I school my features when I pull into the driveway and notice Josie’s SUV is gone. Of course, the damn woman didn’t listen to me. I don’t know where she thinks she can hide, but there’s nowhere in this town I won’t find her. Unless she decided to take a play out of Trenton’s book and flee the county, I’ll be seeing her tonight. We’re going to settle things once and for all.
“Come on. Let’s get you settled in. Did you bring anything with you?”
“Just my backpack that’s already in the spare room, Josie let me stay in.”
He says her name with such fondness, my gut hollows. My guess is, as terrible as Miranda may have been, I’d still bet my life that he’s missing his mom. And if there’s one thing my pain-in-the-ass wife has always flourished at, it’s mothering. The guys. Our daughter. Anyone in need of that maternal nudge, whether they want it or not.
A backpack with all his possessions can’t be much. A teen on the run, not looking to get picked up and put in the system, probably didn’t have the forethought to grab important documents. I need to call Ghost and get his advice on how the fuck we go about this legally. A lawyer in our midst who keeps his distance for the most part is about to come in handy.
“If you need anything else, let me know, and I’ll take care of it.” I offer, even though I have a feeling he won’t take me up on it.
He doesn’t stick around the living room. Instead, he wanders down the hall toward the spare bedroom like he’s already comfortable with the way.
I watch him go, wanting to bridge this unknown space between us, but demanding that we condense more than a decade of getting to know each other into a few hours is laughable. It’s going to take time. And I’ll follow his lead. The last thing I want is to turn around and have him take off again.
Legally, he might not be my responsibility until the papers are filed. That doesn’t mean shit to me, though. The second reality hit me over the head; he became mine in the same way Haley is.
I just hope he realizes what that means for him.
His door slips closed with a soft click, and the house descends into a heavy silence. My skin itches every second I stand here, not knowing where Josie’s at and what the fuck she’s thinking.
I’m being torn in two different directions that need my full attention. The newly appointed paternal responsibility feels as fragile as the newborn I missed out on meeting. Meanwhile, the other half of my entire soul dodges the conversation of a lifetime.
I can’t stay, but I sure as hell can’t waltz out the front door the moment he’s out of my hair.
So I sit on the couch with my elbows on my knees and my head heavy in my hands while the quiet house presses in, strangling me. Time drags mercilessly until the sun sets and Trenton’s passed out for the night.
It’s time to go get my wife.
BREAKING POINT: 3:07 A.M.
JOSEPHINE
The air stirsseconds before something clamps over my mouth, and my eyes shoot open. Instinctively, my feet kick at the blankets, tangled sheets twisting around my legs as my arms swing wildly in the darkness, clocking against something hard.
The room’s still, with the quiet of a resting house in the middle of the night. Gauzy curtains billow from the window I left open to let in the cicadas’ comforting song bleed in. Deep shadows bathe the room, broken by the faint amber glow of the digital clock on the nightstand and the streetlamp outside. My pulse roars in my ears, drowning out the soft hum of the ceiling fan above.
“Calm down, mama,” Vik’s gruff whisper lingers against my ear.
Still floating somewhere before full consciousness sets in, my heart thunders, trying to escape through my chest. The warmth of a large body presses over mine, the scent of him cutting through the lingering sleep fog.
“Where’s Haley?”
His question infiltrates the haze, but I can’t answer with hishand still wrapped tightly against my lips. So, I do the only logical thing. My teeth sink into the meaty bit of his palm, and he jerks it away, but his firm body doesn’t retreat from hovering above me.
“I think I’m bleeding,” he observes casually.
“Good. What the fuck do you think you’re doing!?” I hiss.
“Right, back at you, baby. Where’s Hales?”
“She wanted to sleep in Sienna’s room. Jesus, would you get the fuck off of me?”
Instead of listening, the asshole collapses his weight. His knee shoves between my thighs, resting against my core. Thick arms bracket my head, and his chest flows in tandem with my heaving breaths. There isn’t an inch of space between us. It’s stifling, throwing my feelings into an emotional blender that leaves me wobbling on the brink of sanity.
The mattress dips beneath his size, the antique frame creaking softly in warning. The faint scent of lavender detergent wafts from the bedding beneath my head, a reminder that this isn’t home. The room still carries the impersonal touch of a guest space, except now it’s filled with my husband’s overwhelming presence.
“Vik,” I seethe, fully awake now.
