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Chapter 21
Abby continued to pace. Movement distracted her from the unending wheel of emotions turning at full throttle inside her. Scott had given away nothing over the phone, and everything. He knew about Zep, obviously. He probably even knew he was her father. He’d have to know this was new information to her as well, wouldn’t he? Her hands were red and sore from unconsciously wringing them. She shook her hands out, trying to cool the burning sensation.
An eternity seemed to pass before she heard Scott’s car pull up in the driveway. Her heart pounded mercilessly in her chest. This was a confrontation she really didn’t want to have. Why couldn’t he have just come home?
The front door opened, then was firmly closed. His footsteps were brisk. Abby turned to face Scott, meeting him in the living room. Her heart skidded to a stop. She barely recognised the man before her. His face was a mask of granite. Scott stared at her, his eyes were heavy with anger and hurt.
Her heart turned itself inside out, trying to beat again; trying to make her world turn once more. “Scott, I–”
He held his hand up to silence her. The way he was scrutinising her made her want to shrink into a ball.
“Were you ever going to tell me?” His voice was gruff.
“Yes.” She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to find the honest answer. “Maybe. I was so confused–Iamso confused. There’s just so much and with Mum…” She drew in a shaky breath. “I didn’t know what to do,” she whispered.
Scott stared at the floor. His silence felt so loud, creating a void that Abby was shocked to realise was usually filled by him telling her everything would be alright.
“You did what you always do, Abby.” His gaze lifted back to hers. “You shut me out. You made all the decisions without even considering me, or anyone else.”
“How can you say that? Of course, I thought of you… of what this might mean for your career.”
“And what does it mean for me, for my career?” His fists clenched at his side. “I’d love to know what you decided on my behalf.”
She shook her head. What was he talking about? “I didn’t want to put you in a compromising position.”
“I see. And walking in to find my mother-in-law with the president of The Devils MC isn’t compromising?”
“That’s why I told you not to go to Mum’s,” she began.
Scott took a step forward. “Yeah, you told me not to go there. You didn’t want me to know that my girlfriend and her mother were being threatened, that a gang war was about to erupt. That outlaw bikers have been following you and I.” He took a breath. “That your father is James Page.”
“I didn’t know,” she whispered.
“When did you find out?”
“Yesterday.” It felt like a lifetime ago. “I was so confused, Scott. My head is all over the place.”
“So, you’d rather fuck me than talk to me.”
Her head snapped up, his words cutting deep.
“We’re supposed to be a team, you and I.” Anger flushed his cheeks. “But it only works for you if you’re the captain, calling all the shots.”
“No… you don't understand–”
“I understand, Abby. I understand that everything and everyone has to fit into the box you’ve assigned them, and god help anyone who wants something different, something more.”
Her legs turned to jelly. Scott was never this angry with her. “No, Scott. I?—"
“You don’t love me.” He shook his head, eyes glistening. “You love the thought of me. The boyfriend who comes and goes, never cramping your style too much.”
“That’s not true.” Her throat was tight and her mouth dry; she could barely get the words out.
“It is.” Scott looked defeated. “If you really loved me, Abby, you’d share your whole self with me. We’d be a team… you’d trust me, not lie to me.”
His words sliced through her like a blade, wounding her with the same accusation her mother and Demi had made. “I do love you.” A tear trailed down her face.
“But it’s conditional, and you set the terms.”
