The Dragon's Fate - Roxie Ray Page 0,53
you need,” he said as he pushed past me. “You need to warn Bri.”
My mother gasped, and Porter’s gaze moved quickly from me to Mom. He had to have sensed someone else here, but he seemed shocked to see her. “Oh,” he whispered. “I’m sorry.”
I hadn’t told Mom about Porter, but as soon as she saw him, she had to have figured it out.
“What is going on?” She clutched the kitchen chair in front of her. “Who is this?” But then she closed her eyes. “You don’t have to answer that. I know who you are. You’re the spitting image of him.”
Porter looked at me with wide eyes. “Your mom?”
I nodded. I was deep in it now. She was going to murder me. I always knew my mother hated my father for leaving us the way he had, but I’d never seen her look at anyone the way she was looking at Porter. In disdain.
She looked at Porter like he was the enemy. I stepped between them. “Mom, calm down. The things that happened, that Dad chose to do, none of them are Porter’s fault.”
“It’s not Porter. It was his mother. She knew about Jace and was the reason your father left us. She gave him an ultimatum, and in the process, your father acted like you never existed.”
I hated how hurt she was, but I was pretty sure she had it wrong. “Mom, Porter is older. I don’t think Dad was honest with any of us. Besides, there’s nothing that can be done about it now. We have to forgive and move on.”
She jerked her gaze back to me. “He’s older?” she whispered. A look of horror crossed her face. “I was the other woman.”
Porter stepped forward. “I’m sorry for dropping in and making this a surprise. But please know, I’m fairly certain my mother was also the other woman, and there was one after you and so on. There’s really no telling how many brothers and sisters we might have the world over. And if he told you he was leaving to come back to my mother after Jace was born, well, that never happened. He never came back.”
Mom’s breathing got faster and heavier.
“Mom. He’s held too much power over you for too long. You have got to let him go. Let the hurt go.”
She still looked angry, but the icy glare softened. If anything, she looked defeated. “You’ve got a way of keeping secrets from those you love. Don’t do that with your Briana or you’ll live to regret it.”
Fuck. I felt like total shit. “I’m so—”
She held up her hand, cutting me off, then walked out the door, edging past Porter, who jumped out of the way without saying another word.
Damn. She told me not to keep secrets, but did that mean it was time to tell Briana the truth? Maybe I hadn’t been doing her any favors by keeping what I knew from her, including about Damon possibly fighting her legally.
“Dude, I’m sorry for dropping in, but I called, and you didn’t pick up.”
My phone was still in my bedroom. “It’s okay.”
“I figured you’d want to know what I found out.” He grimaced.
“I do. I did. Thank you. Come in and sit. Donut?”
“Thanks, but I ate.” He followed me into the living room, and we sat on the couch.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“I used some resources and favors to get more information on Damon. It turns out he’s trying really hard to come for Hayden by making Briana look like an unfit parent.”
“Damn it,” I muttered. “What can we do?”
“I think you should call her. She needs to see this.”
“She’s at work,” I said. “Can it wait until after?”
Porter checked his watch. “I think so. But she should come right after.”
“You’re welcome to hang out,” I told Porter as I headed for my room to shower. “I’ll just tell her to come as soon as she can.”
He nodded. “Okay, sure. If you don’t have other plans, I’ll hang out with you.”
I texted her right away. Can you come over after work?
It took a while for her to reply. I figured she was in class. When I got out of the shower, I had a message. Sure. What’s up? Should I bring Hay?
No. It’s sort of a small emergency. I have to talk to you. Don’t get worried but come as soon as you can.
She texted me off and on for the rest of the day, and called at lunch, trying to get more information out