Page 59 of Colt

I felt Ember stir beside me and braced myself for a confrontation about Jenna. I had no idea how Ember was feeling about last night, but I wouldn’t blame her if she was pissed.

I rolled over to greet her. “Good morning, baby. When did you head back over here last night? I thought you were planning on staying at the house with me.”

“Around ten. Jenna came over last night. She didn’t seem in any hurry to leave, so I decided to hang out here with Kate.”

“Did she say something to you?” I knew she had, but I didn’t know how bad it was. Ember didn’t appear that upset, but maybe she was hiding it well.

I heard her take a deep breath, and then she asked, rather bluntly, “Why did you tell Jenna our relationship was fake and you were using me to help get custody?”

Damn it. I should have known Jenna would lay it all out there. But at least Ember trusted me enough to ask and not keep it in. “I didn’t tell her our relationship was fake. One of the girls here overheard you talking to Kate and she called Jenna. Regarding you helping me get custody, Jenna twisted my words around, and if you knew her like I do, you’d know that’s what she always does. I’d been talking to her about our custody arrangement. She insisted a judge wouldn’t grant custody to someone with no stability. So I argued that a judge might look favorably on a guy who recently purchased a home and was in a solid relationship with somebody, and she flipped out. I should have known she would try to cause drama after I told her I fell for you.”

“You fell for me?” she asked, and I thought it was cute that she chose to focus on that part after everything I said.

“Of course, I did. It was impossible not to.”

Before she could say anything else, I placed my hands on her face, making her look into my eyes. “I know that asshole did a number on you, but I’m not him.” She started to say something, but I continued. “I may be a jerk, but I would never lie about my feelings for you. I want to be with you, I think we have something good going on.”

When her eyes filled with tears, I knew they were happy ones. “I do, too.”