His expression tightened.
“Claire, don’t start.”
“Does he know what you’ve been doing on those cruises?”
Ryan laughed dismissively.
“It was a few women. I wasn’t in love with any of them. They were passengers, for goodness’ sake. We had some fun, and that was it.”
I froze.
“Passengers? You were involved with guests while you were working?”
He shifted the grocery bags.
“Don’t make this into something bigger than it is.”
“Could you lose your job over that?”
He stared at me.
“Listen carefully. If I lose my income, you and the girls suffer too. So don’t do anything foolish.”
He walked inside, leaving me standing on the porch.
That was when an idea took shape.
For months, he’d used money to control every disagreement.
He believed my dependence would guarantee my silence.
And until that moment, he’d been right.
But I knew something he didn’t.
