by Aiden Bates
“I’ve got some work to finish up right now. But I need to pick up Lissa in about two hours.”
“I can be there in two hours.” I was already moving toward the coat rack by the door. I’d have to leave immediately, but that was fine. What the hell did I have to do that was more important than this?
“You two can meet then, if you like—”
“I do like. I like a lot.”
“—and we’ll see how things go.” Daniel paused. “I don’t want to get your hopes up too much, Rusty.”
I froze with half my arm in my bomber jacket. “About this new clue, or about meeting Lissa?”
“The clue. Or, well. Both, I guess. It’s still not hard evidence. Just another piece of the puzzle. And Lissa… She’s shy, Rusty. She warms up fast once she’s comfortable, but don’t be surprised if it takes her a little time to get to that point.”
“Right. I can handle all of that.” Lissa could kick me in the shin and call me shithead for all I cared. Or, well. Probably a poopyhead, if I was being realistic. She was only five. But still.
We said our goodbyes and I hung up the phone with an impossibly huge grin on my face anyway.
I was finally going to meet her. Was finally going to get to see my little girl again.
“Where’re you off to, big chief?” Harper came out into the living room, munching on a bowl of cereal. His hair was even more of a mess than usual, and he was still in his pajamas despite the fact that it was well past noon.
“Sparkleburg. Daniel might have something for us.” I chuckled at his pajama pants as I checked out the print. “Flamingos? Didn’t think those were your style.”
“Huh?” Harper glanced down, then scoffed. “Oh. They’re Nick’s. We’re hanging out in bed today trying to come up with a lead on who might’ve been at the bar that night he got knocked up.”
“I thought you two had dropped that.” After all, last I heard on the subject of Nick’s mysterious baby daddy, he and Harper had decided they were happier not knowing.
“Yeah, but with you running point on the birth control investigation now, me still gimping around from the ol’ gunshot wounds, and Nick’s feet swelling up so bad he can’t get his shoes on right now…” Harper crunched his way through another mouthful of cereal and shrugged. “Keeps us busy. Speakin’ of questions that aren’t anyone’s business, though… You’re grinnin’ pretty big for someone who’s just checking out a new clue, though.”
“Ah, yeah.” I rubbed the back of my neck. Somehow, my grin was only getting bigger. “I’m meeting Lissa today too. Properly this time.”
“That mean you’re going to stick around here in Fort Greene when you’re finished?” Kaleb emerged from the kitchen, carrying two bowls of cereal of his own. He was clad in pajama pants too—a Johnny Cash t-shirt and some flannels.
“Dunno,” I admitted. “Not much for me here in terms of a career. Not compared to what I’d find on the west coast, anyway.”
“Just remember if you get involved with that little girl’s life, it’s gotta be all or nothin’.” Kaleb held up a bowl of cereal in offering. “You want some Reeses Puffs before you head out? Derek and I are gonna put on Oh Brother, Where Art Thou and—”
“I’m alright.” I waved the bowl away. “Gotta get going if I’m gonna get there in time to pick up Lissa. You kiddos have a good time with your slumber party, though.”
“Good luck,” Kaleb said with a nod. “And be safe. You never know who Congressman Rasner might have keeping an eye on things now that we’re getting so close to pinning him down.”
Kaleb’s warning turned out to be a useful one. I arrived at Daniel’s house a little early. In my excitement to see Lissa, my foot must’ve turned to lead on the gas pedal once I hit the highway. I drove by slowly, keeping my eyes peeled for anything that might’ve looked like surveillance—and immediately found it.
A black SUV was nestled down the street from Daniel’s place. Parked, but the engine was still running. Daniel lived on the nice side of Spartanburg, the same neighborhood that Spartan Prep was located in. The one that made our little Sparkleburg joke ring true.
People in this neighborhood drove sports cars and shiny new Ford Escapes with My Child Is An Honor’s Student bumper stickers on the back. Not big black gas-guzzlers with tinted windows. Couple that with the sinking feeling that I got in my stomach when I laid eyes on the vehicle, and I had a strong case that Kaleb’s warning was ringing true.
It was a surveillance car if I’d ever seen one. If Dad had taught me anything worth knowing, it was to trust my gut.
I sent Daniel a text to let him know we should switch locations, then at his suggestion, headed off to meet him at the local McDonald’s instead.
“You sure this place is safer?” I glanced around the parking lot, spotting plenty of nice cars, but nothing that struck me as immediately suspicious.
Daniel was leaned up against the trunk of his Mercedes. As I walked over to him, I thought I caught a momentary smile in his eyes—though it didn’t get all the way down to his lips.
“Safest place in town, actually. Dad thinks McDonald’s are for poor people. Made me promise I’d never feed Lissa that dollar menu processed shit.” This time, the smile that came to his lips was an easy one. “But she likes the chicken nuggets, and she likes to pretend the play area is a pirate ship.”
He nodded to the multicolored tower of tunnels and slides just beyond the green metal gate in front of us. A wild yarr! echoed from within it. Through one of the plastic-windowed portholes, I saw a little flash of blonde braids.
“Cute,” I said softly. It was all I could do not to run through that gate and dive into one of those tunnels to chase after her. But something told me that all my years of muscle-building workout routines meant I’d just get myself stuck at the shoulders. It’d be a hell of a lot harder to keep a low profile in Spartanburg if we had to call the fire department to come cut me out.
“You really think Dad’s got people watching my house?” Daniel sucked his lower lip between his teeth, frowning at the thought. “I mean, he’s not beyond that—I don’t know that he’s beyond anything anymore. But putting surveillance on his own son…”
“He knows you’re following the tracks of the rumor train,” I pointed out. “And the closer we get to finding hard evidence that connects him to everything he’s trying so hard to cover up, the more careful he’s gonna be.” I looked Daniel up and down for a moment. He looked more tired than ever. This case was obviously wearing on him. But despite that… “You look good, Daniel.”
He only smirked. “You don’t have to sweet-talk me into giving you info, Rusty. I already told you I’d help. You’re better than that.”
“Who’s sweet-talkin’?” I drew a little nearer to him. The scent of his cologne hit me. Nearly knocked me off my feet with how good he smelled. “I mean it. You’re one of those…what do they call ‘ems.”
“Overworked single dads?”
I tucked my hands into my pockets and grinned. “I was thinking DILFs.”
That earned me a laugh. Music to my fuckin’ ears.
“I look tired, Rusty.”
“Yeah, but you also look hot.”
For a second, I thought this time it might be Daniel who inched a little closer to me. There was a glimmer in his eyes that said he wanted to.
But then the moment passed and he reached into his pocket instead.
“Let me show you what I’ve found out.”
Daniel cocked his head to draw me closer. Over his shoulder, he showed me the news stories on his phone as he recounted his memories around the day of Senator Callum’s assassination. It was hard to stay focused—I kept catching little glimpses of blonde hair over at the play area and hearing bursts of laughter. The sound of my little girl’s voice.
I had to force myself to stay attentive to what Daniel was saying. He was right—none of this was a clear lead, but it felt like another piece of the story that could slot perfectly into place as
soon as we knew more. I immediately sent along Jonathan Forsyth’s name to Ernesto via text, along with links to the articles Daniel had pulled up. But more interesting was his memory of seeing his father, Sorenson, and Governor Kelsey together the day before the assassination took place.
“What were you doing in your dad’s office that day, anyway? If they were planning an assassination, seems like the kind of thing that they would’ve done behind closed doors.”
“I—uh, well, I was…” Daniel gave me a deer-in-the-headlights stare for a second, then cleared his throat and looked to the play area. “Look—here comes Lissa. You ready to meet her?”
Then it was my turn to look like a buck caught by a couple of blinders. In a bouncing little blur of pigtail braids and speed, Lissa bounded through the play area’s gates and threw herself at her father’s leg. She giggled as she clung to him, wrapping her arms and legs around him like a spider monkey.
“Can we go home and watch Princess Bride again, Daddy? I’m exhausted.” Lissa threw her head back in a lurch of melodrama. As I peered down at her, our eyes met. “Oh. Hi…”
My eyes. She had my eyes.
“Lissa, this is Rusty King. Remember him? He’s my friend that came around the house the other day.”
Slowly, Lissa unwound herself from Daniel’s leg and straightened to stand next to him.
This was it. Moment of truth. I’d never been all that good with kids. Never spent that much time around them to learn how they behaved or what they liked. And Daniel had warned me that she might be shy around me at first…
Lissa narrowed her eyes at me, looking me up and down like she was sizing me up for a fight. Funny—that must’ve been a hereditary thing. Not much like Daniel at all, but I remembered looking at adults like that when I was a kid. Not because I wanted to fight them or anything. I’d just always liked to imagine in my head whether or not I could.
I dropped down into a crouch, keeping my movements slow and steady. I didn’t want to spook her—and if she was imagining a rumble, the least I could do was level out the playing field.
“Hi, Lissa. It’s, uh. Nice to meet ya.” I struck out a hand, going for a handshake.
Above us, Daniel snickered.
Idiot. I was so fuckin’ out of my element, I’d just tried to shake my own daughter’s hand like she was a potential sponsor and I was playing the part of a good investment.
But to my surprise, Lissa’s eyes grew wide at the sight of my rose tattoo. She latched onto my hand immediately, pulling it up close to her face and breathing out a hot breath of awe.
“Woah. Your dad lets you draw on your hands?” She cast a quick glance up at her father, then let go of my hand to pull up her sleeve. She had a rainbow of doodles and symbols all up and down her arm. Long-whiskered cats, multi-colored daisies, unicorns and shooting stars.
“Huh. Would you look at that.” I reached out to point to a lopsided rose that she’d scribbled on her inner elbow in blue marker. “We match.”
“I’m not as good as you are,” Lissa said, sighing. “My dad doesn’t like it when I give myself drawings.”
“Aw, kid, I wish I was this good at art.” I tapped my rose tattoo and gave her a wry grin. “I had this done by a professional. For my, ah. For my Omega dad. He died when I was little, and I wanted to get a tattoo to remember him by.”
“It doesn’t wash off when you take a bath?”
I chuckled. “Nope. Totally permanent. I mean, uh. It stays on no matter how many baths I take.”
“But tattoos are very painful to get.” Daniel cut in just as I saw Lissa’s eyes light up with the spark of a bad idea. “And they’re only for adults.”
“It hurt a lot?” Lissa frowned. Drawings that hurt weren’t quite in her wheelhouse yet.
“Not as much as losing my dad did,” I told her honestly.
Lissa nodded. “You’re really brave.” She glanced up at her father and added, “Dad says you’re not his boyfriend.”
Daniel and I shared a look. Mine said, Golly, Daniel, you sure do know how to charm a guy. His said, Don’t even ask.
“Why don’t you go ahead and hop in the back seat, okay?” Daniel patted Lissa’s head. “Rusty and I need to talk about something real quick.”
When Lissa was safely shut away in the car, I straightened. “So. How’d I do?”
He gave me a soft smile. “Not bad, Rusty. Although, if my daughter ends up with a tattoo because of you…” He laughed. “I, um. I have a favor to ask you. You can say no if you want.”
“What do you need?” Favors were good. Favors were something I could jump on—to spend more time with Lissa. To gain more of Daniel’s trust. Two things I desperately wanted in my life right now.
“Would you, ah…would you mind coming home with us?” Daniel looked embarrassed for even having to ask. “I don’t like the idea of surveillance on our house. And maybe if the guy’s still there, you could go talk to him—find out what he wants or scare him off…”
He wanted me. Jesus. Or at least, he wanted my help, which was close enough.
I rose my hand to his chin and tapped the side of my knuckle beneath it fondly. “Oh, anything for you, sweetheart.”
Daniel groaned. “Don’t call me that.”
“Snuggles.”
“Ugh.”
“Poopsykins?”
“Rusty.”
I stopped and grinned. “Okay. Okay. Come on. Let’s get Lissa home.”
14
Daniel
I’d known it was a big thing to ask of Rusty. Or at least, I’d thought I knew. It had been an embarrassing thing to ask, too. Dragging him home with me like I couldn’t get by without a big, strong Alpha to stand by my side. Like I was some helpless little Omega who didn’t know how to deal with dangerous situations.
To be fair, I didn’t, but still.
And Rusty. I’d let him into our daughter’s life in the only way I felt comfortable. It wasn’t fair to him, giving him a little glimpse into the life that Lissa and I had built together only to treat him like a hired bodyguard the second I felt a little scared.
But Rusty seemed to love the idea. We’d left his car back in the McDonald’s parking lot at his suggestion. If my house was already under surveillance, his car showing up in my driveway again would be a dead giveaway that we were in contact again. Instead, Rusty sat in the passenger seat of my car, looking as muscular and protective as I’d ever seen him. His neck was thick with muscle beneath the collar of his bomber jacket. His t-shirt laid over his chest in a way that seemed to outline every muscle of his pecs. But his lips were the furthest thing from sinister-looking as I pulled the car into the driveway.
Grinning. He was still smirking like a bastard. He hadn’t stopped since I’d asked him for his help.
I hadn’t asked Rusty for a favor. I’d given him exactly what he’d wanted all these years. The perfect excuse to put all his MMA muscle to good use. A chance to show off for Lissa. To show off for me.
I wasn’t annoyed at him for that. The King boys had all been raised to look big and strong, to fight off anyone who might be putting the vulnerable in harm’s way. Rusty had told me that much himself all those years ago.
No, I was annoyed at myself. Not for asking, but that I could actually feel myself enjoying it. Rusty’s presence had wrapped Lissa and I up in a cradle of safety and warmth.
After being alone all these years, I’d always thought bringing an Alpha back into the picture would only complicate our lives. But Rusty wasn’t just any Alpha. And if my father had eyes on the house, keeping Rusty around felt all too comfortable.
Hell, it just felt right.
“Why don’t you go start on your homework, hon?” I helped Lissa out of the car while Rusty surveyed the drive.
“Ugh. Fine. Can Rusty help?”
Somehow, Rusty’s grin found a way to get even bigger. “Course I can. Just give me and your dad a minute, okay?”
I unlocked the door for Lissa and sent her inside while
Rusty prowled at the edge of the drive. He peered up and down the street for a moment, then turned back to me and shook his head.
“Whoever was watching earlier is gone now. But keep an eye out for black SUVs.” He rolled his eyes. “If these pinheads knew anything about laying low, they’d use an older car, or something that blended into the neighborhood better. Which either makes me think they’re a bunch of complete idiots or—”
My chest clenched up. “Or they want us to know that they’re watching.”
“They’re professionals. So…it’s likely, yeah. Harper’s already run into these guys once. Got swiss cheesed with bullets for his efforts. And Kaleb’s tangled with ‘em too. Ended up with a bullet in him as well. They’ve got no qualms against pulling their triggers, and they don’t care who’s on the other end of their guns when they do it.”
Even kids? I wanted to ask. Even Lissa?
But I knew better to ask questions I didn’t want to hear the answers to.
“That doesn’t make me feel any safer,” I admitted with a glower.
“Well, that’s why I came home with you, ain’t it?”
“Good point. Is that why you came back to Fort Greene? Because Harper and Kaleb got hurt?”
Rusty hemmed and hawed for a moment, then sighed. “Something like that. Didn’t realize you’d come back here at all, honestly. It was a, uh. A surprise. When we tracked down your address, I never thought you’d be so close after all this time.”
“It’s…home. Always has been.” Which is why it was so shitty to see those pictures of you kissing that other man in my own hometown parking lot, I wanted to add.
But now that I could see the faint lines of a connection between my father and Senator Callum’s murder…
I wasn’t so sure that those pictures told the full story. Not anymore.
“Let’s go inside.” I cocked my head toward the door. “Lissa’s already claimed you as her designated homework helper. Maybe you could help me get her around for bed after. And then…” And then, I need to ask you a question neither of us is going to want to talk about. “I’ve got something to show you.”