Free Her Darkest Road (Roughneck #4) by Nicole Hart Page A

door when I saw Vickie give my dad a look.
    “Honey?” she whispered to my dad.
    My dad let out a little sigh, and pulled an envelope out of his back pocket.
    “I want you to read this, later on tonight, after the kids go to bed,” he said with a sad smile.
    “What is it?” I said nervously. “Are you ok?” I always worried about him.
    “I’m fine, Angel. Just something I should have done a long time ago,” he said as he ruffled my hair, the same way he has done for as long as I can remember.
    “Ok,” I whispered, unsure and curious at the same time.
    “I love you, Angel,” He said as he hugged me once more.
    “I love you, daddy,” I said as they headed for the door.
    “Bye Papa! Bye Mama!” both of the kids said in unison, and we all laughed.
     
     
    Later that night
     
    I sat on the bed with the envelope in my hand, waiting for Moon to get out of the shower. My mind had been racing all day, wondering what was inside. I wanted to open it, but then again, I didn’t. Dad had assured me he was ok, so I had to take his word.
    “Whatcha got there, Darlin?” Moon asked as he walked out of our bathroom in a pair of boxers, and looking just as gorgeous as he did the day I married him. Probably more so, he had grown into this amazing hard working man, a wonderful husband and the perfect father. Not to mention, he was sexy as hell.
    “Daddy left it for me today,” I said as I patted his side of the bed.
    “You haven’t opened it?” he asked.
    “No, I wanted to wait until you got home,” I said as he slid in beside me, and I tucked myself into him. We fit together perfectly, we always would.
    “Whatever it is, I’m sure it’s fine,” Moon reassured me, and then kissed my nose. He always knew exactly what I needed.
    I let out a sigh and then opened the envelope.
     

Angel,
    First of all, I want to tell you how proud I am of you. You are the best thing that ever happened to me. I’m lucky to be your dad and so blessed that I’ve been able to watch you grow into a wonderful wife and mother. You are everything I could have hoped you would be. I love you so much Angel.
    But there is something I need you to know. I should have told you a long time ago, but I didn’t know how. I didn’t want to hurt you. I thought if we just put it behind us and never spoke of her, it would all just go away. But I know that’s not the right thing. You have a right to know the truth about your mother.
    Belinda spent her childhood in and out of foster care, her mother had addiction issues and never provided stability for her. When we met, she was young and broken.  But I fell in love with her immediately and I wanted to save her. I wanted her to be happy. It took me a long time to realize I couldn’t save her. It wasn’t possible. But please know that I did everything I could to try.
    She suffered from mental disorders, paranoid schizophrenia being one of them, along with depression. It was a hard battle. I tried to help her, but she shut me out. Time and time again. She would get on medicine, which would seem to help. But it never took very long before her demons got stronger. She spent a long time in and out of treatment facilities, but we always seemed to be back to square one.
    I wanted to help her, but I needed to protect you. You were always my top priority. Always. And part of me tells myself that’s the reason I never told you the truth about her, I wanted to protect you. But part of it is because it hurt me to talk about it. I felt like I failed her as a husband and I couldn’t keep her well enough to be a mother for you.
    The worst part is, the night she finally left, I almost felt relief. I was tired of trying to make her better. I had been spinning my wheels for so long without getting anywhere. And I wanted you to have a good life, and I didn’t think that could happen with her in it. I filed a missing person’s report. But since she struggled so much with mental illness, the police didn’t seem to