Whatever I came in here to say suddenly feels selfish in comparison to the battle Cormac is facing.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t realize?—”
“It’s fine,” Cormac says, though it clearly isn’t. “I’ll handle it.”
I step closer. “How can I help? Tell me what I can do.”
Cormac studies my face for a long moment, like he’s weighing something.
“Keep Scout distracted. The less he knows, the better.”
“Of course,” I say immediately, but then a thought has me hesitating. Cormac must see it on my face as he frowns.
“What?”
“Are you sure…” I begin carefully. “Are you sure that there’s no way to talk to him? To Adrian, I mean.”
“What is there to talk about?” he snaps, and I flinch.
“I just…” I choose my words slowly. “If Adrian is his grandfather?—”
“He doesn’t get to be. They might share blood, but that means nothing when he is the reason Scout’s mother is dead.”
His words feel like a slap in the face, but I don’t back down.
I can see it in Cormac’s eyes that he’s panicking, which is completely understandable. Someone is attempting to take away his son.
But that means he’s also not thinking rationally or clearly.
“I’m not saying he deserves anything. I’m just asking if cutting him off completely is what’s best for Scout. Not for you, but forhim.”
I catch the muscle in Cormac’s jaw flex as he balls his hands into fists.
I already know I’ve crossed a line, but it’s clear from the dark shadows under his eyes that he is sleep-deprived, and therefore not thinking straight.
“Don’t question my parenting.”
“I’m not. I’m trying to help?—”
“You don’t get to tell me how to protect my son.”
The words sting more than I expect.
I keep my voice steady, though my hands are shaking. “Cormac, I’m on your side.”
“I know.” He’s already looking down at his phone again.
“Do you?”
Cormac stiffens. “This isn’t up for debate.”
Brennan murmurs something under his breath, and Cormac turns away as he makes another call, as if I’m not even in the room.
Part of me wants to snatch the phone out of his hand and force him to talk to me, but Cormac is shut down right now and sealed tight. Pushing him would only make it worse.
I back out of the room quietly. Strangely, my chest feels tight, and yet my head feels clearer than before.
We might have just argued, and Cormac might have raised his voice, but for once, he didn’t throw my past in my face, and that realization gives me a flicker of hope.
