She felt like she was going to be sick. Who was this man, playing with people’s lives as if they meant nothing? As if they were nothing? And Seamus… All Seamus had ever been was kindness and love incarnate. He was the best father she’d ever known.
Burke needed to rot in jail. But she was no longer in any position to help make that happen. Not for the moment, anyway. “Away.”
“Excuse me?”
He’d heard her. “I’ll go away.”
He nodded. “Then so will those pictures. But only if you leave right now. Don’t talk to him. Don’t answer his calls. Do you need me to send for my car?”
“No. I’ll find a ride.”
“If he catches you before you leave my house, tell him this trip made you realize you deserve someone who can give you more. Someone better.”
She glared at him with so much disdain he frowned. “Stephen is worth a thousand of you. You may be able to use the people he loves against him and send me away, but you’ll never bring him down to your level. There is no one better than Stephen Finn, and you know it. Isn’t that why you’re doing this?”
She turned on her heel and left the room as if the devil were chasing her. She took the stairs two at a time, trying to hold in her tears.
Go. Go now. Don’t think. No choice.
“Tasha?”
Shit. Brady and Ken were standing in the hall in front of her room. Did that mean Stephen was here? Shit.
Ken frowned in concern, moving toward her cautiously. “Tasha, what’s happened?”
“Can you take me home, Ken? Right now? We need to leave right now.”
Brady was by her side, his hand cupping her shoulder. “Tasha, just tell me who did this to you? Who do I have to kill?”
“I can’t tell you, Brady. I need Ken to take me out of here. I can’t see Stephen.”
Ever again. Jesus, was this happening? Had she laughed at Scott’s failed attempt at blackmail? He had nothing on Burke. Was that all politics was now—wealthy assholes and self-important pricks who thought they could twist the world to suit them?
“Let’s get your things together and talk about this.” Brady was thinking of hunting for Stephen. She could see it.
“There’s no time. Ken? Still scrambled?” she asked him.
He knew what she meant. “Yes. All clear.”
She took Brady’s hand off her arm and held it tight. “Listen to me, Brady. I have to leave right now and you can’t tell him anything. Other people are at stake here. The family… Just promise me.”
“Damn it. I swear.” Brady looked grim. “What the fuck did Burke threaten you with?”
“There’s a camera in Stephen’s bedroom. His house. Get rid of it before he sees it. You can tell him I was upset and left, but not why. If you tell him why, Burke will print the pictures.”
“Fuck,” Ken muttered. “I hate that motherfucker. I swear I’m going to get him for this. I’ll grab my keys.”
Tasha pushed Brady away from the door and ran in the bedroom to grab her purse. He was watching her. “Can you bring me my things? And Ken’s? I don’t have time to pack.”
“Of course. Tasha, this isn’t right. There has to be another way.”
She wiped her cheeks and clutched her purse to her chest. “There isn’t. We lost. I… I’ll tell Ken what he wants to use on Stephen. About Seamus. Answer your phone when he calls you. And thank you, Brady.” She kissed his cheek and then ran out the door and down the stairs. She didn’t stop until she was standing by Ken’s car.
Once they were on the road, she let the tears fall, wondering if they would ever stop. Stephen couldn’t fix this with a few phone calls the way he had the last time. Burke was too well connected. Too smart.
Which meant she’d lost them. All of them. Ellen and Shawn. Jennifer and Owen.
Stephen.
The horrible truth was that, instead of helping, she’d ended up giving Phil Burke exactly what he needed to cause a scandal. All these years of following the rules to protect Stephen’s reputation and her heart, and she’d put both in jeopardy because she hadn’t been able to resist his invitation.
How long have you been in love with him?
“All my life,” she whispered into the car. She was just afraid to admit it until it was too late.
Chapter Eleven
Two months later…
“Thank you for meeting me here, Jeremy. I know it seems like a strange request.”
Jeremy wrapped his arm around Tasha’s shoulders and hugged her close as they walked down the hospital’s hallway. “Sneaking you in to see the old man after visiting hours? Pshaw. I’m getting used to the beatings.”
She held the box full of Shawn Finn’s favorite lemon tarts close and picked up her pace. When Jeremy messaged her about Shawn’s TIA, she’d nearly climbed the walls in her impatience to make sure he was okay.