Joy's mother was stunned. She stared at Joy's belly in disbelief. "How can the baby be gone? Did you terminate it? Sweetheart, I told you—the Quinn family can certainly afford to raise a child!"
"Cedric got rid of it for me."
Joy forced a thin smile. "But it's for the best. I wouldn't want to keep the child of a man like him anyway."
"That bastard—how dare he do this to you!"
Her mother was livid. "If your father finds out about this, it won't end quietly. You know his temper—he'll hunt Cedric down and make him pay!"
"Mom, it's over. I don't want to talk about him. I can be just fine on my own, can't I?"
"On your own? Absolutely not! A woman without love in her life ages faster. Do you remember the boy from the Jarrett family? You two grew up together. When you were little, you used
