Written with Regret (The Regret Duet #1)(34)

The sound of his computer starting up played in my ear before several seconds of silence. “All right. Their names are Robert and Keira Banks.”

Keira.

Jesus, Keira.

She’d named our daughter after her dead mother.

The woman my father had killed.

Dammit.

“Can you check that against the list of victims?”

“Already on it.”

I dropped my head back against the headrest, closing my eyes. I wasn’t positive if I wanted their names to be on that list or not. On one hand, if she’d lied to me, made up an elaborate ploy to play on my guilt, it would do wonders to uncomplicate the entire fucked-up situation. But if she’d been telling the truth, then her explanation of why she’d given up Rosalee was genuine—and, more than likely, so were her intentions.

I held my breath and thought about my daughter. I wanted her to have everything in life. All the things I’d never had. A mother included. But if everything Hadley had said was the truth, it was going to be a nightmare for me—my worst nightmare.

The amount of guilt I carried over that shooting. The huge fight I’d gotten into with my father that morning before I’d left for work. The secrets I still carried.

I’d have done anything to try to make things right for Hadley.

Anything except for potentially putting my daughter in harm’s way.

“Shit, Caven. They’re on the list.”

My stomach sank, reality cutting me to the quick. “She was there, Doug. She was at the mall that day too.”

“Son of a… Okay, listen to me. You don’t owe her anything. I don’t know where your head is right now. But I want to be very clear with you that this changes nothing.”

“It changes everything and you know it.”

“Not legally, it doesn’t.”

But this wasn’t about the law anymore. “Listen, I’m going to take Rosalee and go to the beach house for a few days. I need time to think.”

“Understandable. But promise you’ll call me before that thinking turns into deciding.”

Bile clawed at the back of my throat. “Can you do me a favor?”

“Anything.”

“Talk to the prosecutor. See if they’ll drop the charges against Hadley.”

“What? Absolutely not.”

“You said it yourself. The child endangerment charges aren’t going to stick.”

“No, but we can try.”

“At what cost, Doug? She’s going to walk into that courtroom and be forced to use every skeleton I have in my closet to defend herself. She made a really bad choice but a very smart decision in the middle of a paralyzing PTSD episode. And speaking as someone who’s been there too many times, there aren’t a lot of good decisions to be found in that kind of darkness.”

“You feel guilty. I get it. But—”

“I don’t feel guilty. I am guilty. But I’m going to figure this out. I’m not handing over my daughter to this woman because I have a conscience. She’s agreed not to file anything in court with hopes that she and I can work out something a little less public. I just have to figure out what that looks like. So I’m taking my girl and heading to the Outer Banks for a much-needed vacation.”

“All right. All right. You know my number if you need anything. I’ll hold the fort down with Ian while you’re gone.”

“Thanks, Doug. Send Nina my apologies for dragging you out of bed.”

“I was kidding earlier. That woman was snoring so loud she probably doesn’t know I’m missing.”

“I’ll be sure to let her know you mentioned that the next time I see her.”

“Come on now. I don’t have time for a divorce while dealing with all your messes.”

I barked a laugh. “We’ll be in touch.”

“Have fun at the beach.”

I wouldn’t. But I’d be with Rosalee, so I’d at least be happy.





HADLEY


“Please tell me that’s not what you’re wearing,” Beth said when I opened my front door.

I glanced at my paint-covered overalls. “Hobo-chic is still a thing, right?”

“Oh, absolutely. And you must keep that purple glob of paint in your ponytail too. It really sets off the whole look.”

I laughed and stepped out of the way for her to enter. She clipped in on stilettos. Her typical badass-lawyer attire had been peeled down to sexy lawyer, which included a black, high-waisted pencil skirt and a sleeveless, silk button-down that was really more of a button-up since she’d missed at least half of the actual buttons.

“Did you finish getting dressed before you came over?”

“Everyone knows you catch more flies with honey. My honey just happens to be my boobs, and before you hit me with one of your signature oh-so-witty-but-not-really-funny-at-all sarcastic jabs, let me just tell you to shut it. When you turn thirty-three and haven’t had sex in over a year because you are married to your job and your job has no dick, you can decide what your personal choice of honey is and I won’t say a word about it. M’kay?”

A smile I felt travel through my entire body stretched across my face. As a photographer, I’d been living in Puerto Rico for the last three years, taking advantage of everything nature had to offer. And while the beauty of that island was unrivaled, it didn’t have my best friend living a mere thirty minutes away.