He Hurt Me, Now He Wants Me Back novel Chapter 11

Imogene Scott

My car pulls up in the parking lot. I rush across the lobby, my heart hammering in my chest. All I want to do is see Lily and Breonna isn’t answering her phone either.

I can only think of the worst. What if she planned all this with Damien to kidnap Lily? Should I be calling the police?

Ding!

I arrive on the sixth floor and rush to my door, repeatedly pressing the door bell. After a few seconds which felt like eternity, the door opens and I waltz in.

All is normal. Breonna seems a little rattled, Lily is asleep on the couch and I look like a mad woman searching for her lost daughter. My blood runs cold, I need to talk to Breonna.

Without saying a word, I gently lift Lily off the couch, then go into my room and place her on the bed. The second I get back into the living room, I start questioning Breonna.

“Is your name even Breonna? What more are you lying about?” I try to keep my voice low.

She feigns innocence. “I’m not sure what you mean, Mrs Scott.”

“I know everything.” I brace my palm on my forehead, forcing myself to say his name. “I know Damien sent you!”

“I…”

“You’re his sister!” I snap, finally losing my cool.

I feel like a fool. No wonder she was able to impress me in every way. Because Damien already told her everything about me. This is fucked up. They both lied to me.

“This isn’t Damien’s fault. It’s mine.” Breonna says, sinking into a couch.

“No!” I bark. “He doesn’t get to have someone else take the blame for what he did.” I start pacing the room. “Give me your phone, Breonna.”

She cocks her head. “What?”

“Please.”

She seems reluctant as she hands it to me. As I predicted, Damien was the last person she spoke to. Were they really trying to kidnap Lily?

“I was right!” I say. “You pretended to have suddenly fallen in love with me, you pretended not to know about Lily. You lied to me, Damien. On multiple fronts. An inordinate amount of lying. It’s borderline sociopathic!”

His jaw tightens, and for a moment, I see a flash of anger in his eyes. “It’s not like that,” he says, his voice low. “I was trying to help, I care about Lily—”

“No, you don’t.” I cut him off. “You didn’t know about her existence until recently and now you suddenly care about her? Oh, please. You were only trying to manipulate me, Damien. To control me. To control Lily. You thought you could just waltz back into our lives and pretend that nothing happened, that you’re some kind of savior?”

“I never meant to hurt you, Imogene. I just… I didn’t know how to tell you that I knew about Lily. I wanted to be part of her life, part of your life again.”

My heart twists painfully at his words, but I push the feeling aside. I can’t let him get to me. Not again.

“You don’t get to be part of our lives, Damien,” I say coldly. “You lost that right the moment you chose to discard me. And now, after everything, you have the audacity to try and force your way back in?”

His eyes soften, and he takes another step towards me. “Imogene, please. I’m not trying to force anything. I just want a chance—a chance to make things right. For Lily’s sake.”

“For Lily’s sake? You think this is about Lily? This is about you, Damien. It’s always been about you. Your ego, your need for control. You can’t stand the fact that I’ve built something without you, that I don’t need you anymore.”

He flinches at my words, but I press on, my anger fueling me. “Well, I’m done playing your games. I’m done letting you manipulate me. I’m filing a police report, Damien. And I’m getting a restraining order against you. You’re not going to come near Lily ever again.”