AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"He wouldn't l-lis—" I break off as new sobs overcome me.
"You should try again."
"Why would he want to be with me? My father—"
"Is not you." Lilly tilts my chin up until our eyes lock. "Our parents don't define who we are. Yes, they are part of us, where we came from. But we make our own choices. You gave everything up to care for your mother. You were the only one who was able to break through Wes's wall. A wall even Den hasn't been able to crack, and the two of them are as close as you and Kiwi." I don't ask her how she knows about him; of course she does. "You are special, King. And I know in my heart that Wes cares for you. And that he will care for your little one."
I want to believe her so badly my chest aches.
"I'm going to be in touch. My wedding is in one month—in Stonebriar. I would love for you to be there."
"I—what?"
Did they make up with Wes?
As if she's reading my mind, Lilly says, "Rhys is there, as we speak. I dropped him off before coming here. We met with Wes over winter break. I'm pretty sure I can thank you for him giving our friendship another chance."
I frown at her, but she simply shrugs.
"I—I don't know." This is insane.
"Think about it. I'll text you. The jet will pick you up. You shouldn't be driving by yourself."
"Of course you already have my number."
Lilly grins sheepishly as she gets up. On her way to the door, she turns again. "Oh, and King?"
I lift my gaze from my hand over my belly.
"No matter what you decide, you'll be safe from now on—in case you notice anyone following you." When I raise my eyebrows, she adds, "I don't like where you live, and I protect my family."
"Family?" I must've heard her wrong.
"You're carrying Baby Sheats. That makes you automatically part of the family. I don't care what the stubborn-ass daddy has to say."
And with those parting words and a wink, she opens the door and leaves.
CHAPTERTWENTY-FIVE
After I madesure Echo was inside, I drove to The Grizz. With each light I passed, my irritation grew. At King for abandoning Echo, at Mags for not taking proper care of her, and where the fuck was Kiwi in all this? He was supposed to be King's BFF. Shouldn't he have been helping?Why the fuck did she leave her here?
By the time I parked behind the bar, I was fired up. My insides were buzzing, and I ripped the back door open with more force than necessary, causing it to slam into the brick wall. Whoopsie. Well, not my fault. Grizz shouldn't leave it unlocked.
How could King have left Echo? Who'd been taking care of her? Obviously, no one, since they relied on a fucking doggy door. What was Mags thinking, not double-checking the damn gate? What if Echo would've run off, or worse, gotten hit by a car? Again.
I reached the main room and immediately zeroed in on Mags. When she noticed me, she staggered backward. Guess she didn't expect me here.
I pointed at her and back to the corridor I just came out of. "NOW!" I shouted over the music.
She scowled, and I thought she was going to flip me off, but instead, she put the bottle she was holding down and said something to a new chick manning the bar with her.
They had replaced King. Of course they did, but seeing it, my fingers curled inward, which made my annoyance shoot to a new level—this time, though, because of my body's uncontrollable reaction when it came toher.
I turned, not waiting to see if Mags followed.
"What's your fucking problem, Sheats? Someone hiding your booze? We serve in the front—" she sneered at me as soon as we reached the employee lounge.
I spun around, not letting her finish the sentence. "My problem?" My pulse was thrashing in my ears. Rationally, I shouldn't have been this worked up. Echo wasn't my dog. "My problem is that I found Echo wandering the streets." Okay, a little exaggerated, but it might as well have happened.
