I growl at his disrespect towards her, trying to step forward, but Drew, being Drew, tightens her hold.
She doesn’t back down. She shakes her head and says, "No, you don’t." Awe fills the room as my girl meets my father’s gaze and tells him, “You’re not thinking like a president who wants his prodigy to take over but understands the pain he’sstill currently in and needs more time. You’re like a father who misses his son and wants him home and is trying to use everything against him to bring him back.” Dad’s eyes soften as he looks at her and she says, “It doesn’t matter what you say, threaten, or even offer—like Scrawny on a pedestal. Nothing will convince him to leave town.”
The brothers took the fucker back home and placed him in the bunker where we like to torture fuckers before killing them. Several times last night, Dad tried mentioning he was my kill, while the other two went back with Blade. While I would love nothing more than to kill him for taking my girl and backhanding her, I can’t go home. I’m not ready and I know Scar will ensure he suffers.
“Except you,” Dad says softly, and Drew nods.
She agrees, "Except me," but adds, "I would do anything for Bellamy ifheasked. Not because you’re putting me on the spot to convince him to do something he isn’t ready for. Pissing him off further to the point I’m the only person in this room stopping him from attacking you,” Dad eyes where Drew has hold of me and he winces before she continues, “My job, my family—I’d leave it all for him, only for him, not for you. I understand you want your son to return, but after what he went through—the guilt, his choices—he isn't ready to face any of that." She gives Dad a soft look and asks, "Do you know he hasn’t even gone to her gravesite?"
I hold my girl tighter as the brothers stare in shock and Dad's eyes well up.
“You see, if I force him to move home, he’ll resent me. I won’t have that because your son is my entire world. Plus, the ass knocked me up with his super sperm, so I really can’t have him resent me,” she says, and the brothers snort as I smirk, proud of my so-called super spunk.
Drew sighs as Dad roughly runs a hand through his hair, clearly not happy that she isn’t on his side, she’s on mine.
"I won’t choose for him. I won’t pressure him into doing anything he doesn’t want to do because only he knows what he wants. Right now, he wants to stay here, and you need to respect that. If not as his leader, then as his father—see the pain your son is still carrying," my girl says softly.
"Did I mention that I like you?" Dad chokes.
I smile as Drew chuckles, "Once or twice..."
Fuck me, this girl always has my back. She calmed me and knew exactly what to say to Dad.
“With all due respect, brother,” Trick says, and I tense again as he reminds me, “you saved her, you saved your baby, so why aren’t you strong enough to return? Why can’t you come home?”
I clear my throat to try not to snap my friend’s head off and as we lock eyes, I remind him, “I was in the house, upstairs in my room, staring at the DNA results, while my sister was being drowned. I was closer, and I didn’t save her. I didn’t see the evil that Toya was in terminating a pregnancy when she was so far gone. I—fuck—I can’t get over the guilt. I don’t know if I’ll ever want to come home…”
Trick looks away as Drew sighs, "Stop pushing him to go home. Give him space to decide for himself. If you don't, he'll leave for good,” she eyes the brothers, “And if you don’t give him that space, well, I know how to break a man's special member and I’m not afraid to hurt anyone of you!"
The brothers look at my girl with horror, and I bite back a chuckle as she kisses my cheek and says, “I’m going to cook the pancakes for everyone and let you discuss whatever you’re going to do to Scrawny.”
I nod to her. Trick and Dad quickly move aside, covering themselves, and I grin.
“Did she just threaten us without batting an eyelash?” Crusher asks, his voice full of awe and shock and I chuckle in response.
“Yes, yes she did,” I confirm with a big grin and Blaze mutters, “Lucky fucker.”
I don’t disagree because I am one lucky fucker.
Whether I stay here, return home, or fuck, go out on the road again, I know without a doubt my girl will be by my side the whole time and that everything will be alright as long as I have her.
As Blaze said, I’m one lucky fucker.
Chapter 24
Cage – A Week Later
I gently rub my thumb over my bottom lip as I lean against the back wall of my girls' studio. I watch as she teaches three-year-olds to try to bend slightly at the knees, being completely patient with them, and I swear, the more I get to know her, the longer we’re together… the more awe I am of her.
Sweet, kind, funny, patient, generous, absolutely fucking gorgeous.
Fuck, I don’t deserve her, yet I won’t ever let her go.
I sigh quietly as I look down for a moment, the moms to my left already pissing me off with the constant stares despite knowing I’m in a fully committed relationship with their children’s teacher.
They’re not fucking helping my sullen mood that I can’t seem to fucking shake since Dad left with the brothers. Trickreminding me that the clock was ticking until he handed in his cut if I didn’t return, didn’t help either.
Jackass is lucky I had hold of my girl around the waist, she was ready to kill him as he ran out like his ass was on fire.
