Page 112 of Take My Kiss
“That’s an option,” Samuel agrees. “But I don’t think it’ll stop there.”
“Why not? What else would she want from me?”
“I dunno, but once you submit to her demands, I worry she’ll continue wantin’ things from you or blackmail you into seein’ her grandchildren.”
“Blackmail me with what? She doesn’t have anythin’ on me.”
And like hell she’s getting anywhere near my kids.
“She’ll find somethin’. That’s what I’m sayin’…with her money, she can do whatever she wants. She hires people to plant shit or do whatever she can to make ’em look bad. Once I told Troy that she was my mother, he dug into her and already found a few shady things that he was gonna look into more once we found you.”
“She faked your brother’s death, for God’s sake,” Colton blurts. “I don’t think we can underestimate her.”
“I don’t want her money,” I insist. “It’s not worth the hassle or stress.”
“Neither is lettin’ her keep what’s rightfully yours, especially after everythin’ she’s done,” Samuel counters. “If you cave on this, it’ll reaffirm that she can get away with being a cheat, liar, and thief.”
“How much are we talkin’ here?” Colton asks.
“After all these years? Millions,” Samuel says. “They started it when she was born and used to add to it every year. When my mom cashed mine out at eighteen, my half came out to three-and-a-half million. That was twelve years ago.”
“Jesus Christ,” Colton mutters. “That’s life-changin’ money, baby.”
“And it comes with a massive threat,” I remind him.
“Not if we fight back.” He arches a brow. “We should at least try, dontcha think?”
“And risk mine or my kids’ lives? You remember she faked my brother’s death, right? She could use anyone I love as bait to get me to disappear.” Exactly what she did to Samuel, and I refuse to let her do that to me.
“But we have leverage on her to start. If that’s not enough, we get Maddox involved.”
“And you don’t reveal your whole hand at the beginnin’,” Samuel explains. “You see how she responds to your rejection of signin’ the papers before tellin’ her you know what she did to me. And then based on that response, we threaten to expose her if she tries anythin’. She can’t dispute it when I’m walkin’ proof, and she’d rather die than be embarrassed ’round her friends and community. The gossip and rumors about what she did would send her off the deep end.”
“And she could go to prison,” Colton adds. “Or at least threaten her with the possibility of it.”
“Considerin’ how many people she paid off, not sure they’d even investigate it. She’d probably turn the blame on me and deny she had any part in it.”
That sounds like her.
“Or on the flip side…” Samuel frowns. “When she learns you know the truth, she could hire someone to kill you and me. And anyone else she suspects we told. She’ll do anythin’ to keep her secret.”
“So, you don’t let her know you know until we have a solid plan to retaliate. Maddox’s dad being a sheriff means he can help, too. She won’t be able to buy him off,” Colton says. “So if we need to get him involved, we will.”
“This is startin’ to feel real mobish.” I pace in front of the counters.
How the hell did I get here?
“What if she already has somethin’ planned for me? How can I go over there and act normal? Or pretend I don’t know what she did? What if I blurt it out by accident?”
Colton grabs my arm and pulls me into his chest. “I’ll go with you. I’m your fake husband, remember?”
When he winks, I huff a laugh. “I don’t want her to be able to use anyone else important in my life against me. It’s better if she doesn’t know ’bout you.”
“She’s right,” Samuel agrees. “If she knows Amelia’s in a relationship, she’ll find a way to use it to her advantage.”
“Well, I’m not lettin’ her go alone.”
“What ’bout Maddox goin’ with me?” I ask. “He’s big and scary, right?”
