He didn’t understand the word no and he wouldn’t give up. For whatever reason, he was determined to shove his way into Lincoln’s life now. If it had been merely because of a whim before, I’d have been willing to bet it had become a challenge to him now. He’d never done well with being told no by me, and if my hunch about it having to do with him needing money was right, there was zero chance he’d ever leave us alone.
“Who are we playing with, Mommy?” Lincoln asked.
I sighed. Crap.
The last thing I wanted to do was to lie to him. “We’re practicing how to stay still and quiet for now, but there is someone looking for us.”
“Okay.” He shrugged, putting his index finger to his lips and sliding down the wall to sit on the ground. God, thank you for giving me the best kid in the world.
Suppressing another sigh, I silently ran through our options. Alisha was still gone for the weekend, and… nothing, actually. She was my only option.
When Kurt and I split, I’d lost not only all of my friends but also a bit of my faith in humanity. I hadn’t been interested in inviting new people into my life, with the exception of Alisha.
I probably wouldn’t even have become close to her if she hadn’t been my neighbor. In short, that meant that I had no one to turn to with her being gone.
“How long do we have to practice for, Mommy?” Lincoln asked, looking up at me with an expression that I knew meant trouble. He was starting to get antsy, which wasn’t a good sign. “I’m tired and I’m hungry. I have to have a bath.”
“I know, sweetheart.” I reached out to run my hand through his hair. “Only a few more minutes, okay?”
My heart sank. Only a few more minutes until what, exactly?
There was no way we could home with Kurt standing guard outside our apartment like a damn sentinel. I checked again, hoping against all hope that he was gone. He wasn’t.
Hysteria started edging its way through me. We were all alone here, and fear was spreading in my belly. It wasn’t like sitting in a slowly darkening alley with a toddler was overly safe under the best of circumstances, which these definitely weren’t.
Calling Ollie occurred to me, but I didn’t want anyone else to know about Kurt and what was going on. There was only one other person who had even an inkling of my ex’s existence, and that was my boss.
Fuck. I sighed, closing my eyes and letting the reality of my situation sink in. When that was done and with no one else to call, I scrolled through my contacts and pressed down on Joseph’s name.
“Hello? Lilac?” His tone was curious, if a little confused. “Is that really you? What’s up?”
At least he didn’t sound pissed off about last night. “Can you come pick us up somewhere? Not at the apartment. Somewhere else. Anywhere else. I’m scared, Joseph, and I’m really sorry to be—”
I’d heard him gasp when the word ‘scared’ had come out of my mouth, but he didn’t interrupt me until I started with the apology. “You don’t need to apologize for being scared, Lilac. Not ever. Are you near your apartment?”
“Yes.”
“There’s a Starbucks a few blocks away from you.”
I swallowed past the constricting bands that felt like they were about to choke me. “I know it.”
“I’ll meet you there. Go now.” Even though he was still issuing orders, it was different now.
He was different, like a completely new person. “Listen to me, Lilac. Everything is going to be fine, but you have to take Lincoln and go now, okay? I promise you, I will meet you there. You just have to get there.”
I nodded while he spoke, my hand reaching out for Lincoln’s as if my body itself was hell-bent on carrying out Joseph’s commands. “Okay. We’ll be there.”
Lincoln and I made it to Starbucks right as he did. I felt myself shaking, fear and adrenaline and a healthy dose of terror making my hands do their best imitation of leaves.
Joseph rolled up in a black SUV. He got out, immediately giving me a quick once-over. It wasn’t like he was checking me out, though. It was more like he was assessing whether I’d been injured. “I’m glad you made it here. Get in.”
His voice was tight, firm. And for some reason, that was comforting. “Thanks for coming to get us.”
“Any time.” He opened the back door and helped us climb into the car. I could do it myself, of course, but it was nice that someone else was just taking charge right now. Lord knew I was too freaked out to be much use to anyone.
“You don’t have a car seat for Lincoln.” I realized it as we got in, but I wrapped Lincoln up in my arms anyway.
“I’m a good driver,” he assured me, shutting the door behind us and reappearing in the driver’s seat a few seconds later. I wanted to tell him that having a car seat was a requirement for kids whether you were a good driver or not, but it wouldn’t have changed anything.
Besides, who was I to argue with the man who was saving my ass from the ex-hole? “Okay.”
When he pulled away from the curb, I noticed another man was in the car with us. He twisted in the passenger seat, smiling politely. Blond hair that was starting to go gray around his temples was cut so short it was almost severe, but his brown eyes were soft and kind.
“Hi. I’m Grant. I used to serve with Joseph,” he said. “You’re both going to be fine, let’s just get you back to his place, okay?”
“Okay.” I breathed in through my nose and out through my mouth, trying my best to believe what the man was saying and to not freak out. Both of them were using these really calming tones to talk to me. It made me want to believe them, believe that we would be fine.
But they didn’t even know what was going on. How could they be so convinced we really would be fine?
Besides, a freak-out was most certainly in order after the last few days I’d had. First, I’d slept with my boss and then I called him like some kind of damsel in distress—neither of which was something I was particularly proud of. This really isn’t my weekend.
Chapter 19
Joseph
My blood was humming. I could practically feel it pumping through my veins. It made my heart beat faster as I navigated us back to my condo as quickly but safely as I could.
This was the closest I’d gotten to feeling like I was back in combat and I’d been missing it for a decade. A grin broke out across my face as we raced through the city.
Grant noticed, pursing his lips and shaking his head. I didn’t miss how the corners of his mouth pressed in, though. He was trying not to smile, too.
Not that either of us would smile about the situation; it was just about the feeling of it all. It was almost exhilarating to feel needed in that way again, like we’d been kicked back into action.
We’d been just about through the football game when she’d called. As soon as I’d heard the fear in her voice, I’d put the phone on speaker so Grant could hear her too. That kind of fear in a woman’s voice was unacceptable. I didn’t like how her hands were shaking now either.
Although she hadn’t told me in so many words, I had a fairly good idea of what was going on after having overheard her phone call the night before. Last night, she’d been fuming at this asshole. She wasn’t fuming anymore, though. She was terrified.
I didn’t know what had changed in the last twenty or so hours, but something obviously had.
She sat stock-still on the back seat, holding on to her son as if she was afraid someone was going to pry him away from her. I wondered if that was what this was about. Was someone threatening her with taking him away? Or was she just holding on to him like that because he wasn’t in a car seat?
I supposed it could be a combination of those things. The possibility of someone threatening her wasn’t sitting well with me, though. It hadn’t last night, and it didn’t now.
Whatever else people could say about me or my character, no one could accuse me of not treating women right. Maybe not in the ‘put a ring on it’ sense, but definitely in every other way. I
respected women and any coward who didn’t wouldn’t like what I did to him if I ever saw him disrespecting someone.
We made it back to my condo quickly, driving mostly in silence. I parked in the underground garage and ushered them up to my place.
Only once the door was locked behind us did Lilac seem like she could actually breathe again, like the air she was drawing in was fully reaching her lungs. Grant walked over to her, putting his hand on her arm in a friendly gesture. “Would you like some coffee?”
She nodded, and he drew his arm away from her to ruffle Lincoln’s hair. “How about you, buddy? I might be able to magic up some juice for you around here.”
“Yes, please.” His voice was small, confused as hell.
“Does he like cartoons?” I asked Lilac, nodding my head at Lincoln. He was standing in the middle of my living room clutching a stuffed dinosaur and looking around with wide eyes.
She frowned at me like she didn’t understand the question, then gave her head a little shake. “He’s three, so yes. He loves them.”
“Anything in particular?”
Lilac’s shoulders went up and down, the expression on her face almost blank again. It looked like she was in a mild state of shock. “Anything with animals. Dinosaurs if you can manage it.”
“Let’s see.” I walked over to the coffee table and picked up my remote, turning on the TV before I started browsing through the channels.
Lilac was standing where I’d left her near the entrance to the living room, but Lincoln had moved to the TV and was looking up at it. When I skipped over a channel and his little head whipped to face me, eyes full of pleading and hope, I grinned. “You want to watch that one?”
He nodded, teeth sinking into his lower lip. “Yes, please.”
“Sure.” I set the channel to the cartoon he wanted, then motioned at the couch. “You can get comfortable here. Do you need anything else?”
I had no idea what more a three-year-old could need, but I offered anyway because again, I had no idea. Lincoln shook his head and sat down on the couch, perched at the very edge like he was too afraid to lie back.
Lilac was staring absently out the window. I walked back to where she was standing and touched her shoulder. She jerked a little, but at least she wasn’t lost in her thoughts anymore. “I told him he could get comfortable, but I don’t think he has.”
Another frown, but then she blinked and some warmth returned to her eyes. She crossed the room to Lincoln and put her hands on his shoulders, leaning down to speak into his ear. I couldn’t hear what she said, but it worked.
He noticeably relaxed, his shoulders dropping as he curled up around his dinosaur with his feet on the couch and his chin on his knees. I cringed a little when I saw his shoes were on the upholstery, but then forced myself to chill out.
Whatever they had gone through today, it had obviously been traumatic. The last thing the kid, or Lilac for that matter, needed was to see it made me uncomfortable that he’d put his feet up after I told him to get comfortable.
“Come on,” I said to her when she turned away from the couch. “Grant should have those coffees ready for us by now.”
She nodded, glancing back down at Lincoln. “Mommy’s just going to be in the kitchen, okay? If you call me, I’ll hear you and I’ll be right here.”
He lifted his hand and gave her a thumbs up, too engrossed in the show to look away from it. She shook her head, a small smile forming on her lips as she nodded to me. “I think he’s going to be fine. Let’s go get caffeinated.”
Grant had the coffee ready when we walked into the kitchen, one steaming mug sitting in front of each of the three stools around the marble island. “Here you go. Relax, have some coffee and later when you’re ready, maybe you can tell us what happened.”
Lilac nodded and collapsed onto her stool. As soon as her butt was on it, she dropped her head into her hands and clutched her hair, her voice muffled when she spoke.
“I’m so sorry I called for your help.”
“No.” I reached for her arm, but then remembered she was supposed to be nothing more than an employee so I pulled back again. “Don’t apologize, it’s not necessary.”
Grant sat down across from her, his kind, it’s okay now smile fixed to his lips. God, I hated that smile, but it was also one of the most comforting sights I knew. I’d been the recipient of it more times than I could count, and it never failed to set me at least a little at ease.
“Were you scared, Lilac?” he asked, holding his coffee in both hands and looking at her over the rim.
She lifted her head, nodded and then lowered it back down.
“You did the right thing to call me, then,” I said. “Do you want to tell us what happened?”
A soft sigh came from her, but she didn’t move or say anything for a minute. When she finally looked up again, her eyes came right to mine and stayed there.
I didn’t like seeing the fear that was still in them, but I didn’t mention anything about it. Hopefully, I’d know what—or who—had put it there sooner rather than later. And then I could figure out what to do about that person.
“It’s my ex,” she started, pressing her lips into a thin line and taking a breath. “He’s Lincoln’s father. He never hit me, I swear. I’m not afraid of him because of that. He’s not a great guy, but he never abused me physically.”
The fact that she’d specifically stated the abuse hadn’t been physical told me that he’d abused her in other ways, but I wanted to hear the full story before I jumped to any conclusions. Or jumped in my car and went to track the bastard down.
“After Lincoln was born, he signed over all his parental rights and responsibilities to me. He’s never even seen his son. A couple of months ago, he started calling and demanding to see him. I don’t know why he’s suddenly calling now, but he’s not taking no for an answer. When he called me last night, he mentioned that he was going to try for full custody of Lincoln and that I’d have to pay him so much child support, they’d be able to move to Hawaii. I think that’s why he is ramping up his efforts. He needs money.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Apparently he’s not happy just calling anymore either. Kurt’s not even supposed to know where we’re living now, but he does. When we got home from the park this afternoon he was standing in front of my building.”
“You never gave him your address?” Grant asked, then exchanged a look with me when Lilac shook her head no.
So, he shouldn’t know where she lives, yet he does. It was suspect, but we couldn’t exactly threaten him or beat him up for standing on a public street outside an apartment building.
Loitering was suspicious behavior, but not criminal in and of itself. We also didn’t know how he’d found her or perhaps more worryingly, why he’d looked her up out of the blue in the first place.
“You can’t go back to your apartment.” I knew I was stating the obvious, but I had to frame the offer I was about to make somehow. “I have a guestroom. You can stay here.”
Lilac’s brows went up. She hesitated, clearly mulling it over before finally, she just nodded. That alone told me how scared and upset she was. She was never this docile.
I frowned, wondering if there was more to this story that she wasn’t telling us. I didn’t want to push her, but I did want to know what we were dealing with.
Before I could ask another question, though, she got to her feet and carried her cup of coffee over to the couch. Snuggling up with her arm around Lincoln, she kicked off her shoes and evidently, had settled in to watch the loud cartoon with her son.
Grant and I watched her, but seemed to come to the conclusion that she was done talking to us for now at the same time. I shrugged. “Want to come help me check out the guest room? Make sure they’ve got everything they need in there?”
“Sure, but you’re not going to have everything they need. We should order some toiletries and stuff, or maybe I could run out to the store.”
“We’ll ask her to make
a list of basics later,” I agreed. My house was definitely not equipped to have a woman or a kid living in it.
“Good idea,” Grant said and followed me out the kitchen down the hall to the guest room. I only had the one, but I didn’t think they’d mind sharing a room. In fact, I was pretty sure nothing was going to make Lilac let go of that kid for the rest of the night.
“I have some friends in the police department,” Grant said as we walked into the room. He shut the door behind us, eyes dark and serious when I turned to face him. “I’ll help in any way I can, so just let me know if you want me to reach out to them. We can look into this guy, find out what the fuck he wants from her.”
“I don’t buy that he suddenly wants into the kid’s life.” I sighed, raking my hands through my hair. “I don’t know why, I just don’t.”
“Neither do I,” he said. “She could be spot on with the money thing, though. Whatever the reason, guys like this can get dangerous, Joe. Becoming obsessed with your ex and stalking her? I’ve heard horror stories; I think everyone has. Just because she claims that he hasn’t physically hurt her in the past doesn’t mean that his behavior won’t escalate now if she keeps refusing him.”
“I know.” I wound my fingers together at the back of my neck and blew out a deep breath. “I appreciate your offer to help. I’ll talk to Lilac about it, but I’m sure she’ll appreciate it too.”
His eyebrows lifted, some of the seriousness vanishing from his expression. “You’re actually going to talk to her about it? You’re not just going to give me the go-ahead like the alpha bastard you are and tell her later that it was for her own good?”
I flipped him off. “She’s my employee, not my girl. This is her personal life. I think I’ve crossed enough lines with her in the last twenty-four hours, don’t you? I’ll call the police to come by, but I’m not asking you to pull some strings without talking to her.”
Grant chuckled, rustling the hair at the back of his head with his hand. “True. I’d almost forgotten about all the lines you’ve crossed already. Okay, well let me know what she says. I should get going.”
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