by M. A. Innes
Hayden loved it.
I’d been more cautious when Miles had invited us to the barbecue at his house, but Hayden had jumped in with both feet, wearing his Care Bears shirt and his favorite pink tennis shoes. Miles had said the guys would love him no matter what and he hadn’t questioned that.
Not that I should have either, but protecting Hayden was too ingrained in me. He would always come first. Miles understood that, but he also wasn’t afraid to push me out of my comfort zone.
Hayden carefully set the pink ones back and pulled out another pair. “What about my purple ones, Daddy?”
Oh yeah, Hailey had too many shoes.
“They’re beautiful.” Hailey’s love of being fancy hadn’t dimmed over the past couple of years, and the sparkles that covered the tennis shoes proved it.
So far in our attempt to decide what to wear to the playdate, we’d accumulated a pair of bright pink socks, a pink sundress with dots of other colors in the fabric, and now the tennis shoes. Hailey would be the prettiest little there, but I wasn’t sure if that was a problem or not. Knowing that side of him was more feminine hadn’t thrown them as we’d talked about it, but seeing things in person was always harder.
I probably shouldn’t worry. The biggest drama we’d had so far was that everyone wanted to come over to see the dollhouse—which had to be a good sign. But there was too much in the past for me to be confident about it.
Which was something I was working on with Miles.
At first, agreeing to talk to someone had felt ridiculous. I had the ultimate first world problems, so I wasn’t going to go whining to a therapist that I didn’t like spending my money. That was stupid. But it was what Hayden had wanted, so I’d sucked it up.
It still seemed self-indulgent, but I’d given up pointing that out to Hayden since it just made him nuts. Evidently, there was nothing wrong with escaping the hell we’d grown up in and having a secure future.
“But Bailey doesn’t match.” Hailey turned his big sad eyes on me. From his position on the floor, he looked even sadder.
I was being played. I wasn’t stupid, but I was, however, a sucker.
I moved off my chair and sat down beside him and his pile of clothes. “I think Bailey would look very pretty in the pink dress. It almost matches.”
Bailey the doll was still his most prized possession—that hadn’t changed from the first night I’d given it to him all those years ago—and he loved it when they matched. Money didn’t necessarily buy happiness, but it could buy matching dresses. And when you were stinking rich, people didn’t even question the weird requests.
Last year I’d found a local seamstress who would cut down dresses to fit the doll, so I usually bought two of everything. After the initial questions I hadn’t been able to easily answer, she’d stopped asking about why and simply smiled when I dropped off the dresses. She even had the doll’s measurements on file like it was a person.
I didn’t ask what she thought I was doing, but Bailey had a better wardrobe than I did.
“We don’t have time to get Bailey a matching dress.”
Because twenty-four hours wasn’t enough unless I paid her some crazy overtime, and I wasn’t sure where I bought the dress to begin with.
Hailey sighed and gave me another pout. The little manipulator was tugging at my heartstrings. Fighting against it was almost impossible. “Your friends are going to love the pink one. They loved your shoes.”
I was pretty sure the rest of the littles wouldn’t care one way or the other this time. They were all too busy figuring out how to be little around other people without losing their minds. They’d have opinions on doll dresses later, though. They had opinions on everything…who had the bigger water gun at the barbecue, which color of popsicle was best, who was more nervous about the playdate.
I was starting to remember why I didn’t have that many friends.
Remembering their fawning over his pink shoes made him somewhat happier. “They’re going to like my pink dress.”
“Yes, they will.” Pulling him into my arms, I hugged him tight. “They’re going to love playing with you no matter what you wear.”
He giggled, snuggling close. “But I have to look fancy, Daddy.”
“Of course you will.” I kissed his head. “How about you work on your puzzle for a while before we go run errands?”
Hailey’s smile widened and he hugged me tightly. “My puzzle, Daddy.”
Spread out all over the kitchen table was a Care Bears puzzle he’d been putting together for days. Hayden had fallen in love with it at the store, but it was always Hailey who sat with Bailey and worked on it carefully, discussing each piece with Bailey. Which was why it had been there for over a week.
Eventually, it had to get done.
It had to.
I just wasn’t sure what we were going to do when it was finally complete. There was no way he would let me put it back in the box, but I couldn’t leave it on the table forever. What did functional parents do in these situations? I didn’t have a good frame of reference for shit like that.
Sure, it wasn’t the same situation for parents of actual kids, but this could not be a new problem.
Hailey popped up, grabbing my hand. “The movie too, Daddy. My bears too.”
It was evidently going to be a Care Bears morning.
“Okay, pretty boy. Care Bears it is.” Anything for my sweet boy.
“Then paints?” He aimed those big wide eyes at me.
Almost anything for my boy.
“No paints today. We have to run errands later.” No matter what the package said about how washable the damned stuff was, paint got everywhere. That was the last time I bought discount finger paint. He knew not to eat the stuff, so I figured there wasn’t a reason to buy the name brand that was twice the price.
I was wrong.
And Hailey seemed to be having fun pointing that out every time we got the paint out.
“But Daddy.” That sweet pout popped out again.
“Not this time.” I started leading him through the house as I thought about a way to distract him. It hadn’t been long since breakfast so a snack wasn’t a good idea, but anything was better than finger paint. “How about we get the bubbles out later?”
Hailey had a bubble machine that sent out bubbles like it was some kind of machine gun. As Hailey started to smile, I realized something. “Hey, why don’t we bring your bubbles when we go play with your friends?”
Everyone liked bubbles, right?
They weren’t messy and would probably be a good way to break the ice between the rest of the littles. Making a mental note to text Miles or Sean, I helped Hailey sit down, putting Bailey in the little seat that sat on the table by the puzzle.
Of course the doll had a seat; she had a bed and every other piece of furniture a person could reasonably need. Hell, the doll could easily outfit a small studio apartment. And since new furniture was one of the easiest things to buy Hailey for Christmas, the doll had a lot.
Which was probably why the company kept putting out new pieces every year.
“There we go.” Sitting down beside Hailey, I pulled my book over from the corner of the table. I hadn’t given the pieces the studying they deserved, so Hailey had decreed the puzzle his, saying, Daddy no touch.
Little brat.
But he was my little brat and I wouldn’t trade him for anything or anyone. He’d always been the one for me and that would never change.
****
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me!” Pushing back from the table, I started pacing around the small conference room.
I could feel Hayden watching me, but I guessed he thought I needed a minute because he turned back to Adam. As a lawyer he was great, but he’d been raised in a perfect home and had no way of grasping the insanity we’d grown up with.
“Do we know how they found out about the winnings?” Hayden’s calm voice was strained, but he was keeping it together for me.
&nbs
p; Adam leaned back in his chair, shaking his head a bit. “They don’t give details or even say how they know you’ve won. We’ve done our best to keep things under the radar, but there are always ways of finding out.” Adam sat forward and pushed the letter that had been forwarded from the lottery officials closer to Hayden.
I’d been too frustrated with the initial news to actually read it.
“There’s no specific amount listed.” Hayden looked up at me, so I stopped pacing. “It’s vague threats and words like You know what you did so I’m not going to tell you. Nothing detailed.”
Adam nodded. “I agree. He’s claiming half of ‘the winnings’ and ‘those moneys’ without listing anything out.”
“Sounds like he’s even worse at extortion than he is at keeping a job.” I rolled my eyes, taking a deep breath and heading over to the table to sit down again.
Hayden reached over, taking my hand and squeezing it tight, keeping his focus on Adam. “Then it really is possible he figured out we won something in the lottery but has no idea how much it really is?”
Adam nodded. “I did some research earlier. In that area, there were five smaller prizes awarded in the month before you won. All were minimal amounts compared to your winnings, but to your parents, they would all seem substantial.”
Hayden nodded, slowly stroking my fingers with his. “Not parents. We’re not claiming them as relatives. But yeah, anything big enough to buy beer with would be interesting to them.”
Bruce had married Mom right after we’d left. Hayden thought it was a distraction tactic of some sort, but I didn’t care. After everything that had happened, I was done with them. Hayden and I were enough of a family that nothing else mattered.
And no matter what people said about parents always being family, my grandmother would have understood.
“So we have a few options—”
I broke in, knowing what he was going to say. Adam’s middle name had to be cautious. “No. Ignore it unless they get a lawyer. We’ve been careful and nothing personal shows where anyone can find us online.”
We’d even been careful about how the house was purchased. It wouldn’t be easy to find us. Hell, even Cody had said we’d done a good job, and he was some kind of hacker. “All they should see if they manage to find us is college students who somehow purchased a house.”
Nodding, Adam leaned back again. “That is one option. I know you don’t want to deal with them, but just throwing them a bone with the proviso that they won’t contact you—”
“He’ll see it as a sign of weakness.” I wasn’t going to run from him again.
I’d made that mistake once.
Adam’s face tightened and he pinched his lips, but he started making notes on the pad in front of him. “Okay, but we need to draft a response to the letter for the Lottery Commission, even though it’s nothing to worry about. It’s too vague and too oddly worded for them to take seriously.”
He looked up, giving us a tight smile. “I actually know someone in the office, and what they’re telling me is that sending us the letter was more of a heads-up than anything else. It’s been too much time since you won.”
Bruce would never be able to manufacture enough proof that he was half owner in the ticket for him to be anything other than a nuisance. We still had the card from Grandma and had taken every precaution when we’d claimed the winnings. When we added in the money we had available for great lawyers, the deck was stacked against him.
“I’m going to side with Trent on this one.” Hayden glanced over at me, smiling. It was usually the two of them or Hayden and our investment guy trying to get me to be a little less cautious, so I appreciated how rare this was. “They won’t back down. If we show them any money, they’ll see us as a bottomless ATM they can always get more from.”
“Legally we can—”
I broke in. “They don’t care about legal.”
People with functional families didn’t understand. I didn’t blame Adam. If I’d been raised differently, I might’ve been shocked at the idea that parents would steal an inheritance or tear up scholarship offers. He’d never be able to understand the fear and anger I’d felt when Bruce had swung those bolt cutters at me, breaking my arm.
“He won’t obey the law and he won’t follow any agreement.” A ghost of the pain ran through me, and I had a hard time not making a noise. I knew it was just in my head, but it was too real.
“Then I’ll send a response explaining our position and ignore the actual letter.” Adam went back to making notes. “You were gainfully employed at the time and responsible for your own funds. You purchased the tickets with Hayden, and at that period, Mr. Hicks had no legal ties to you.”
I still couldn’t believe she married him.
Sometimes guilt ate at me, making me think I should’ve at least stayed in contact with Mom, but logic pushed back. She’d never change and he was too manipulative. Fuck, it couldn’t have been that hard to track us down in those first weeks.
Part of me hoped he’d given her some bullshit story, but if she’d been a real mother, that wouldn’t have made a difference. There wasn’t anything I wouldn’t do for Hayden, and Grandma would have done anything for me, even though she hadn’t always known the best way to show it. Looking down at the letter, I wasn’t sure if she knew what he was doing or not. With only Bruce’s signature, it could go either way.
“If Mr. Hicks persists, we still have a few options. I know you don’t want to press charges and it would be difficult at this point, but he may not realize that.” Adam shrugged, clearly not worried that my stepfather was too stupid to know what was legal or not. “A carefully worded letter pointing out that if he was arrested for assault, he would pay more in legal fees than he’d get from you might be enough. There is also the issue of inheritance theft that hasn’t been addressed with the police.”
I snorted. “He’s a coward, so that might do it.”
Adam had sat down with us at our first meeting and insisted he wanted to know everything that could possibly have legal consequences. When we’d played dumb, he’d snorted and said he had to know what could come back and bite us in the ass.
The blunt honesty had broken down walls all the polite words in the world never would have. So he knew everything from the stupid shit I’d stolen as a kid to the drama with Bruce. Adam had a great blank face, but it’d been more than he’d been expecting.
We’d been his first clients from the wrong side of the tracks, as Grandma had called it.
Luckily, nothing else had come up. Even Hayden’s biological nightmare had stayed away. From what we’d heard from the few people back home we still spoke to, the old man was still high as a kite most of the time and didn’t do much.
I was relieved, but it had to hurt Hayden to know that he’d walked away and the asshole hadn’t even looked for him at all. He’d always been the one I’d worried about. I should have been more focused on the crazy that would step into my own life. But I’d just never imagined my mother picking up a loser like Bruce.
“You have our permission to send that letter if he contacts you again.” Hayden took a deep breath. “We need to downplay any money and make sure we don’t sound rich enough to afford a fancy lawyer.”
I chuckled. “You’ve got to pretend to be cheap.”
Adam laughed. “I’ll do my best.”
He was smart, professional, and gave great advice, but cheap was not one of his many attributes. I snorted. “Your best might not be good enough.”
Hayden’s hand relaxed in mine as he grinned. “I’m willing to vote for scaring the hell out of him if it will make him go away.”
Adam grinned. “I can’t promise I’m frightening, but I can bury him in legal jargon and hopefully make him feel like there’s no point in pursuing it.”
“That will work for now.” Bruce wouldn’t know what hit him if he kept it up. I’d do anything for Hayden, including going to war with that monster.
Chapter 2
Hayden
Sometimes all I wanted was a quiet life. Then I realized that would never work for us, but it was still fun to picture. Like one of those really kinky fantasies that would suck in real life but was hot to imagine.
“Is there anything we need to discuss for the foundation?” I looked down at my to-do list and sighed. It was still ridiculously long. “I know we needed to go over the new prospective charities, but last time we talked, you weren’t sure if those reports would be in yet.”
Adam nodded, putting the letter back in the file he’d pulled it out of earlier. Maybe it was silly, but it was a relief having it out of sight. I wasn’t stupid. I knew it wasn’t something we could play ostrich about, but it was tempting, even though I didn’t think Bruce would be much of a problem.
He was a coward at heart. One threat to call the cops, and he’d back off as long as he didn’t smell blood or sense an ungodly amount of money hidden just out of reach. Keeping my face blank, I made a mental note to call Cody.
I wasn’t going to put Adam in an awkward position or worry Trent, but Cody and his magic brain might be able to help better than any lawyer could. Hell, if he could make whatever the hell Kevin and Jeremy were worried about disappear, he could handle Bruce.
Kevin had gone white as a sheet when Cody had casually mentioned his gift of erasing their past, so whatever it was had to be important. But since Miles would never work with someone who was dangerous to us or to the community, I knew they hadn’t left a path of bodies in their wake. Miles had even looked like he’d approved of whatever Cody had done, even if he hadn’t said anything specific. But I’d known him long enough to understand what that twinkle in his eye had meant.
I came back to the present as Adam shook his head. “No, we’re still waiting and I don’t want to start making noises about donations until we know everything.”
Who knew giving away money was so difficult?
“Okay, that’s fine. I’d rather be careful.” Even if it hadn’t been helpful on our taxes, Trent and I had known right away that we wanted to donate money. We’d just never realized there was so much to consider. Luckily, the people who helped us manage everything had realized that. “Once we get the okay from the investigator, we need to sit down and iron out the exact donations.”