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“Ryan said his mommy is sick. She just found out she’s going to have a baby, and they can’t come because she’s got a tummy ache.” Nova sighed like her heart was breaking. “If he won’t come to my party, then I won’t be his friend anymore.”
“Nova,” I scolded gently. “Ryan’s mom has been trying really hard to have a baby. You should be happy that he’s going to be a big brother.”
“But my heart hurts, Mommy. I miss him so, so, so, so much. I just wanted him to come to my party.”
Her broken little sobs hurt me, and I was thankful Jet was already at the bar doing inventory. If he heard his baby girl crying like she was right then, he would have lost his damn mind. If Nova wasn’t happy, Jet Hannigan was not happy, and that could be dangerous for everyone in a two-hundred-mile radius.
I rubbed her back, hoping she would calm down so I wouldn’t be tortured by those little sniffled hiccups for long. “Honey, Ryan can’t help that his mom is sick. You need to be a little more understanding. I’m sure he doesn’t want to disappoint you, but he is really close to his mom and he’s going to want to stay close to her when she’s not feeling well.”
“I know, but I miss him,” she sobbed.
Hugging her close, I kissed the top of her head, rocking her gently. “I’m so sorry, Nova.”
It took an hour before she would stop crying, and even when her tears dried up, she was clingy. I had errands to run and things to do around the house before the kids came home from school. Bash was always at work by seven every morning, and since both Raven’s kids were in school now, she had taken over the office at what had once been Uncle Jack’s garage, which Trigger and Bash co-owned now.
I loved staying home with the kids, taking care of the house, and dealing with the day-to-day things like helping with homework. It was everything I’d ever wanted, but it was an extremely busy job, one that never ended.
Nova stayed quiet during our errand-running, not even singing along to the radio like she normally would have. Ice cream was turned down, as was her favorite lunch at Aggie’s. I decided to make her favorite dinner that night, but she barely lifted her head when I suggested it.
As always, I picked the three kids up from school and drove us home. They all had homework, and Lexa and Max always did that on their own. Garret, however, had to be constantly watched, or he would use his homework pages as target practice and use his pencils for darts. It was a constant chore with that boy.
By the time dinner was ready, Bash and Raven were home. Jet was helping me set the food on the table when the doorbell rang. Since my hands were the only ones empty, I went to answer it.
It took me a few seconds to realize the little boy on the doorstep was real and not a figment of my imagination. I glanced behind him, expecting to see half a dozen men in suits with guns under their jackets. Or a little Russian woman, at the very least. Neither were here. There wasn’t even a car in the driveway to give me a clue me how this kid got here.
“Hi, Mrs. Hannigan,” Ryan greeted with a tired smile. His brown eyes were full of sadness and worry so thick it was hard to believe he was only ten. My cousin Ciro’s wife Scarlett had told me just what this little boy had gone through when he was little more than a baby. His biological mother had been a monster, and I was glad she was dead. “Can I speak to Nova, please?”
“I… Umm…” I shook my head, trying to clear it as I realized he was actually there. “Ryan, what are you doing here? Where are your parents?”
He shrugged. “Mom wasn’t feeling well because she’s having bad morning sickness, and Papa is in Chicago on business.”
“Then how did you get here?”
“We have two private planes. I used Mom’s phone to have the pilot get the one Papa wasn’t using ready by text and then called a private car company to take me to the airport. A second car service was waiting when I landed.” He shrugged again, like it was nothing. Like he hadn’t just traveled thousands of miles by himself.
I wouldn’t trust Garret to walk to the end of the block by himself.
“Does your mom know you’re here?” I demanded, my heart pounding, imagining either of my children just taking off like that.
“I didn’t want to worry Mom.”
“Oh my God,” I whispered. Anya was going to lose her fucking mind.
I grabbed his shoulder, bringing him into the house even as I pulled my phone out of my back pocket. Fingers shaking, I hit my cousin’s contact number. Seconds later, Ciro’s deep voice filled my ear.
“I don’t have time to chat, Felicity,” he said, sounding out of sorts. “I have a problem here and—”
“Ryan?” I breathed.
“Yeah… How did you know?”
I shook my head at the little boy in front of me. “Just a guess. Oh, and by the way, I have a new houseguest. Ryan just showed up at my front door.”
He blew out a relieved breath. “Thank God. Anya was going ballistic. We thought someone kidnapped him. Cristiano is in Chicago, and he was about to blow up the world.”
I could only imagine. “What should I do with him?”
“Just keep him there. I’ll let Cristiano know, and he can fly over to pick him up instead of coming home.” He blew out another long breath. “Can I speak to him?”
