I knew it.
Memories of what he told me spiraled through my disordered mind.
“I would never harm you.” He growled it, and a strike of severity flashed through the air. “But I would kill for you.”
He was no stranger to duplicity. I knew it all the way into my soul that he was as dangerous as he looked. As dangerous as the veiled warnings he’d given.
Unquestionably, all these men were.
And somehow, standing there surrounded by them, I hadn’t felt more secure in my life.
For the first time, knowing without question that someone would stand for us, no matter what it cost.
“It’s okay, sweetheart,” I promised Addy, reaching out and brushing away the tear that trailed down her cheek.
“Is Mr. Cash hurt?” she whispered after he got out and moved to the back.
“No. He’s fine.”
Quiet, concealed words reverberated from the men. Anger and fury dripped from them like sieves.
A torrent that rushed and nearly knocked me from my feet.
“Are you sure, Mommy?” It was a plea.
My chest tightened. She only called me mommy when she felt insecure.
I brushed trembling fingers through her hair. “Yeah, I’m sure.”
At least for now.
“Mr. Cash is like a race car driver,” Colin rushed from the far side of the backseat. His fear squashed the moment Cash had climbed back into the SUV.
“He went like this and like this and then we went like this!” He jerked his hands one direction then another like he had hold of the steering wheel before he flattened his hand and twisted his wrist to show off the spin the SUV had taken.
Awe in my son’s little face.
I felt it, too.
Awe.
But mine was horrified and confused.
“Did you see it, Mommy?” he asked, the tears on his face dried, a toothy smile in their place.
“I saw it.”
“It was really cool, right?”
A shiver rolled down my spine. “He did a really good job taking care of us.”
“That’s because he’s our Big Giant and he can do everything like lift a boulder on his shoulders,” Colin claimed.
The weight of the world.
That’s what this felt like.
The door jerked open on Colin’s side, and Cash popped his head in.
