Page 101 of Runaway Bride’s Husband

“Are you both sitting down?”

Holden dropped onto the couch and Mickey immediately took it as an invitation to join him, launching himself onto Holden’s lap as I strode closer. “That’s never a good opening. Why do we need to be sitting down?”

“Just answer the damn question,” she snapped, then sighed. “Sorry. It’s just that I’m serious, okay? Sit down.”

I dropped into the spot next to Holden, my hand moving to Mickey’s head on autopilot when he crawled to sprawl out across both of us. Shit, I’m really getting attached to this dog.

“Alright, we’re sitting,” Holden said. “Shoot. What’s going on?”

There was a pause before she let out another sigh. “Colin and I got a call from the lawyers a few minutes ago.”

Everything inside me went rigid. “Dad’s lawyers or Thayer Steelworks’ lawyers?”

Both were serious, but one had significantly further reaching consequences than the other. The color drained from Holden’s face at the same time I felt it drain from mine, that dark barrier sliding up behind his eyes at her reply.

“Dad’s lawyers.”

“Fuck.” I groaned and covered my face in my hands, dropping my head back against the couch. “What does Dad want this time?”

“Well, actually, it’s not about what he wants, though I doubt he’d be opposed to this,” she said carefully. “Holden, are you still there?”

“He’s here,” I said when he just glared at the phone, his eyes narrowed to slits and an angry flush spreading across the tops of his cheeks. “Let us have it, Jane. What did they say?”

“I wish there was an easier way to break the news, but there isn’t, so here goes.” She drew in a breath so deep, I heard it through the phone. “There’s a possibility Dad could be released from prison early.”

I blinked hard. “What?”

“Yeah,” she said. “I know, but they’re talking about him being let out on good behavior.”

Holden sagged against the couch and stared at the floor. I reached out and squeezed his shoulder, withdrawing my hand a moment later when he hadn’t even twitched in acknowledgment.

“How early?” I asked, my eyes sliding shut as I tried to accept that my brother was going dark again.

This had happened with him before too, whenever anything serious went down with Dad’s case. I fucking detested it, but I couldn’t blame him. All I could do was be here aand get the answers he wanted but wouldn’t ask for.

“They don’t know yet,” she said. “It sounds like that depends on the review.”

“Okay,” I said slowly, trying to comprehend that there was a possibility that the man who had detonated our entire world might be walking back into it soon. “Did they say anything else?”

“No.” She laughed weakly. “They thought we’d be excited, so they called just to give me the news. They don’t know any more than that yet.”

“Alright, well, let us know if you hear anything.” I took Holden’s phone gently out of his hand and brought it closer to my mouth. “Do you want us to come over early so we can talk about this?”

“No, let’s just process and wait until we learn more. Then we can try to figure it out from there.”

I nodded. “Yeah, okay. That sounds like a plan. Thanks for calling, Janey. We’ll see you later.”

“Later,” she said quietly, then hung up, leaving Holden and me sitting shoulder to shoulder, both staring blankly at the television while Mickey slept across our legs.

“Well, there goes the neighborhood,” Holden muttered. “Do you have any fucking idea how bad it’s going to get if they let him out?”

“Yeah, it definitely won’t be great.” I rolled my lips into my mouth and pulled in a deep breath, trying to calm my suddenly pounding heart. “Look, I’m not any happier about this than you are. We’re finally doing okay as a family, Mom is starting to come out of her shell again, and the company is stronger than ever, but we always knew he was going to come out eventually.”

“Sure, but not now.”

“Fair enough,” I conceded, lifting my ass to pull my own phone out of my pocket when I remembered the call I’d missed earlier. That might’ve had something to do with Dad too, and if it did, it was better to find out now. “Whatever happens, we’ll deal with it. Let’s just take it one step at a time.”

I unlocked my screen, my heart dropping all the way to the floor at the name waiting with the notification about the missed call. It hadn’t been about our father, but in a way, this was worse.