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With a sniff, Knox reached for ain "That’s not such a deep, dark confession I’ his gaze, I shook et vengeance for your sister’s honor"

He shrugged and focused his attention on slowly sliding his finger down one glistening red lock "I get what you’re saying They’re our families Flaws and all, they’re ours, and they’re the only one we’re ever going to get So, we naturally want to feel loyal toward them But you also have to admit it’s okay to be disappointed when they let us down And you don’t always have to agree or follohat they say or do"

When his brown gaze lifted to meet"Good point," I whispered Then I realized so With a flash of clarity, I blurted, "Bentley’s my family"

He dropped my hair frouess Your point?"

I straightened ht not clai to" Except, I wasn’t sure how I’d probably never see that little redheaded baby again, unless I tilted my head to the side "Hey Do you think?"

I flushed, knowing it was an i closer

"Nothing I justI want to see her again Ilike the idiot I was, I set an to turn away, but Knox’s voice stopped me

"You want me to set you up with an introduction with Miss Bentley? Without anyone else knowing about it?"

I whirled back to hied "I don’t see why not I could say I was taking her outside for a walk or sorateful for a break Then you could just meet us in the woods"

I tucked the piece of hair he’d been playing with behind allop I was setting up a rendezvouswith Knox Parker Yeah, there’d be a baby present, but stillit was too exciting to handle

I bobbed reat Thank you"

He nodded as well "No probleain, he grinned "Cool We could meet, I don’t know, by the tree where we first ran into each other"

He remembered the tree where we’d o Of course he’d reirl to keep her fro them of his presence so they didn’t kill him

But stillhe re way too casual for howout inside "I’ll see you there"

So, I went hoh school, I’d always felt sorry for the guy Everyone knew the story of how he’d been abandoned at the hospital by his birthbut foster care, and he’d always seeivers

My family had been poor, my father a no-account drunk, and my mother was hardly ever around because she worked too hard to bring in the money We kids had run wild and rarely went anywhere with clean, neatly kept clothes But we’d had each other, and that counted for so Pick Ryan hadn’t even had that

Yet, here I was sitting in the passenger seat of his classicon him for my next meal and roo

It felt strange to think those words Nothing No mother No father No sisters or brothers My entire fa, I clenchedhands into fists in my lap and tried not to think about my mother or sister, or baby Bentley trapped inside our house, burning to death But maybe the flames hadn’t taken the off their air supply and slowly suffocating--

Okay, that didn’t help Sweat slipped down my temple and I had to shift in my seat of Pick’s suddenly cramped car

I wondered if they’d died in their sleep without realizing as happening, or if they’d been awake, screaot a kid?" I blurted, glancing toward Pick