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And I’d enabled her behavior by paying her money every month.
The phone slid out of my hand, landing on the bed. Jude had stepped to the side as soon as the message finished, talking on his phone, his eyes not once leaving me.
I bit my finger, wishing I knew what to do.
Turned out I didn’t have to.
The bed depressed when Jude sat down, gently taking my hand in his and kissing my abused finger. “Our lawyer is getting in touch with your family now. He’ll let us know as soon as he has news. He’ll also tell the courts where you guys are.”
“Jude. That’s too much.” Curling my fingers around his hand, I hung my head. “I can’t afford a lawyer. Otherwise, I’d have found someone by now.”
“Good thing we have a team of lawyers on retainer. We’re paying them either way, so you might as well use them.”
Shaking my head, I sucked my bottom lip in. “You’ve already done so much.”
Shuffling closer, he put his finger under my chin, lifting my head to face him. The ever-present smile on his face was gone, replaced with narrowed eyes and firmly pursed lips. “You’re a part of me now. And if there’s anything I can do to help you, don’t you think I will? This is something I can do for you.Wantto do for you. Please let me.”
The way he took care of me warmed me, made me feel cherished and safe. He was always there when I needed him. And I hoped with time I could do the same for him.
Nodding, I leaned forward, placing a light kiss on his mouth. “Okay.”
His lips caressed mine, and he teased my bottom one. “Yeah? You’ll finally let me take care of you?”
Goose bumps broke out all over my skin, making my voice come out in a breathy gasp. “Within reason.”
He smiled against my mouth before tracing his tongue along the seam. I opened, deepening the kiss. He didn’t let it get too far this time and pulled back. “Want to come downstairs for lunch?”
I was still nervous around his family but knew if I wanted to make us work, I had to get used to them. And they had been nothing but polite. Lenny adored Althea and Constantine and rushed out of his room every morning fully dressed and ready for the day because he knew he got to spend it with them.
They seemed to return the sentiment, making sure Lenny had everything he wanted and more. They completed his schoolwork with him. Took him around the grounds to explore and play with the peacocks. Apparently, they were tame. Something I didn’t want to put to the test but Lenny had been all too eager to find out.
Althea assured me it was safe, but I didn’t trust the big squawking birds.
“Sure, that sounds good.”
He didn’t hesitate to lift me and carry me downstairs despite my protests. But the stairs took me ages to get up and down, so my protests weren’t too loud.
Lenny and Althea were already in the kitchen, bent over the kitchen bench, giggling. Lenny had missed out on so much. And Jude’s family was able to fill a hole I had no way of plugging on my own.
Daisy was sitting pressed up to his leg, not having left his side since Gabriel dropped her off when he heard how much my brother liked dogs.
I leaned into Jude as he put me on a kitchen chair, catching his attention which was stuck on the giant dog. “Lenny is never going to want to leave.”
He turned away from staring at Daisy with wide eyes, meeting my gaze. “We can stay here if you don’t want to go back to the apartment. It’s your decision. I’m happy wherever we are, as long as you’re with me.”
If I wasn’t already irrevocably in love with him, I would be after the last few days. Because Jude hadn’t held back in telling me exactly how he felt about me and our relationship.
Althea pushed a cup of tea in front of me. “How are you feeling, honey?”
A sniff test confirmed she’d made me more of the herbal concoction the doctor had recommended. I’d have rather had coffee but didn’t want to be rude and decline since she’d gone through the trouble to make it for me.
“I’m feeling better.” Ignoring Jude’s raised eyebrows, I took a sip from my tea, hiding my grimace behind the cup. “Thanks for the tea, and for letting us stay here.”
I’d thanked everyone about twenty thousand times already, but I was still nervous when around Jude’s family and got flustered.
Althea placed chocolate chip cookies on a plate, setting it down in front of me. “Stay as long as you need. We love finally having a grandchild.”
The tea came out of my nose, and I held it closed while waving at Jude for a tissue. He was bent over laughing instead of helping me.
