Page 27 of Pieces of You

“Yes, we fucking can, Shepherd.” He kissed me back, but not before he’d given me a look. “Swear to me you won’t try to be a hero.”

Corey piped up again. “Yeah. Swear to him.”

Okay—Christ. “How about you two trust me to know what I’m doing? This is what I’m good at.”

“You’re good at a lot of things, Greer.” Archie’s use of my name always caught my attention, because he did it so rarely when we were alone. But even when the kids were around, I was Daddy, Dad, Shep, sweetheart, darling, and love most of the time.

Sloan gripped my chin loosely. “You know we support you, baby. Every step of the way, we’re there, rooting for you, waiting for you to come home. We do trust you. But don’t think for a second that being a grunt is the only place you shine.”

That was sweet of him, but he was doing that thing where he made me uncomfortable. Like back in the day when he force-hugged me and I tried to joke it off.

The bastard knew it too.

“Listen to Daddy,” Corey sang and skipped over to us. “First and foremost, you are the best Papa Bear in the universe. Okay? And second, you’re a great dad. Grade A husband, partner, Sadist, Dominus, hobby farmer, driver—’cause you let me choose the podcast, and you don’t get road rage—and you gave me Chonky. Any man who brings home cute doggies and piggies deserves an award. In fact, I will make you one. You can collect it when you come home safely.”

I grinned and shook my head, and I pulled him into the fold and kissed the top of his head. He knew how to make all the discomfort go away.

“Whenever Daddy makes me squirm, it’s now your responsibility to take that away,” I murmured.

He snickered and peered up at me. “Let’s do that on a case-by-case basis. Daddy decides.”

I narrowed my eyes in playful warning.

“I’m not afraid of you,” he whispered and disappeared behind Sloan.

Too fucking cute.

“I’ll keep you safe, baby boy,” Sloan promised.

At that, Corey poked his head around, smug, and stuck out his tongue at me.

Right then and there, I took a mental picture. I’d keep it at the forefront of my mind—one of the many reasons to come home victorious. One of the many reasons to fight.

“Okay, everyone,” Archie said. “It’s late, and Master should get some rest before he leaves.”

He had a point. My flight to LA was first thing in the morning out of JFK, and I was still expecting further instructions from Reese. In no way were we staying in LA. Maybe Cullen knew more. It was… I checked my watch. Almost midnight. I had to leave in little over an hour. I’d grab a half-hour nap, and then I’d talk to Colt and Ty one more time.

Then we were bringing Shay home.

CHAPTER 7

Tate Madden

Early the following morning, I drove out to Mclean again. With the girls. Kingsley had left for work, demanding updates on everything I learned, and he’d come out as soon as he clocked out.

Luck was on my side, and Zoe and Kaley were sleepy enough and wanted to watch a movie on my laptop, so I arranged a fort for them under the kitchen table. The tablecloth was big enough. Pillows, blankets, sippy cups, seat cushions, and string cheese made for a solid babysitter. For a while anyway. Hopefully long enough for me to get some words on paper for Shay.

I sat down at the table with a cup of coffee and the notebook.

“I see feet, Daddy,” Kaley giggled. At least, I was 80% sure it was Kaley. It was way easier to tell them apart by looking at them. Kaley’s hair was a shade lighter, and she had a small birthmark on her cheek. She also insisted on wearing pink. Every single day.

I wriggled my toes, making them both laugh.

Kids were easy to entertain. Until they weren’t.

It wouldn’t be long before people around here woke up, so I took a sip of my coffee and then started writing.

We miss you so much, Shay. Yesterday, Lane suggested that we turn this notebook into an actual book for you, and I hope you read it before you see any of us. Because I can only imagine how overwhelmed you will be once you come home. And I believe that now. Master Greer and his brother joined the rescue operation last night, and I have to believe good will prevail.