“If I have wipes, why do I need bleach spray?”
“To spray the toilet, inside and out. And use the toilet brush to scrub the inside of the toilet. Use a wipe to wipe down the outside so nobody is sitting in bleach. You do have a toilet brush, don’t you?”
“I do. What are you going to be cleaning?”
“I’m cleaning the kitchen while you do that.”
“Alright,” Rance said.
They both worked quietly for a few minutes before Rance remembered something Niko said. “Hey, what little boy?”
“What?” Niko asked, as he stopped wiping down the counter top and looked toward the bathroom.
“You said, can’t let that little boy sit in any of this nastiness if it’s him and his momma that gets this place.”
“Oh, yeah. Cute little kid named Griffin. He asked me if I’d protect his momma since he didn’t have a daddy to keep her safe. I promised I would. I said I’d keep her and him both safe.”
Rance didn’t answer right away, but within a few moments Niko was aware of Rance standing across the room looking at him.
“What?” Niko asked.
“You promised to take care of this boy and his mother?”
“Yeah. He was scared.”
“So you just decided to be his new father?!” Rance asked.
“I didn’t promise that! I just said I’d keep them safe, protect them.”
“Like her mate?”
“She doesn’t have a mate! Kid said so,” Niko said.
“She does now. Her son just found her one,” Rance snapped.
Niko opened his mouth to argue, then kind of deflated and closed his mouth. “No, it’s not like that. He’s just a little thing, like Bella’s age. He’s scared. And his momma probably is, too. That’s all it is. He’s trying to help his momma because he watched her struggle to keep him and her both safe on the way here. What was I going to tell him, no? I’m not going to tell any kid that.”
“This isn’t any kid. He’s a shifter. Yes?”
“Yes.”
“He knows what mates do, because he said his mother doesn’t have one. And he asked you to step in.”
Niko blinked a few times, and looked around the house. “It’s not like that. It’s innocent, and I’m going to make sure they’re safe. But that’s all it is.”
“You met his mother?”
“No, she was passed out exhausted. He was hanging out with Jack and Bonnie and the girls. Cute little dude. I got thefeeling he was a little like Hell Cat. Broke my heart when he asked if I could keep his momma safe. I couldn’t say no.”
“Maybe you should go talk to his mother.”
“And say what? Your son asked me to protect you, but I’m not so sure that’s a good idea? No. I got this. I protect females all the time at work. I can do it here, too. We all keep them safe.”
“That much is true. But maybe make sure that her son doesn’t think it’s more than it is so he doesn’t get disappointed. She can talk to him about it so he doesn’t get the wrong idea.”
“That’s not a bad idea.”
“Good. Now, we got your problem fixed, let’s finish fixing mine.”
