Chapter Twenty
Corbin / Present
As much as I want to strangle Lena for showing up unannounced at my parents’ house, Kinley’s damp cheeks are all I see from where she cowers behind her brother. Walking away from my wife, I make my way to Kinley and ignore her brother’s tense posture as I pull her toward me. Threading my fingers through her hair as I cradle her head, I hold her tight against me.
I whisper, “Are you okay?” into the crown of her head and feel her nod slowly. But I know she’s not. Like always, she saves face the best she can like she’s not allowed to feel anything.
Drawing back, I stand beside Gavin and help him block Kinley from Lena’s view. Her brother is a few inches taller than me, and certainly built bulkier. But in this instant it comforts me more than anything because I know he’ll protect his sister no matter what.
“Why would you bring somebody here?” I ask Lena as she studies the three of us with narrow eyes. “You had no right coming here at all, Lena.”
One of her brows arches up. “No? I am your wife, last I checked. I haven’t seen your family since our wedding. Maybe I missed them.”
The way dad scoffs from where he and Mom stand behind Lena makes it evident that they didn’t miss her. How could they when I separated my life from here? I thought the less I shared with anybody about Lincoln meant the small town kept their privacy.
“Lena,” I warn through clenched teeth.
She struts toward me slowly, her painted fingers like talons scraping across the wall as she nears us. Her head cocks at a few discolored patches where Mom and I fixed the holes Dad left behind in his many mood swings. The slightest tug of her red lips as she traces the circular outline has my brow twitching.
Her gaze shifts from the wall to my parents, where Mom stands frowning and Dad keeps a close hold on her. “Did you know your son has anger issues? We have these same patches in our condo from where he punched the walls.”
I step forward. “Say what you came here to say because nobody has time for this.”
“Oh, I know.” Her eyes go to Kinley, traveling down her front. “It seems your time is up anyway.”
From the corner of my eye, I notice Gavin grab Kinley’s hand and squeeze it. She doesn’t pull away, just absorbs her brother’s comfort as this all unfolds.
“Is that what you want?” I prod, gesturing around us. “Did you think coming here and making a spectacle would get me to listen to you and the fucked-up blackmail you have on me?”
Mom winces when I curse but doesn’t scold me like she normally does. Nobody says a word as I stare at my wife, who gives it right back to me as she crosses her arms over her chest. We stand like that, and I have no idea what she expects me to say.
“Well?” I step forward again. “That guy out there can get arrested, you know. He’s on private property which means he’s trespassing.”
“Do you think I really care?” she retorts, tilting her head. “He’s going to make enough bank to bail himself out ten times over because of your little secret. If you must know, I came here to see if talking to your parents would get you to see reason.”
Mom steps away from Dad, but he keeps one hand on her arm still. “I called you as soon as she showed up.”
Voice grim, I nod once. “I know, Mom. I’m sorry I didn’t pick up sooner. Kinley and I were at her parents talking about…” My nostrils flare. “…things.”
Mom’s gaze falls on Kinley, and a sympathetic smile stretches across her face. She doesn’t have to say a word for Kinley to know that she’s here for her. I can see the way my mother’s gaze glosses with tears as she notes the baby bump staring back at her.
Swallowing, I shake my head. “It’s over, Lena. It’s been over. It’ll always be over. Your games are over the top and make you look pathetic. We. Don’t. Love. Each. Other.”
Her face darkens, lips falling into a flat line as her lips narrow into slits. “And I told you if you don’t agree to—”
“You know what?” I back up. “I don’t give a shit what you told me. Want to know why? Because as long as Kinley and I have each other, there’s nothing for me to lose.”
I turn toward the door and open it, shouting at the guy who’s standing on the sidewalk. His camera is already facing me, snapping pictures of my irate expression.
“You want a story?” I yell.
The guy’s eyes widen.
“Get out your fucking phone and record everything I’m about to tell you,” I demand, walking over to him with multiple pairs of eyes burning into my back.
I can hear my wife’s seething warning yelled behind me, which I blatantly ignore as the guy frantically pulls out his cell phone and aims it at me. He swallows nervously and just nods after hitting something.
“My wife, Lena Dasani, and I have been separated since the beginning of the year because we fell out of love. And the truth is, I am, and always have been, in love with my best friend ever since I met her when I was seventeen years old right here in Lincoln, New York. The world may think that I met Kinley Thomas on the set of the movie we just shot, but I’ve known her for over ten years and made the biggest mistake of my life letting her go. And that’s all the world needs to know right now.”