Page 46 of Too Broken to Love

Hudson sighed. “Coming.”

The General held up his hand. “I got this. You’re welcome from sparing you the landmine.”

“Good luck.” Hudson sat back down and pulled Tessa with him. “Want to take bets on if he survives Vivian’s caffeine meltdown.”

Tessa tapped her chin. “The General is kinda scary, but my money’s on Vivian. Does Shayla live here too?”

“No. She’s staying with Vivian while she recovers from her recent divorce.”

“Is she anything like her aunt?”

Hudson rolled his eyes. “Hard to say. We dated, so my perspective is skewed.”

Tessa’s mouth formed an O. “Interesting. Sam never mentioned that tidbit.”

The corner of his lips twitched. “I wish I could forget that tidbit.”

So did Tessa. Could he hear the irrational thread of jealousy in her tone at the thought of him with another woman?

Hudson rolled the zipper on his hoodie between his fingers. “I was a horny high school senior, and it’s a small town, and Shayla was…”

Tessa held her breath as his gaze churned like the sea and sucked him into memories.

“After my parents died and I lived here full-time with Pop, I tried out for football. They only put me on the team so they could hit Pop up for a donation. Shayla was the same. She dated me cause she wanted forever with the Langley name. The rest was a lie.”

“There’s more to this story, isn’t there?” Her playful tone ebbed as she nudged his leg. “Tell me the rest.”

“She said she was cool with having fun senior year until I left for boot camp, but her plan all along had been to change my mind. When that didn’t work, she told me I was selfish. That I wasn’t thinking about Pop. That he’d already lost his son and daughter-in-law and that I was a bastard for making him worry about losing me too.”

“Oh, Hudson. I hope you know that Sam loved you more than…”

He pressed a finger to her lips. “I know, Tessa.”

The screen door opened. The General came out juggling a bottle of bourbon and three mugs. Steam wafted into the air as he set them on the table. “Cappuccino machine is online again. Crisis averted. Stand down.” Reaching into his coat, he pulled out the file and handed it to Tessa. “I’m giving this to you because it’s about your father.”

“Frank.” Hudson touched the edge of the manila folder. “She calls him Frank.”

His clipped clarification soared Tessa’s heart into the stars.

The General nodded. “Frank’s quite the character. Want the highlights of what my people uncovered?”

The thick file burned the tips of her fingers. She resisted running toward the water and drowning it in the surf. Opening it would be like putting a match to gasoline because Frank played with fire.

And in the end, she always got burned.

Hudson stared at the file in Tessa’s hand.

Please don’t incriminate Frank.

He blinked as the thought blared in his head like a solar flare. Shoving his hand into his sweats pocket, he touched the sinker. If the intel in the file held evidence that Frank was responsible for Pop’s death, it would wrap up the investigation quicker. Justice for Pop was the first thing he should have hoped for.

But he didn’t want Tessa’s heart to be broken.

He believed that she hated her father, but children weren’t born hating their parents or seeing their flaws. He didn’t have a frame of reference because his parents had been amazing, but it would have crushed him to learn they weren’t the compassionate, wonderful people he believed them to be without question. Not being a murderer was the only redeeming quality Tessa could name about her father.

The only thing she could defend.

He didn’t want her to lose that reason, but damn, he hoped that file contained a clue. Anything to lead them to who was responsible. They hadn’t gotten the autopsy report back yet, but Pop didn’t die of a heart attack. Someone had killed his grandfather. Once he found the fucker…