“Who’s Corey?”
“There is so much to tell you, but he’s my son.”
“You have a child?” Larkin yelled. “Why am I just finding out about this now?”
“I’ll explain it all tomorrow. Please don’t tell Darian.”
“I won’t, I promise.”
“Thank you. I’ll see you then.”
After she got off the phone, she packed several bags of the things she’d need for Corey when she ran. And she knew it would be when and not if because she knew King, and he always got what he wanted, and he never gave up.
Cat felt wrung out by the time she got to the coffee shop the next day. She’d gotten very little sleep the night before, and the stress was making her stomach hurt, which she guessed might be ulcers, but she didn’t have any time to do anything about them. Going to the doctor was costly, and she didn’t have health insurance, so she had to be really sick before she went.
She heard Larkin before she saw her and smiled as the woman engulfed her in a hug.
“God, I’ve missed you so much.”
Tears filled Cat’s eyes as she hugged her friend back. “Let’s sit down.”
Larkin pulled her over to a table with two fancy coffees and danishes. “I hope you like the coffee. It’s the only kind I can drink because it’s sweet.”
“I’m not a big coffee drinker until I’m desperate, so this is perfect.” She took a few sips of it and decided it wasn’t bad.
“Tell me,” Larkin said.
Cat told her everything from when King kicked her out until that day. She had to stop a few times because they both cried, so it took longer than she thought.
“Why haven’t I heard any of this?” Larkin asked.
“What did they tell you?”
“My daddy told me that you broke up, and you decided to move away.”
That brought more tears to her eyes. “If moving away means living in an alley, he was right.”
“I can’t believe you went through that. I tried to call you so many times.”
“I left the phone at his condo since I didn’t pay for it.”
“Why didn’t you call me?” Larkin asked.
“I didn’t want to put you in a bad position and get in trouble. Besides, it took a long time to think about anything besides survival.”
“God, I wish you had called.” Larkin reached over the table and took her hands.
“I wish I had, too.”
“So, what’s the plan?” Larkin asked.
“I need a place to hide until I can get enough money together to go to Canada.”
“Are you sure he said he wanted to take Corey from you?” Larkin asked. “It just doesn’t sound like him. But I never would have thought he’d treat you the way he did either.”
“When a billionaire says he’s going to take me to court to get my son, I believe it.”
Larkin squeezed her hands. “I’m so sorry you’re going through this.”