“So did I.” That’s where she lived three years ago when Izzie was born.
Mason sipped his coffee, his eyes on me the entire time. “You’re pissed. I can see it all over your face.”
“Well, I’m not happy that she’s suddenly back in town. She gave up her rights to Izzie.” I hoped Emma hadn’t changed her mind and now wanted to be part of the equation. That wasn’t a possibility, not for me. I didn’t want to confuse Isabella either. What if Emma left again? I had to protect my little girl, and if it meant keeping Emma away from Izzie, I would do whatever was necessary.
“You could make sure she doesn’t get the job at Blue Sky Resort,” Mason said. His eyes crinkled with a grin that lit up his face.
“You’re absolutely mad if you think I’m going to manipulate the results of the background check.” That wasn’t something I could do. Even if I didn’t want Emma around, I would not destroy her life or her future.I reached for my coffee, taking another sip.
“Do you want me to do it?” Mason asked.
A part of me wanted him to do whatever was necessary to keep Emma away and Izzie safe, but I would never condone such an action or be involved in any part of it. “You know I can’t say yes.” Even though a small piece of me wanted to ensure that Emma was gone from our lives.
“You should confront her head-on, not avoid the situation. If she’s going to be working at Blue Sky Resort go visit her,” Mason said. He stepped back from my desk and stalked toward the door. “That’s what I would do. Make it clear you want nothing to do with her, and if she plans on sticking around town, it won’t be for Isabella or you.”
I exhaled a heavy breath. Mason was right. “Yeah, I can do that.” I also had her temporary address on her background check application. I glanced over the information. I recognized the address as a rental unit, a small cabin outside of town not too far from the resort. I could visit her and give her a heads up before investing any more time and energy into our community. Whatever regrets she had about Izzie, it was too late. I would not let her hurt my daughter.
“Can you run the backgrounds while I stop over at Emma’s house?”
“Sure thing,” Mason said. “You know how much I love digging into people’s backgrounds and uncovering their dirt.”
* * *
I drove toward the Blue Sky Resort. Just across the street were log cabin rental properties. I pulled up out front of cabin #218 and climbed out of my truck.
Exhaling a heavy breath, my stomach in knots, I gave a forceful knock on the door. I didn’t want to be here, but it had to be done. I would not let her interfere with my daughter.
The door creaked open sluggish and in no rush Standing in her silken negligee, one hand on the door she glanced me over from head to toe. “Jaxson, I wasn’t expecting to see you.”
“Seriously? That’s where you want to start.” I couldn’t believe the nerve of her! I stomped past her front door, letting myself into the rental property. The cabin was small, much smaller than the place Ariella purchased. “What are you doing in town?” I asked, my voice boomed. I didn’t pretend to be thrilled to see her because I wasn’t the least bit happy about her return.
Emma shut the door behind her and scampered into the room. “I’m applying for a job. By the looks of it, you already deduced that much. They must have asked Eagle Tactical to do the background check, am I right?”
“You shouldn’t be here, Emma. You signed away your rights as Izzie’s mother.” I would not let her come running back into our lives and ruin everything.
She wrung her hands together in front of her. “I know, and I shouldn’t have done that,” she said, staring at me with her piercing brown eyes. “I wasn’t ready to be a mother back then, but I am now.”
“No.” My answer was firm. “You planned on putting her up for adoption. Signing away your parental right to me is no different. You don’t get to run off and then decide to come back and play parent when you feel like it.”
Emma’s eyes welled up. “Jaxson, please.”
“No. I won’t stand in the way of you taking this job, but you are not to have contact with my daughter.” I headed for the door.
“Our daughter,” she whispered.
My cell phone buzzed, and I took the moment as an opportunity to leave. I grabbed my phone and stepped outside of the cabin, shutting the door behind me. I didn’t want Emma hearing the conversation or her chasing after me. “Hey, Mason. What’s up?” I recognized his number.
“You will not believe this, but Ariella Cole, she was married to Benjamin Ryan.”
“The same Benjamin Ryan who went to prison for stealing millions from investors?” This day just went from bad to worse. My stomach dropped as my legs failed to cooperate, as though they were encased in lead. I approached my truck and climbed inside, sitting in the front seat, trying to regroup. My head spun. I knew a woman like Ariella didn’t move out into the mountains in a small town in the middle of nowhere because she liked the outdoors. She wanted to get off-grid. Had she played me for a fool with not having electricity? I’d have bet anything she didn’t want electricity. She didn’t want to be found.
“That’s right. Her married name, Ariella Ryan, came up when I searched, but her records were expunged. I did a little further digging when I recognized her name and the name of her ex-husband. She was arrested and charged but acquitted in a court of law,” Mason said. “As far as her past is concerned, she’s clean enough to get the job, but I thought you might want to know.”
“Fuck.” I’d lost a pretty penny with her husband. The money that I believed I’d invested into real estate had instead been used in a Ponzi scheme, using my cash to pay other investors, until he’d gotten caught. My entire life savings had vanished one day, and while Benjamin had gone to prison, I didn’t believe Ariella was as innocent as she pretended to be.