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Micah’s brow twitched, but he showed no other sign of surprise.
“He just wants the money,” Craig sneered.
I turned to stare at my uncle. “What money?”
His eyes flared briefly with panic before they narrowed, and I knew—Iknew—whatever he was about to say was a lie.
“He’s hoping to use you to cash in on my bank account.”
I swung back around to Micah and lifted a brow. “Well?”
Micah’s face closed down, and he shrugged. “Always an asshole, big brother. Mind if I talk to my kid alone?”
“I do. He’s not your child anymore.Iraised him, and I won’t have a degenerate, violent, ex-con making trouble for him. You should go before I call the police.”
Micah took a step closer, invading Craig’s space. “No.”
I’d never used my size against Craig, but I had six inches and at least a hundred pounds of muscle on him. Micah was bigger than me. Tatted and dangerous, though I didn’t fear him. To make the whole ridiculous scene truly over the top, D, Mac and Shaw came out of the apartment to stand at my back. A second later, RJ joined them, giving Shaw an evil look when he tried to edge her behind him.
These idiots. They had no idea what was going down, but they had my back anyway. My chest tightened with the things I wanted to say to them—how much their support meant to me. All I needed was Eva and Chloe boxing Craig in to make this clusterfuck complete. Maybe I’d find the words after I dealt with the newest drama.
Craig’s face paled, but he raised his chin, never one to admit defeat. “I’m doing what’s best for Noah.”
I shook my head. Incredibly, I thought he might believe his own bullshit. It would explain why he was so desperate to keep Micah away from me. Too little, far too late. “I’m fine, Craig. It sounds like Micah and I have a lot to talk about. Why don’t you head back to your hotel, and I’ll call you later.”
He didn’t like being dismissed, but faced with an unmoving wall of muscle, he gave in. “I’m at the Vaughn. You have my number.” Craig stiffly circled Micah, who refused to move one inch out of his way, and didn’t look back.
I eyed my friends, now posturing for my father. “Go inside. Please.”
Mac broke the stare off. “We’re not leaving you alone with this guy.”
I rolled my eyes, both annoyed and warmed by their absolute refusal. Craig’s anemic version of protecting me had nothing on these guys. Chloe had been right. My real family had nothing to do with Craig or Micah and everything to do with these assholes making the situation awkward.
26
“I’m bigger than all of you,” I pointed out.
Mac jerked his chin at Micah. “Not bigger than him.”
I sighed and made an appeal to the only one who’d ever been able to control Mac besides Eva. “D, get them out of here please. I’ll explain everything after.”
D nodded and clapped me on the back. “Nice work sending Chloe inside. She never listens to a damn thing I say. Okay, crew. Back inside. Mac, you can watch out the window.”
At D’s order, my friends all retreated into our apartment, but Mac pointed two fingers at his eyes then swung them toward Micah before he closed the door. I loved those idiots.
Finally alone, Micah jerked his head toward the pathway around the buildings. “Want to take a walk?”
Not particularly, but we were unlikely to finish a conversation if we stayed between the two apartments. “Sure.”
For once, I didn’t have to shorten my stride for the person next to me. Micah walked with his hands in his pockets, the same as me, until we passed the parking lot and the bench where I’d talked with D the night before. It seemed like an eternity had passed since I scolded him for being a shit to his sister.
I wanted to get back to her, but I wasn’t sure where to begin with Micah. Volunteering information had never been one of my strengths.
As if he knew we’d circle the complex in silence with me in charge, Micah eyed me with trepidation. “You have questions.”
My mouth went rogue before I could consider the best course of action. “Why come back now?”
“That answer was in the letter, but I’ll tell you again. I served my time and got out. It took me a while to find you. I knew you were playing college ball thanks to something Craig let slip, but I didn’t know where.”
