Her face turns bright red. What the fuck happened this morning? My hands curl into fists. If this motherfucker put his hands on my goddamn girl, I will kill him.

The thought is filled with such evil hatred, I don’t even recognize myself.

This is what this girl does to me.

Makes me crazed.

“I don’t tell anyone our family’s business,” she mumbles. “Your reputation is safe.”

He approaches her, towering over her smaller frame. “The sass coming from you this week is beginning to piss me off. Who do we have to thank for this? One of the Park monsters?”

My blood runs cold.

Does he know?

“I stayed away from Dempsey. We’re not dating.” She huffs and retreats a step. “That’s what you wanted. I’m trying to be good for you.”

The only man she needs to be good for is me.

“Keep it that way. This lawsuit is too big for you to fuck with, kiddo. It’s the kind of money that makes or breaks people. If it breaks me, there’s no telling what I’ll break as a result.”

She flinches at his words. He pats her on the head and then storms from the room. It takes every fiber of self-control for me to stay rooted in the closet. Once the door closes and she’s moved the nightstand into place, I emerge from the closet.

Her chin wobbles and she won’t look at me. I track her movement as she picks up a damp towel from the floor. She hands it to me to deal with my mess. I take the towel from her, shove it into my boxers to mop up the sticky cum, and then drop it to the floor. Once I’ve righted my clothes, I grab her hips and pull her close to me.

“What did he do to you?” I demand, my voice a whisper.

She closes her eyes. “He smacked me.”

I start for the door, but she flings her arms around my neck and brings her lips close to mine.

“Callum, don’t.”

“Give me one reason why I don’t go whip his ass right now.”

“Because he’ll hurt my mom.” She presses kisses to my mouth, pleading with her eyes. “If you hurt him, he’ll destroy your family and mine. He’s that vindictive.”

“We’ll talk about this later,” I vow. “You tell me the second he even looks at you wrong. Understood?”

“Yes,” she agrees. “I promise.”

I kiss her deeply and then shake my head. “If he touches you, you call me. Any time, any night.”

“I will.”

“Good girl.”