It’s 5 a.m., and I can’t pretend I’m trying to sleep anymore. Instead, I decide to get out of bed and track down breakfast. It’s a Sunday, so Zoe doesn’t have school, which means the house will still be quiet for several hours.
I’ve been around family my whole life. When you grow up with the kind of father I had, you learn that family is everything.
But ours was the kind that sat shoulder to shoulder at Sunday dinners while keeping one eye on the door. The type that hugged you with one arm while weighing how much trouble you might bring them with the other.
Loyalty was currency, affection was leverage, and you never forgot the bill would come due. Each favor bigger and more costly than the last.
This isn’t that.
Lexi doesn’t make Arden’s coffee because she has to keep her in line. She makes it because she knows exactly how Arden likes it, and because she wants to.
Zoe can get away with sneaking crayons and paper into Arden’s room in the middle of the night, and instead of scolding her, Arden lets her stay. Sometimes she even laughs as she cuddles her close.
They move around each other in the kitchen as if they’ve rehearsed it for years. No jockeying for position, no silent battles for dominance. Just a rhythm they all seem to know. Even the arguments don’t carry weight; nobody keeps score.
I’ve been telling myself I only notice because I’ve been stuck here too long. Too much downtime makes you study people. But the truth is, I keep finding excuses to watch. To be in the same room as people who claim to love each other unconditionally and actually mean it.
So, I guess that’s why I’m out at five in the morning tracking down the best donuts in town. Not because I have to. Not because it’searning me anything. Just because Zoe likes the ones with sprinkles, Lexi always goes for jelly-filled, and Arden… she’ll take whatever I hand her without complaint. And because, for reasons I don’t want to think too hard about, I want them to wake up to something good.
I enter the loft, placing the large pink box on the kitchen island. There are still no signs of movement in the house. Just the light blue hue that lets me know the sun is slowly making its appearance.
I move toward the coffee machine, starting a pot and reminding myself to order them an espresso machine. This old Mr. Coffee simply isn’t cutting it.
When I turn around, I almost jump out of my skin. Arden is standing near the island. She’s out of her room, finally. Eyeing the box on the counter, she asks, “How’d you know about this place?” The words come out in a soft tone I don’t recall ever hearing from her.
“I remembered you and Lexi talking about it,” I shrug. She gives me a weak smile and lifts the lid, peering inside. Her smile grows wider as she notices the chocolate-frosted, Boston cream-filled donut.Favorite noted.
She takes one out and places it on the island before approaching me. She stays silent as she wraps her arms around my waist and holds tight for a moment. I let out a sigh of relief as I squeeze her against me.
We could stay like this forever, never saying a word, and I would be satisfied. I pull away slightly, keeping my hands on her hips as I whisper, “Don’t you ever do that to me again. Don’t lock yourself away and make me wonder if I’ll lose you, or already have.”
Her breath hitches, a sound so fragile it’s hard to believe it belongs to her. For a moment, she just stares at me, wide-eyed, like she doesn’trecognize the man in front of her. Then her fingers twist into my shirt, clinging like it’s the only thing keeping her steady.
“I thought I was losing myself,” she whispers, voice breaking. “I didn’t think anyone would notice if I disappeared. But you —” She shakes her head, tears slipping down her cheeks. “You make it impossible to stay lost.”
“You don’t get it, Arden.” I drag a hand down my face, exhaling through my nose. “I’ve looked down the barrel of a gun and felt nothing. But I came apart the second I thought I might never hear your voice again.” The words come out rougher than I mean them to, but my eyes stay locked on hers.
“I don’t know how to do this. I don’t have all the right words, but I know that there is no world for me without you in it. I’d burn down every city, my business, everything I’ve ever known, if that’s what it took to keep you with me.” My fingers curl, tightening my grip on her hips, and I lean forward until my forehead touches hers.
“You think I want money, power, or even freedom? No. The only thing I want is you. If you disappear, I swear to God, I’ll disappear with you.”
I wrap my arms tightly around her again until she’s pushing against me to let go. I ease my grip and give her space to sit at the island. As she takes the first bite of her donut, I pour her a fresh, oversized mug of coffee.
Lexi clued me in to exactly how she likes it. I can finally say we’ve become friends over the past few days. It’s strange how love can pull people together who would never have been in the same room otherwise.
I pull out a barstool and sit next to Arden, simply enjoying being in her presence as golden streaks of light creep over the living room. The only thing that could improve this moment would be a cigar, but there’s a strict no-smoking policy in the condo. I guess kids and smoke don’t mix.
When she finishes her breakfast, Arden turns to me, still holding her coffee mug with a spark reignited in those big blue eyes.
Her voice is still coarse, but steadier now. “No more shutting you out. No more hiding. Men like Luke never lose… not really. Hollywood is already mourning him, turning him into some kind of golden boy.”
She pauses, holding my gaze. “I won’t let that lie live on. You want me, Locke? Then you get all of me. And the first thing we’re doing is burning that dead son of a bitch’s reputation to the ground.”
Chapter 37
ARDEN
Ever since that first night, Locke has been nothing like I expected. The past 24 hours have only proven that. I didn’t expect those memories to drag me down so deep it felt like I was really back there. I didn’t expect to wake up screaming in my bed. And I sure as hell did not expect the view of his stubble, speckled with grey, and those golden-brown eyes staring down at me.
