“I needed it? You think I needed to be locked in your trunk like a bag of groceries?”

“I meant you needed time alone to think. You were acting like a child so I treated you like one. Think of it as a timeout.”

“You son of a—”

“Finish that sentence, and I promise you’ll make the rest of the trip feeling worse than a bag of groceries.”

“I hate you.” Surprisingly, saying it out loud didn’t make it feel real—as I would have hoped.

“You don’t hate me yet, but you will. I’ll make sure of it.”

I stared at him incredulously. “Why would you want me to hate you?” And why did I care?

“Because it will make being with me that much harder on you, and then you’ll feel what it was like to be without you.”

“After four years, you still don’t get it, do you?”

“What am I supposed to get, Shelly?”

A part of me couldn’t believe that I would do this on the side of a barren highway, but I couldn’t hold it in any longer.

“I didn’t leave you because I didn’t want you. I left you because I realized how much better and stronger I was without you. You, who were cocky, arrogant, spoiled, and unfaithful, you actually believed you deserved—no, you believed you were entitled to me. You weren’t, and you never will be. It doesn’t matter how much pain you cause me or how much control you have. I’ll never truly be yours again.”

A whirlwind of rage clouded his dark eyes making them appear almost black. I could no longer make out the irises until what was left of them resembled a soulless window. “You don’t have to be mine, but you’ll never belong to anyone else.”

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

KEENAN

AFTER THE CONFRONTATION with Shelly, the beach was the last place I wanted to be. If I followed my instincts to be a bastard, I would have taken her somewhere private where I could enact just how she would stay mine. But Kennedy called to me. After only just meeting her, I couldn’t stay away.

How could someone so innocent possess that kind of control with little effort?

“What took you guys so long?” Lake questioned with suspicion in her tone. She glanced over at Sheldon before turning narrowed eyes toward me.

Sheldon chose to remain silent so I spoke up. “We got confused about the direction we were going, but we straightened it out.” It was a hidden meaning that only Sheldon seemed to catch judging by the look she sent me.

“Mommy!” Kennedy ran full speed through the lobby of the resort while the rest followed. For the first time since unlocking Sheldon from the trunk, a smile graced her lips as she stooped just in time to catch Kennedy. “We go to the beach now?”

“Mommy just needs to put on her bathing suit, and then we can go, okay?”

Kennedy got a disgruntled look on her face and then peered down at her empty wrist as if checking the time. Her little head popped up and a flash of mischief appeared just before she said, “Mama come naked like the shower!”

Now there’s an idea.

I couldn’t stop the laughter that bubbled up inside, spilling out until it filled the lobby. Everyone, including Sheldon followed while Kennedy looked on in confusion before joining. Once I was back in control, I scooped down next to Sheldon.

“I think that’s a great idea, Kennedy, but your mother may not be allowed on the beach if she isn’t dressed properly. What do you say your aunt and uncles take you, and we come find you when we’re done?”

“Can Uncle Keke come, too?”

“Who?” I looked to Sheldon for help.

“Keiran. She can’t say his name well, so Lake got her to call him that. I think he is still making her pay for it.”

“Of course he can. In fact, he’s going to hold your hand all the way there. Sound good?”

She nodded enthusiastically, but somehow, I knew she wasn’t satisfied when she didn’t immediately take off. Keiran came forth and picked her up, but before he could walk away, she asked, “Are you coming, too?”

The worried look on her face as if she were afraid to lose me gave me pause. At that moment, I wanted to promise her the entire world with none of the bad if she wished for it.

“I wouldn’t miss it,” I promised.

Once everyone cleared the lobby, I placed my hand at Sheldon’s back and led her to the front desk. “I have a reservation for three.”

After giving the clerk my information, he handed me a set of keys. I clamped a hand around Sheldon’s arm and steered her toward the elevators.

“Please tell me those are keys for two rooms.”

“Why would you think that?”

“Because Kennedy and I need our own room.”

“You both are staying with me.” The elevator doors opened, and thankfully, no one was around to enter with us. I could feel my temper spiking.

“I’m not putting my daughter in a room to sleep with a stranger.”

I’d lost the fight. My hand was around her throat, and I’d forced her back until she was trapped in the corner. I could only hope there weren’t cameras.

“I’m not a stranger to her anymore. I’m her father. A fact she will be told tonight.” The pressure I applied prevented her from responding, which was the safest route.

Only when the doors opened, did I release her. I struggled internally with myself. The old me may have lived a forged lie, but I never would have touched her that way, and even now, I felt sick with myself.

Once again, I placed my hand on the small of her back with an ease that belied the brute force a few moments ago.

“The only way to survive is to hurt those against you before they can hurt you, and if they succeed, you welcome the pain and make them pay.”

Back then, Keiran’s advice had only made me afraid, but now it gave me purpose. I hardened my resolve by reminding myself that this wasn’t a fairytale. This was just the beginning of her imprisonment to me.

* * * * *

Sheldon had not breathed a word and still looked a little shell-shocked since the incident in the elevator, but I was determined not to feel guilt.

When we made it to the beach, Keiran and Lake were nowhere to be found. Dash was laid out in the sun reading a book while every girl on the beach watched on with sultry fascination. I looked around for Kennedy and found her splashing in the water with Q and Jesse. Q was attempting to teach her to surf, in shallow water no less, while Jesse watched. Amusement poured through my senses erasing all the tension from the past few hours.

“Three-year-olds don’t surf, dude.” Jesse deadpanned.

“This isn’t just any three-year-old. Isn’t that right, rugrat?” A spark of jealousy flowed through me at the realization that everyone seemed to have a relationship with Kennedy except for me.

“Mama… Keenan, look!” Kennedy struggled to stand even with Q’s hands holding her, but when she finally succeeded, the brightest smile appeared. Sheldon wasted no time running into the water, creating a splash while I ogled her lush frame in the two-piece. Motherhood had done her body well.

For a few hours of beach fun and the happiness of my daughter, I let go of the past and my plans for the future. I taught Kennedy the basics of swimming and used it as an opportunity to bond. I was amazed at her passion for the water at such a young age.

Keiran and Lake materialized after we had exhausted ourselves in the water. The guilty blush that heated her cheeks and his smug smirk provided a detailed description of what they had been doing for the past few hours.

“Nice of you two to join us finally, but I’m hungry,” Dash announced.

“Why didn’t you get one of the women who can’t stop staring at your crotch to get you some food?”

“Because then they would expect me to put out, and my mother taught me that what’s inside my cookie jar is precious.”