“You’ve got my back, right?”
“Right. What is it?”
“I met a guy here, and things went a little farther than I expected.”
“What’d you mean?”
“You’re not going to make me spell it out, are you?”
Carter had cheated on Ozzie? The rage I felt over his admission was misplaced. After all, Ozzie and I had done the same. Three times. Yet I wanted to knock Carter upside the head. Ozzie was a prize. Despite everything, he was. If my bozo son hadn’t run off to the Caribbean instead of being here to plan their wedding, would he have even thought about me twice?
Ozzie’s question about whether I would allow my friends to make fun of him rang in my ears, and I gritted my teeth. I loathed feeling the way I did, but my son was a prick to hisfiancé. If not me, another man who treated Ozzie well would have stolen him away.
“Dad, why aren’t you saying anything?”
“What are you going to do?”
“It won’t happen again. I’ll stay away from him, I swear. I’m just afraid Ozzie saw the pic the guy tagged me in two days ago and that’s why he isn’t answering my calls. Did you notice any change in him?”
My heart stuttered, almost coming to a complete stop. Two days ago, Ozzie had turned down my offer to visit Lawson with me, then changed his mind on a whim. Two days ago, he’d asked me to pretend we were a couple. Two nights ago, he’d lain with me and made me fuck him like he was a single guy.
The puzzle pieces fell into place. It made sense. He’d thought Carter cheated on him, so he slept with me. Last night I’d lain awake for hours, reliving every moment of our time together and thinking it special when it was nothing but a revenge ploy to get back at Carter.
“Look, Carter. If you cheated on Ozzie, that’s for you two to discuss. Leave me out of it.”
Except I was smack in the middle of whatever game those two were playing. Had Ozzie been toying with me that night?
“You won’t tell Ozzie, will you?”
“It’s none of my business.”
“Good, because I’m gonna have to lie about that picture, or he’ll call off the wedding.”
“Don’t be so sure.”
“Yeah, that’s true. After all, if not me, who would want to marry him? I’ll give him a couple of days to cool down, then try him again.”
Son of a bitch. I opened my mouth to tear him a new one, my gut twisting with white-hot anger, but he’d ended the call.
“Ozzie deserves better than you.” My whisper echoed around the empty room, fighting its way through the thick silence before fading into the walls. I paced the floor, my mind racing. Why had Carter called to tell me what he’d done? If I told Ozzie the truth, I would betray him even more than I already had. If I didn’t, how could I convince Ozzie I cared about him?
I rubbed my temples, remembering Ozzie’s laughter and warmth and then Carter’s smirk, which usually preceded some foolish act. God, why the hell had I gotten involved? I knew better than to touch someone’s fiancé, especially the one of my own flesh and blood.
A sharp rap on my door startled me from my thoughts. I straightened my shoulders and stuffed my belongings into my pocket.
“Coming.”
Ozzie stood in the hallway, looking so fucking adorable in ripped black jeans and a cropped sleeveless T-shirt over a fishnet top that left a copious amount of pale skin on display. His blond hair was styled in layers, and his eyes were lined with dark eyeliner, making his blue eyes seem larger and more expressive. His lips were a soft shade of red that matched his shirt.
“Ozzie.” He tilted his head as if in invitation, and I bent toward him.
I jerked back. Ozzie frowned. “Is something wrong?”
Everything since you came into my life.
“Nope. Are you ready to go?”
He nodded. “I’ve been looking forward to this for the past couple of days.” The way he looked at me with his cheeks red, it was like he was telling me he’d been looking forward to being with me.
