Claim (A Dangerous Man, #3) by Serena Grey Page B

realize how frustrated I am until I catch myself running my fingers through my hair. “You wouldn’t understand.” I tell Sophie.
    Her eyes cloud as she looks at me, and I see the pain clearly in her eyes. I watch helplessly as she turns away and walks out of the room.
    I turn to my mother, “I hope you’re glad.” I say, knowing that it’s really not her fault. If it’s anyone’s fault, then it’s mine. I should have resolved my problems before bringing Sophie into my life, I should have waited for God’s sake, but I was too impatient to take what she didn’t even know she was offering, and now I’m paying for it.
    “I’m sorry.” My mother says, with another of her elegant shrugs. “I had no idea.”
    “Well now you do.”
    She gets up from the couch, taking her purse. “An NDA does seem rather extreme for hairdressers and such,” She says softly. “Does this have anything to do with Carole Banks?”
    I ignore her, letting her know by my silence that it’s time for her to leave. I have no intention of sharing my problems with her. She is a stranger for all I care. I follow her to the foyer and go ahead of her to press the button for the lift.
    “David,” she begins, as we wait for the doors to open, “I know you’re angry with me...”
    Whatever she has to say, I don’t want to hear it.
    “I’m not angry mother,” I interrupt. “I stopped being angry with you a long time ago. What I feel now is disgust. I don’t want to have anything to do with you. I hope you have a very happy life with Henry’s money. You’ve earned it.”
    “Don’t try to tell me that you don’t care about money David,” She retorts.”You worked hard to make much more than your step-father ever had.”
    I sigh. “Yes I worked hard, and I’m proud of it. What did you do? You received every beating the bastard ever gave you, lied about it, and turned your back on me without a thought. You make me sick mother.”
    She doesn’t look at me as she steps into the lift. “I’ll never understand how you turned out to be so cruel,” She says, her voice low.
    “You haven’t tried hard enough.” I say unsympathetically, turning away before the doors close.
    ~§~§~§~§~
    I panic when I can’t find Sophie in our bedroom. I check all the rooms in the apartment, my heart racing. I finally think to look in my study and I find her, curled up on the couch, reading on her tablet. The relief I feel on seeing her temporarily weakens me.
    “I’ve been looking for you.” I don’t mean for the words to be accusing, but they sound that way. Sophie only shrugs and turns back to her reading, ignoring me.
    On the screen of the tablet,I can clearly see that she’s reading what little about my relationship with Carole is available on the internet. “Nothing you find there has anything to do with me and you.”
    She looks at me, her eyes wide and glistening with a sheen of unshed tears. “Tell me about her.”
    Carole is nothing to me. That’s the truth. We dated for a short time, and I tried to be a good friend to her, in spite of her shortcomings, especially after her father died, but now she’s nothing more than a temporary inconvenience, one I’ve finally managed to overcome.
    “There is nothing to tell.” I say.
    Sophie’s eyes flare in anger, “Really? Because it’s very clear here that she was your girlfriend only a short time ago.”
    “Don’t believe everything you read in the papers Sophie.” I say gently. “We saw each other on and off for a while, but it’s been over for a long time.”
    “Do you love her?” She asks. “Is that why you’re keeping me hidden, so that she won’t find out about me?”
    The idea that Carole can mean that much to me is laughable. I go to sit beside Sophie on the couch. “You don’t need to concern yourself about Carole.” I tell her, meaning every word, and hoping she can see the truth in my eyes.
    “Her father invested a lot in your career.” She murmurs.
    “In