“Yeah, well . . .” She trailed off and gave me an odd smile. “Honey, I need more.”
“More what?” I knew what she was talking about; I just wanted to avoid the subject and wished I hadn’t walked over to her in the first place.
I’d been agonizing over our last encounter, even more now that Jagger and I were engaged. Talking with Graham about it had helped remind me why I’d kept it from Jagger in the first place, but it was hard to remember as days went by, and all I could think about was the fact that I’d kept something so important from the man I was going to marry.
“Money, Grey. Two . . . three thousand, at least.”
The air in my lungs rushed out quickly, and I gave her an incredulous look. “I don’t have that kind of money . . . I can’t afford to give you any money, Mrs. Easton. Didn’t you find a job yet? Maybe I can help you look for somewhere to work.”
“You’re marrying my son, I know you have money,” she hissed, and I took a step back, my eyes and mouth widening with shock. I’d never heard her speak in any way other than her signature everything-is-made-of-love tone.
“How did you know?” Mrs. Easton hadn’t been at our celebration breakfast last week, and unless Jagger had seen her while I was at work, he hadn’t gone to her house while she was there, or even said anything about her this whole time.
“Do you really think I wouldn’t find out if one of my children got engaged?” She clucked her tongue and gave me a patronizing look. “Oh, honey, that’s cute. Really. But there isn’t much about them that I don’t know.”
“Look, I’m sorry, but I can’t help you and I need to finish the rest of my shift.”
I’d barely turned when she grabbed my arm and brought me back so I was facing her. “I know you have—”
“Jagger and I don’t share accounts, Mrs. Easton! I’m sorry, but I can’t help you!”
Her grip tightened like she knew I was preparing to make another attempt to leave. “If you don’t want to ruin my son’s life, you will give me what I need.”
“Ruin his life? There’s no way I would ever do anything to ruin him. I think you need to leave.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure of that. I know something that would ensure my son’s devastation. Now if you don’t want this little secret getting out, I suggest you give me the money.”
“I have no secrets from Jagger!” I whispered harshly, and turned my head to see if anyone was watching us. “Other than giving you that money, there is nothing about me that he doesn’t already know.”
“It has nothing to do with you. This is all on my son.”
My stomach churned and I stopped breathing for a few seconds. “W-what—” I cleared my throat and looked around again. “What ‘little secret’ about Jagger are you talking about?”
“That’s for me to know; but if he finds out about it, then—”
“Wait, what? What do you know that he doesn’t? How could you have something on him that he doesn’t even know?”
“Like I said, that’s for me to know.” Her anger was rapidly escalating, and I was still in shock seeing this spiteful and vicious side of her.
“You don’t have anything on him. Just like you don’t have anything on me. I don’t have money for you, and once again, you need to leave.”
I hadn’t gone more than two steps before she sneered, “It’s just great that you’re making sure his kid is going to starve.”
I came to a stop and stood there staring ahead of me before looking back at her. “What did you just say?”
“If you loved my son the way you say you do, you wouldn’t make his son go hungry because you refused to give him the money Jagger owes him as a father.”
My throat felt thick. I couldn’t swallow and I wasn’t bringing in air fast enough, or maybe it was too fast. Either way, my body swayed and I grabbed on to the end of another aisle. “What . . . son? What son?”
“Apparently my kid doesn’t know the meaning of the word ‘protection.’ He knocked LeAnn up over two years ago. But by the time LeAnn came to talk to him, Ben was dead and Jagger was never around because he was too busy taking care of you.”
This wasn’t happening. Jagger couldn’t have a son, especially not with LeAnn. “You’re lying.”
“Oh, am I? Why don’t you ask Charlie why I was never pregnant, but I miraculously gave birth to a baby—since she was there the whole time. Why don’t you ask LeAnn why she disappeared that summer and didn’t come back until a few months after the baby was born? Oh, wait, you can’t ask her because you have a restraining order against her. And why is that? Because she’s now regretting that she signed over custody of the child to me, and she’s doing everything to get her family back together—and that includes Jagger.”
“Oh God,” I whispered, and swallowed back the bile rising in my throat. “No, he can’t—they can’t be the parents. Keith looks just like—” I cut off quickly when I remembered exactly who I’d always thought Keith looked like. A little bit of Jagger with the dark hair, and a little bit of Charlie—who happened to look just like LeAnn—with the same blue eyes, and the full lips that all of the Eastons had. Which was exactly why I’d never questioned that Mrs. Easton was the mother.
“More what?” I knew what she was talking about; I just wanted to avoid the subject and wished I hadn’t walked over to her in the first place.
I’d been agonizing over our last encounter, even more now that Jagger and I were engaged. Talking with Graham about it had helped remind me why I’d kept it from Jagger in the first place, but it was hard to remember as days went by, and all I could think about was the fact that I’d kept something so important from the man I was going to marry.
“Money, Grey. Two . . . three thousand, at least.”
The air in my lungs rushed out quickly, and I gave her an incredulous look. “I don’t have that kind of money . . . I can’t afford to give you any money, Mrs. Easton. Didn’t you find a job yet? Maybe I can help you look for somewhere to work.”
“You’re marrying my son, I know you have money,” she hissed, and I took a step back, my eyes and mouth widening with shock. I’d never heard her speak in any way other than her signature everything-is-made-of-love tone.
“How did you know?” Mrs. Easton hadn’t been at our celebration breakfast last week, and unless Jagger had seen her while I was at work, he hadn’t gone to her house while she was there, or even said anything about her this whole time.
“Do you really think I wouldn’t find out if one of my children got engaged?” She clucked her tongue and gave me a patronizing look. “Oh, honey, that’s cute. Really. But there isn’t much about them that I don’t know.”
“Look, I’m sorry, but I can’t help you and I need to finish the rest of my shift.”
I’d barely turned when she grabbed my arm and brought me back so I was facing her. “I know you have—”
“Jagger and I don’t share accounts, Mrs. Easton! I’m sorry, but I can’t help you!”
Her grip tightened like she knew I was preparing to make another attempt to leave. “If you don’t want to ruin my son’s life, you will give me what I need.”
“Ruin his life? There’s no way I would ever do anything to ruin him. I think you need to leave.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure of that. I know something that would ensure my son’s devastation. Now if you don’t want this little secret getting out, I suggest you give me the money.”
“I have no secrets from Jagger!” I whispered harshly, and turned my head to see if anyone was watching us. “Other than giving you that money, there is nothing about me that he doesn’t already know.”
“It has nothing to do with you. This is all on my son.”
My stomach churned and I stopped breathing for a few seconds. “W-what—” I cleared my throat and looked around again. “What ‘little secret’ about Jagger are you talking about?”
“That’s for me to know; but if he finds out about it, then—”
“Wait, what? What do you know that he doesn’t? How could you have something on him that he doesn’t even know?”
“Like I said, that’s for me to know.” Her anger was rapidly escalating, and I was still in shock seeing this spiteful and vicious side of her.
“You don’t have anything on him. Just like you don’t have anything on me. I don’t have money for you, and once again, you need to leave.”
I hadn’t gone more than two steps before she sneered, “It’s just great that you’re making sure his kid is going to starve.”
I came to a stop and stood there staring ahead of me before looking back at her. “What did you just say?”
“If you loved my son the way you say you do, you wouldn’t make his son go hungry because you refused to give him the money Jagger owes him as a father.”
My throat felt thick. I couldn’t swallow and I wasn’t bringing in air fast enough, or maybe it was too fast. Either way, my body swayed and I grabbed on to the end of another aisle. “What . . . son? What son?”
“Apparently my kid doesn’t know the meaning of the word ‘protection.’ He knocked LeAnn up over two years ago. But by the time LeAnn came to talk to him, Ben was dead and Jagger was never around because he was too busy taking care of you.”
This wasn’t happening. Jagger couldn’t have a son, especially not with LeAnn. “You’re lying.”
“Oh, am I? Why don’t you ask Charlie why I was never pregnant, but I miraculously gave birth to a baby—since she was there the whole time. Why don’t you ask LeAnn why she disappeared that summer and didn’t come back until a few months after the baby was born? Oh, wait, you can’t ask her because you have a restraining order against her. And why is that? Because she’s now regretting that she signed over custody of the child to me, and she’s doing everything to get her family back together—and that includes Jagger.”
“Oh God,” I whispered, and swallowed back the bile rising in my throat. “No, he can’t—they can’t be the parents. Keith looks just like—” I cut off quickly when I remembered exactly who I’d always thought Keith looked like. A little bit of Jagger with the dark hair, and a little bit of Charlie—who happened to look just like LeAnn—with the same blue eyes, and the full lips that all of the Eastons had. Which was exactly why I’d never questioned that Mrs. Easton was the mother.
