Somebody to Love (Tyler Jamison #1) - April Wilson Page 0,75
law enforcement anywhere in this country. Is that clear?”
“Your honor, no offense, sir, but I think you’re overreacting.”
“Am I?” He’s glaring daggers at me now. “You have no business fraternizing with a vulnerable young man half your age, detective.”
“With all due respect, sir, Ian is an adult. And he’s not half my age. Not even close. He’s old enough to decide who he spends time with. I don’t think he needs your input.”
“And I don’t think he needs an opportunistic asshole—”
“I am not—”
“My son is a very wealthy young man, detective. Don’t pretend you aren’t aware of that fact.”
“This is about money? Are you kidding me?”
“This is about you taking advantage of vulnerable young man. Ian’s young. He’s idealistic. And here you come, sweeping into his life like some big strong protector. I know you hired a bodyguard to watch over Ian. Do you think his mother and I can’t protect him?”
I shoot to my feet. “This is a ridiculous waste of time. I’m not the least bit interested in Ian’s bank balance.”
“Don’t pretend you don’t know that my son is sitting on a trust fund worth more money than you could possibly comprehend. I will not stand by and let you take advantage of my son!”
“I’m not taking advantage of him!”
“You have no idea what Ian has been through. You have no idea of the abuse he suffered before my wife and I adopted him.”
“Ian is adopted?”
“Yes. He was five when we got him. His mother and I worked hard to give him a healthy, stable upbringing. It took us years to repair the damage that was done to him early in his life. You can’t just waltz into Ian’s life now and destroy everything we’ve helped him accomplish!”
Ian’s father is clearly upset, his face flushed, his hands balled into fists. I keep reminding myself he’s just trying to protect his son. The Alexanders don’t know me. They don’t know what kind of person I am. It takes all I have not to let this escalate. If anything, I need to de-escalate this, and quickly. This is Ian’s father. I can’t lose sight of that fact. “What makes you think I would do anything to jeopardize Ian’s well-being?”
Martin Alexander jabs a finger in my direction. “Listen to me, Detective. You don’t know anything about my son. You don’t know what he’s been through. And I’m not going to let you undo all the good his mother and I have done for him. He’s finally in a good place in his life, and I won’t let you fuck that up.”
Nothing I say seems to be getting through to the father. “How did you even know about us in the first place?” Jesus, we were only together one night. “Did Ian tell you?”
He stares at me without answering, but I can see the truth in his eyes. He’s hiding something.
“You have someone watching him, don’t you?” I say. “Who? Private security? A private investigator?”
“That’s none of your fucking business.” The judge lifts a finger. “I know you spent the night at my son’s house last night. This is your only warning, detective. You stay the fuck away from Ian. I won’t tell you again.”
“We’re done here, Mr. Alexander. If you don’t want to have a constructive conversation about Ian, then we have nothing more to say to each other.” And then I turn and walk out.
On the way to my car, I realize there’s a lot more to Ian Alexander than I’m aware of. Martin Alexander obviously cares about his son, and he’s clearly worried.
It looks like Ian and I need to have a heart-to-heart talk.
Chapter 27
Ian Alexander
When I wake up to an empty bed, my heart starts pounding. Shit! He’s gone.
“Tyler?” Maybe he’s in the bathroom.
But there’s no answer.
I check my phone, which is on silent, only to find a short, impersonal text message from Tyler.
I didn’t want to disturb you.
Translation: it wasn’t worth my time to wake you up and say goodbye.
My chest tightens. He’s gone.
Of course, he’s gone, you idiot. Why in the world would he stay?
I exhale slowly and tell myself to calm the fuck down.
He had to go to work.
It’s not a big deal.
It doesn’t mean he’s lost interest in you.
Stop the crazy train right now, before you derail completely.
My therapist’s words play over and over in my mind, and I latch onto them desperately. “Ian, just because someone leaves, it doesn’t mean they’re leaving you. It just means they have somewhere they need to be.