Page 13 of Forbidden Bliss
Willow drops down to Lana and points a trembling finger toward the hallway. “Lana, can you please go to your room, sweetheart?”
Lana looks at the three of us before nodding and running off to her room.
A ripple of guilt and regret crashes over me, but I straighten my back as Lana disappears out of sight. I face Hunter. “Look, it’s obvious I’ve made mistakes, but I’m not going anywhere. I love Willow, and Lana is my daughter. I have a right to be here.”
Hunter’s body turns more tense as muscles ripple through his stretched shirt. He strides forward. “Actions speak louder than words. You left her when she needed you most.”
I step to him. The clenching of my jaw is audible, the teeth grinding against each other. My fingers curl into a fist. “Bullshit. I’m here to claim what’s mine and I won’t back down.”
Chapter 6
Tristan
Hunter’sangerradiatesoffhim like heat from a furnace. His towering six-foot-four frame, all pure muscle and rage, makes him look like he could tear me apart with his bare hands. His icy blue eyes lock onto mine. “If you believe you can just waltz back into my sister’s life after all these years, you got another thing coming, Tristan.”
I square my shoulders, refusing to back down. “Why can’t you understand that I’m here to make things right? I regret every moment we were apart.”
Hunter’s eyes narrow as his face grows tight. “You should’ve thought of that before you ditched her. You have no idea what she went through.”
My frustration rises to the surface. “Hold on. You might not know the facts. My father ran her out of Vegas when she was pregnant. I knew nothing about this until—”
Hunter’s harsh laugh cuts me off. “I have all the details, Tristan. I’m just surprised you weren’t aware that your own flesh and blood was terrorizing Willow. Why didn’t you bother to check on her, to see if she was okay?”
“Are you kidding me? I looked all over town for her after she disappeared. She was nowhere to be found.”
“You expect me to believe that?” His voice is a protective, low growl—a barely contained fury simmering beneath the surface. “Your bank account is every bit as stacked as mine. Why didn’t you drop a few dollars on a team to locate her?”
I scoff and try to finish my train of thought. “I let her go because I respect her privacy. Willow knows what’s best for her, and I respect that.”
Hunter’s eyes flash to the window and back to me. “Privacy? Bullshit. You’ve got that telescope up there spying on her right now.”
Willow’s posture jerks upright before her pupils dart between Hunter and me. “What?”
Fuck. He must have gone through my things at the rental cabin. My chest caves inward as I meet Willow’s hard glare.
Her blue orbs bore into mine, her fingers flexing. Lowering her head, her chin trembles. She looks hurt.
My shoulders fall and I hate that I’ve done this to her. Why did I have to get that damn telescope? Stupid, stupid, stupid.
Squeezing one eye shut, I focus on the man in front of me—the one that looks like he wants to pound my skull into the wooden floorboards. I glance at her again and hold up an index finger. “I’ll explain. Just gimme a minute.”
Hunter’s body seems to expand, his shoulders broadening and his chest puffing out as he stands taller in a protective stance. “No, you’ll explain now.”
Inhaling a quick breath, I force myself to face him. “I’m here because I love her. I had no idea what my father had done until yesterday.”
Hunter’s expression hardens. His muscles tense and ripple beneath his shirt. “So, let me see if I understand this right. You spend years away from her because you don’t feel right invading her privacy and all. And then you show up with a fucking telescope to make things right?”
My throat feels like it’s closing in on itself while the room spins. I notice my hands stiffen, my fingers shaking as I try to find a way out of this conversation. “Forget about the telescope. It doesn’t matter. Like I said, I didn’t know she was pregnant. I wasn’t aware my father threatened her, either. If I had known, I would have done everything to protect her.”
His eyes are sharp and piercing, set in a chiseled face with a strong jawline. He looks like he’s ready to strike at any moment. “And now you dance back into her life and play happy family? I did a hell of a lot better than you, and I’m not even the one who’s responsible.”
My gaze flickers between the beastlike man standing before me and the woman I love. The muscles in my neck and shoulders stiffen as I straighten my posture, my jaw squaring. “Look, I didn’t even know you were in the picture. Yet here you are, standing guard like a damn sentinel.”
He scoffs. “Thank god I’m in the fucking picture. If it weren’t for me, Willow and Lana would probably be homeless somewhere on the street.”
Willow crosses her arms over her chest. “Like I can’t take care of myself and my daughter?”
No one responds to her.