He pushes himself up from the chair and stands before me. We’re so close I can feel heat radiating from his body. He pushes a strand of my hair off my cheek and my breath catches. “We certainly do.” I swallow hard as he steps back and grabs his bag off the floor. “I’ll see you later.”

As soon as he’s out of sight I plop down in my chair and rub my temples. I remember he mentioned coming to New York last time we spoke on the phone, but I thought he was joking. I’m not angry he’s here or anything. I don’t like being caught off guard, especially where I work.

I sigh. Will I ever be able to figure this man out?

Chapter 16

RIFF

Okay, so surprising her didn’t go exactly like I’d planned. I wasn’t expecting a Hollywood sap where she runs into my arms in happy tears, but I was at least expecting a smile. It was like she was embarrassed I was there, which stung a little. I know I’m not exactly clean-cut, but I’m not horrid or anything. Maybe she’s more uptight than I thought.

“Go on up, sir,” Aubrey’s doorman says after he calls her to confirm I’m allowed in. I guess all the tattoos make me seem a little intimidating and untrustworthy.

Once I’m on the correct floor I track down her apartment number and then let myself in with the key. I pull my sunglasses off my face, glancing around the small space. The kitchen and living room are practically in the same room, which is typical for places in the city. There’s a large brown couch in the middle of the room and three blue doors to my right. I set my bag inside and shut the door behind me.

It smells nice in here, like some sort of apple scent. I can totally tell this is a girl’s place. I haven’t stayed in a place that’s had a woman’s touch in a long time.

My ringtone echoes around the room. I pull the phone out of my pocket.

Shit. A call from him is never good.

“Yeah?” I say into the receiver after hitting talk.

“Don’t yeah me you little shit. I’m your father. You give me some respect when I talk to you,” he slurs into the phone.

I clench my fist. “What do you want?”

“I need more money.”

Fuck me. “You went through thirty thousand dollars in less than two weeks?”

He laughs bitterly into the phone. “Well, since I have to take care of all the bills by myself since your mother isn’t here that chump change you call a paycheck you send doesn’t last long.”

I rub my forehead vigorously. “Do you have any idea how much fucking money that is? What did you spend it on?”

“I spent a weekend in Vegas. Next time I’m going on vacation you need to send me more money.”

“I’m not sending you anymore,” I growl.

“You will send me more money or I’ll—”

“You’ll what?” I fire back. “There’s nothing you can do to me. Not anymore. Your threats of beating my ass no longer scare me. I’ve done nothing to you!”

“Other than kill my wife and daughter! You’re a murdering son of a bitch, Zachary! You owe me money because you took away my life. If you hadn’t done what you did they’d both still be alive. How do you expect me to deal with all this and work? I can’t and it’s your fault. That’s why you send me the goddamn money.”

Tears burn my eyes, but I refuse to let them fall. “Fine. I’ll send you two million dollars and then we’re fucking done. Forever. You get me? Totally forget my fucking number.”

“No problem. Send me the money and you’ll never hear from me again.” His voice almost sounds giddy and it makes me sick to my stomach.

How can he be so excited to exploit their deaths? It’s fucking sick.

“Great. I’ll have my accountant wire it to your account,” I say and then hang up the phone.

Two million dollars is a small price to pay if he keeps him off my back.

Anger pulses through my veins. I raise my foot and shove the small brown coffee table across the room. It crashes into another small stand holding a lamp and it falls to the floor shattering against the hardwood floor.

I lean back against the wall and slide down it. It’s times like these I wish I was dead, too. Sometimes life is too fucking hard and I can’t even deal. I stretch my legs out in front of me and stare up at the white ceiling.

Why did my life have to turn out this way? I never imagined as a kid I would end up like this—a broken piece of a man. No one ever says when they grow up they want to be known as the reason their mom and sister died.

The tears I’ve been trying so hard to hold back drip down my face. I hug my knees into my chest and rest my forehead on them.

The deadbolt clicks and I jerk my head up as the door opens. My heart stops in my chest the moment Aubrey comes into view.

Fuck.

She’s the last person I ever wanted to see me in one of these states. She’ll never want to be with me if she sees how unstable I am with my emotions.

I flick the tears off my cheeks and quickly stand up as she takes inventory of the destroyed room. “Hey. I’m sorry about the mess. I’ll totally clean it up and replace all the broken stuff.”

She glances at my face and then touches my cheek with her fingertips, whipping away a residual tear. “What happened? Are you okay?”

I nod. “Yeah. It’s fine. I was on the phone with my dad. He has a way of getting under my skin.”

She frowns. “Is it about money again?”