Page 80 of Road to Redemption

He shrugged, shaking his head with a look of wild confusion on his face. “Don’t look at me.”

“That’s my teammate,” Dom smirked, emerging from the shadows to high-five Abi.

“You who I have to thank for that cute little catchphrase?” I raised an eyebrow.

“It’s a good lesson,” she shrugged.

“It’s a call from her principal waiting to happen,” I frowned before turning to Abi. “Do not repeat that at school.”

“What do I get if I promise?” She smiled.

“To play in the next round,” Leo grumbled before scruffing her hair.

“Deal!” Abi laughed before running off to find a new hiding spot.

I did my best to let Caleb’s questioning go and enjoy the rest of the night; he was only going to turn 18 once, after all, and the fact that he was celebrating it with us was a small miracle as far as teenagers went.

I couldn’t help but fear how things might change once I told him the truth, though. His mother’s story was complicated, and no one’s hands were clean, least of all Bill’s.

A part of me had hoped I could put this off until he was out of the house, maybe until Abi was out too. But the truth was that where I saw a sweet little boy, a young man was taking shape, and in order to move on from his childhood, he needed answers.

I just hoped that he could shoulder the weight of the truth.

42

LEO

It was always fun to celebrate the kids’ birthdays — especially one as big as Caleb’s eighteenth. My mind struggled to think of him being an adult already. I’d only been around for the last few years, but I’d watched the kid grow up so much in that time.

All of us had, really.

Now that winter had passed, though, I was grateful for the warm days that followed. After the excursion, it seemed like all of us were ready to nestle in at home. Dom still had to make occasional trips into the office — showing face, keeping a pulse on Issac — but other than that, we were pretty locked in.

A risk was worth it now and again, but it always made us a bit more antsy about getting caught.

There was too much on the line for that. Kiera was on the line, now.

Being stuck at home had its advantages; it gave me time to dig in on my research again. But perhaps there was such a thing as too much time.

I’d thought that coming at the problem with fresh eyes might help. But just a few days, and my eyes were already bloodshot again. My head spun every time I picked up my laptop, and it didn’t stop well until after I’d gone to sleep.

If it were anyone else, I’d have told them to take a break — doctor’s orders. And as much as I hated listening to my own advice, I figured it was better to take it from myself before it came rolling off of Kiera’s bratty little lips.

The Ducati could use some maintenance anyway. Out in the carriage house, I had her jacked up on two stands to hold her in place while I scrubbed the grit out of the chain and wheel well. Could probably use a chain adjustment while I was at it — I knew Spencer would have told me not to overthink it, but the slack back there was driving me crazy.

But just as I stood to go grab calipers and the adjuster, Kiera appeared in the doorway looking like heaven in a pair of black Daisy Dukes — as if just thinking of her insolent attitude was enough to summon her.

“How’s it going in here, Major?” She smirked as she strode across the shop, leaning against a tool cabinet just out of my sight.

“Good,” I stood to face her, my chest humming when she smiled up at me. It was a struggle to lift my gaze from the cropped white wife pleaser hugging her chest, but those vibrant green eyes of hers were just as lethal a trap. “Need something, Princess?”

“Nope,” she shook her head with a smirk. “Just thought I’d take a walk and try to enjoy the warm air. Couldn’t help the allure of visiting my sexy mechanic once I realized you were in here.”

“Mmmm, call me sexy again,” I growled, scooping her up and setting her down on top of a long wooden workbench.

“Leo!” She laughed, slapping my shoulder. “I’m not supposed to be a distraction!”

“You’re always a distraction,” I purred, drinking up the excitement that twinkled in her eyes. “But a distraction’s not always a bad thing…”