Lucy’s nails bit into her palms at his callous attitude as Benji slowly nodded. “Fine, since you were so gracious to show us what evidence you are bringing to court, we wanted to show you ours. You aren’t the only one who can hire a PI.”
When Benji slid the file across the table, Lucy loved the look of pure fear that settled in Rick’s eyes. “What’s that?”
“A file on Amy Masters, who lives in Franklin with your twin boys. You’ll find it to be very thorough. It also has information on how you’ve been taking money out of your mom’s account and your personal account with Heidi and depositing it into Amy’s account for your children. Pictures of you going to see said children, who are only maybe three? Children who would have been conceived while you actually were still married to me…” Lucy said slowly, Rick’s eyes meeting hers. “There is a statement from Amy where she tells the PI that you work in Nashville a lot and can’t always come home to her and the boys. That you two haven’t gotten married yet because you are in the middle of a nasty divorce with your ex. Funny thing, it was as true when she got pregnant as it may be now.”
Rick opened the file to see a picture of him sitting on a bench with Amy, their boys playing in the sandbox nearby. He shut the file and looked back at them. “So, you’re blackmailing me? I don’t show the video and this goes away?”
“Oh, no,” Lucy said, feigning surprise. “Never. We are just reminding you that if you show, we show. While, yeah, it’s gonna suck getting out of the fucking custody mess you caused, everyone will know that you are not only married to Heidi with a daughter the same age as the one you’re fighting over, but you also have a girlfriend with twin boys that your wife knows nothing about.”
“I mean, the video is bogus anyway. All it will cause is an investigation and I’ll be exonerated in the end. But the fact you are putting money into another account without the knowledge of your wife or your mother is stealing, fraud even. I’m sure that won’t go over well, especially if they press charges,” Benji added and Rick’s eyes narrowed.
Looking away, Rick sucked in a deep breath and shook his head. Lucy watched as he thought over his words, and she wanted to laugh how the cocky asshole was shaking in his boots. She was disgusted by him. She always knew he was a bad guy, but she had thought there might be a good guy underneath. She was wrong. So wrong, and as she watched the man she had loved at one point in her life struggle, all she could do was feel sorry for him.
He was pathetic.
When she looked over at Benji, he smiled, leaning over to kiss her temple before whispering, “We’re okay.”
She nodded. “We are.”
When she looked back, Rick was watching them, venom in the depths of his blue eyes. “I hate you,” he said, looking at Lucy, his eyes dark and full of malice. “I hate who you are, that you trapped me.” He paused and Benji went to say something, but she held her hand to his leg, stopping him. “I don’t like dealing with you. I want you to disappear more than I can even tell you. Your family has been a problem since the beginning, and now you have this guy you want to marry… Yeah, I’m done.”
Her brows pulled together. The feelings were mutual, but what was he saying? “Done?”
“Yeah, listen, I don’t care anymore,” he said, sitting up and holding their gaze. She wasn’t sure what he meant, but her heart dropped to her stomach as she watched him. “I hate doing this with you. Always fighting and having to see your smug face ’cause you think you’re better than me. So, you know what? Do you want her?” he asked Benji, and Benji looked confused at the abrupt change in topic.
“Want who? Lucy? I’ve got her.”
“No, Angie. You want her?”
Lucy looked bewildered as Benji nodded. “I mean…yeah. Yes, I do.”
“Then take her,” he said simply, like he was giving away a dog and not his firstborn. “I don’t have the money for child support, obviously. And I was hoping if I got custody of her, boom, you’d be paying me. But now this is getting insane. My mom is saying she doesn’t want me to fight anymore, and I just don’t have the cash flow for it. The kid doesn’t even like me. So if you want her, and you’re cool with taking her, I’m honestly done.”
Lucy’s heart stopped as her eyes narrowed. “You put me through this, put Angie through this, so you could get child support money? For a child you don’t even want?”
He shrugged as he held her gaze. “I don’t like you. Anything to ruin your life is fine with me.”
“But hurting a child, your child, in the process… That didn’t matter?” she asked, tears spilling over her cheeks as she held his gaze. But Rick just shook his head. How could he do this? Who was this man she had made a child with?
This filth.
“It’s over. I don’t care,” he said simply and then he stood up. Clearing his throat, he took their file, almost like he thought they didn’t notice, before saying, “I’ll see you Thursday, and we’ll get the ball rolling.”