Page 60 of Escape to Lighthouse Cove

“Brad…” Weirdly, she felt the need to gentle her voice. “You tried tochokeme.”

His expression darkened, and he looked away, a mottled flush coming over his already reddened cheeks. “Grace…” His voice was low. “You don’t know how much I regret that. I think about it every day.” His voice caught, and he turned to her, his eyes pleading. “Please believe me. I didn’t mean it. I would never, ever hurt you… or Jacob.”

Or Jacob.The words reverberated through her, weirdly. She stared at him—his earnest eyes, his hands clasped together. “What did Jacob mean,” she asked slowly, “when he said you said you ‘wouldn’t’? What was it that you wouldn’t do?”

Brad’s expression shifted—almost imperceptibly, but it was there. A flash of guilt. A tightening of the lips. He knew what their son had meant.

“Brad.” Grace’s voice was hard. “If you want to have any chance of us getting back together—” Not that there was any. “Tell me.”

He sighed, turning sulky, unclasping his hands as he dropped them to his sides. “I don’t really know?—”

“Brad.”

He sighed again. “Okay, fine. Jacob saw me when I was… you know.”

“You know?” It took Grace a second to understand. “He saw you choking me? Your hands around my throat?” she demanded, her voice trembling. It had been late; they’d been in their bedroom, arguing. She’d thought Jacob had been asleep. Brad’s hands had been around her throat for only a few seconds, but still. Jacob was a sensitive boy. He would have been terrified.She’dbeen terrified.

Brad nodded. “I saw him in the doorway.”

Grace took a stumbling step away from him, her eyes briefly closing, her stomach roiling. “And when he said… you wouldn’t?” she whispered. Brad didn’t answer and she whirled around, glaring at him. “Brad, for the love of God, tell me.”

“He’s overreacting, Grace, like he always does,” Brad retorted, sounding nettled. “He’s sosensitive. It’s ridiculous.”

Grace’s whole body felt numb. “Brad. Tell me.”

He shrugged, dismissive as well as defensive. “Afterward… you ran into the bathroom. I went and told him not to say a word to anyone about it, that’s all. If it had gotten out…” His voice turned earnest, like he could convince her of the sense of what he was saying. “Grace, people’s careers have been ruined for less. I mean, it was a moment’s—a second’s—lapse. That’s all.”

Grace stared at him as realization trickled through her. “Is that what you said? The exact words?” she finally whispered. “That he wasn’t to say a word?”

Brad shrugged. “Yeah, basically.”

“And if he did? If he did speak?”

Brad hesitated, and Grace felt as if she could scream. “Tell me right now,” she demanded in a low voice, “or, for the love of God, I will report you to the police for domestic assault.”

“Come on, Grace,” Brad protested, sounding more irritable than afraid. “I can’t remember exactly. I said something about him not saying one word or something bad might happen to you.” She gasped softly and he shrugged again, instantly defensive. “I was mad, okay? I barely remember what I said.”

“Jacob said ‘you wouldn’t,’” she told him in a shaking voice. “What was it exactly you said you’d do if he spoke?Hurtme?”

Brad shrugged again, angry now. “Something like that, I guess. Like I said, I was mad. It was late. Emotions were running high…”

“Yours certainly were.” She turned away, devastated by what she’d just learned. She could picture it—Brad’s red-faced fury, his head thrust up close to Jacob’s. His mixture of jocularity and threat. Jacob’s terror, masked by wide-eyed silence. And oh, thesilence.Six months of silence, all because of what her ex-husband had said.Threatened.

Not to say a word… or he’d hurt her. Poor, poor Jacob, staggering under that terrible emotional load.

And her son, her sensitive, wonderful, terrified son, hadn’t. He hadn’t said a single word, all these months.

“Get out,” Grace whispered.

Brad reared back. “What? Grace?—”

“Get out,” she said again, her voice stronger now. “I’m not getting back together with you,ever. And I am going to sue for full custody of Jacob. I have photos of the bruises on my throat, Brad, so don’t even try another smear campaign.” She didn’t, but she prayed he’d believe her, because one thing Grace knew for certain was that she didn’t want this man in her or her son’s life anymore. At all.

“Grace…” Brad was trying to bluster, but he clearly couldn’t think of anything to say, so he just puffed up, his chest swelling, his face flushing.

“Get out,” Grace said again. The words felt good. Strong, as well as healing. “This is my house, and you’re not welcome here. The only communication we’ll have from now on is through my lawyer.”

Brad stared at her for another moment, looking like he was going to get angry, and then Grace straightened, meeting his gaze with a fiery one of her own. For the first time with this man, she didn’t cower. She didn’t apologize. She didn’t even look away.