“I figured I’d get you set up for the bus,” she replied quietly. She pointed to things on the counter. “Coffee with cream. Turkey and pepperoni sandwich, chips, fruit, a couple of granola bars, and a bottle of water.”
“You didn’t have to do that,” I said thankfully, reaching out to squeeze her around the shoulders.
“It’s going to be a long day.” She shrugged. “And I’m not sure what the fuck is going on, but I’m guessing it’s going to be a stressful one.”
“Kara—”
“I know, I know,” she said, cutting me off with a wave. “Ask no questions and hear no lies.”
“Dyl stopped to sleep last night,” I replied, changing the subject. “But he’s supposed to let me know when he gets on the road again. I’ll tell him to call you so you know when to expect him.”
“Sounds good,” she said, pulling on a hoodie that Draco had left over the back of a kitchen chair the night before. “It’ll be awesome to have him here. We missed you guys when you were gone. The girls were so excited he was coming today. It took them an hour to fall asleep last night.”
“Can’t thank you enough for lettin’ me stay here.”
“Oh, shut up.” She rolled her eyes. “Of course you can stay here. You could move your asses in if you wanted, and you know it.”
“Think we’d be a little crowded,” I mused.
“I can deal with a crowd, especially if it were you and Dylan,” she said, refilling her coffee cup. “But Draco said he’s going to move you in today. The house down the street?”
“Yeah, Tommy’s place.”
“Perfect,” she said with a small smile. “I’ll head to the grocery store and get you some supplies today.”
“You don’t—”
“I know I don’t have to,” she cut me off. “But I know you, and I know Draco. Details are not your strong suit. You’ll end up screaming for Dylan to run down to our house and grab some toilet paper that you forgot to make sure you had before you sat down.”
“Sounds like a scenario you’ve experienced,” I mumbled, grinning.
“You think?”
I laughed. “Well, thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” She smiled. “I’ll let you get ready, and I’ll go wake up your brother. He sounded like Mia begging me for five more minutes when the alarm went off.”
“My niece wakes up like an angel,” I argued as she left the kitchen. I could hear her laughing as she climbed the stairs.
I was ready to go when Draco came downstairs, and without a word, we headed out to Kara’s SUV. There wasn’t much left to say. After he dropped me off at the bus station, the day passed in a fog. I stayed awake long enough to check in with Dylan until he made it to Eugene and then tried to get some sleep, but instead, I spent most of the ride wondering what Theodora was like and how hard it would be to pull off a bogus relationship with her. Things must’ve been pretty fucking bad for her down south if she’d agreed to such a thing, and honestly, that made the whole situation a little easier to swallow.
I didn’t like the idea of a woman being so desperate to escape that she’d willingly hitch her star to a man she’d never met. The next few months were going to be a huge pain in the ass, and it was frustrating that I’d been the one chosen to fake a relationship with the woman, but I figured I’d better suck it the fuck up. Theodora was the one who was moving her kids to aplace she didn’t know with a man she’d never met before. The situation was pretty low risk for me, but she was taking a huge gamble.
Markers were a big deal. If the club handed one out, it was because the person or organization had done them a solid that deserved payback in whatever form that took. To renege on one was unheard of. But while it was important to do my best to make sure that we got her free and clear like her father asked us to, it was even more important for Theodora. It was her life.
No matter how I felt about the situation, I’d been given the responsibility of keeping their little family safe until things got to a point where they no longer had to worry about Granger. If that meant that I had to play a role, that’s what I’d do, and I’d do it well.
By the time I climbed off the bus in Sacramento, I was sweaty, exhausted, and grateful as hell that the ride was over. I stopped in the bathroom to take a piss and check my pits to make sure I didn’t stink and then moved through the small station and out into the sunlight. After a quick scan of the parking lot, I found her.
She was turned to me, looking out the window of an older Ford truck, the bed filled with boxes and a large toolbox.
The photo I’d seen didn’t do her justice. The woman was far more beautiful in person.
I walked toward the truck like I had all the time in the world, but the entire time, my mind was racing. I’d seen at least three men that I figured could either be staring at her because she was so beautiful or because it was their job to watch her. Without more time, there was no way for me to know which was which, and we needed to get on the road and out of town.
She rolled the window down as I approached the truck, and I glanced in the back seat to see two kids. One of them waswatching me, but the other was engrossed in something on his lap.
“Theodora?” I asked, even though I knew.
