Jonny's Redemption (Gemini Group Book 7) by Riley Edwards (audio ebook reader TXT) 📕

“Don’t let me hurt you.”

God, Jonny.

Tortured.

“You will, honey. You’re gonna hurt me and I’m gonna hurt you. And when you do I’m gonna stand by your side.”

“Bobby—”

“I love you.”

Jonny’s hands in mine twitched and his eyes went alert but not guarded. I took that as a good sign—not great, but good. A start.

This was the start of me and Jonny. I had six more days alone with him to build a foundation that could withstand a storm. Six days to lay the groundwork so when we got back and the weight of the world hit him, we wouldn’t crumble.

It was up to me. I had to be the shield.

9

Jonny was sitting on the back deck overlooking the ocean and watching the sun set, but this time he wasn’t doing it alone. Bobby sat next to him, her feet up on the railing, beer in hand.

This was better. Bobby sitting next to him.

But he still hated the beach.

Soon they’d be home and they could watch the sun set over the trees. His place or hers; he didn’t care as long as she was by his side.

“You know the only time I feel at peace is when I’m with you,” he murmured. “It’s the only time the hate goes away.”

There was a beat of silence before Bobby whispered, “I’m glad, honey, because you give me that, too.”

He wanted to give her peace, wanted to give her everything she gave him tenfold.

Once again a comfortable silence fell and they thought back over their day. The spectacular wake-up call, the shit phone call from his mom, the confessions. Bobby knew it all or enough to know what she was getting into. There was more Jonny needed to tell her, but that could wait, she had the truth about his family. After Jonny had cleaned up the jar he’d broken and apologized profusely about losing his temper, which she’d surprisingly waved away, he’d taken her out for breakfast. After that, they’d walked the beach, and he’d shown her around Dewey and Rehoboth. There wasn’t much to see, the neighboring towns were both small. A lazy place to take your family.

“Do you want kids?” The question popped out of Jonny’s mouth before he thought better of it.

Without looking Jonny’s way Bobby answered, “I never used to. I mean, what kind of mother would I be?”

A good one, he thought but didn’t tell her that. Instead, he focused on the first part.

“But you do now?”

“I’m not sure. What about you?”

“I played little league baseball and I remember all the dads being out there with their boys. Volunteering, coaching, cheering. Other dads were always around but not mine. To hide how hurt I was, I’d get pissed. One of the dads noticed, pulled me aside, and talked to me. As he was talking to me, I thought when I had a son, that was the kinda dad I was gonna be. I wouldn’t be anything like the one I had. Then I grew up and learned who my dad really was. He wasn’t a workaholic like I’d heard him called, or a good man working hard to provide for his family. He was an asshole who had two families. But I still wanted kids, a son I could play ball with. Then Caleb was born and I changed my mind.”

“What? But Caleb is awesome.”

Jonny smiled at the outrage in Bobby’s voice in defense of his nephew and when he turned to look at her he found she was already staring at him.

“Caleb is awesome. He was an awesome baby, too. My brother found himself a beautiful girl, hid the dickhead within, conned that girl into marrying him, and made babies with her. Throughout that, he never stopped being a dickhead. He cheated on her. He treated her like shit and when Caleb came, Doug didn’t change. Then Rory was born and he still didn’t change. How a man can do that, I do not know. But my dad did it, my brother did it. And I watched two beautiful, vibrant women suffer. But worse, I had to watch two beautiful, innocent children go through what I did.”

“I get it,” Bobby murmured.

Three whispered words. That was all it took for something deep in his gut to settle—a knot to start unwinding. He reckoned Bobby did get it; she had the same fears.

“I want you to know something,” she continued. “I know you won’t cheat on me.”

Shit, fuck.

Jonny fought to keep his seat as an uncomfortable feeling stole over him. Pain sliced through him, a pain he wanted to feel for the rest of his life, a pain that hurt so good. A trust he hadn’t earned but despite what she knew Bobby was giving it.

“I know you think you have that in you, what they had. But I know you don’t. Over the years I’ve thought a lot about it, what was broken in my mom, in my dad, what made them do what they did. I don’t have the answers the same way you don’t understand how a man treats his wife and children the way your dad and brother did. You can’t understand it because that’s not in you. I cannot fathom how a mother leaves her children, I’ll never understand it. I’m not worried I’ll abandon my children. I’m worried I’ll be a shit mom because I didn’t have one to show me the way. I’m not worried I’ll become a bitter, drunk, beaten-down woman like her. I know how blessed I am. I know that everything I have in my life I worked to get. I broke the cycle just by leaving, I continue to do it every day, and I’m proud of that. And, Jonny, you should be proud, too. You broke free of yours.”

Jesus.

He wanted to believe that.

He’d never cheated on a girlfriend, never treated a woman like shit. He was careful—always. Even with a casual hookup, he was upfront