whose uncomprehending and furious gaze seemed to burn right through to the very core of her vulnerability. He was clearly waiting for her explanation.
‘I did leave him once. I went to a women’s shelter in a nearby town. It was only meant to be a temporary measure. I’d planned to move further away, but Charlie and I had only been there barely a fortnight when Tom’s father turned up and demanded we leave. As well as being a top QC, he comes from landed gentry … he’s a very powerful and influential man. He must have brought the full weight of his powers down on the women who ran the shelter, because by the time they regretfully asked me to leave they looked quite shaken. They told me he’d threatened to have the shelter shut down if they didn’t let me go, and that was the last thing that any of us wanted. So I went back with him … back to my husband. I wouldn’t jeopardise the other women’s security by staying, no matter how desperate I was. Back at home, things didn’t improve. And the situation wasn’t helped by Tom’s father. Whenever he visited us they had the most terrifying rows. He regularly accused Tom of being a disgrace to the family name, but worse than that he threatened to take Charlieaway if he didn’t pull himself together and change his behaviour. Ironic, really, when the man was even more of a bully than his son.’
She crossed her arms over her chest to contain the icy shudder that ran through her. ‘It didn’t even seem to cross his mind that I was Charlie’s mother and would fight him tooth and nail on that. He believed that his son had married beneath him, so consequently he had very little regard for me. Tom’s behaviour didn’t change. He warned me he would take Charlie away from me himself if I told his father that his drinking, drug-taking and womanising had got worse. He was spending every penny we had on his destructive habits. He was pinning all his hopes on his inheritance. He said if I jeopardised his birthright by trying to leave then he would find me, come hell or high water. And then I would
really
see what he was capable of.’
Shaking her head in despair, Sophia lifted her now brimming eyes to Jarrett, incapable of holding back the emotional tide that swamped her. ‘Both my husband and his father made it impossible for me to turn to anyone for help—even my brother. They blocked every avenue I could take. They didn’t want me to talk to
anyone
. My father-in-law feared losing his reputation if anyone found out the truth about what was going on, and my husband was terrified he’d lose his inheritance. His debts escalated wildly—as I found out when he died. Because of their threats, because of my terrible fear that somehow they would snatch Charlie away from me if I
did
manage to escape—that was why I stayed in the marriage longer than I should have …
Not
because I wanted to, or because I had no self-respect, but because I honestly believed I had no choice.’
‘You should have gone to the police … told them everything.’
‘If I’d filed a report then they would have conducted an investigation. If Tom hadn’t hurt me even more because I’d dared to do such a thing, then I’ve no doubt that his father would have done everything in his power to take Charlie away from me and make me pay for disgracing him and his son. Can you see why I couldn’t do that? My son means everything to me …
everything
!’
‘Don’t cry, sweetheart … please don’t cry.’
On his feet, Jarrett was by her side in an instant. Enfolding her in his arms, he pulled her head down onto his broad muscular chest. In the midst of her distress, a jolt of surprise ricocheted through Sophia. The wonderful sensation of being held so tenderly instantly made her feel warm and protected. She hadn’t experienced such a feeling since she’d lived at home with her dad—before she’d met and married Tom Abingdon. But what surprised her most of all was the realisation that
‘I did leave him once. I went to a women’s shelter in a nearby town. It was only meant to be a temporary measure. I’d planned to move further away, but Charlie and I had only been there barely a fortnight when Tom’s father turned up and demanded we leave. As well as being a top QC, he comes from landed gentry … he’s a very powerful and influential man. He must have brought the full weight of his powers down on the women who ran the shelter, because by the time they regretfully asked me to leave they looked quite shaken. They told me he’d threatened to have the shelter shut down if they didn’t let me go, and that was the last thing that any of us wanted. So I went back with him … back to my husband. I wouldn’t jeopardise the other women’s security by staying, no matter how desperate I was. Back at home, things didn’t improve. And the situation wasn’t helped by Tom’s father. Whenever he visited us they had the most terrifying rows. He regularly accused Tom of being a disgrace to the family name, but worse than that he threatened to take Charlieaway if he didn’t pull himself together and change his behaviour. Ironic, really, when the man was even more of a bully than his son.’
She crossed her arms over her chest to contain the icy shudder that ran through her. ‘It didn’t even seem to cross his mind that I was Charlie’s mother and would fight him tooth and nail on that. He believed that his son had married beneath him, so consequently he had very little regard for me. Tom’s behaviour didn’t change. He warned me he would take Charlie away from me himself if I told his father that his drinking, drug-taking and womanising had got worse. He was spending every penny we had on his destructive habits. He was pinning all his hopes on his inheritance. He said if I jeopardised his birthright by trying to leave then he would find me, come hell or high water. And then I would
really
see what he was capable of.’
Shaking her head in despair, Sophia lifted her now brimming eyes to Jarrett, incapable of holding back the emotional tide that swamped her. ‘Both my husband and his father made it impossible for me to turn to anyone for help—even my brother. They blocked every avenue I could take. They didn’t want me to talk to
anyone
. My father-in-law feared losing his reputation if anyone found out the truth about what was going on, and my husband was terrified he’d lose his inheritance. His debts escalated wildly—as I found out when he died. Because of their threats, because of my terrible fear that somehow they would snatch Charlie away from me if I
did
manage to escape—that was why I stayed in the marriage longer than I should have …
Not
because I wanted to, or because I had no self-respect, but because I honestly believed I had no choice.’
‘You should have gone to the police … told them everything.’
‘If I’d filed a report then they would have conducted an investigation. If Tom hadn’t hurt me even more because I’d dared to do such a thing, then I’ve no doubt that his father would have done everything in his power to take Charlie away from me and make me pay for disgracing him and his son. Can you see why I couldn’t do that? My son means everything to me …
everything
!’
‘Don’t cry, sweetheart … please don’t cry.’
On his feet, Jarrett was by her side in an instant. Enfolding her in his arms, he pulled her head down onto his broad muscular chest. In the midst of her distress, a jolt of surprise ricocheted through Sophia. The wonderful sensation of being held so tenderly instantly made her feel warm and protected. She hadn’t experienced such a feeling since she’d lived at home with her dad—before she’d met and married Tom Abingdon. But what surprised her most of all was the realisation that
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