Widow's Undoing (Ruthless Sinners MC #4) - L. Wilder Page 0,66
make a big deal out of all this, Mom. Please.”
“It’s hard not to.” It seemed my animosity for Marc would never fully go away. He wouldn’t let it. He continued to make things difficult, and I despised him for it. “I hate you had to see that. Your father should’ve been more careful. I’m so sorry he wasn’t.”
“Mom, it’s not your fault.” Sean tried to console me by saying, “You can’t help what Dad does.”
“Yeah, it’s not your fault Dad’s a total perv,” Corry snickered as he took back his phone. “Widow should totally kick his ass.”
“Stop cussing!” I dropped my head in my hands as I fought the urge to scream. Between what was going on with Widow and what I’d heard about their father, I’d reached my limit. I just needed to stop, so I dropped my hands and looked over to the boys. “Stay out of your father’s drawers, and the next time one of you says a curse word, I’m taking your phone for the day.”
“What! Seriously?” they both complained.
“Yep. Completely and totally serious.”
“That’s so unfair.” Corry sank back in his chair with a pout. “I hate it when you’re in a bad mood.”
“Well, don’t give me a reason to be in a bad mood, then.”
“I didn’t. Dad did.”
Without replying, I turned and started walking to the kitchen. When I got to the door, I shouted, “I’m going outside to check the mail.”
I went over and grabbed a cigarette from my secret stash, then went out to my hiding spot. I lit it, and after smoking for only a second or two, I realized it wasn’t going to help. Nothing was. Frustrated, I tossed it on the ground and stomped it out. I tossed what was left of the cigarette into the trash and headed back inside. I wasn’t ready to go back in with the boys, so I went to the bathroom and started a bath. I hoped a long soak might help take my mind off things. Once it was ready, I took off my clothes and slipped down into the hot water.
I closed my eyes, and it wasn’t long before the tension in my shoulders and back started to fade. I inhaled a deep breath and tried to savor the moment, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t seem to stop the storm of thoughts from raging in my head. There was just too much going on. The coffee shop’s weekly inventory, Corry’s counseling, Roman and our last conversation, and the boys and their father. I just wanted a momentary escape, but there was none to be had. The water was still hot when I got out and dried off. I threw on my pajamas, and after I got something together for the boys dinner, I got in my bed. I didn’t even turn on the TV. I just lay there in the dark, and it wasn’t long before I finally drifted off to sleep.
I’d like to say the next few days were better, but they weren’t. In fact, they were even worse. Not only had I still not heard anything from Roman, I had another run-in with Marc. I was just about to close the shop when he came barreling through the front doors. As he started towards the counter, I asked, “What are you doing here?”
“Lila Jo was cleaning the boys’ rooms yesterday, and she found Sean’s basketball uniform on the floor.” He tossed the uniform on the counter as he grumbled, “You really should teach them to take better care of their things.”
“I’ll have a talk with Sean when I get home.”
“Good.” He turned and took a few steps towards the door, but quickly stopped and whipped around to face me once again. There was a wild look in his eyes—a look I knew far too well. Knowing he was about to lay into me, I tried to brace myself as he snarled, “I always knew you were a fucking...”
He cut himself short when Sydney came strolling into the room. Looking like she’d smelled something bad, she grimaced as she grumbled, “Hey there, asshat. Wish I could say it was good to see you.”
“Hello, Sydney.”
She rolled her eyes as she came over and stood next to me. “Why have you graced us with your presence today, Marc?”
“He stopped by to drop off Sean’s uniform, but he was just leaving. Isn’t that right, Marc?”
“Yeah.” He glared at me like he wanted to strangle me, then turned and started out