Page 117 of Tattered (Lark Cove 1)

Thomas frowned, but before he could intervene, Aubrey spoke up. “Is this true?” she asked, looking just as stunned as Sofia.

Thomas nodded, his serious demeanor not cracking a bit. “Logan will be taking over some of the family responsibilities. Overseeing the trust funds is part of that. Until your funds are released, he’ll be approving your withdrawals.”

Or not approving their withdrawals.

“But I don’t get my money for another three years!” Sofia shrieked, now looking to her mother for help. “Mom?”

Lillian’s mouth was slightly open. “Logan, you can’t be serious.”

He didn’t respond to his mom. He just kept glaring at Sofia.

“Why are we just learning about this?” Aubrey asked Thomas. “I work with you every day, but you couldn’t bother telling me that my brother is now in charge of my personal finances?”

“Don’t be dramatic, Aubrey.” Thomas waved her off. “We transferred it over just last week. Besides, you haven’t taken a disbursement in years. We all know you’re living off your salary. Or are you saying that I’m not paying you enough?”

“That’s not the point.”

“Then what is the point?” he fired back. “This was a decision that I made, and I don’t require your approval. Don’t forget your place.”

“My place? I thought I was your daughter and colleague but apparently I’m just another employee.” Aubrey shot out of her chair and started yelling at her father about all the work she put into their company. Meanwhile, Sofia ran to Lillian’s side, sobbing as she cursed at Logan.

The room was chaos. Even the waitstaff had disappeared.

This was no place for my daughter.

I kept Charlie’s hand and stood from my chair. Logan grabbed for me, but I slid free. With a nod to Joan as she mouthed, Sorry, I took my daughter straight out of the room.

We wasted no time escaping the dining room or the house. I opened the first door that led to the patio, breathing in the freedom of the night air.

I swung Charlie’s hand at my side as we walked down the pathway to the guesthouse. “That wasn’t much fun, was it?”

“No.” She scuffled her feet. “They didn’t like me.”

When I heard her sniffle, I stopped and bent in front of her, catching a tear with my thumb, holding back tears of my own.

“I love you, Charlie. Just the way you are. Who cares what those mean people think?”

She sniffled, wiping her nose with the back of her free hand. “Do I have to cut my hair?”

I pulled out her headband, setting her brown strands free. There was nothing wrong with her hair. It was thick and soft and hung long down her back. Millions of little girls would love to have her hair.

“Of course not.”

“Good,” she whispered. “Can we go home now, Mommy?”

“Pretty soon. We’re almost done with this place.” I stood back up and kicked off my nude heels. “Let’s forget about dinner and have fun. Take off your shoes.”

“Why?” she asked as she kicked them off.

“Because we’re going to have a race. Guess what I saw in the freezer earlier when I was poking around?”

She handed me her shoes. “What?”

“Ice cream. The first person back to the house gets to pick the flavor.”

Without a moment’s hesitation, she shot off the path, running as fast as she could through the grass. I laughed and did the same. She was giggling as she ran, looking over her shoulder to make sure

I wasn’t too close.