Page 106 of At His Beck & Call

“I would take the beatings for my mother when I could.”

“That’s terrible, Oliver.”

“He was an awful man. When he didn’t get his way, he took it out on everyone else around him. But then I grew up. And kept growing. He knew he wouldn’t be able to continue to beat me.”

“And your mother recovered?”

“To an extent. She was badly injured, but she’s still around and feisty as ever. I’ve spent a fortune adjusting her house to her needs.” I say with a rueful shake of my head. “And she keeps adopting cats to keep her company. It’s as if shewantsto trip over one and break a hip.”

“How many cats does she have?” Lissa asks, sounding amused.

“So many. I’m not even sure anymore.”

Her lips curve in a smile as she sips her wine. There’s a long silence, and then she lowers her glass to her knee.

“I have a scar on my shoulder from where James threw me into the kitchen counter,” she says. Her voice is small and hollow in the darkness. “Your mother was lucky to have you. I can’t imagine Henry having to go through something like that.”

“Is that why you left?” I ask.

“No. I wish it was some heroic tale of me choosing to save my son. But it was Bethany who eventually opened my eyes to the truth.”

“Which was?”

“James was going to kill me. One day, he would lose his temper for the last time. And I’d be gone. She told me over and over, terrified for me. I think it was her fear that helped me see what was really happening. That I didn’t deserve it. That I deserved something… more.”

I sigh, rubbing a hand over my jaw. “It can seem simple from the outside. But it’s hard to see when you’re living with it every day.”

“Yes,” she says in a shaky voice. “Almost impossible.”

Neither of us says anything more, sitting in the quiet, watching the fire with Truman sleeping peacefully between us.

I haven’t spoken about my father for so long; it’s a release to let it out.

I glance at Lissa, wondering what she’s thinking, but she’s leaning back on the couch, a little smile on her face, silent and still.

I keep my mouth shut, not wanting to disturb the peace between us, even as I fight the feelings trying to claw their way out of me.

Chapter 37

Lissa

“James has hired lawyers,” I say finally.

Oliver and I have been sitting in the dim quiet for a bit, sipping our wine, neither of us moving or speaking. It’s lovely to justbewith another person, but the intimacy of our prior conversation has made me bold.

He twists toward me, his brow furrowing as he places his wine down, entirely focused on me.

“He told you that?” he asks.

“He came to my apartment and personally handed me the divorce papers. He’s been threatening to do it since I left, but I think that somewhere in his twisted view of our lives, he expected me to take him back.”

Oliver says nothing, his eyes on the couch cushion between us, where Truman grumbles in his sleep and then gives a wide yawn.

“I have full custody of Henry,” I continue, “but I don’t stand a chance against James.”

“You have a protective order against him, Lissa. That often influences the judge’s decision. The courts will acknowledge a history of domestic violence. That will definitely work in your favor.”

“I know. I’ve been told that before, but I can’t afford a good lawyer, and even if I could, James has violated the order so many times over the past year, and the judge has always been lenient.”