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“You think I can’t protect them? You know me better than that,” I shoot back, challenging him. “If her ex comes for them, I’ll be waiting.”
“Hey, I know you can. But that’s not what I meant. If my dad finds out that you’re keeping shit from him, he won’t take it well. There'll be consequences. You know this,” he reminds me.
“I’m not keeping anything from him. I did my fucking job and paid Fraser a visit.”
“Yet instead of telling him what you found, you’re here with us,” Dalton reminds me.
“Who I choose to invite into my home has nothing to do with your dad. She’s my guest. That’s all he needs to know.”
“With an abusive ex who could bring trouble to our town. Drix, I’m just looking out for you,” Dalton insists. “I know my dad better than anyone, he won’t take kindly to being kept in the dark.”
“I don’t give two fucks. I will introduce her to him and the others when the time is right, and not before,” I say forcefully, leaning forward in my seat and hoping to fuck they’ve got my back like I’ve always had theirs. Over the years, one way or the other, I’ve helped them all out. It’s what I do for the people I care about, and these three men are brothers to me. Always will be. I hope I have their loyalty in return. “I need you all to promise me, this conversation goes no further.”
Ben and Sterling nod. “You’ve got it,” they say in unison.
“So long as you know what you’re doing,” Dalton adds, puffing out a breath.
“Of course I do,” I snap.
“So what are you going to tell Lia?” Dalton asks after a beat.
“The truth, that her car was stolen.”
Ben takes a sip of his rum. “Then what?”
“She stays with me. I was taking the next few weeks off from the gym anyway.” I reply, meeting his gaze before looking over at Dalton. “I do have a favour to ask you though.”
“Yeah, what’s that?”
“Lia needs a job. She wants to earn her own money, pay her way, and whilst I’ve already said I don’t want anything from her, she’s insistent. I was going to ask Daphne to take her on at the cafe, but given the circumstances, I think she’ll be safer at the hotel working for you. The place is filled with cameras, has round the clock security, and if by chance her ex finds out where she is and comes looking he won’t have a chance at getting close to her before I can intervene.”
“I can do that,” he agrees. “What about the kid? Who’s looking after him whilst she works?”
I level my gaze with his. “Me, of course.”
Pretty sure that their looks of surprise would make a perfect meme.
After I leave the guys at the bar, I make sure Fraser has dropped what’s left of Lia's car with Kentucky at the landfill, then store her cookery books at my flat above the gym. Still feeling out of sorts, I spend the half-an-hour driving around town, using the time to cool off and to get my head on straight. My gut keeps telling me that I need to get rid of her cookery books too because how else would I explain being in possession of them when her car was stolen? But I can’t bring myself to do it. Besides, she’ll have no reason to visit my flat, so I can keep them there until I figure out what to do.
Part of me, a really shitty, selfish part, is relieved that Fraser stole her car because leaving town is a lot harder when you haven’t got a vehicle to escape in. It doesn't make me feel good knowing that, but at least she’ll be here for longer and perhaps it will give me time to give her a reason to stay.
By the time I step into the house, everyone’s gone to bed and there’s this peaceful kind of quiet that makes my shoulders relax. It’s as though the house itself knows that it’s starting to become a home again after Hubert was taken from us all. It’s a good feeling, one I have every intention of cultivating.
As I climb the stairs and head to my bedroom, I can’t help but go over the events of the last couple days. To the guys, Lia and Toby are a complication I could do without. There might be plenty of single, childless women in this town who’d be more than happy to warm my bed, but that’s all they’d be warming. With Lia it’s different. I don’t know why, and I can’t explain it, but it is.
Passing Daisy’s room first, I peer inside. She’s wrapped up in her blanket like a caterpillar cocooned in its chrysalis. She’s always slept that way. It’s because she fears the dark, which is why she also sleeps with a nightlight on. During our time in foster care together she would have regular nightmares, and I would climb into bed with her, wrapping her up in my arms until she felt safe enough to fall asleep. That stopped when we came here to live with Hubert, not because I didn’t want to comfort her, but because we each found our own way to deal with the memories of our past. Filling her life with brightness in the form of colourful clothes, magical creatures, kindness and laughter, is her way of coping.
My way of coping… Well, I just don’t think too much about my life before Hubert adopted me. It’s better that way.
Gently drawing her door closed, I make my way towards the guest room Lia and Toby are sleeping in. Pushing it open a little, I heave out a relieved sigh at the sight of them both sleeping peacefully, the light from the hallway falling across Toby. He’s curled up on his side, wrapped in his mother’s arms, his mouth popped open as he sleeps. Behind him Lia is pitched in darkness, only her arm visible as she holds him close.
My fucking heart squeezes inside my chest, and another sudden rush of a protectiveness almost knocks me sideways. I grip the doorframe, forcing myself to stay where I am and not head into the room and curl my body around Lia’s, holding them both. Instead I allow myself a moment to watch them sleep, finding comfort in their peacefulness.
“Sweet dreams,” I whisper, hoping to fuck that Lia will eventually take down her guard and let me in, and more importantly, that I can be the man they both deserve.
TWELVE
LIA
