Page 16 of Tate: Gemini King
“Yes,” Tate says. He looks genuinely sad. I never thought I would see this side of him and my heart does a weird little flutter as I hear him start talking. “I fought as hard as I could in court but I was going through a rough time and she got full custody.”
I don’t even notice that I stop thinking about the curse and I just want information. It’s not like I genuinely care about Tate. Tea is tea…
“What type of rough time?”
My nosy ass can’t help myself. I shouldn’t press him, but there’s just a part of me that must know. I didn’t know Tate had secrets. He doesn’t seem like the type. Everyone about him seemed simple and up front. Until this.
I guess I don’t pay enough attention to small town gossip. Tate glares. His face looks even more handsome like that. I suppress the thought and try to focus on what he’s saying despite the wine running through my bloodstream like a wild mare.
“No way you lived here your whole life and never heard what happened,” he says, a flush of shame coming over his face. “You don’t have to act like you don’t know.”
Despite what Tate thinks, he isn’t the center of everybody’s universe. But it’s interesting that he exhibits some embarrassment. I didn’t know he had that range of emotions.
“I stay out of white people’s business.”
Tate gives me a disapproving look like he just heard me say a slur.
“It was all over the news.”
There’s that shame again. Interesting.
“I missed it.”
“I was in prison for manslaughter,” he says calmly. I don’t want to believe him, but the expressions on his face and the slow way he took to tell me force me to believe that what he’s saying is very real.
I have the weirdest fucking response. I burst into laughter. I can’t even fully tell you why I burst into laughter. It’s just like… you know when you have a bad vibe about someone and then you get proof that your instincts were correct the entire time? That’s how I feel about Tate’s announcement. It’s crazy that he somehow made it from prison to working for the fire department in what seems like record time.
“Did I say something funny?” Tate asks, his face darkening from my disrespectful hyena laugh.
“I knew you were fucked up.”
My gloating and my swimming head both make my emotions for Tate extremely confusing. The more I can push him away, the better.
“Thank you, Natasha,” he says, his voice tightening. “I didn’t do it, by the way. But I’m glad to know you have so much faith in me.”
Hmph. Well that I don’t believe.
“If you didn’t do it, how did you end up in prison?”
“If I did it, why would I be out instead of still locked up?”
“White privilege.”
He scoffs at me and keeps giving me that dark expression, like I’m pushing his boundaries and crossing lines with him.
“Life isn’t that simple,” Tate says. “You must know that.”
“Okay. Then what happened.”
“My ex set me up. After nine months in prison, the cops learned the truth, but the court only had the power to set me free, not reverse the custody agreement. Because I plead not-guilty, I signed a clause in the custody agreement that said I couldn’t appeal it. I had to wait six more months before I got out, even after they knew the truth.”
Woah. That is goddamn crazy. And maybe it explains a few things. Like why Tate keeps to himself. Why he barely talks to people around town. Why he sleeps, works, and goes to the gym instead of parading women through our apartment. I’ve never met a man with trust issues. But that’s totally Tate, isn’t it? Weird. It feels like I’m looking at a very tame grizzly bear and I’m scared as fuck to ruin the moment.
“That’s ridiculous,” I blurt out, most likely ruining the moment despite my efforts. It’s been a while since I’ve been around a man who looks like Tate and it has been even longer since I let my guard down enough to drink this much wine.
“Yeah,” he says, moving his arms again and drawing even more attention to his biceps. He really puts in work at the gym.
“Maybe one day when my son is eighteen… but until then, I’ll stay out here and wait,” Tate continues. “Just hope he chooses to come home and find his dad. Terran thinks I’m crazy and I ought to move on but I don’t know… something about this place is magical. He’ll know to come back and find me here.”