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Chapter Fourteen
The immediate guilt shown by the color staining his cheeks said it all.
He came in and shut the door, following me into the kitchen and setting down his bag. “Shit, you weren’t supposed to find out yet.”
I stopped and turned, feeling my temper snap. “That’s what you have to say to me? You regret that I already found out?”
Thankful that Tristan was already in bed, I took a twenty out of my purse and stuffed it in the swear jar above the refrigerator.
Mark’s eyes went wide. Yeah, it was about to get real. “I’m sorry. I had every intention of telling you.”
“You had no right. No fucking right at all. This was my fight. And you know how important it is to me to be the one making decisions. Hell, you know how much it bothered me when Brian overstepped and paid for my PI to keep track of Rob. So, how did you think this would go over? How can you say you’re crazy about me and then go behind my back this way?”
His face blanched. “Jules, I only wanted to make it better. I didn’t want you to suffer during the next few months, waiting on the money and, worse, trying to anticipate what new awful thing they’d come up with. I had them sign away their rights to go after anything more, including custody. I was only attempting to help.”
“You would’ve helped more if you’d discussed it with me. I’d already decided to settle. I was only waiting to see if I received all of the insurance money first. That was my attorney’s advice. Advice I was following until you intervened. Then you go and lie to me by telling me you were traveling to New York when instead you were in North Carolina.”
“I did go to New York. I flew to North Carolina this morning.”
“Semantics. You still fucking lied to me.”
“I know, and I’m sorry. I didn’t realize how it would all look to you. How it would make you feel. I was only trying to close this door for you, honey, once and for all.”
I pointed to myself. “Did it ever occur to you that I needed to close this door for myself? That this entire thing—from moving up here, taking favors left, right and center from friends and family—has battered my pride? But more importantly, I needed to close this chapter. I needed to do this for my son and for myself to prove I could.”
“You have to trust I had the best intentions.” His expression was as sincere as his voice. There was no doubt Mark was a good man. He’d only wanted to make life easier on me. But his actions still made me feel as though he hadn’t thought I could do it without his help.
I blew out a breath, adrenaline waning. “I believe you, but it doesn’t make me any less upset with you right now.”
He sighed, taking my hand. “I know. I should’ve discussed it with you first. I really am sorry.”
“How much?”
“What?”
“How much did you pay them?”
“Uh, it doesn’t—”
“Don’t you dare tell me it doesn’t matter. One, it very much does. Two, I’m paying you back once I receive the settlement or sell the house.”
“You don’t need to. I have absolutely nothing else to spend my money on.”
“How much?”
“Jules—”
I dropped his hand and put mine on my hip. “Dammit, Mark, don’t you ‘Jules’ me. Now tell me how much and show me the agreement they signed before I call Harvey and have him nullify the whole thing. You did not have permission to act on my behalf.”
“One hundred thousand.”
My breath left me at the amount. “Holy shit.” I paced, finding it hard to believe he had the money to be able to write a check for that amount. Truth be told, I’d been thinking of giving Rob’s parents the same amount. But the problem was I had no guarantee I would receive all of the insurance money, and I would be lucky to make that amount from the sale of my home since we hadn’t built much equity.
“The money doesn’t matter to me. Only you and Tristan do.”
I stopped and stared at him. “I can appreciate that. I really can, but it doesn’t change how it made me feel to discover you did this without consulting me.”
He stepped closer but, at my warning glare, didn’t touch me. The last thing I needed was to have him think he could pacify me with a hug.
