Page 118 of Reckless Love

I swallow and approach his bed. “Some things came to light after our accident.”

“Oh?” Raul’s tone is mocking. “You had an epiphany while I was recovering?”

“Landon lost a lot of blood in the accident, and he needed a transfusion. He has a rare blood type. One neither you nor I have.”

He eyes me for a beat as though waiting for me to continue. But I’m really hoping he can put this together himself. “What does that mean? He’s all right, I assume. You don’t seem upset.”

“Yes, he’s recovered,” I say, dragging out the inevitable. “But it means that… Well, we found out that Landon is not biologically your son.”

“Not my son?” His eyebrows shoot up in disbelief. “We had a DNA test done. It was conclusive.”

“Yes, but—”

“But your mother,” he says with a sigh, “was in charge. That’s what happened, isn’t it? Celia doctored the results.”

“Yes,” I say.

A hint of a smile tips one corner of his lips. “I should be angry, you know. But honestly, it’s impressive the lengths your mother will go to to get what she wants. Can’t help admiring that.” Then he levels his stare at me. “Did you know?”

“No, I… I just found out. I had the DNA run through the palace, just to be sure.” I slip the envelope out of my purse. “And since we’ve been staying together for Landon, and that’s no longer relevant, I figured you’d want these.”

He watches me place the envelope on the tray across his lap that has a glass of water on it. “What’s that?”

“We got married for Landon…”

“Did we?” He narrows his eyes. “Or did you? I married you because you were a Tucker. A gorgeous, fuckable Tucker. The connections. The name. The old money. The prestige of being associated with your family. The deals your mother promised to help me negotiate. None of that changes just because the child I never wanted isn’t biologically mine. He’s legally mine.”

“Everything has changed for me,” I say, straightening. “I’ve moved out of our house. As far as I’m concerned, we’re over.”

“I’m not signing away our marriage. And I’m not signing away my son. I want you to listen very, very carefully. I’m only going to say this one more time. The next time I have to remind you, I won’t be so kind.”

Bile rises into my throat because this isn’t the first time he’s given me a lecture.

“I already know I stand a good chance in court at keeping contact with Landon, if not getting full custody. The possibility he wasn’t really mine lurked in the back of my mind for years, so I’ve been preparing for this betrayal. I know a lot of people, and those people owe me favors. You can either come back to me, be my wife in every sense of the word, or I’ll take the two things that matter most. Reckless will be dismantled—all those families will be out of work, no benefits, no paychecks. I’ll even tear down the building. Then I’ll make you look like the most unstable, unsuitable mother possible. When I’m done, no judge will ever award you visitation, let alone custody.”

“I don’t want to be married to you anymore,” I say through tears.

“We made a deal. Until death do us part. If you try to break our deal, I’ll ruin everything you love. This is a good lesson for you. You can’t always snap your fingers and have your deals nullified. Sometimes the choices you make stick forever.”

“I’m not coming back to you. I’m not staying in this marriage.”

“I’ll give you until I’m out of here. I’ve been told I’ll have a few weeks, perhaps even a month or two of rehab to get me physically fit to leave. When I’m back in Bellerive, you can make your real choice. I won’t hold what you’ve said today against you.”

“We’ll take you to court. You’re not Landon’s biological father.”

“Take me to court. I’m the only father he’s ever known, and a lot of those judges? Guess whose pocket they’re in. What are the chances you’ll get one who isn’t? Is that a risk you’re willing to take?”

“You’re telling me you’d bribe a judge?”

“Everyone in Bellerive can be bought. Do you know who I learned that from?” He raises his eyebrows, a smirk rising. “Your mother.”

Which means I could pay to play too. I have money. I’m not without options. But the risk is overwhelming. If I didn’t pay enough. If Raul went over my head anyway. Money is great, but information—and I hate to admit my mother has ever been right about anything—information is where the real power lies. For six years, I could have been paying more attention, gathering ammunition. But it never occurred to me that this sequence of events would happen or anything like it.

Raul holds all those cards. He knew this day was a possibility, and I never had a clue.

“I’m sure you’ll need to get back on that jet to get home to our son. Like I said, I’ll be here a while. Gives you lots of time to come to the right conclusion. I’m not signing these papers”—he taps the envelope with his index finger—“unless your company and our son are the collateral damage.”

Chapter Forty-Two