A wry smile appeared on Rutledge’s face. “Contrary to popular opinion, I don’t eat babies for breakfast.” He stood up and walked toward Shawn. “You’re coming with me,” he said, stopping in front of him. “I don’t care what you do about the children, but you will come with me.”
Before Shawn could say anything, Rutledge grabbed his collar and pulled him into a kiss.
A few minutes later Rutledge finally let him breathe again, and Shawn was disturbed to find his fingers clenched in Rutledge’s shirt.
“Right,” he said, somewhat dazedly, blinking.
Rutledge gave him a push towards the door. “I’ll pick you up in two hours. I know your address.”
“Right,” Shawn said again and left, feeling more than a little confused and freaked out.
Chapter 7
“But where are we going?” Emily asked, pulling at Shawn’s hand.
“Who’s gonna come and pick us up?” Bee asked, bouncing excitedly and pulling at his other hand.
Shawn looked between their excited little faces and grimaced inwardly. This was a terrible idea.
“A friend,” he said, choosing to answer Bee, since he had no idea where they were going. Presumably to visit Rutledge’s father. It seemed Rutledge and his father were at odds—to put it mildly—so Shawn doubted it was going to be a warm family reunion, even without taking into account the fact that Rutledge was clearly bringing him along just to annoy his father.
Dragging Emily and Bee into this wasn’t a good idea, but on the other hand…three thousand dollars. He wouldn’t have to worry about Mrs. Hawkins’s wages for a few months.
“Is that him? Is that him?” Bee’s bouncing became even more excited as she pointed at the black Mercedes that had stopped in front of the building.
“Probably,” Shawn said. “Let’s go.” He took their suitcase and grabbed Bee’s hand with his other hand. Emily could be trusted to stay close and not to run off somewhere; Bee could not.
The Mercedes’s doors opened when they reached it.
Shawn was surprised to find that Rutledge already had child safety seats installed.
“Hey,” he said to Rutledge, feeling awkward and thrown off-balance. Rutledge was never supposed to meet his sisters. “Emily, Melissa, say hello to Mr. Rutledge.”
“I’m not Melissa!” Bee said with a pout.
Shawn hid a smile. “Emily, Bee, say hello to Mr. Rutledge.”
“Hello, Mr. Rutledge!” they said together and Shawn felt a surge of pride. They were just four, but they were very smart and articulate. They looked like little golden-haired angels, smiling shyly at the man. Anyone with a heart would have smiled back.
Apparently, not Derek Rutledge. Rutledge studied the girls as if they were some strange creatures from another planet before nodding faintly and turning back to Shawn. “Get them into their seats. I’ll put your suitcase into the trunk.”
Shawn just rolled his eyes, wondering what had turned Rutledge into such a control freak. It was a completely unnecessary order.
By the time the girls were secured in the back, Rutledge had returned to the driver’s seat. Shawn glanced at the girls for the last time before closing the door carefully and taking his seat.
“Before we leave, I want to make something clear,” Shawn said, lowering his voice so that the girls couldn’t hear. “I know very little about your family, but you won’t drag the girls into your problems with your father. If anyone treats them badly, we’ll leave. Screw the money. Got it?”
Rutledge stared at him for a moment.
“No one will treat them badly,” he said before leaning over, grabbing Shawn’s chin and covering Shawn’s lips with his.
Shawn frowned—it was neither the time nor the place—but Rutledge held his face firmly, his lips hard and hungry, his tongue delving deep into Shawn’s mouth, confident and proprietary, and soon enough, Shawn found himself completely overwhelmed by the intensity of the kiss. It went on, and on, and on—
“Shawn, are you hurt?”
With a gasp, he shoved Rutledge away and focused his gaze on Emily. “What? No!”
A furrow appeared between her small brows. “I thought you were hurt. You were making noises.”
