Corrupt - Elena M. Reyes Page 0,85
closed behind them, and then it’s just my father and me. It doesn’t make me feel any more comfortable, and I move closer to the bathroom door, an action he takes notice of and shakes his head.
“I’m not going to lay a hand on you, Mija. Relax.”
“And yet you want to sell me to the highest bidder?” My voice betrays me, the hurt palpable. “Why? How could you ever do this to your own flesh and blood?”
“I could ask you the same, don’t you think?” He mimics my pose on the opposite wall, arms crossed over his chest and face unreadable. “Why sleep with the enemy of your father? Why help him destroy those who’ve always been there for you?”
“When have you ever been selflessly there?” Tears gather at the corner of my eyes and I blink rapidly, fighting to not let him see how much hurt he’s caused over the years. “Tell me, Dad. Give me a single example where you were, when it didn’t benefit you in one way or another.”
“This is silly. I don’t need to prove—”
“Because you can’t. It’s that simple.” Wiping my face, I let out a sarcastic chuckle. “But then again, I doubt you care if I’m upset or disappointed that I’ll never have any kind of daughter/father relationship with you.”
“That statement is a bit melodramatic, Solimar. Grow up and act your age.”
“You mean, do as you say?”
Pushing himself off the wall, he stalks across the room and grabs my face in his hands—his grip’s tight, and my jaw hurts from the strength he’s exerting. “You’re walking a fine line with all this talking back. Don’t test my patience.”
“If you care about me at all, please let me go.”
“The wedding is this Saturday. Make peace with it.” Then he’s gone, and I crumble into a heap of nothing on the ground. Saturday is only three days away, and I pray that Alejandro comes for me.
“Hello, dear cousin,” comes from the door, and I shift my eyes in her direction. Laura’s standing there and she’s not alone; Signio’s with her and holding a possessive hand over her stomach. She’s pregnant, the small bump showcased by her tight top, and the daddy is the man my family is forcing me to marry.
This is so messed up. Why would they do this?
“What can I do for you, Laura?” It’s lifeless—you can hear the exhaustion in my tone, and yet she invites herself to have a seat across from me. I don’t say anything and neither does she, but after a few minutes, it’s the jerk beside her that breaks the ice.
“How’s your mother, Sol? Will she be back in time for the wedding?”
His idiocy pisses me off and my eyes narrow. “That’s a stupid question to ask. Why would she ever come back to this hellhole?”
“Don’t be rude. He’s just trying to—”
“Why are you here, Laura? What could you possibly want?” The less I’ve been around her, the more I notice how selfish she is. Self-absorbed. Only a selfish person would get involved with a man engaged to her cousin, of all people, and then ask said cousin to cover for her while sleeping with him.
She never kept it a secret. She never asked me how I felt or thanked me for sticking my neck out.
Laura used me over and over without a single crap given.
“What the hell has gotten into you?” she snaps, having the nerve to look offended. “Why are you being so hostile when we drove here to visit you and explain a few things.”
“Get on with it.”
“I’m going to ignore your bad mood for the time being.” My response to that is to twirl a finger in the air in a whoop-de-doo motion. “I swear you were never so obnoxious before. That man sure did a number on you.”
The way she says “that man” grates on my nerves and I stand from my seat, walking across the room and opening the door for them. “Leave.”
“Quit being so prissy, prima. No sense in getting stuck in your feelings, when it’s a lost cause.”
“Get. Out.”
“Watch your tone with the mother of my child,” Signio hisses, moving to stand quickly and then groans in pain. He’s suddenly spasming and cursing Alejandro’s name. How brave when the man in question isn’t here.
“Look at what that animal did to him.” Laura goes from flapping her arms to being in my face within seconds, her pointer finger digging into my right breast. She’s furious and looking at me as