Chapter 14

ChapterFourteen

SAWYER

As soon as I open the door to Bruce’s office, it’s like a waterfall of tension rolls out. Bruce is standing in front of his desk, and Paul is inches from his face. There’s a chair knocked over on the floor, and I assume it’s the one Paul was sitting in.

The most surprising part is seeing Luke in the corner with his arms crossed over his chest.

“He’s a fucking liar, and you know it!” Paul either doesn’t register that I’ve walked in on this confrontation or he doesn’t give a shit.

“It’s no use to deny it,” Bruce says calmly. A little too calm for the scene in front of me, but I’m trying to figure out what the hell is going on.

“You.” Paul turns and glares at me, and I guess he’s not so oblivious to my appearance. “You’ve set me up. The both of you.” Now he’s pointing at Luke, who doesn’t flinch at the accusation.

Deciding that it’s probably best to go ahead and get this over with, I step into the office and put my hands in my pockets. “All right, let’s hear what I’ve done.”

“The two of you have set me up!” he screams, and his face reddens. His eyes are erratic, and he’s sweating through his dress shirt. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s high as a kite right now.

“I’m sorry, I was trying to keep this private,” Bruce says and glances over my shoulder. When I look back, I see Chloe and Kelly are standing at the door and Katherine is walking up behind them.

“What’s all the shouting?” she asks and looks to the women for answers.

“Paul’s been forging company documents.” Luke is the one that answers Katherine. “He’s signed his father’s name to broker deals and collect the payment.”

“You’re stealing from your father?” Chloe says, and I see Paul turn his rage-filled eyes on her.

Not letting her get caught in the crossfire, I take a step to the side and position myself directly in front of her.

“You’d be smart to watch how you speak to my wife.” My hands are still in my pockets, and to an outsider I might even appear calm. But I’m assessing every little detail in this room, and I’m ready to put him in the ground if I need to.

“I’ve got a car waiting outside for you,” Bruce tells Paul gently. “All you have to do is sign yourself in, and we can work this out.”

“What is he talking about?” Kelly is the one to ask a question this time as she moves closer to Paul. I have the urge to tell her to stay back, but I’m not sure she’d listen. I have no clue how she got tangled up with him to begin with.

“He’s threatening to lock me up.” Paul throws his hands in the air, and the more manic he is, the less anyone believes him. “He believes them!”

“It’s a rehabilitation facility,” Bruce says, again with that soft tone like he’s speaking to a wild animal. “You need help, son.”

“What about the wedding?” Kelly asks, and I want to roll my eyes. Is that all she’s worried about?

“Paul, I didn’t want it to be like this. The documents are there with the forged signature and?—”

“He did it.” Paul waves his arms at me and nearly hits Kelly in the face as he does it. “He forged the documents to get me fired.”

“You were already fired,” Luke says unhelpfully. When I raise my brow at him, he shrugs like he doesn’t give a shit. He really doesn’t.

“We have you on camera,” Bruce says, and it’s like someone sucked the air out of Paul. He physically deflates because he can’t talk his way out of this. “We’ve also got you on camera using drugs in your office and at the restaurant on the night of your party.”

“Oh my god,” Katherine whispers.

“It’s rehab or jail,” Paul says with finality.

Chloe comes closer behind me, and I feel her hand on my back. I reach around and take her hand in mine, then give it a squeeze.

“You can’t be serious!” Paul lets out a humorless laugh as he looks around the room for help. “Sawyer’s framing me. He’s trying to take my job.”

“He already has your job,” Luke says, again being totally unhelpful.

“Shut it,” Bruce warns him, and Luke presses his lips together.

“This is all your fault.” Paul glowers at me, and then I see his eyes move over my shoulder. “And that bitch. The day your money-grubbing mother showed up with you was the day I lost my father.”

“What the hell did you just say?” Bruce cuts in, but I hold my hand up to stop him.

“Let him get it out. He’s like a toddler that needs a good cry,” I say, and Luke snorts. Chloe digs her fingers into the back of my shirt, but I don’t give a fuck anymore. “You’re a spoiled little shit that’s been fed from the family tit far too fucking long. You’ve done this to the only people who ever truly cared about you, and you’re not even sorry.”

“You motherfu?—”

“Shut the fuck up!” I shout, and the room goes dead silent. It’s not often I raise my voice, but I’m bigger and stronger than Paul, and even in his coked-out mind, he knows it. “You’ve got a chance to make this better. Your father is giving you the opportunity to do the right thing,” I tell him, and when he looks over at me, I can see some of the anger has faded. “Take it.”

Chloe steps out from behind me, and although I let her, I still tuck her into my side. “When you told me about the bet, I ran out on Sawyer,” she tells Paul. “You’ve always been so terrible to me.”

I’m shocked when Paul looks at her and then hangs his head in shame.

“You don’t deserve my forgiveness,” Chloe says softly and squeezes my hand for strength. “But there are big and wonderful things happening in our lives that mean more to me than holding a grudge. I hope you take this gift Bruce is giving you so that you don’t lose the chance to be a part of them.”

I put my arm around Chloe and kiss the top of her head as I lead us out of the office. Whatever is going to happen isn’t our decision or our business, and we don’t need to be here to witness it.

She said what she needed to, and so did I. There are no more secrets or half-truths between us, and the most important thing is protecting our peace and our babies.