When she said the Cartwrights’ money was now hers, that crazy spending spree at The Blue Spot... Then there was how she changed her appearance, getting manicures and dressing like she had money. It was because she did.
“Is the person who runs Revenge Industries Jocelyn?”
Lola’s head turned toward me with a look of confusion.
“How did you know?” Eric confirmed my suspicion.
“I didn’t. I just figured it out.”
Eric narrowed his eyes. “No, that’s not possible. You must have known. Using my sister and then abandoning her the other day. You were in on it.”
Lola took a step back.
God, my sister was the worst. I knew why she did what she did, but she never considered how it might affect me or anyone else.
I held up my hands. “I swear, I never knew my sister was doing this. I thought she lived in the middle of nowhere because she hated people. Whatever this plan of hers was, she kept it from everyone, including me.”
“Then how come you never told me about her? You never told me anything about your family. Just that your dad left your mom, and then she died.” Eric folded his arms.
“It’s not what you think—”
Lola puffed out her chest and stepped in front of her brother. “It’s exactly what we think. Everything went according to plan, didn’t it? You hurt me, and your sister took all my brother’s money. Why are you here, Jenner? To take Jenni from me? To put the final dagger in my heart?”
Chapter 22
Lola
The man I loved stood in front of me with no explanation as to why he ripped my family to shreds. Jenner shook his head but said nothing. The only sound was Jenni giggling as Hamish kept trying to grab a wooden block, and she kept pushing his hand away.
“You have nothing to say?” I struggled to utter the words.
He sighed. “I do, but I understand if you don’t believe me. Hell, I wouldn’t believe me if I were in your shoes. But it’s the truth.”
“We’ve got time. Let me hear what you have to say, Jenner.” I walked over and took a seat on my couch.
Eric got on the floor with Hamish and Jenni—half paying attention to us and half strangely interested in those blocks.
But Jenner didn’t move. He rubbed the back of his neck, taking a few moments before he spoke.
When he did finally explain, my heart broke, and I knew it would never be repaired.
“We were very poor growing up... much like your family. Where your father only struggled to pay the bills, my father struggled with everything, even putting food on our table. There were days I went to school hungry and would beg my friends for the leftovers in their lunches. I’m not saying that for sympathy; it just was my life—and it was my sisters’ lives too. We grew up having to learn how to be resourceful, sneaky, and very aware of our environment if we wanted to make it to the next day.”
“I really am sorry you had to go through that, Jenner. As much as I don’t like your sister, it explains a lot,” I said.
I knew he struggled, but not that much. All I wanted to do was hold him, but then I remembered how he was so willing to abandon Jenni.
“But it’s not an excuse. What I’m saying is, I wouldn’t do what Jocelyn did. She took her anger and made it grow until it consumed her. I learned to take my anger and, at first, I turned it to help me become successful. Then, once I saw you again, Lola, now a beautiful woman, I learned to let that anger go.”
“So you say...”
He came over and sat beside me. “I get it. You can’t believe anything that comes out of my mouth. And what I say next will really make you hate me, but I want to tell you the truth.”
He took a moment before he continued, “The day my mom died, I was so lost. I knew your father had recently passed, and since my dad had helped your dad from the beginning of his business, I thought your family might help bury my mom. I put on my best clothes, which, looking back, were dirty with a few holes in them, but they actually fit me, so I only wore them when I wanted to impress others.” He chuckled. “Ugh, I was so pathetic back then...”
It hurt to hear him talk down about himself. Despite my anger, I reached over and touched his hand. “You weren’t pathetic, Jenner. You were just a young man struggling to do his best.”
“Thank you, Lola. It was your kindness that made me fall in love with you. Even back then, I saw it in your eyes. We lived way outside of Manhattan, but I scraped up the subway fare and traveled the two hours to your penthouse in New York. The doorman would not let me in, but then you saw me and said it was okay. You were kind when most people took one look at me and assumed the worst.”