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“Can you fix it?”

“I can, but this stuff takes getting the facts right, and Felicity has a good liar, who can manipulate them to make her look like the victim.”

“Do you mean lawyer?” Cruz asked, glancing through some of the paperwork.

“No, not a lawyer, this is a liar. Sure, he’s got all the credentials, but he’s a liar.”

Cruz chuckled. “You’re telling me you’ve never lied to get your way?” He dropped the file on the man’s desk.

“Not like this. Not at the cost of a young woman’s livelihood. Kate’s a hard worker. Felicity took advantage of that, and also, because she knew all of her daughter’s personal details, she was able to get the freaking loans. Trust me, Felicity can be a bad egg at times. I don’t know why Kate has kept so much shit hidden.”

“People do that for family,” Cruz said.

He knew Kate, in her way, was loyal, and she cared about her mother, and it went against everything she knew to hurt her.

“Do you think there is anything that can be done?”

“Time. That is all this is going to take. Time and money, and an understanding that it’s over,” Mr. Moseley said.

Cruz looked toward Moseley and nodded his head. “You know what to do.”

“You’re going to need to make sure she doesn’t come back,” Moseley said.

“I will.”

“You’re not going to kill her, are you?”

“She’s my woman’s mother, and potentially grandmother to any babies we might have. I won’t kill her.” Cruz nodded toward his lawyer, who would handle all the financials, and Cruz knew exactly where Felicity was staying.

He made his way out into the truck, climbed inside, and drove across town. Felicity was not staying in a fancy hotel, but in a small rundown place with several letters missing, so you couldn’t really know what the hotel was called.

Parking, he made his way into reception, giving the kid who was working the desk the name of the woman he wanted to see. The kid was more interested in the video he was watching on his cell phone than him.

“Can’t do, it goes against some kind of data rights or something.”

Cruz reached into his wallet, pulling out a couple of twenties, and slid them across the counter. The kid looked at the money, licked his lips, and then checked the log book. Within seconds he had the key that would take him to Felicity’s room.

He wasn’t looking for a key, as he just wanted the room number, but this would work. Taking the key, he made his way up three flights of stairs to the top and knocked at the door, to which there was no answer.

This was when he used the key and let himself into the room. Felicity’s bag was in the far corner, and there were several garments laid out, all of them looking like they needed a good iron. She didn’t have much in the way of possessions, so he glanced around, then he took a seat on the bed, after he made it as well.

Felicity had a way of playing the weak and vulnerable woman, which tended to make people feel sorry for her. It might have worked on Cruz, if he’d not known what she had done to her daughter, and how she so easily took off without another word. Seeing the stress Kate had to go through had made him so fucking angry, and he wanted to hurt Felicity, but instead, he kept her close, hoping he would figure out how to fix everything for Kate.

Taking on the loan, paying for everything, and keeping his distance was all he could do. When he wanted Kate, she hadn’t been ready to deal with him, whereas now, she might be able to handle him.

It was an hour before Felicity arrived, and he wasn’t surprised to see a small package from a jewelry store in her hand. The moment she stepped through, she didn’t see him until she closed the door, flicked the light on, and turned around.

“Hello, Felicity,” Cruz said.

This made her gasp and drop the small little bag onto the floor.

“What are you doing here?” she asked, putting a hand to her chest. “You shouldn’t be here. This is my room.”

“Are you paying for it?” Cruz asked. “Or is that something else you’re getting your daughter to pay for?”

Felicity kept her distance.

He stared at the older woman, as she bent down and picked up her little package. “I don’t know what you’re doing here, but my lawyer said—”