Page 4 of Her Courage

And some part of her sensed it like a piranha smelling blood in the water.

“Time for you to leave Patrice.” Andrei appeared, the fury of hell radiating in his eyes. “Now. Before I remove you myself, and you really won't like it if I have to do that. Because it may involve some concrete shoes and the bottom of the river."

I know it was cliche, but the fire in Andrei's eyes made me squirm. The man was an absolute teddy bear with me, but everyone else was fair game.

And obviously Kaleb's mother was on his shit list.

Patrice huffed--a sound I suspected she used frequently--and strode off toward her shiny BMW parked in the driveway. Before she opened the driver's side door, she glanced at Kaleb. "Son, I suggest you check your emails regarding the deal." Her sharp eyes flitted briefly to me, before trailing back to Kaleb. "For your little fake family's sake."

A shiver ran down my spine as she got in the car and peeled out of the driveway.

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" I whispered, not directing the question at anyone specifically.

Kaleb sighed. "That would be my mother for you."

Andrei muttered under his breath in Russian, and I hoped it was a curse that would keep the evil woman out of our lives.

Chapter Three

ANDREI

Iwas so pissed I could punch through a wall right now. How dare Patrice come to our property and act like she owned the place? She was nothing. Less than nothing. She was a speck of shit on the bottom of my shoe.

The moment her car was out of sight, Kaleb’s shoulders finally relaxed and he released a shuddering exhale.

"She is a fucking piece of work." Lottie wrinkled her nose.

"You don't even know the half of it, baby girl." Kaleb sounded so defeated as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and brought her against his side. Those hazel eyes reflected decades of pain at the hands of his mother, and it made me want to ruin her after I punched her douchebag husband in the face.

Oscar pulled the SUV into the garage and then came out to meet us. "Does she ever give up?" Even he hated the wicked witch that was Patrice.

"No, she doesn't." There was little more than resignation in Kaleb's statement and my hands clenched into fists at my sides.

A shiver had Lottie's body quaking and Kaleb shook his head and pulled her even closer. She was in her normal work from home clothes, which were comfy pants and a tank top. "Let's get you inside." He kissed her forehead and I followed them inside, Oscar following close behind.

I went straight to the kitchen and poured us all healthy portions of whiskey, and a glass of wine for Lottie, before joining them in the living room.

Kaleb downed his whiskey in a single swallow, and I handed him mine with a shake of my head. It was going to be one of those types of days. Not that I could blame him.

Patrice was his trigger, just like my grandfather had been for me.

Lottie accepted the glass of wine with a grateful smile, and I headed back to the kitchen to grab the bottle.

I had a feeling we were going to need it tonight.

When I returned to the living room, Lottie had scooted herself closer to Kaleb and had a hand on his knee. Her brow was furrowed in concern, and her gaze lifted to meet mine and her eyes pleaded with me.

I refilled the two empty glasses of whiskey and sat down on Lottie's other side. "Kaleb, remember when you told me I had to open up about my past?"

His eyes fluttered shut and he muttered a curse beneath his breath.

"I take that as a yes." I paused to sip my amber liquor. "I didn't think I'd have to pull out the same words so soon, but here we are."

Lottie rubbed her hand up and down Kaleb's leg, as her teeth gripped her bottom lip.

I placed a hand on her back. "Just say what you're thinking, kroshka. He needs to hear it, just like I did."

She nodded and took in a deep breath. "Kaleb, I love you. Nothing is going to change that." She paused and tilted her head to the side. "Well, maybe if you like cheated on me or set my Squishmallow collection on fire, then I probably wouldn't anymore, but you'd never do that so it's a moot point."