Page 89 of Violent Little Thing

But I had no clue whether it happened or not. She’d never said one way or the other.

One would think we’d have heard at least something.

But she’d never mentioned it.

And, to be truthful, Seraphina was so vindictive that I could see her making this up for attention.

“So it’ll be my greatest pleasure to name her assaulter here and now, so that the world can know what kind of person that he is.”

My stomach tightened.

“Black Adkins, Jesper County Sheriff.”

“Oh, get the fuck out of here.” Jessamy Darling threw up her hands on the same pew that Chris had come from. “Black Adkins is the best man that I know. And I have a little bit of knowledge with that, seeing as he’s arrested me too many times to count. The man is the best person in this room, and why would we take the word of a man that likes to masturbate in front of minors?”

Chris looked affronted. “I do not!”

“You do, too.” Jessamy stood up and pointed at him. “You’re just mad that he arrested you last week for drunk and disorderly because you were trying to break into Charleigh’s house. Thank God she wasn’t there. Then he caught you last week getting off at the school in the back of the parking lot. You were ‘there to watch your niece’s recital and got carried away’ but everyone knows that you don’t get along with your family.”

I didn’t know any of that, but I also tried really hard not to have anything to do with Chris or anything that related to him.

“And also, I would know this, because I listened to your drunken rage for three freakin’ hours because I was sitting in a cell right next to you.” Jessamy pointed at him. “You’re using this farce of a speech to lay the groundwork. I listened to you plan the whole thing. Which is why I’m even here in the first place. I couldn’t stand Seraphina. She was a complete and total bitch.” She looked at the family pew. “I’m sorry for saying that, but you know she was. She had no reason for her actions, we all know that she was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. We also know it wasn’t your actions—well, maybe not yours, Olive. She had everything given to her just the way your other kids did. But the other two aren’t complete and total assholes like she was. But I digress. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t because I heard you spouting your bullshit in that cell. I hated the woman.”

I would’ve laughed had Lysander not clamped his hand on my thigh and squeezed.

I pushed him away when it started to hurt. “Loser.”

He shot me the side eye.

Beau dug his elbow into my rib, and I rolled my eyes. “I’m going to stay quiet.”

“Needless to say, she wasn’t assaulted. She was actually the assaulter. She beat me up so many times in high school that it wasn’t even funny. She flushed my phone three times that I vividly remember. She also almost ran me over on the way home one time, and then laughed when I had to dive into a ditch full of muddy water. So no, I don’t think she was assaulted. Plus, she was easy as fuck. The entire high school class, and even the classes below and above her, shared her aplenty. She also had STDs that she liked to spread around, so you may want to get checked, Chris. Possibly both for your dick and your head. Because making this shit up about Black is disgusting.”

Silence.

Utter and complete silence.

“I think you can go sit down now,” the preacher suggested to Chris.

“She’s lying!” Chris pointed at her.

But Jessamy was already walking out of the church.

“That concludes today’s service,” I heard Benedict’s interpreter say as Benedict stood and flattened his tie to his bulging belly. “Thank you for coming.”

Everyone started to leave, unsure whether they should wait for the family to leave or not.

Benedict walked out a side door.

Meanwhile, the rest of us stayed seated.

I felt Court before I saw him.

Tilting my head back, I looked at him upside down.

“Well, that was fun,” he mused as he dropped his head down and placed a soft kiss to my mouth.

He tasted like salt.