Family Ever After
Page 20
He pushed himself to his feet and leaned against the post. “No. I don’t want him to know. I’m sure you know plenty about my family. I told myself a long time ago that I wouldn’t be a part of continuing the family line.”
“And yet you did. That little boy is your family.”
“And he’s got you. You look like a perfectly normal, responsible adult, and you love him. If it’s money you’re worried about, he isn’t going to go without. I’ll make sure of that.”
She glared at him. “Money doesn’t replace a parent or parents, Mr. Palermo.”
He met her gaze with a fiery look of his own. “I’m Marcus. Mr. Palermo was my father. And that’s a good enough reason for you to take the boy and go.”
She stood and walked past him, her shoulder brushing his. He didn’t make a move to chase her down and stop her. She kind of wished he had, because she thought if he’d give himself a chance, he had a shot at being a good dad.
Oliver resisted when she told him they had to leave but Marcus Palermo had already gone inside. What kind of man could turn his back and walk away without even offering a goodbye to his child? She knew the answer. A man who had been damaged, just as Sammy had warned. A man who didn’t want to look too closely at what he was turning his back on.
She considered pounding on his door, demanding he care. But a person couldn’t be forced to care. She’d learned that lesson at an early age.
* * * * *
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Copyright ©2018 by Brenda Minton
ISBN-13:9781488099878
Family Ever After
Copyright © 2008 by Margaret Daley.
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