I gasped when I met his irritated gaze. Those eyes - they were too unique for it to be a coincidence. I’d seen them in Eddie, Timmy, and now this man. An emerald so vibrant that almost didn't look real. When I'd first seen Eddie, I had thought the color was due to contacts, but then I'd realized that his hands shook too much for that to be the case; he could never put contacts in.
I let go of my hold on the door. He nudged it open, his eyes going straight to Timmy. Some of his previous irritation faded, but his air of authority still very much suffocated me, his face was still grim.
“Opal Collins, I need to talk to you,” he announced with a deep, cold voice. It was not an option, but an order. His demeanor was as commanding as possible. I was certain that this man's orders were never questioned.
“I, umm, yes, but -” I needed to tell him I was not Opal, but as if on cue, Timmy started to cry again.
“He’s hungry. I need to feed him.” I hoped that this would give me time to face the man who I presumed was Eddie's older brother. Eddie had not talked about him much. They were obviously estranged, but he'd always said his brother was as ruthless as he was smart and as calculating as he was cunning.
The man gestured for me to proceed. “Don’t let me keep you.”
I took a step back to close the door, but he took a step forward and followed me in.
What could I say? Ask him to leave? He was obviously here on business and I highly doubted he would do anything I asked.
I sighed, giving in. I didn't think he would hurt me, but at the same time… I clutched Timmy closer to me as I made my way into the small kitchenette area to prepare his bottle and medication.
“Formula, I see…”
I rolled my eyes. He was one of those - a man with an opinion on how mothers should raise their children. Wonderful.
I turned around. This man was so out of place in my space. He was so tall and wide, he consumed most of the breathing space. And his look of disgust as he detailed my furniture was showing clearly what he thought of my place. If only he knew how hard I had worked to get this place and purchase the furniture I have.
“Timmy has some very specific nutritional needs, which only a specially formulated formula can fulfill.”
“Really? I would have thought that the milk of a crack addict prostitute was premium quality.”
“Heroin, not crack.” I didn't even know why I had bothered correcting him. But Opal had been addicted to heroin, not crack, and for me, that mattered.
“Oh, I'm sorry. I stand corrected.”
He jerked his head toward Timmy. “At least I won’t have to bother with a paternity test on the child. His eyes and birthmark are enough proof for me.” I looked at Timmy’s thigh where the man had just pointed. “The heart?”
He nodded. “Yes, all the men in my family have it. That child is my family. However -” he cocked his head to the side assessing me - “you’re not what I'd expected.”
I squirm under his critical eyes. I had just woken up. I looked a mess on my best days; I couldn’t even imagine what I looked like right now.
“You’re not the enticing siren I had expected you to be for my brother to fall off the rails for. You’re so thin, the wind could blow you over!” He snorted. “And you look barely out of school. They said drugs were aging…”
I was six years younger than Opal and had only turned twenty-one last week. Having watched my sister get destroyed by heroin, I'd sworn never to touch any drug, not even a joint.
“Why appear now? Six months later?” I asked, hoping he would drop the questions surrounding me and my looks. He was sharp for sure. I’d tell him his mistake…eventually. I just needed to know why he was here first and what he wanted from Timmy and me.
“I would have come earlier, but I hadn't known this child existed. You were irrelevant, especially since you had been so blatantly missing at his funeral - not that any of us had been saddened by that fact.”
“Timmy was born the day before. Sorry I had been otherwise occupied.” We hadn't even known Eddie had died then.
Opal had been sick one night close to her due date. We’d taken her to the ER and they had discovered Timmy’s heart issue. Eddie had gone to see his family or so he had said. He'd said they would give him money for the baby to help with the medical bills and any care Timmy might end up needing.
We’d trusted him. We really had, but he'd never come back. We'd assumed he had just bailed on us. I think that was also something that had broken Opal’s heart.
I’d only found out he had died when Timmy was a month old. The dealer who'd used to provide him and Opal had told Dee.
I sighed. “You never told me your name.”
“Dean Beaumont. I am - was Edward's older brother. He never mentioned me, I presume?” He gave me a sarcastic smile. “Color me hurt.”
I shook my head. “He did, but never by name. He only called you his ruthless older brother.”
“Ruthless? That’s actually quite nice coming from him. He had called me much worse - especially when I'd refused to give him more money for his doses.”
Eddie had been Edward Beaumont? A Beaumont? Had Opal known? Was it why she'd grabbed him? I loved my sister. I really did. But money had always been a factor for her actions.
“What is it you want from me, Mr. Beaumont?” I asked, proud of how calm I still somehow sounded.
“From you?” He shook his head. “Nothing.” He pointed at Timmy. “I want him.”
“You want Timmy?”
He grimaced. “Is his name really…Timmy? Timmy Beaumont.”
That angered me. “No,” I replied, rocking Timmy softly to burp him. “His name is Timothy Francis Collins.”
“Francis?” he asked, visibly having not expected that.
“Indeed.” I was not a fan either, but Eddie had insisted.
“That's my father's name.”
It was my turn to be surprised by his admission. “I know.”
“Not the reason for my visit.” He sighed, pointing at my surroundings. “We can’t have the Beaumont heir living here. He will most likely become the owner of Beaumont Enterprises one day.”
“Don’t say that. With your charms and kind personality? I’m sure you’ll find a woman desperate enough to marry you and give you a spawn - I mean a child.”
His glare turned murderous. I looked at Timmy, the glare increasing the anxiety I was feeling at having this powerful man in my small place.
Timmy was blinking rapidly - sleepy again. I laid him back down in his bed.
“This is not your concern, and the opinion of a drug-addicted, low-class whore is of no interest to me.”
I stared at him, my face blank. His insults hadn't touched me. They'd all been about my sister, not me.
He sighed, reaching into his suit jacket. He rested an envelope on my small, plastic table. “Here, we both know a child is more of a weight on you than anything else in the life you lead.”
“What is that?”
“A check for $50,000. I’m sure it’s more money than you’ve ever seen.”
I narrowed my eyes in suspicion. “And what do you want in exchange?”