Vengeance (Oak Grove Suspense Book 1) Read Online Free PDF

babe.”
    He sighs and tightens his hold on me. “I don’t think I could handle it if I was a product of … that. My friend from school, Jenni, was, and she said she felt guilty, and even though her mom and stepdad loved her, she had a hard time connecting with her mom.”
    “I’m sorry that happened to her mom, but it’s never the child’s fault. Please believe me; you were not created out of trauma.”
    “I do.” He sits up to face me. “I was worried that’s why you wouldn’t tell anyone who my dad was.”
    “I didn’t tell anyone because I knew he was eighteen and I was a minor. I didn’t want him to be in trouble and even though we dated when he was a minor, it wouldn’t have mattered. My parents were gone and I was in the system. I had no adult to say they approved of us. Things were different back then.”
    “That was probably smart then.” He takes my cold coffee from me, smiling. “I’ll get you more. Did Maw bring over those homemade pop-tarts she was talking about?” His hopeful grin is adorable and very reminiscent of his father at his age.
    “Yep, in the fridge, or there’s cold pizza.”
    “No way. I need the tarts!” He takes off running to the kitchen.
    Shaking my head, I follow. I turn the corner to see him already popping them into the toaster. “You know, I’ve told you your entire life, since learning to walk, to stop running in the house.”              
    He smiles big. “Sorry.”
    “Sure, sure. Your dad is coming over in about an hour,” I tell him as I look at the clock.
    He grimaces. “How bad does he hate me?”
    “He doesn’t. He was upset that you thought that, but it’s understandable. You should probably apologize for yelling at him though.” He nods but says nothing. I don’t dwell. “Registration for school starts at noon. You excited?”
    “Not really. I do want to try out for football though. Did Ryan tell you when tryouts were?”
    “Saturday, I think.”
    “Do you think we can find my cleats and gear before then?”
    I nod, taking a sip of my fresh coffee. “I labeled the box. The movers were supposed to put the boxes in each room.”
    He groans. “I have so many boxes.”
    I laugh. “Probably more than I do.”
    We chat for a few minutes as we eat, then head to our rooms to get ready for registration. It doesn’t take me long to get ready, and by the time I’m heading down the stairs, the doorbell is ringing. I open it with a smile when I see Ryan standing there. He’s wearing a pair of navy basketball pants and a white polo with the school’s eagle logo in the corner.
    “So you’re coach today and not Detective Jacobs?”
    “Yep, though I’m going into the station after registration. Is our boy ready?” He kisses my cheek as he enters the house.
    “Probably. Want something to eat or drink?”
    “Nah, I have a coffee in the truck.”
    “Hey, Ryan,” Dylan says as he enters the kitchen. He’s wearing faded jeans and a vintage t-shirt with converse sneakers. I smile at him. “What?”
    “Nothing, it’s just surprising to me how little styles change. Your dad wore something like that when he was in high school.”
    “I still wear stuff like that,” Ryan chuckles.
    Dylan looks down at himself. “Maybe I should change.”
    “Don’t be like that.” I laugh and hand him the shirt he’d asked me to press earlier this morning.
    After Dylan gets his shirt on and I’ve gathered my things, we head out to Ryan’s truck. The drive to the school is fairly uneventful. We pull up about twenty minutes later. It’s strange to me how little it’s changed.
    “I’ll go with you to the office, but then I have to go to the gym,” Ryan explains as he helps me out of his truck. He’s always been a gentleman.
    “What exactly do you do here?” Dylan asks his dad.
    “I’m one of the temporary assistant football coaches until they find a replacement. Then I’ll probably just fill in and help out.”
    “What happened to the