The police officer goes on to tell me (and, incidentally, Landon) that breaking into someone’s house is not a prank, it’s a felony, and since he’s eighteen years old, there’s no choice but to try him as an adult.
I can hear the distant sound of his entire fucking future going down the toilet.
I squeeze the bridge of my nose, knowing beyond a shadow of a fucking doubt that Landon hasn’t just ruined my night.
He has completely ruined my chances with Gemma.
Or, maybe more accurately, he has forcedmeto ruin my own chances with Gemma, because as much as I like her, and as much as I know Landon was entirely in the wrong here, I also know there’s not a shot in hell I’m going to let this happen.
I can’t.
Landon might be an asshole, but he’s still my son.
Sally’s son.
It dawns on me that he’s gotten so far away from me that I don’t even recognize him anymore. This angry, sullen kid is not the little boy who joyfully flung water at his mom under a waterfall in Costa Rica. He’s not who he was on track to grow up to be when she died, either.
He was left in my care, and I’ve failed miserably at my most important job.
His mother would never forgive me if she saw the mess I’ve let our son turn into.
It may be too late to change it now, but regardless, I have to do damage control.
I have enough of the right connections. I can pull the necessary strings to get him out of this.
But I can’t do it without fucking Gemma over.
I don’t expect it to sting as much as it does.
I don’t know how a mere hour ago, I was clutching her tight and running my hands over her incredible body, and now…
Well, she’ll probably never even speak to me again.
I pull the officer aside away from Landon so we can discuss in greater detail what needs to happen next.
The biggest problem is the statement Parker gave. He shouldn’t show it to me, but he does anyway, and she describes in explicit detail that even though Landon came in through a garage door that wasn’t locked, she called out a warning to leave and even told him she would call the police if he didn’t. When Landon ignored her and proceeded to bang on her locked bedroom door demanding entrance, she shut herself in her closet “in fear for her life” and called for help. Landon proceeded to try to enter her bedroom, and it wasn’t until officers showed up and dragged him out in handcuffs that Landon finally exited the home.
“Christ,” I say, handing back the report.
The officer nods his agreement. “It’s pretty bad.”
I know he thinks my son’s an asshole, but he doesn’t say so. He probably also knows my son should see some jail time for how he behaved, but he knows this town well enough to know that’s not on the table.
“If we can throw this statement out, it’ll be much easier to make this all go away. But if the girl is persistent… it’s going to be really difficult not to press charges. It can be done, but not as easily, and it won’t be pretty.”
I nod my understanding. I know exactly how they go about discrediting a woman’s statement, and there’s no way I can do that to Gemma’s daughter. “I’ll talk to her.”
He goes back to babysit my son while I ignore the lead balloon of dread in my gut and approach Gemma and Parker. They’re not hugging anymore, but Gemma is sitting on the chair next to her daughter, her pretty legs turned in Parker’s direction, holding her hand and nodding at something Parker is saying.
Gemma’s wounded gaze drifts to me when I enter her line of sight.
Noticing she’s lost her mother’s attention, Parker turns to look at me, too.
This is certainly not how I wanted us to meet.
Not that it matters now.
“Are you all right?” I ask Parker.