happened was regrettable. But Mick didn’t mean to push that hard. You’re still young and healthy. You can always have more babies.”
It’s almost unbelievable.He has no idea what my condition is.He couldn’t be bothered to check up on me and the baby, but he has the energy to chase me down to demand my forgiveness on his children’s behalf.
If nothing else had cemented my disgust for him, this would have done it. “I might—after this one, if Huxley and I decide to have another.”
Nelson frowns, his mouth tight. “So…you didn’t lose it?”
“I never said I did.”
“Then why are you being so difficult and vindictive?”
“Well, let’s see. Just for starters, you don’t think there’s anything wrong with Mick pushing me down a flight of stairs?”
“It was just a friendly little shove. It isn’t his problem that your balance is so poor.”
“And I suppose it was just afriendlyprank when Viv pretended to be Dr. Blum and stole two thousand dollars a month from me.”
“Jesus, it’s always about money with you. Fine. I’ll pay it back,” he says dismissively.
Contempt curls my mouth. Nelson will never understand it wasn’t about the money, but what it represented—hope for Mom’s recovery. Just thinking about what he and his family did to her makes me want to hurt him. “Get lost and never show your face again. You’re dead to me.”
“I’m your father!”
“You were my sperm donor. You were never my family. He is.” I point at Huxley in the Bugatti that just pulled in.
Nelson notices, then blanches. “Fucking psycho,” he mutters, then walks off as quickly as he can without appearing like he’s running away.
“Some father, leaving his daughter to a ‘fucking psycho’!” I keep my voice loud enough for him to hear, but he doesn’t turn back or slow down.
I climb into the car.
“Everything okay?” Huxley studies me. “You look a little tense.”
“I’m fine.” I give him a reassuring smile. “I just saw a little cockroach and had to shoo it away.”
He gives me a look. “A cockroach? Inside the hospital?”
“Yeah, but it’s gone now. Doubt it’ll come back.” I smile. “Come on. Let’s go home.”
Chapter Fifty-Four
Huxley
