Page 70 of Inseparable
“Her dad manages the hospital where your mom works. She told me she’d have her fired if I had any more involvement with you.”
“That stupid fucking bitch.” I’m seething. “You should have told me this.” Based on what Mom has said in the past about Dr. Carmichael, there’s no way that would’ve happened. Becky manipulated him perfectly, knowing exactly which buttons to push.
“I couldn’t take the risk. Besides, you pretty much hated my guts, and with due cause.”
The usual pang prods my chest, like it always does whenever I think of the night I found Dev screwing Becky. As long as I live, I don’t think the hurt will ever go away. He leans in, caressing my cheek. “I wish I hadn’t gone to that party Thanksgiving night. If I wasn’t so wasted, I would never have slept with her, and none of this would’ve happened.”
My smile is sad. “We can’t change the past.”
He rests his hands on my shoulders. “No, but that doesn’t mean I can’t try to repair the damage, because I want to. I need you in my life, Ange. I can’t breathe without you.”
I’m not ready to confront that shit. Not until I have all the answers. “What happened to the baby?”
A muscle ticks in his jaw. “There was no baby. The bitch played me.” An embittered look is etched across his face. “Turns out, it was her older sister who was pregnant. Becky found the test in the trash, and she concocted the whole plan. We were in her room one night, and I noticed blood on the comforter. I freaked out, thinking something was wrong with the baby.”
“But it was only her period,” I surmise.
“Yeah. She couldn’t hide it from me any longer. She came clean, professing to love me. I actually think the crazy bitch thought I was in love with her and that I’d still want to be by her side even after her deception came to light.”
“She always was delusional.” I shake my head. “And crazy, especially when it came to you, but the whole thing is hard to believe.”
“I know.” He sighs. “The relief I felt is indescribable. I can’t tell you how fucking relieved I was to be free of her.”
“And you tried to tell me, but I wouldn’t listen.”
“I don’t blame you. You were only trying to protect yourself. I’ve hurt you a lot, Ange, and I have so many regrets. So many things I wish I could do differently.”
“We all do,” I whisper.
He cups my face. “But I’m here now, and I’m good, and I’m not going anywhere. And, if you’ll let me, I want to make it up to you. I want to prove that I’m worthy of a place in your life.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
“You’ve always been worthy of a place in my life, Dev. I’ve never felt like you haven’t.”
“I know, baby. That was all on me. I’ve never felt good enough for you, and, when things were spiraling out of control, the last thing I wanted was to take you down with me. But things are better now. Much better, and I want you back in my life if you’ll give me another chance.”
I decide to park that for the moment. “You still haven’t explained where you went or why you didn’t contact me.”
“Jim—that’s my real dad’s name—he wanted me and Luc to live with him. Luc’s actually his son too.”
My jaw slackens, and he chuckles. “Your face is a picture. We were shocked too. According to Jim, he and my mother had an affair for four years while she was married to my dad. Jim is Dad’s younger brother, but he’s nothing like him. He’s a very successful businessman and a real gentleman. They’re like night and day. Jim says he begged Mom to leave Dad for him, but she refused. He went on to marry someone else, and they had two daughters, but the marriage didn’t last. He doesn’t know how Dad found out about the affair or how he knew we weren’t his sons, but he said Mom called him one day, after years of no contact, crying and upset and saying she couldn’t stay with him any longer. Jim again offered to help, and she was going to take us with her to live with him in Ohio, but she failed to show up at the rendezvous point, and he presumed she’d changed her mind.”
Dropping his hands from my face, he looks away, breathing heavily. I reach out, entwining our fingers. “That was when she left?” I guess. He nods, still not looking at me. “Why didn’t she take you all with her?” He shrugs, finally lifting his head to look at me. The pain of her departure is still written all over his face. “I don’t know, and I guess we’ll never find out. When Jim found out she’d left without us, he was worried, so he started searching for her. He’s hired tons of different PIs over the years, but every lead is a dead end. I guess she doesn’t want to be found.”
“Did Cam know all this?”
He shakes his head. “He had no idea either, until Jim contacted him. By this time, Jim could see I needed help, so he fixed things with Cam. Luc didn’t want to leave school and his friends, and he was angry and frightened. He didn’t want to move to Ohio. I didn’t either, not at first. Even though you and Ayd weren’t speaking to me, I didn’t want to leave you behind. But Jim spent hours and hours talking to me. He listened to me, really listened to me, and I just got a good vibe off him, you know? Like I knew he was a decent guy. So, we talked some more and came up with some options. He made it immediately clear that he would look after us. He’s a very wealthy man, and he insisted that Luc and I would be treated equally. He’d set up college funds for his daughters and he straightaway set the same up for us.”
“Wow.”
“I know. We’ve gone from having nothing to having everything. It’s still a lot to take in.”
“That’s where the new car came from? And how you’re here?”
“Yeah. He also paid for my rehab.” I peer into his eyes, beseeching him to continue. “He got me into a private facility in Detroit. That’s why I left. That’s where I was up to summer break. I was able to complete my last few credits, and I graduated with my diploma. Then he tapped a few contacts and managed to get me in here. I owe him so much.”
“Oh my God, Devin, he sounds incredible, and I’m really happy you’ve turned things around.”
