Dorothy and I still have a chance. Maybe this meeting with my mom will clear the air and get everything back on track. It’s wishful thinking, but I have to have hope.
Me: Thanks, Dad. What you’ve done for me is nothing short of amazing. I can’t thank you enough.
Dad: No need. I want to see you happy.
The vehicle turning has me leaning against the car door and looking up. A two-story house on a farm comes into view.
I was about to assume this place was abandoned, but trees and spring flowers line the property. The lawn has streaks of green poking through the winter yellow grass.
Someone has been taking care of this place.
Who?
My gut screams that I’m way out of my league. Unease sets in.
The SUV stops along the side of the place. I swallow and take a deep, stabilizing breath. The door opens and I step out, praying I’ll make it out of this alive.
The driver gestures to the house. “You’re expected inside.”
I square my shoulders. Gravel crunches under my feet as I stride to the stairs. Not even a bird chirps or a dog barks. I’m alone, and that’s how my mother set it up.
Shit, I hope I don’t look like the frightened ten-year-old boy she left at her doorstep almost twenty-five years ago or else I’ll have zero leverage.
The wooden stairs that lead up to the porch are silent when I step on them. The stillness of this place has the hairs on the back of my neck standing at full mast.
When I reach the teal door, I consider knocking but don’t since I’mexpected inside.
I turn the knob and push open the door. The seal pops and splits the air. I step in to look around. Straight ahead is a hallway. There’s a living room on one side and a formal dining room on the other.
They’re both decorated with a Provencal flair, with murals of lush grounds on the back walls and thick moldings outlining a boxed design on the other walls. The woodwork is exquisite.
I doubt I’m here to take in the beauty, so I stride down the hall. My heavy footsteps against the wood floors echo throughout.
At the end of the hall is a kitchen and a family room. I don’t have much time to take it in as movement through the back window catches my attention.
Chills scatter over my skin.
A striking woman comes into view, sitting at a sturdy black metal patio table. When her gaze meets mine, my heart stops.
CHAPTER 24
DORI
From across the lobby,Jami stares at me stone-faced, and my stomach flips a thousand times. Seeing me come out of the restaurant with Hunter looks terrible.
“Jami, what are you doing down here?” I pick up my pace toward him.
“Getting my mail.” He shakes his head and turns to the elevators.
He stalks off, more mobile than he has been since the shooting. No doubt, he’s probably moving off pure adrenaline.
“Wait.” I step onto the elevator with him. “Don’t be mad.”
He rolls his eyes and sighs. “Dori, I’m not mad. I’m disappointed.”
My blood pulses with flowing guilt. “Can I explain?”
Before Jami can answer, one of my three rotating bodyguards, Tom, steps on with us. He tips his chin to Jami and faces the doors. I growl under my breath.
