by K. C. Crowne
Chuck smirked at me. “Even if you scare me away, there will be others.”
“Others?”
“Wade has money, he has people. He’s not going to let this go until he has both Josie and Milo back where they belong.”
My fist was yearning to smash in his face, to wipe that god-awful smirk away. I was on the verge of losing it. “You don’t threaten my girlfriend or my son ever again, you got it?”
“Your son? Or now that’s fresh,” Chuck laughed. “Wade knew the girl was a fucking whore, but—”
Before he could finish the sentence, I slammed my fist hard into the wall beside his head. I missed him on purpose. A warning shot. If he dared push me any further, the next punch wouldn’t be a miss.
“What’s going on here?” a voice called from my left. I glanced over to see Sheriff Teddy, a hometown fixture for many years, walking toward us. He frowned when he saw me holding Chuck against the wall, but he knew me - and as far as I knew, Chuck was an outsider - so right away he looked at the man against the wall. “And who are you?”
“He’s a private eye sent to terrorize Josie,” I said.
“Let the man go, Cyrus. I’ve got this under control now.”
I didn’t want to let Chuck go. I wanted to pummel the shit out of his face. But Teddy was right. I needed to let the law handle it.
I handed the camera over to Teddy and released Chuck. My insides were boiling, and I was still seeing red. I knew if I didn’t get out of there, I’d end up getting arrested for something. And I couldn’t afford to do that if people were literally stalking Josie at Wade’s request. I let Teddy handle it, filling him in on the details, then I returned to the diner.
Once inside, Josie rushed toward me. Before I knew what hit me, her arms wrapped around my neck and she hugged me tightly. Felicity and Allison were not too far away.
“What happened?” Josie whispered, tears staining her cheeks.
“Teddy’s questioning him now. He also has the camera,” I said.
“Think Teddy will arrest him?” Josie asked, craning her neck to look outside.
I wasn’t sure. He said he was taking photos of the buildings, and if he’d framed them just right and took others to fill in for his story, there might not be any proof that he was intentionally stalking Josie.
I didn’t want her to worry though. “I’m sure if Teddy can find something to arrest him for, he will.”
She stepped back, nodding and wiping her eyes. “They’re never going to leave me alone, are they?”
“Yeah, they will,” I said. I leaned closer, whispering so no one else could hear me. I trusted Felicity, though Allison was harmless, but you could never be too certain in this day and age. “Because we’re going to get married, and as far as the world now knows, Milo is my son. I will stop at nothing to keep my wife and son safe.”
Josie’s eyes widened and her lips parted in an O. “Are you saying…”
“I’m saying yes, I’ll marry you, Josie Parker.”
“I, uhh, wow, I think I need to sit down,” she said, chuckling. She moved to the closest table and fell into the booth. I sat across from her.
“So we’re doing this?” she asked, keeping her voice low.
“Hell yes we are. As soon as we can get into the courthouse, we’ll be husband and wife.”
“Why are you doing this, Cyrus?”
I couldn’t put into words why I had to do it. I just knew I did. I was pissed off, and seeing that man intimidating Josie had pushed me over the top, but it was more than that. Everything from my past up until that point had pushed me here, and I had a feeling it was for a reason. It was my duty to protect Josie.
“Let’s just say I need to make up for my own father and all the wrong he’s done in this world.”
She looked at me for a long time, as if unsure whether to ask for more details. Finally, she must have decided that was all she was going to get from me and nodded. “Alright, as long as you’re sure. I don’t want you to regret this.”
“Why would I regret it? You’re a beautiful woman who cooks a mean lasagna. A man could certainly do much worse.” I winked at her, hoping to reassure her that it was more than a desire to make amends with my past. Because I did care about her. I cared about her a lot. I just couldn’t figure out exactly how to word it. Was it love? No, it was too soon for that. But it was more than just liking her. I had no words to describe how I felt, so I kept those thoughts to myself.
She chuckled at my response, but also blushed and looked away for a second. “So what do we do now? What’s the next step?”
“I’d say the next step is we pick up Milo and head home to my place,” I said. “I’d feel much safer if the two of you were with me.”
“Wow, okay then, I guess I’ll pick up Milo and we’ll meet you at your place.”
I shook my head. “No, I’m coming with you. Like I said, I feel safer if you’re with me.”
All I kept hearing was Chuck’s words about Wade sending others after him. If Wade was as powerful and as dangerous as I thought he was, I wasn’t sure I’d ever feel comfortable letting Josie or Milo out of my sight.
Chapter 15
Josie
Cyrus followed me to my place. Knowing that his truck was behind me the entire way put my mind at ease. I felt safe when I was with him, which was the only reason I agreed to go along with the crazy ass plan in the first place.
I pulled into the driveway and Cyrus pulled in behind me. I pressed the button for the garage and drove inside. I parked, and out of habit, I closed the garage door behind me. Once I realized what I’d done, I hurried out of the car and rushed inside and to the front door.
Mom’s TV was playing in the living room. She was either still up or fell asleep on the couch like she sometimes did. I prayed she was still awake. I didn’t want to have to wake her to tell her what was going on.
“Josie?” she called out as I opened the front door.
“Yeah, Mom, it’s me.” I should have been relieved that she was awake, but I wasn’t. I had to tell her, but the idea of explaining it all to her filled me with dread. It would make her anxious and afraid, and there was a chance she would think it was a horrible idea. She might think we’re crazy.
Hell, we were crazy.
Cyrus walked up the front stairs, and my heart pounded in my chest. He was going to be my husband in a matter of days. And I had all the butterflies one would expect when looking at her future husband, but it still felt weird to me. Probably because it was all moving too fast. Not that I could slow the pace down even if I wanted to.
“Sorry about that. It’s a habit that I close the garage door before getting out. I always did that when Wade was around, just in case he was waiting for me.”
He looked pained by my words. He stepped inside and I shut and locked the door behind him.
“It’s alright. Better to be safe than sorry.”
“Yeah, that’s what I always thought too. We relaxed things a bit after he went to jail, but I never fully relaxed, you know?”
He nodded. “I’m sorry you had to go through all that.”
“You have company?” Mom’s voice startled us both. She was closer than I expected.
We both turned to find her in the hallway wearing a long nightgown and a green face mask. Her hair was pulled back into a very high, messy bun on her head to keep strands from falling into her face. Still, she was grinning when she saw Cyrus, the green mask cracking around her mouth.
“Hello again, Ms. Davis,” Cyrus said with a polite smile.
“Nice to see you again too, Cyrus.” My mom gave him a once over, appreciating the view.
My cheeks burned bright red, and I felt the need to apologize for my mother checking him out but didn’t want to bring it up with her in the room. That seemed like a recipe for awkwardness all around.
“Yeah, umm, Mom, we’re only going to be here for a minute. I came by to grab Milo.” I glanced at Cyrus, then back at her. “We’re going to stay at
Cyrus’s place.”
“Oh yeah? A sleepover, huh?” she teased. “Well, Milo’s already in bed. I can keep an eye on him. It’s no problem for me.”
I licked my lips and looked at Cyrus again. I needed to tell my mother what was going on. “It’s not just for tonight. Milo and I are going to be staying with him from now on.”
Her smile fell. “What do you mean?”
“Well, umm…”
Cyrus interrupted me. “I asked Josie to marry me, and she accepted.” He took my hand in his, giving it a tight squeeze.
Mom’s eyes widened quickly, and she squealed. She ran over to me, hugging me tightly and getting her green, gooey mask all over my cheek. I wiped it away and tried to calm her down.
“Mom, Mom,” I said, laughing quietly as she pulled away.
“How long have you two been secretly dating? Had to have been seeing each other for a while, huh?” she asked.
I looked at Cyrus. I wasn’t going to lie to my own mother. “Uh, not very long, but there’s more you need to know. Can we take this into the living room, please?”
We followed her into the living room, and we took the couch while she took the chair. She stared at me hopefully, waiting for the news - probably thinking it was good news.
“So, I don’t know if you know, but Wade might be getting out of jail in a few weeks.”
“Nah, he’s not.” Mom waved her hand as if to completely dismiss any and all concerns.
“No, seriously, he might, Mom, and he knows about Milo. In fact, he’s sent a private investigator to follow me, and he has photos of Milo and me since right after he was born. He’s threatening to come after him.”
I hesitated, expecting my mother to argue and say there was no way Wade would get custody of my son, but she didn’t. Even she knew we were dealing with a rich, powerful man. A felon, yes, but with expendable cash for bribes.
“Anyway, Cyrus is willing to marry me and set it up to appear to be Milo’s father so we can hopefully fight Wade’s claim to him. If we have a nice, stable family life, he has a father-figure, and well, Cyrus has money too, we may be able to shut him down before he even begins. He may be too intimidated to fight, since we all know he really doesn’t want Milo.” I sighed. “It’s all about getting to me.”
“You think this is going to work?”
I shrugged. “It’s either this or Milo and I leave town, live on the run for the rest of our lives. I can’t think of anything that would be a hundred fool-proof, but I think this gives us the greatest chance of winning and still giving Milo a normal life.”
Mom sat back in her chair, looking a bit shell-shocked. Then her gaze fell on Cyrus as she leaned forward and pointed at him. “You going to take good care of my daughter and grandson?”
“Of course, ma’am.”
“You love them?”
Cyrus hesitated, so I stepped in.
“We’re not there yet, Mom,” I said. “But he cares for us, deeply, and that’s more than enough for me.”
“I do, Ms. Davis. I care about Josie and Milo, and I promise to take care of them and keep them safe. Nothing will touch them as long as I’m alive.”
Mom seemed to relax a bit. She was coming around a lot quicker than I expected her to. She sighed. “You know I won’t be around forever, so I was hoping you’d find someone to love and care for Milo alongside you.”
“I know, Mom. I think I found that.”
“I was really hoping you were going to tell me you’re pregnant.”
Her words took me by surprise, and I laughed. So did Cyrus. “No, not pregnant. I think one kid is more than enough to worry about right now.”
“I know, I’m just teasing you. Mostly.” She chuckled. “I have to wash this mask off before it takes a layer of skin off, but we can talk about this more later. Hopefully before the wedding.”
“Sure, Mom. Whatever you want.”
I hugged her again before she hurried to the bathroom. Cyrus came down to my room to help me pack a few things, including a pack-n-play portable bed for Milo. He took that out to his truck while I gathered my son, trying my best not to wake him as I slipped him into the car seat. He fussed a little bit but fell back asleep as soon as we were all settled in Cyrus’s truck.
Ooo000ooo
“He’s fast asleep,” I chuckled, as I joined Cyrus in the living room. Cyrus’s home was very large, especially compared to mine, and there were plenty of rooms in which Milo could sleep. But for the first night or so, I felt safer if he was with me. So we’d set up his pack-n-play in the master bedroom for now. Cyrus didn’t object, though I knew he had little to no experience with babies and that might make him feel a little uncomfortable. If it did, he didn’t let it show.
“Good, I thought it might take him a while with the change of scenery and all that.”
Cyrus had grabbed a couple of beers for us and they were sitting on the coffee table. I wasn’t much of a drinker, but after the last few days, one drink didn’t sound half bad. He handed me one when I sat down beside him on the couch. I took a sip and tried not to cringe.
“Don’t like it?” he asked, tossing his back and taking a fairly large swig.
“Oh, I’m sure it’s great. I’m just not much of a drinker in general.”
“Ah, so even if I offered you wine instead, I’d get a similar reaction?”
“Probably, yes,” I said with a laugh, relaxing into the couch. “I’ll probably sip on it – I could use something to help calm my nerves – but I don’t drink bunch.”
“Yeah, I usually don’t either. I try not to drink too often, don’t want to be like my old man.” He held the bottle in his hand and seemed to be studying the label before placing it on the coffee table beside mine.
“Your dad drink a lot?”
“Not really, usually only on special occasions. I can’t really blame alcoholism for him being a dick. It just made him meaner when he did drink and gave him an excuse for later.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
Cyrus shrugged. “Want something else to drink?”
“Sure, a glass of water would be fine.”
“Two glasses of water coming right up.”
He stood up and walked to the kitchen, coming back a second later with two glasses of ice water. I noticed he didn’t touch his beer again.
I had no idea what else to say, so I looked at my surroundings, surprised at how nice and large his home was. There was some dust on the bookshelves, some wear and tear on the carpet at the front entry. All signs of a home well-lived, as my mother would say.
“Business going well for you these days?”
“Yeah, I suppose so,” he said. “Well enough.”
“I see. You have a nice home, by the way.”
“If you’re wondering, no, my dad’s money didn’t by this place.”
“I wasn’t thinking that at all,” I said, eyes wide. “In fact, it’s fairly obvious you’ve been here awhile.”
“I have. Ever since coming back to Liberty.”
“You’ve been in town, what, two or three years now?”
“Yeah, about that.”
It often felt like pulling teeth as far as Cyrus was concerned, and that worried me. If we were to be married, would all our time together be spent like this? With me asking questions and him offering the shortest answers possible, without truly opening up to me?
I was growing tired of the back and forth. I wanted to know more about the man, to know about his past or anything he was willing to tell me.
Almost as if he’d read my mind, Cyrus sighed. “Before I moved to Liberty, right after getting out of the army, I ran a security company. It was just a few years before it got tiring, but I made enough money to get me set up here and to take care of my mom. I sold the business to a military buddy of mine. Gave him a good deal, could have probably made more, but mostly I just wanted out. I never felt the need to be wealthy like my dad, just well enough off to live comfortably and to take care of my mother, you know? W
hich is just one reason I don’t want my dad’s money.”
I nodded. “I understand completely. I’ve never understood the need to be filthy rich. I think life is more than just about collecting nice stuff. It’s about spending time with loved ones and having family, enjoying your life a bit instead of working all the time.”
“Yeah, exactly. That’s why I do what I do. I get paid to do what I love, in a place I love. Sure, I could probably make more running the security company, but I wasn’t living. I was working all the damn time, and for what? A large house just for me?”
“Well, you have Milo and me here now too, so I guess that’s something.”
He cracked a half smile. “Yeah, I suppose so. It’s one reason I’m willing to help the two of you out.”
“One reason, eh? And what are the other reasons?”
I scooted closer to him, feeling more comfortable with him than before. He was opening up and even starting to smile. I was drawn to him, and he seemed to lean closer to me too. Our knees touched, and I realized what I’d been doing. Cyrus reached out and put a hand on my knee. That touch felt so natural, I don’t even think he realized he was doing it.
He never did answer my question, at least not with his words. We got closer and closer, until our lips were touching and his other hand was in my hair, pulling me to him.
His hand moved from my knee up my body. He laid me back on the couch, grabbing at the waistband of my leggings and yanking them down along with my panties. His hand moved over my thighs, my skin tingling with every touch as he spread me wider.
He pulled his own pants down, sliding them off and tossing them onto the floor. I sat up and pulled his shirt over his head, and he did the same to mine. Reaching around, he unlatched my bra and tossed it to the floor before gently laying me back down again.
Cyrus climbed on top of me, pressing into me. I wrapped my legs around his waist, arching upward to meet him. He lowered himself and kissed me, his tongue entering my mouth at the same time his cock thrust deep inside me. I cried out into his mouth, thankful my screams were silenced by the kissing. Every time he thrust into me, I felt such surprise. Nothing could prepare me for his thickness.