“I can’t understand you,” Sylas spat. “You’re a good-looking man. You have a nice home. A job that pays well. You could have any woman you wanted. What on earth are you doing with a stripper?”

Axl had a ready reply, but he didn’t get to say it because his father spoke again, not to Axl.

“Yes, I’m confronting him about it. Of course, I’m confronting him about it.” A pause and then, “Are you insane?”

“Dad,” he clipped.

His phone buzzed in his hand.

He looked down at it and saw he had an incoming call from his mother.

Jesus Christ.

He put it back to his ear only to hear his father demand, “Do not answer that. We’re not done.”

“’Bye, Dad,” he said, selected the button to disconnect and pick up, put the phone back to his ear and said, “Ma, I’m good.”

“Don’t listen to your father, Hattie’s a lovely girl.”

“I know that, Mom.”

“Hang up with him right now,” he could hear his father ordering.

“I’m not hanging up with my son,” she snapped. “And I’m not letting him listen to your rubbish.”

“This is unbelievable. He’s a smart guy. How he can be this stupid is beyond me. She’s after his money,” his father declared.

“You mean you think she’s after your money,” his mom said.

“Family money,” his dad shot back.

“Your money, Sylas. And I regret to inform you of this, but it is not always all about you.”

“Rachel!” It was a distant shout.

She was moving away.

“Axl, sweetheart, forget this even happened,” she urged into the phone.

“That’s impossible because this is serious, Mom, what I have with Hattie. And he has a choice to accept her and be kind and respectful to her or he doesn’t see either of us. Is this understood?”

“Perfectly,” she stated with no hesitation. “Now, on another note, I need some of your time soon. Later in the week. Could you have lunch with me?”

Shit.

He put it right out there.

“You’re leaving him.”

There was a hesitation then.

“I…well, darling, how did you know?”

She sounded freaked.

The door opened and Axl spoke his next while looking in Hattie’s eyes as she came inside.

“You always put up with his shit. You’re not putting up with his shit anymore.”

“Rachel!”

“I can’t talk about this now, Axl,” Rachel said quickly. “And I hope I can trust you not to mention anything to your father. I don’t quite have all my ducks in a row.”

“This secret is seriously safe with me,” he assured.

“Thank you, sweetheart.”

“Give me your phone,” he heard his father demand.

“I’ll be in touch. Tell Hattie I said hello and a bit later…well, I’ll contact her, and we can plan some girl time.”