“No.”
“What the fuck do you want?”
Robert and I responded at the same time.
“I did as you said and I thought I’d come find you. I didn’t know you would be occupied with a lady friend.” Jason’s eyes returned to me, smirking again.
“Jason, if you don’t—”
“I need to get going. I’ll see you in class,” I told Robert. I gave the two one last look before turning and starting in the direction of my dorm room.
“That one’s got a nice ass. I’m a—”
I gasped and turned around, stunned at the words that’d come out of Jason’s mouth, but my eyes widened even more when I saw that Robert had literally wrapped his large hand around Jason’s throat, choking off whatever he’d been about to say.
“I haven’t laid a hand on you since we were children, but if you ever talk about her like that again, I will beat the shit out of you. Understood?” he growled.
I wasn’t sure if he was intentionally talking loud enough for me to hear or not, but at that moment, as I stared at a livid Robert Townsend, I had no doubt that he meant every word he’d just spoken. I clutched the strap of my bag tightly in my right hand.
“Fucker,” Robert grunted as he shoved Jason away.
I blinked and noticed Robert’s gaze returned to me. A chill ran through me at the darkness I saw in his eyes. But with one blink it was gone. Wordlessly, I pivoted on my heels and moved quickly in the direction of my dorm room. I dared not to even think of the butterflies that floated in my belly at the dangerous gleam in his eyes.
Maybe I didn’t have Robert Townsend all figured out.
Chapter Four
Present
Deborah
“You didn’t know me at all. But you were about to find out,” my husband cockily stated as I turned in his direction. I laughed, shaking my head all while admiring the age lines in his forehead and around his eyes. He looked better today than he had all of those years ago. And he was a sight for sore eyes back then.
His eyes narrowed ever so slightly and a lascivious grin touched the corners of his lips. It was the grin that was solely reserved for me.
“So that’s where it all started. You were partnered on a class project together and the rest is history.”
“Not quite,” Robert added, striding over to me, wrapping an arm around my waist, facing our progeny.
“There’s a lot more to our story than that.”
“But you’ll have to wait to hear the rest. The computers are being delivered and I need you all to help us set it up,” Robert told the boys.
I aided Michelle, Patience, and Kayla throwing out the now empty pizza boxes, while Destiny fed Annalise who’d gotten a little fussy.
“Hang on. I wanted to catch Aaron before they all left,” I told my daughters-in-law. I moved out of the conference room and down the hall to the classroom area where the guys were helping the technicians setup the computers. Truthfully, they all were mostly standing, watching over to ensure the technicians did their job. All of my boys, including my husband, were overly protective. Security had been the first thing that had been set up in what would become our non-profit women’s shelter. This place was wired directly to the police station as well as Townsend’s security offices.
“Hey,” I stated, tapping Aaron on his arm as I moved beside him. My second eldest peered down on me, the ever-present scowl on his face but his eyes were soft. While outsiders may not be able to see it, he’d softened over the past two years. His wife and now four children had filled the hole in his heart I was certain even he didn’t recognize had been there for years.
“Is something wrong? Patience—”
“Your wife is fine,” I responded, cutting him off. He’d begun looking as if he was about to bolt out the door to find his wife to make sure she was okay.
My words had put him at ease.
“I wanted to check on you to make sure you were okay. After hearing us talk about Jason.” I lifted an eyebrow, watching him curiously for a reaction. Jason, Robert’s younger brother, was a lousy son of a bitch who’d done a lot of harm in his life. He was also Aaron’s biological father.
But while Jason may’ve been Aaron’s father through DNA, he was my son, mine and Robert’s.
