Sins of the Father (California Dreaming Book 2)

by Stacey Johnston

  “All in good time, Sean,” my father replies dryly, without even a glance in my direction.

  Not surprisingly, he has opted for his authoritative tone, like he normally does. It’s that tone, he usually saves for when is angry at me, or Sophie, or whilst he is working.

  “It will do the girl no good to know, she already has enough on her mind without us adding this.”

  He was very quick to shut me down that’s for sure, and yes, I know I should have seen it coming. If not for any other reason, then because this is what he always does, but it is times like these that I hate him. It’s those moments when I am treated just like any other employee, and not his son. There is no middle ground, he does not mix business with pleasure.

  “It may not do Sherlyn any good,” Did you see what I did there?

  When my father is in work mode, everything and everyone becomes a number, he removes the humanity.

  “But she does… deserve to know what her mother has done, for fuck’s sake.”

  Shit… I know I’m in trouble now.

  Fuck…I knew it the moment the words flew out of my mouth. Daddy dearest has no tolerance for cuss words at all. They disgust him and it is a very rare occasion when you will hear anything like that come out of his mouth. Actually when I think about it, neither he nor Hawke cuss. It doesn’t take long, mere minutes before he replies in a short and clipped manner.

  “You are too close to this boy. Do we need to remove you from this case altogether?”

  What the fuck sort of question is that?

  “Of course you don’t, I just believe that we need to make her aware of what is going on. She will not like you keeping secrets from her.”

  Raising his eyebrow at me, he pauses momentarily as if he is considering what I have just said. When he glances over at Hawke I know I’m about to be shot down again.

  “This is not a conversation that we will be having with her while she is getting ready for her graduation. It can wait until afterward.”

  Yep, shot down in flames. I guess what he is saying is probably for the best, but it still doesn’t sit very well with me at all. Nodding my head in agreeance, I excuse myself, muttering that I need to go get ready.

  What I want to do right now is march up to her room, and tell her what we have discovered. If I do that, I know I will be causing myself nothing but trouble. The only real thing stopping me is the knowledge that Stephen is staying in the room with her. I hate the envy I feel toward him, considering it’s not his fault I’m all knotted up over someone I can’t have. In all reality, I never actually stood a chance in the first place, I realize that now. He has always held her heart. I also can’t fault the fucker’s bedside manner either. Since she got hurt he has been nothing but honorable, catering to her every need. I just wish it were me nursing her back to health, not him.

  The news we received earlier was about the letter Sherlyn found in her apartment the night her mother took her own life. It appears that Sheri only read half of what her father had written. Once we moved all of her stuff out of the apartment my mother arranged for cleaners to come through and do the rest. She wanted to shelter Sherlyn as much as she could. Whilst removing the rubbish from the bathroom, two more sheets of paper were found crumpled and ditched in the corner.

  At first, I wondered how Sherlyn hadn’t noticed them, until I realized that after she found her mother she never stepped foot in that room again. One of the cleaners opened it and realized it was important so she passed it onto the caretaker, who then passed it onto the agency. What had me curious, was why it had taken the agency this long to pass that information onto my father. According to dad, who was angry about not being informed sooner, it was dismissed as trivial. It was only rediscovered when Hawke requested something from the evidence room. What he was looking for I don’t know, but that was when they found the rest of Sherlyn’s father’s letter and told my father.

  In the letter, her father mentions the contract clause, which we were already aware of, but he calls it a refund policy. He tells Sheri’s mother that in the event of his death, a hit would be put out on either his wife or daughter as a refund on their investment. He told her to take the money he had left them and leave, go as far away as possible so that they couldn’t be found. Maybe he did have a conscious after all, although I’m still reeling that this clause was in put in place to start with. Along with other mindless ramblings, he confesses that he didn’t mean to get them involved.

  Instead of packing her daughter up and running, Sherlyn’s mother basically took the easy way out. She took her own life. I can only assume that she did it before anyone else could. What has upset me is that she did this without any concern for the daughter she was leaving behind. She left Sherlyn to fend for herself without ever warning her.

  How does a parent do that?

  Chapter Eighteen

  Sherlyn

  “I don’t think I can walk in there Sophie.”

  The noise around us is louder than I am comfortable with, especially as we approach the gymnasium doors.

  “Relax Sheri, everything will be fine. We are prepared this time around. Nothing is going to happen to you.” She reassures me.

  Linking her arm with mine, she slows her pace to walk in time with my own strides. Moving to the side we wait as they open up both the large blue doors to allow the students and their families to enter easily.

  “You’re trembling girl, you need to take those deep breaths we talked about.” Soph has turned to look at me, concern smothered all over her face, but all I want to do is throw up.

  “Breathe with me,” she repeats.

  Taking deep breaths in time with Sophie, my heartbeat slows and the dizziness I was feeling is starting to fade.

  “That’s better Sheri, keep taking deep breaths and focus on me, no one else.”

  “I am going to put my arms around you baby girl,” I hear Stephen say from behind.

  “Just want to warn you,” he continues as he wraps his arms around my waist, pulling my back into his chest to hold me tightly.

  Nuzzling his head into my neck, he whispers, “I’ve got you dream girl, I will always have you.”

  It’s like my whole body relaxes and melts into his embrace. Between him and Sophie, my breathing and heartbeat have returned to normal, my panic attacked subsiding.

  “Okay girls, it’s time to move,” an excited Sarah calls out.

  I suppose that is our cue to go inside. Grabbing my hand, my boy grasps it tightly leading me toward the entrance.

  “Nothing like slumming it, Stephen,” a nasally voice squeaks from behind us.

  What the…?

  Turning slightly, I catch sight of Rochelle and her bitch squad sliding up behind us.

  “I stopped slumming it the day you dumped my ass two years ago.” Stephen spat back. The venom in his tone is clearly evident as he stands his ground.

  “My taste has improved considerably since then. I have always wanted to thank you for that by the way. I really am glad I dodged a bullet. Congrats for today, but I need to get a good seat to watch my girl here graduate.”

  Returning his attention back to me he pulls me in close to kiss my forehead before we went our separate ways. Damn I love that boy right now.

  Sitting in my chair waiting for my name to be called, my nerves and anxiety are starting to return and get the better of me. My fingers have become fidgety, and I’m twirling and entwining them together in an attempt to keep my worrisome mind preoccupied. I still don’t believe I can honestly go through with this.

  When the lights begin to dim, our gymnasium becomes shadowed in darkness. The only exception is the strobe light shining down on our Principle. Crammed into this largish room is over two hundred students who have gathered to graduate. Our seats have been strategically placed so that we are all facing the stage and every one of us is dressed stylishly in our black gowns and caps. What is making me nervous, though, is the fact that all the families and friends are seated in the bleacher
s behind us.

  In my current state, I wish Sophie was sitting closer to me, even next to me, but she is further toward the back. I did try when we first sat down to locate her, turning in my seat to look for her, but I couldn’t see her. What I was faced with, was Rochelle’s minions glaring at me instead. They were directly behind me, loudly whispering their vile nastiness to intimidate me. Unfortunately, thanks to my current state, it looks like they were going to win. I can feel my heart beating wildly. How no one else can hear my thumping heart is beyond me. I need to get a grip and find a way to calm myself, even though I doubt it’s going to be possible. As a consequence of my rising panic attach it’s getting harder for me breathe.

  Sitting up straighter, all I can do is work on laboring my breathing like before, taking deep lengthy ones to slow my racing heart. My cheeks feel inflamed, as though they are on fire, but my hands are freezing, causing me to shiver. If this keeps up I am going to faint before I reach the podium, I just know it.

  Relax, Sherlyn, you’ve got this, I quietly mumble to myself.

  ‘You won’t be able to see or hear me, but just know I’m there with you. I will always be with you’ …Stephen.

  Thoughts of my dream boy and our earlier conversation float into my head, calming me slightly.

  ‘Do you remember the words to the song we sang to each other’ he had asked me after we showered. ‘Of course, I do. How can I forget? In that one moment, it was only you and me. No one else existed. It was like our own moment in heaven.’ I had replied.

  He wanted me to think of him if it all got too much. I was to use him as my anchor when my wayward thoughts threatened to overtake.

  My final words to him before we left were ‘You are my happy place, Stephen. The one safe place where I know no one can ever hurt me again.’

  Maybe I really can do this after all.

  I shouldn’t let wayward thoughts of this gunman destroy me, and seep into my head. What I need to do is focus on what is happening now, but this god damned ringing in my ears is making it hard to concentrate on the names as they are being called out. Also, when did it get so hot in here? Beads of sweat are now starting to run down the back of my neck making it itchy. Knowing my luck, I will faint, or throw up, or both, as they go to hand me my certificate.

  Why did my last name have to start with a ‘P’? At least it’s not a ‘V’ like Soph, if that were the case I would be a blubbering mess by the time they got to me. As they steadily make their way through the names, I fidget a little in my gown.

  ‘I will always be with you’... more thoughts of Stephen enter into my head again, helping me to calm down even more.

  By the time my name is called out, the ringing in my ears has dulled and I am no longer feeling nauseous. Thank god. As I make my way toward the podium a momentary sense of fear grips me. I stop, and freeze, until I hear wolf whistling coming from our very own brat pack in the bleachers behind me. As if sensing my hesitation, they break me from my fear like trance, helping me to relax again. Heading up the stairs to the stage, I take the certificate from our principal’s hand, whilst shaking his with my other one. Taking my piece of paper, I thank him and head back down off the stage back toward my seat. That’s wasn’t so bad after all, and thankfully, nothing happened. All my fears it seems were for nothing.

  Another hour later and we are finally done. Each and every one of us had our photos taken before finishing up, by throwing our hats in the air. Very typical and clichéd, but also a tradition that we were all happy to withhold.

  “Sheri,” a mix of excited voices call out from behind me.

  Turning around I find Tatum and Sumner running over to me. Laughing, I let them both engulf me in their arms.

  Pulling back, holding me at arm’s length, Tatum teases, “Aww girlfriend, don’t you look hot.”

  Blushing, I lash out at him, trying to punch his arm, but he is faster than me and quickly side steps to avoid my attempt.

  “Are you wearing funny glasses again Tatum? There is nothing hot about me.”

  He just laughs at my response, wrapping his arm around my shoulder tightly.

  Leaning in, he looks over, pointing at Stephen before whispering. “Oh, you are hot, baby girl. That hot ass boy toy of yours, standing over there wouldn’t be sending me daggers right now if you were anything less.”

  Kissing my forehead head, he tightens his grip once more before releasing me. Smirking, he winks at me, making my smile brighter. His timing though was perfect, because he moved back to Sumner just as my hot ass boy toy reached us.

  “Congrats, babe, you did great in there,” Stephen praises me.

  “You became my anchor,” I admit, as he leads me back to where the Valentines are waiting.

  When we finally make it back to the hotel, I’m exhausted. After mine, and Stephen’s little sexcapade this morning, I only managed to get an extra hours sleep. When I pushed the issue, I honestly didn’t think he would cave, and was expecting him to put up more of a fight, but OMG I’m so glad he did. My whole body has been having little mini quakes throughout the day every time I thought about what we had done. It was like I could still feel him inside of me. If I had my way, we would be doing that again before we all headed out for dinner tonight.

  “What are you thinking about?” I hear him ask.

  He has just stepped out of the shower, and oh boy, the things he is doing to my insides right now, has me all tied up.

  “You,” I concede, making my way over to his barely covered body.

  “Really?”

  Lowering my head, I shyly admit. “Yes, I was just thinking we could repeat what we did earlier.”

  Keeping my gaze on the ground, I am not prepared for his fingers that have now found their way onto my chin. Lifting my head up, he forces me to stare straight into his eyes.

  “Don’t hide from me beautiful. There is no need for you to get embarrassed around me.”

  His voice is silky and smooth, and it makes me want to melt.

  “But, you will have to tell me exactly what you want. I want to hear you say it.”

  Oh god, I can’t do that, it just doesn’t sound right coming out of my mouth. Out of his, every dirty little thing he says, sounds sexy, out of mine, it’s just weird.

  “Please don’t make me say it, I sound stupid when I talk dirty.”

  When he places his hands on either side of my face, I melt into his touch, my eyes closing involuntarily. Resting his forehead on mine, he sighs but I don’t know if it’s in frustration or something else.

  “There is nothing stupid about anything you do, and that includes talking dirty. I can promise you, that by the time I have finished, you will have the dirtiest mouth known to man. If Sophie can do it gorgeous, then so can you.”

  Before I have a chance to react, his mouth is on mine, and the delicateness of his lips is sending tingles throughout my body.

  “I want you to take me back to bed and make love to me again.”

  It’s not quite what he wants from me, but it’s the best I have got right now.

  “Only not in a gentle way.” I quietly throw in.

  “Baby, I….” was all he managed to say.

  Loud banging on our door breaks not only the moment but the mood.

  “I’ll get it,” Stephen sighs, releasing his grip on my face as he moves toward the door.

  Opening it, we find Hawke on the other side. What could he possibly want, we aren’t due to be leaving for our graduation dinner for at least another hour.

  “Sorry for the intrusion,” he states.

  “Anthony would like you ready and waiting in the lobby in half an hour. He needs to speak to you,” and then he is gone.

  No hello or goodbye, just sorry for the intrusion and you need to be here at this time.

  This can’t be good.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Stephen

  Well, that ruined the moment. Sherlyn’s attempt at talking dirty was a PG version at best, but sexy all the same. It
turned me on when she struggled to find the right words to come across like a sultry vixen. I was fucking hard as steel when Hawke pounded on the door, and I’m sure he noticed too, but I couldn’t have cared less. I wanted nothing more than to strip my ashen colored beauty naked and explore the rest of her body with my tongue. I had planned on having her scream my name at least two or three more times prior to heading out for hers and Soph’s graduation meal. It seems as if Anthony wants to talk to her about something obviously important because we are now in the elevator heading to the lobby to meet him. I can see her becoming anxious and it angers me that Hawke would put her in this position, knowing what she is like.

  Why couldn’t they talk to my girl in our room? It’s quieter and more secluded, they had better have a good fucking reason for doing this. When the elevator dings, she jumps, her fidgety hands quickly smoothing down her skirt, as she attempts to calm herself. Grabbing her hand, I engulf it in my own tightening my grip on it to comfort her as we head toward where Sean, Hawke, and Anthony are waiting.

  “Sherlyn, my dear, I am sorry if I have startled you with my request.”

  An apologetic Anthony gestures when he sees us approaching. Motioning us toward the chairs, can he see the fear, radiating on her face like I can?

  “I just have some news about your parents that I wanted to share. I apologize if I have scared you.”

  Instantly, I feel her relax beside me, as if the weight of the world has been removed from her shoulders. Pulling her in, I wrap an arm around her shoulder and kiss the side of her head before releasing her to sit next to Hawke. I wonder what they possibly have left to tell her about her parents that she doesn’t already know. Back when it all came to light, Sherlyn demanded to know everything. She wanted no secrets, which is why I’m wondering what has been missed.