Deceptive Truth: Cowboy Justice Association (Serials and Stalkers Book 4) by Olivia Jaymes (psychology books to read .TXT) 📗

"I asked him for a favor." Ben shrugged as if it wasn't important. He always just wanted to get his own way and to hell with everyone else. "You and I need to have a talk and your brother understood."

Knox was planning to chew Randy a new asshole. His baby brother didn't get to make his decisions for him.

Strangely, the group of people and children that had been outside had disappeared, leaving Knox and his father all alone. Yep, this was definitely a setup.

"So let me get this straight. You decided that we needed to talk, and even though I've said no, you once again decided to get my brother to lie to me. Do I have it right? It appears that you haven't changed a bit, Ben. You're exactly the same as you always were."

It always pissed his father off when Knox called him by his first name. He'd been doing it since he was an adult. Ben had never been much of a parent to begin with.

There it is.

Ben's expression had changed...just for a millisecond. It was a momentary flash of irritation and anger, so fleeting that no one else would have noticed it except for someone that had lived with Ben's crazy mood swings all those years. Back then Knox had learned quickly and early that he needed to be attuned to his father's every emotion. When Benjamin Owens wasn't happy, Knox had made sure that he was out of his dad's way, not wanting to listen to his father rant and rave about how life wasn't fair and they were all idiots.

That was a long time ago, however. Now? Knox didn't give a shit if his father didn't think that life was fair or whatever his complaint of the fucking day was. Making Ben Owens happy was impossible, so he'd given up years ago.

Checking his watch, Knox sighed loudly, wanting his father to hear his impatience.

"You've got five minutes. Make it fast."

"Only five minutes for your own–"

"Time's ticking away," Knox said, tapping the crystal on his watch. "And you're wasting most of it. Trust me when I say that I'm going to walk away in four minutes and forty-five seconds and I really don't think there's anyone here that's strong enough to stop me."

Ben slapped his bottle of beer down on the edge of the deck railing. "Fine. We need to talk."

"You keep saying that but you haven't said anything yet."

"I had a lot of time to think when I was inside and I knew that I had to make some changes in my life. I'd like my son to recognize that I'm a different person now. I've changed."

Ah, Ben wanted applause. He wanted to be praised.

"Before I congratulate you, I need to know how you've changed."

"If you were around at all, I wouldn't have to tell you. You'd just see it," Ben groused, his expression stormy. "You'd know."

"Well, I haven't been around, I've been working. So humor me and tell me all the wonderful changes you've made. Hey, let's start with Patty. It didn't take you long to replace her with a younger model. But wait...that can't be a change because that's what you've always done. Do you have a job? Because that would be a change from letting everyone else take care of you like you're royalty. Have you started paying child support for all the kids you've fathered that are running around? Because that would be a huge change. Have you done any of that? Because those are the changes that I would be most interested in."

Knox had called out Ben many times since becoming an adult but the man didn't seem to be getting used to it at all. Every time they met up, his father seemed to think that he could somehow talk his way into his son's good graces and that Knox would fall for his lies like he did when he was a little kid.

When I wanted to believe.

"You're not listening–"

"When you say something worth listening to I will, but if all you're going to do is keep making the same old tired promises from my childhood...I'm out. I'm not interested anymore. If you had truly changed, I don't think you'd be dancing around trying to get everyone to celebrate you. You'd have just changed and waited for all of us to notice. But no, it's still all about you. You, you, you. As if you're the fucking center of the goddamn universe. I'm too old to believe in your stories, and I'm definitely too old to believe in your lies. Tell them to someone who still cares. I don't."

His father's demeanor changed completely, his body stiff and his eyes narrow and cold. This...right here. This was the real Benjamin Owens, although he didn't often reveal himself. But maybe this time he'd finally got it through his thick skull that he didn't have to put up the front anymore. Knox wasn't buying whatever it was that he was selling.

"I'm your father. You're supposed to care about me."

That almost made Knox laugh out loud.

"That's hilarious coming from you. I'm your son and you're supposed to care about me. Do you? Let me ask you a question. When's my birthday, Dad? I won't even ask the day, just the month. When is it?"

Ben had no answer, which Knox expected. Knox waved toward the house and the people who had gathered at the window to watch them talk. Could they hear? Knox didn't care if they could. He wasn't about to censure himself. His only regret was that a child might hear his curse-laden replies.

"Why