Walking over to where Natalie sat on her car, she stood to the side, throwing up a prayer. It scared her, the things Cash would do to make money. He didn’t think this was dangerous; it was something he loved, and he felt like he had a handle on it. He could never understand why she was nervous.
“He’ll be good, he’s always good.” Natalie gave her a pat on the back and a smile to show she understood why Harper was so quiet.
Harper nodded, letting her know that she was probably right, but it didn’t stop the feeling she had in her stomach. She stood, watching as the cars made their way to the start line before taking off. Her attention was on them until she felt someone standing behind her. Turning around, she saw Janet and George.
“What do the two of you want?” she asked, even though she was sure she had a good idea.
*
Winning was an amazing feeling, and Cash was lucky enough to know that feeling well. More often than not, he was the first car to come across their finish line. When he won, he wanted to celebrate, and the first person he wanted to see was Harper. This time when he got out of the car, he saw Harper, but in front of her were the two people he never wanted to see again in his life.
Rodrigo made his way over. “Here’s your payout.”
“Thanks,” he said as he shoved the money in his pocket. “You think you and Slim could help me out if I need some backup.” He nodded towards where the three of them stood. Slim and Rodrigo both knew about Cash’s mom.
“Yeah, not a problem.” Rodrigo whistled to Slim, and they flanked Cash as he made his way over.
“What are you doing here?” Cash asked as he got closer to the trio.
“That’s the same question I asked,” Harper said as she crossed her arms over her chest and leaned towards him.
He kept walking, pushing her behind him so that she wasn’t in the middle should things go south quickly. “Well, now I’m asking, what are you two doing here? There’s no reason for you to be here, there’s nothing for you here.”
Janet stepped forward. “You’re my son, Cash, and I was hoping to see my other son here as well, but it looks like you left him by himself so that you could come here and try to kill yourself.”
“He’s taken care of, ya know. Real parents wouldn’t bring their kids here, now would they? If you would bring him, what kind of parents are you?” Cash baited her, not wanting her to know exactly where Remy was. She would find some way to use that against him. That was her way of doing things.
“You’re not going to tell me where he is? You can’t keep me away from my son.”
“But I can. I have a temporary restraining order that says I can. Until we go to court, Mommy dearest, Remy is my responsibility. You don’t need to know where he is, you weren’t invited here, and the two of you need to leave.”
It looked for a few minutes like they were going to argue with him, but finally they turned around and walked over to the same truck they had been driving, got in, and sped away, middle fingers up as they went.
“They are really nice people, aren’t they?” Nat whispered as the crowd watched them drive off.
“You have no idea.” Cash grabbed Harper’s hand. “C’mon, let’s head out to the clubhouse. I want to make sure they don’t somehow figure out that’s where he is. I have no desire to fight tonight.”
‡
Chapter Seventeen
Cash and Harper pulled up to the Heaven Hill clubhouse and went inside and picked up Remy. Once they walked in, they were met by the entire group.
“Hey,” Jagger called out to the two of them. “What’s going on with the Trail’s most winning driver?”
Cash grinned. “Just coming to pick up Remy.”
“He’s asleep,” B told them as she walked up from the back of the clubhouse. “I just checked on him. I think we all wore him out; Jagger took him for a ride on his bike.”
Cash shuddered. He wasn’t a fan of those things. “I can’t believe he got on one.”
“He loved it,” Jagger told them. “Said he wants one when he grows up.”
“Great, something else for me to worry about.” Cash laughed. “I hate to wake him up.” He looked at the time on his phone. It was nearing eleven-thirty. He would be whiney if they woke him up this late.
“Let him stay here,” Layne told Cash. “I’m hanging out to keep a watch on the clubhouse while everybody else goes and watches Jagger play at Wet Wanda’s tonight.”
“Yeah.” Jagger clapped his hands together. “Why don’t y’all come out and see me?”
Jagger was well known in the area for singing at the local strip club Heaven Hill worked protection for. His shows were usually sold out, but he figured it would be a good time for his young friends.
“You want to?” Cash glanced over at Harper.
She shrugged. “Why not? We’ve never been out on a date,” she quipped.
The group that had assembled laughed, and B put her arm around the younger woman. “You mean the two of you live together, you might as well be married, and you’ve never been out on a date? Cash, honey, what are you doing?”
“Obviously something right.” Jagger clapped the younger man’s hand as the two of the stood next to one another.
*
Harper had never been in Wet Wanda’s, much less any other club, so she held Cash’s hand tightly as he directed them towards the front of the group that had gathered to listen to Jagger’s set. They were flanked by members of Heaven Hill, so they didn’t have to push very hard.
“This is exciting,” she said as they came to a stop at the edge of the stage.
“Yeah.” Cash hooked his arm around her stomach and pulled her back so that she rested against his chest. It was crowded inside the building. It gave them a good excuse to be close together.
She watched as Jagger took the stage, and she could feel the energy of the crowd at her back. Immediately, he went into the southern favorite “Sweet Home Alabama,” and she giggled as she sang along. Cash’s breath was hot against her neck as he laughed along, singing loud and proud with the rest of the crowd.
“I had no idea you would even know that song,” she shouted back at him.
“Doesn’t everybody?”
For roughly an hour they swayed with the crowd, moving this way and that to keep from falling and getting swallowed up. A few times, Harper shook her ass against Cash’s crotch and eyed him over her shoulder.
“Stop,” he warned her, sliding his hand up from around her waist to cup her cloth-covered breast. “Don’t start somethin’ you can’t finish.” He leaned down and kissed her fully on the mouth, ignoring the people around them.
For now, they were two people enjoying the night out. They could have been anyone in the world. Their problems didn’t follow them through the door of this club, and they were allowed, for once, to be the kids they were.
‡
Chapter Eighteen
They were once again dressed up in clothes that weren’t theirs as they sat in the lobby waiting to meet with Damon. It was quiet, even quieter than it had been the first time they had been there. No other people—be it couples or singles—sat in the other chairs. It was only them, the receptionist (who was still making eyes at Cash), and the fish that swam around in the fish tank against one wall of the lobby.
Harper was nervous, in a way she couldn’t explain. The secret about her father was still weighing heavily on her, and at this moment she wished with everything she had that she had been able to tell Cash about it. That she had been able to put into words what she’d dealt with and what she’d seen. She knew he would have been there for her, but if this stood in between him and getting custody of Remy, he might say goodbye to her. She swallowed roughly and grabbed his hand, holding it tightly.
“You okay?” he asked.
She nodded, and could only imagine what he saw when he looked at her. The tears were in her eyes, and her lips were dry and cracked. She could picture the fear that was there, along with the loss she
just knew she was going to face.
“Great.” She smiled thinly, knowing he didn’t believe her.
He had asked her more than once what was going on, and she hadn’t been able to find it in herself, not even once, to tell him. She hated herself in this moment and wondered if she should leave. Without a doubt, she knew that her entire life was about to blow up in her face.
“Cash and Harper, Damon will see you now.”
They stood up, holding hands, and Harper knew she was walking towards the end of this relationship. Conveniently ignoring her past and pretending like it had never happened was no longer going to work.
*
Harper’s hand was sweaty as they walked into Damon’s office, and Cash had to wonder if it was because of the phone conversation he had overheard. He hadn’t pressured her, hadn’t wanted her to feel like she needed to confide in him when she hadn’t felt comfortable doing so, but now he wondered if he should have.
They each took a seat in front of the large desk and waited for Damon to address them.
“Thank you both for coming today.” He folded his hands along the file folder that sat in front of him and leaned forward. “I know you’re both interested in how we are going to go about with this fight for Remy.”
“We are,” Cash answered for them. “I don’t want Remy hurt, but I know that George and Janet play dirty. They showed up at the place we were at last night looking for Remy—he wasn’t there, but they hoped he would be.”
“I’m glad you mentioned that they wouldn’t play fair, Cash, because with that being said, I have to explain that I have done extensive background checks on the two of you. There was not a stone left unturned, nothing on your credit report left untouched. Both of you have secrets, but there is one in particular I’m worried about.”
“It’s mine, isn’t it?” Harper asked in a small voice.
Cash almost couldn’t hear her, that was how quiet the words were spoken. He glanced over at her, trying to determine how big this secret was, when he saw how pale she had gone.
“I’m afraid it is,” Damon said. “I know none of what went down was your fault. You were an innocent bystander in everything, but the fact of the matter is—your dad is now on parole. What if they argue your dad could take Remy and do to him what he did to you?”
“What? Wait!” Cash held up his hands, wanting to make them stop talking. He was confused, he had no idea what in the hell was going on. “Can someone please explain to me what’s going on?”
“You haven’t told him?” Damon raised an eyebrow as he looked between the two of them.
She played with the fabric of her skirt. “No, I haven’t. It’s not something I like to revisit.”
“If it could keep me from getting full custody of Remy, Harper, you better fucking talk now.”
Harper’s head whipped around. He had never spoken to her in that tone of voice, even when he had been pissed. Even when the two of them argued, they still made it a point to treat each other with respect. He was obviously beyond that at this point.
“Do you want me to continue, Harper?” Damon asked. He was no-nonsense and all business because this was his job. He gave people news they didn’t want to hear every day of his life.
“Please,” she whispered as she faced straight ahead.
She watched as he opened a file and placed two pictures on the desk.
“What you have here is the picture that CPS took of Harper when they arrested her dad for the murder of a convenience store clerk and his mug shot. After he shot the clerk, Harper went inside the store, stumbled upon the bodies, and then became his hostage when the police showed up. He was sentenced on the murder charge and let out for good behavior a few months ago.”
“This is why you needed a place to live?” Cash asked.
She could tell by the way his voice sounded that he was gritting his teeth together. “You don’t understand.” She shook her head.
“Because you didn’t fucking tell me.”
Damon cleared his throat. “Whatever the case may be in your personal lives, we can’t change the past. Harper was the only witness to a vicious crime, and the way George and Janet will play it is obvious. What if her father comes back to off the only witness that put him away for years?”
Her heart sank. This was the one thing she had been afraid of. The one thing she’d feared most would happen. The answer to the problem was clear to her.
“Then I will remove myself from the situation.” She looked Damon in the eyes. “But I would still like to testify on Cash’s behalf, because I know what a good influence he is on his brother. I’ve lived with them for months; there’s nothing Cash wouldn’t do to protect him.”
“I don’t think there will be any problem with you testifying. I want you to. As you said, you’re the one person who’s seen them interact with one another. I need your testimony, and believe it or not, I am sorry this had to come out the way it did.”
“Yeah.” Harper nodded as she grabbed her bag and got up to leave. “So am I.”
‡
Chapter Nineteen
Cash paid the bill in a blur, not even bothering to pay attention to the receptionist flirting with him. He didn’t hold Harper’s hand as they walked out of the office or even as they drove to their apartment. Lately they hadn’t been able to be around each other without touching.
His mind was flying a million miles a minute. Why hadn’t she trusted him with this information? Why hadn’t she told him? He’d trusted her with everything, including his brother. She had been the one thing he had been banking on to help him get through this…and she’d been lying to him? This hurt more than anything ever had in his life. Even more than every time his mom had relapsed.
They got to the apartment and he got out of the car, as did she. He stopped at the front quarter panel as she made her way around to the driver’s side.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
It was barely loud enough for him to hear over the thundering in his heart.
“You’re sorry?” He had so many things he wanted to say to her, so many questions he wanted answered, but he wasn’t sure he could handle it right now. He felt raw. “For what? Being a liar? Letting me welcome you into a situation where I normally wouldn’t have welcomed anyone? For letting me count on you?”
“Cash.” She closed her eyes and let the tears fall before shaking her head and making her way up the steps.
“No, Harper, you aren’t allowed to walk away from me. You aren’t allowed to say I can’t hear this from your own mouth, from between your own lips. For once be truthful with me.”
She walked through the front door, seeing Remy and B sitting there with shock on their faces. They had been reluctant to leave Remy alone, so B had offered to babysit while they went to see the attorney. She did not want to do this in front of people, but if Cash wanted to have it out, they would have it out.
“Be truthful? I’ve never lied to you about the things that matter.”
“This matters,” he yelled. “This matters a whole hell of a lot. This could make me lose Remy. Do you expect me to be forgiving for that? You should trust me, Harper, because I trust you with everything I have.”
She wanted to refute what he said, throw it back in his face, but as she looked around the apartment, she realized he was right. He had given her everything he had. He had trusted her with everything that was important to him. “It’s not something I like to talk about, Cash, and all I can say is that I’m sorry.”
“Sorry isn’t good enough,” he yelled, unbuttoning his shirt as he faced off with her.
“What do you want me to say? That I walked into a convenience store after being told to sit in the car, and saw my dad standing over a dead body? There was so much blood, Cash, so much blood, and then the cops showed up, and they tried to take him into custody. Do you know what he did?”
He knew she wanted an answer, but he couldn’t give it to her; he was in shock that she’d kept this to herself. H
e’d been spilling his guts, and there she was keeping this secret from him. “No, I don’t know what he did.”
“He used me. He had me stand in front of him so that the cops couldn’t shoot him. I was his hostage. His own daughter was his hostage. What kind of a father does that?” she yelled at him.
“A shitty one,” he yelled back. “The kind that we’re trying to prevent from taking Remy.”
In the corner, they heard Remy gasp.
The two of them looked at one another, both immediately ashamed of how they had behaved.
“Remy,” Cash kneeled down so that they were eye level, “Mom and your dad have petitioned the court to take you away from me. Harper and I have been working very hard to figure out what we’re going to do to prevent that from happening. I wanted to wait and tell you when I had a definite answer, but I promise you, you’re going to stay with me; I’m not going to let anyone take you from me.”
“Go ahead and make him promises you can’t guarantee,” Harper hissed at him. “This is what I wanted to prevent.”
Words flowed through his mind that he wanted to say, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to say them, not with Remy and B standing around. He also knew he would have to give both of them time to recover, time to heal. “Then don’t make it any worse; just go.”
She heard the words he said, heard the defeated tone in which he said them, and knew that it would be the best thing. It would be the least selfish, most hurtful thing she’d ever done in her life.
“No!” Remy shouted from where he stood with B. “Please don’t leave me,” he begged.
“Rem, right now we have to do what’s best for you, and what’s best for you is that I leave. I have a change of clothes in my car, I’ll come back tomorrow when I know you aren’t around,” she told Cash before she hugged Remy and made her way towards the door.
With a heavy heart she walked down the steps that she’d first walked up months ago. The walk up had been long, and she hadn’t been sure what she would face when she got there. The walk down was even worse, because now she knew exactly what she was leaving behind. As quickly as she could, she got into her car and started the engine. Tears streamed down her face as she went to the only place she could think to go. Natalie would never turn her away.
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