Avery’s eyes narrowed.“If this is anything beyond a polite‘will you please stay here while I run off to do something dangerous that willsave our beloved daughter,’ you should rethink.”
Liam sighed.“Avery, would you please stay here for a fewdays while I take care of this situation for our beloved daughter?”
“I will,” Avery promised.
“Daisy?”Liam’s voice had gone soft.
Daisy was stubbornly silent.
“I love you, girl.No matter what.”He glanced down at hisphone.“They’re here.”
“Who’s here?”Nate’s morning had gone to complete crap, andnow he was probably going to have to deal with more bodyguards.Bodyguards whowould question him.
The door opened, and Nate realized it was much worse becauseErin Taggart walked in, and she wasn’t alone.
“Nate?”His mother rushed into the room.“Are you okay?Sweetie?What happened to your pants.”
“Well, hell,” his father said, looking at him first and thenDaisy.“I suppose that was inevitable.”
“Ain’t nothing inevitable about it.Come on, Brody,” Liamsaid.“We’re going to El Salvador.”
“We’re what?”His father looked deeply confused.
“You’re not taking my jet.”Ian was suddenly at the railingof the lounge, a glass in his hand.
“Already pinched it, mate,” Liam said, walking out.
His father looked to his mother.
“You should follow him.”His mom had her worried mask on.“It’s obvious something’s going on, and we don’t understand.Avery, iseverything okay?Li called and said Nate was in trouble and we had to get hereas soon as possible.”
Avery pulled his mom in for a hug.“I’m so happy to see you,old friend.Come on.Let’s join Ian and Alex, and I’ll fill you in.By the way,the kids are together now.In a biblical sense.”
His mom smiled.“He always had a thing for Daisy.”
“I did not.I mean I thought she was sweet and everything,”Nate argued and then realized he wasn’t this dumb.“I mean.I did.Always.”
Daisy’s eyes were on the door her father had walked through.
“You did,” his mother said.“You just didn’t understand atthe time, but I knew.”His mum moved over to Daisy.“Sweet girl, are you allright?”
Daisy burst into tears, and all the women surrounded her.
His heart ached, and he hoped they could make it throughthis particular storm.
* * * *
Daisy sat outside on the rooftop section of Sanctum.It waspretty and had a great view, and she hadn’t known it existed until today.
They definitely needed something like this at The Hideout.If she was allowed back at The Hideout.
The morning had been perfectly horrible, and she wondered ifher father would ever speak to her again.Oh, he’d said he loved her, but thatmight be habit.
Bri and Devi had brought more of her things.And she’ddefinitely noticed someone had slipped a box of extra-large condoms in.It waseither her friends being cheeky or Uncle Ian being true to form.Her friendshad been sending her texts all day, checking in on her.And she’d gotten asurprising amount of texts from the guys at The Hideout asking if she wascoming in next weekend.What was up with that?
What she hadn’t gotten was an update from her da, who wasapparently on his way to Central America.
“Hey, I made you some tea,” Nate said as he walked out ontothe balcony.The sun was starting to move to the west, and this particular partof the rooftop space faced east.He had a tray in his hands.“I added somepastries Bri and Devi brought.Remind me to thank them for breakfast.Mum ismaking us a late lunch, but I thought you might be hungry.The moms are takingthe apartment, by the way.Do you want to stay in the jukebox room?”
