STUCK WITH MR. BILLIONAIRE FOR CHRISTMAS novel Chapter 20

Chapter 20

DANTE:

m M

He stumbled backward, hand flying to his nose. Blood poured between his fingers.

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“You piece of shit!” I grabbed his collar, hauled him upright, and hit him again. “You put your hands on my mother!”

“It was an accident-”

“AN ACCIDENT?” I shoved him against the wall hard enough that pictures rattled. “You’re a fucking coward. A woman beater. You should know better but no, you’re a fool at your age

“Dante, stop-” His voice came out nasal from the blood streaming down his face.

I hit him again. Then again. My knuckles split open. Blood, his and mine, splattered across the expensive wallpaper Mom had just installed last year. “You think I’m going to let you stay in this house one more second?”

He crumpled, sliding down the wall, leaving a red streak behind him.

I grabbed him by the front of his shirt and dragged him toward the staircase. His feet scrambled for stability on the hardwood but I didn’t let him find his footing.

“Do you know how it feels?” I yanked him to his feet at the top of the stairs. “To be defenseless? To have someone bigger and stronger than you decide they can do whatever they want?”

“Please-”

“You want to prove your masculinity?” I shoved him closer to the edge. He teetered, arms windmilling. “Stand up and fight me. Go ahead. Hit me back. Show me how tough you are when someone can actually fight back.”

“Dante, don’t-”

“How DARE you touch her!” I yelled into his face. “How dare you lay one finger on my mother! On what grounds? What gives you the right?”

He was crying now. Actual tears mixing with the blood and snotunning down his face. “I’m sorry-”

“You have five minutes to get out of this house, Five minutes before I throw you down these stairs myself and let physics decide if you live or die.”

I released him. He collapsed onto the

www op step, gasping.

I grabbed him again, ready to make good on the threat.

“Dante!” Dove’s hands closed around my arm. “Stop. Please. He’s not worth it. Don’t kill him.”

“He deserves worse than death.”

“I know.” Her voice was steady now despite the tears. “But Mom needs you. And if you kill him, you’ll go to prison. Then who protects her?”

I hated how she could still reach me like that, how she could get under my skin with a few quiet words. Her logic made sense -I knew it did-but it didn’t stop the part of me that wanted him broken enough that he’d never be able to do this again.

I released Max, pushing him with force that made him tumble down three steps before catching himself on the railing.

“Leave,” I said quietly. “Before I change my mind.”

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09:54 Sat, Feb 28

Chapter 20

M M

He rushed down the stairs, one hand clutching his bleeding nose the other gripping the railing for balance.

The front door shut a moment later.

I stood there, breathing heavily, knuckles throbbing.

Dove touched my shoulder gently. “Mom’s in her room.”

We walked down the hallway together. My legs felt shaky now that the adrenaline was fading.

Dove pushed open the bedroom door.

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Mom lay in bed, propped up by pillows. A cold compress rested against her left cheek. Her right eye was swollen shut. Her lip had been split, the cut still fresh enough that blood seeped through when she tried to smile at us.

Bruises covered her arms. Defensive wounds. Where she’d tried to block the blows.

My stomach turned at the sight of my fifty-seven-year-old mom like this.

“Dante.” Her voice was hoarse and broken. “You didn’t need to come all this way.”

“Mom.” I crossed to her bedside, kneeling so we were eye level. My hand hovered over hers, afraid to touch her in case I hurt her more. “I’m filing a report against him with all the authorities necessary.”

“It’s not necessary.”

“Not necessary?” I looked at Dove. She shook her head slightly.

“He’s sorry,” Mom continued. “It was a mistake. He’d been drinking-”

“That’s not an excuse.” I forced my voice to stay calm. I was trying my best to stay levelled. I didn’t want to scare her with my anger. “Mom, he beat you. Look at your face.”

“Marriage is complicated-”

“This isn’t marriage!” The words exploded out of me. “This is abuse! He’s been doing this for years, hasn’t he? And you’ve been hiding it. Making excuses. Dad never even spoke to you rudely, let alone getting physical with you.”

Tears slipped down her cheeks, making the bruises glisten. “I love him.”

“Love?” I stood abruptly, unable to tame my anger. “You’re fifty-seven years old, Mom. You’re letting a forty-five-year-old. idiot who contributes nothing, lives off your money, your succes, your home, and beats you unconscious. Does that sound right to you?”

“Dante, enough-”

“Because from where I’m standing, it looks like a parasite who found an easy host too kind to cut him off.”

“Stop it.” Her voice broke completely. “Just stop.”

Dove moved to her other side, taking Mom’s hand carefully. “We want him gone, Mom. That’s all. We want you safe.”

“I can’t let him go.” She looked between us, eyes desperate. “I love him. I know you don’t understand, but I do. He made a mistake. He’ll get help. We’ll go to counseling-”

“Mom, you’re fine! You don’t need counseling. He needs to be locked away where he can’t find vulnerable women to suck dry.” I wanted to punch something. Break something. Do anything to release the helpless rage building in my chest.

“He needs me.”

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09:54 Sat, Feb 28

Chapter 20

“So that he can kill you? Can’t you see what he’s doing?”

She shook her head, fresh tears falling. “I can’t leave him. I promised. For better or worse-”

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“Worse shouldn’t include this.” I sank into the chair beside her bed, exhaustion crashing over me like a wave. “Mom, please. Please let us help you.”

“He’s already gone,” Dove said quietly. “Dante made him leave.”

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