a look of pity that made me want to stick my pen in her eye. “Is his father not around?”
“He is.” I once again decided to put her out of her misery when she simply stared at me, waiting to hear what was stopping me from going back to school. “Let’s just say Harvard is expensive and leave it at that.”
She sat back in her chair, her lips round in awe. “Harvard…wow. That’s pretty impressive. So what were you studying?”
“Well, I haven’t declared a major yet, but I plan to study medicine.” I looked at River. “I can always give nursing a try later.”
“Sweetie, I have nothing against nursing. My mother was one, and no one worked harder, but this is Harvard we’re talking about. You have to go back.”
“I can’t go back,” I snapped, forgetting all about being polite. Then again, it wasn’t polite for a stranger to judge my decisions. With or without the facts. “Even if I worked sixteen jobs this summer, there’s no way I can make that much money in time.”
She pursed her red-painted lips, and then I froze when her gaze slowly raked my form. I had already grabbed the handle of River’s car seat and was about to leave when she spoke. “What if I told you I had a job that could guarantee you’ll make the money in time?”
I felt my ass touching the seat again despite my reservations. “I’d ask you what kind of job could possibly pay that much.”
Her expression was curious as she seemed to contemplate something. “Do me a favor…promise not to freak out when I ask you this next thing.”
I kept my expression impassive, not willing to give an inch. “That depends on what you ask.”
Charlie’s smile was nonthreatening, but I was still on edge, especially when she spoke. “It’s just one little thing. Stand up and slowly turn for me.”
I DIDN’T CHASE AFTER TYRA as she probably expected, mostly because she’d left me without a car and a note.
Seems to me like we both need some time alone to think.
The joke, she’d find, was on her. The only thing I could think about was getting my hands around her throat and how much time I’d spend in prison if I choked the life out of River’s mother. He was what kept me from pouncing on her when she waltzed through the door hours later. Neither of us spoke as I followed her upstairs and into the bathroom. I silently sat on the toilet as she carefully washed the day from River in his tiny bathtub.
The moment she closed the door to his room after he was dry, fed, and asleep, I had her hair in my hands and was pushing her against the wall.
“Don’t you ever do that again.”
“Do what?” she challenged, pretending to be unfazed. Fortunately, I knew her better than she knew herself. I also knew that she was terrified, and her pussy was probably wet, too. “Take my child with me when I leave the house?”
“You know what the fuck I mean. You should have told me where you were taking him.”
“Were you really concerned about him, or were you just pissed that I left?”
“I’d say it was fifty-fifty.”
Actually, it was ninety-ten. Ninety percent pissed and ten percent concerned for them both. Jeremy had ensured that no one would retaliate over my father’s death, but Fox was still a big question mark. He had a son and daughter, Royal and Scarlett—twins, who were only a year or two younger. Wren, who had delivered the news to Royal about Fox’s death himself, had assured me that it was no love lost, but that didn’t help me sleep better at night. It didn’t stop me from wanting to keep River and Tyra close. Sometimes all that mattered was the principle.
“Well, we’re back now.” Tyra’s flippant tone and that twinkle in her gaze boiled my blood. She knew it would piss me the fuck off. “Have you used the time to think?”
“I thought about a lot of things,” I said as I trapped her more firmly against the wall. I pressed my hips against hers, leaving no space at all between us. “Mostly, I thought about what I might do if you continue to test me.”
“I’m not—”
God, help me. I kissed her before she could finish that sentence. Tyra had no idea how much my father had changed me. I’d do everything in my power not to give her a demonstration. Secretly, I admitted that I