by J. E. Parker
The day Shelby became my wife, Lucca would become my son.
I didn’t know who his father was or why he was absent and I didn’t give a shit. If he was permanently out of the picture, then that was good news for me because it made it easier for me to take his place. If he was still around, hanging out in the background, then I’d still step up to the plate and be the father that Lucca needed because the man who’d helped create him was doing a shit job.
Grandmama looked at me like she didn’t know what to make of me. “Just remember what I said, young man. If you hurt Shelby I’ll end you—” she moved closer and raised her chin in the air “—but if you hurt Lucca, I will rip you to pieces using a rusty razor blade and enjoy every second of it.”
Her son’s face dropped. “Mama,” he gasped, “you can’t be doing this!” Running frustrated hands through his hair, he looked two seconds away from losing his mind. “You can’t be threatening to tear people to pieces and you damn sure can’t pull a gun on a cop.”
Grandmama’s head snapped to the right, and she looked at her son with scathing eyes. “I don’t give a damn if he’s the Pope! I’m gonna do what I need to do in order to protect my family!”
Her head whipped back around, and her hard eyes found mine.
Moments of silence ticked by.
Then, “They still coming over for supper?”
I nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”
Blowing out a breath, she shoved the shotgun into her son’s torso. “Hold that,” she demanded, “and make sure you keep your finger off the trigger. Remember what happened last time.”
Walking over to the edge of the porch, she picked up a wicker basket I hadn’t seen before. She lifted it in one quick heave, carried it back over to me, and shoved it in my gut. With a grunt, I took it from her hands. “That’s y’all’s supper.” Her head dipped down, and she looked at me over the top of her black framed glasses. “I’ll let you in on a secret. Feed Shelby good food, and she’ll open up to you.”
Keith laughed.
Thinning her lips, Grandmama turned around and smacked his arm. “Shut up, knucklehead.”
With a frustrated shake of her head, she turned back to look at me. “Like a lot of women, Shelby is an emotional eater. She associates food—especially comfort food—with happiness.” For the second time in the last ten minutes, tears filled her eyes. “I told you I don’t know a lot about her past or where she came from, but going by what I’ve seen and heard over the last two years, I think food is a bit of a novelty for her.”
Every muscle in my body tensed. “You telling me Shelby spent most of her life being hungry?”
“I don’t know.” Her voice quieted to a whisper. “But I’ve got a bad feeling…”
She didn’t need to say anymore. If she did, I feared I’d lose my temper. The last thing I wanted was to be in a rage when Shelby and Lucca showed up.
Clutching the basket in my left hand, I stepped back and placed my right hand on the door. “Thanks for making supper, Grandmama.” I inhaled and forced myself to stay calm. “But I need to get back inside. I’ve still got a lot of stuff to get done before my woman, and her son get here.”
She took a step back. “You do that. But remember what I said, Detective Moretti. One single tear and you might as well bend over and kiss your ass goodbye because I’ll be coming for you.”
With those parting words, she turned around, took her gun back from Keith, and walked away.
Keith exhaled and extended his hand for me to take. “I’m Keith Davis, son of the crazy old bat that just stormed out of here.” He shook his head. “Sorry about her. The older she gets, the crazier she becomes.”
“Name’s Anthony Moretti,” I replied, watching Grandmama walk away. “Don’t worry about her. Crazy or not, I’m glad Shelby has her.” And I was. Even if I didn’t appreciate having a shotgun shoved into my chest, I understood her reasoning.
“Yeah, but that doesn’t give her the right to aim a gun at you.” He looked tired, completely worn out. “But at seventy, I figure she’s set in her ways. Ain’t no use in trying to change her now.” With another shake of his head, he stepped back and tossed a wave my way. “I would say it was nice meeting you, Detective, but under the circumstances…” His voice trailed off, and he chuckled to himself. “Anyway, I’ll let you get back to your business, but before I do, I have something I need to say as well.”
Fuck, here we go again.
“I’m not one to stick my nose in other people’s business, but Shelby is special. My daughter, Maddie, she uh...” He crossed his arms over his chest and looked towards his house where Grandmama was standing on the porch watching us. “Maddie went through a rough patch a while back and Shelby, well, she was the one to help her through it. The only person able to snap Maddie out of it completely was her fiancée, Hendrix, but Shelby kept her close, kept her sane until Hendrix fixed it. If she hadn’t been there…” He swallowed and pinched the bridge of his nose between two fingers. “Damn, why is this so hard to talk about?” He ran his hands through his hair again, causing it to stand on end. “My point is Shelby’s a good girl. She’s special. Just treat her right because, if you don’t, I won’t stand in the way when my mother comes after you. We clear?”
“As crystal.”
Keith nodded once. “Alright.” He turned to face the home he shared with Grandmama. “Well, I guess I ought to get going. I know Shelby will be here soon and I don’t want to be standing here when she pulls up.” He looked at me over his shoulder and grinned. “Girl would probably kick my ass from here to kingdom come if she thought I was trying to warn you away from her.”
Stepping back, I grabbed ahold of the doorknob. “Nice meeting you, Keith. Hopefully, next time I see you it’ll be under different circumstances.”
He chuckled to himself as he descended the steps and headed for the driveway. “You and me both, Detective Moretti. You and me both.”
15
Shelby
It was a few minutes after seven when I turned onto the street that led to Anthony, Pop, and Grandmama’s houses. I’d planned to get there a lot sooner, but I’d gotten held up at work with two new intakes and a busted pipe in the main floor bathroom.
“Today has been a fricken mess,” I mumbled to myself.
I placed my right hand on Lucca’s belly while steering with my left. “We’re almost there, little man.” He only grunted in response. Restless and tired of being strapped down, he was ready to get out of his car seat.
My breath caught in my chest when both Anthony’s and Grandmama’s houses came into view. “Shit,” I cursed under my breath when I caught sight of not only Hendrix but also Pop and Maddie, along with Clara and her two sons, Liam and Declan, standing at the end of Pop’s driveway.
Hendrix was playing basketball with Liam and Declan so he wasn’t paying any attention to what was going on, but Maddie was staring directly at me as I drove toward her. The little shit was smiling too. Wouldn’t have surprised me if she’d planned this little run-in.
She’s as bad as Hendrix. Always stirring the pot.
Ignoring the sweet wave she aimed at me, I turned left into Anthony’s driveway and parked directly behind his Tahoe. Taking a deep breath, I shifted the truck into park and turned off the ignition. Unlatching Lucca from his seat beside me, I pulled him into my arms and slipped out of the truck.
I hadn’t even shut the door when someone cleared their throat from behind me. Spinning around, I was faced with a still smiling Maddie and a shocked looking Clara.
“Lookie what we have here, Clara,” Maddie said, elbowing Clara in the side softly.
I rolled my eyes. “I know you’re dying to say something so you might as well get on with it.”
Maddie’s smile grew. “I’m not going to say a single word about what’s happening here. I just wanted to stop by and say hi.”
Narrowing my eyes, I tilted my head to the right. “Spit it out, Mad.”
Maddie remained silent and
merely shrugged.
Clara, however, did not. “You’re going through with it?”
I glanced over my shoulder at Anthony’s house. “It would appear so.”
She stared at the house blankly for a few seconds before a face-splitting grin spread across her face. “Good,” she said, “I was hoping you wouldn’t back out like a scaredy cat.”
I was half a second away from asking her what the hell she was talking about when Pop rounded the back of my truck and came to a standstill directly behind Maddie. “Shelby,” he said with a look of confusion on his face, “what are you doing here?”
“I—”
“She has a date,” Maddie interjected.
Clara chuckled, and Pop’s face turned to stone.
Clenching his jaw tight, he looked at me with piercing eyes. “You what?”
What the hell is his problem?
Furrowing my brow, I readjusted Lucca on my hip and glared right back. “Me and Lucca are having supper with Anthony.” Not that it was any of his business. “Do you have a problem with that?” He better not. If he did, I’d tell him precisely where he could shove it.
Both the question and the tone of my voice were bitchy, but I didn’t care. Pop had been acting extra weird around me lately, and I didn’t get it. The last time I checked, he had no right to question anything in my life. Like I told Anthony the other night—he wasn’t my daddy, he wasn’t my boyfriend, and he wasn’t my husband; therefore, what I did or didn’t do was none of his concern.
Pop shook his head, and his face turned red. “You don’t even know this guy.” The tendons in his neck corded and both of his hands fisted at his sides. I’d never seen him get angry before, but he looked half a second away from popping a blood vessel.
Seriously, what in the absolute hell is going on with him?
“I do know him,” I bit back, feeling defensive. “He’s a nice guy, a good guy.” My face began to flush red as my temper flared. “And he likes me.” I knew I sounded like a ditsy teenage girl defending her latest love interest, but I didn’t care. “And I like him too. Not that it’s any of your business either way. For the life of me, I can’t understand why you’ve got your nose stuck so far up my—”
“Shelby,” Anthony spoke my name from what sounded like two or three feet behind me. “Take Lucca in the house, baby.” He didn’t sound happy.
Great. Another pissy male. Just what I need.
I spun around on my heel, fully prepared to tell him he could take his demands and shove them up his ass but stopped short of doing so when I saw the look on his face. He wasn’t just glaring at Pop. He was downright seething.
Yep, he’s pissed.
“Inside, sunshine,” he pushed out through gritted teeth.
My defiance chose that moment to rear its head.
I stood in place and stared at him. He, however, wasn’t paying me, or the smartass look I had plastered across my face, any attention.
He was too busy shooting daggers at Pop.
“There something I can help you with?” he asked Pop in a hard voice.
“Yeah,” Pop replied as he crossed his monstrous arms over his chest. For an old guy Pop was in good shape. He looked just like an older version of Hendrix. It was creepy. “I want to know what the hell is going on here.”
Maddie sucked in a breath, and Clara froze behind me.
Hendrix sans Liam and Declan came barreling up the driveway. “Pop what the fuck are you doing?” He asked, a basketball tucked under his arm.
Pop ignored him as he continued to glare at Anthony. “Shelby rarely leaves her house except to go to work yet she’s coming over to your house, Lucca in tow, to have supper with you? That doesn’t make much sense to me unless you two are dating, and, well, I don’t know how I feel about that.”
Wait.
Hold the heck up.
I whipped around—again. “Excuse me? And just who the hell do you think you are? You are not my daddy, Pop, so you don’t get to question anything I do.”
Anthony’s arm wrapped around my bicep, and he tugged me back gently. I glanced up at him over my shoulder, but he wasn’t looking at me. “Not going to tell you again. Get in the house, Shelby.” I opened my mouth to argue, but he cut me off. “Now.”
He looked downright irate.
“Come on, Shelby,” Maddie said, taking my free hand in hers. “Let’s go inside.”
The look on Maddie’s face was pleading.
Not wanting to get her, or Clara for that matter, upset, I moved toward the house. Both girls followed me, leaving Pop, Hendrix, and Anthony to continue their pissing contest in the driveway.
Once on the porch, I didn’t stop to think about what I was doing as I turned the knob and opened the front door like I owned the place. Stepping inside, I waited for Maddie and Clara to clear the threshold. Once they did, I slammed the door shut with more force than necessary and leaned my head against the cool wood. “These fricken men!” I hissed through gritted teeth. “They act like animals. I swear I don’t understand—”
Clara gasped, stopping my tirade before it ever got started.
I turned my head and followed her line of sight. When I saw what she was looking at, I froze. Mouth gaping, Maddie walked into the living room set off the foyer and turned around in a full circle. “He did all this?” Her gaze dropped to my little man who was still perched on my hip. “For Lucca?”
I didn’t know what to say, didn’t know what to think of the sight before me.
Toys—brand new judging by the flattened boxes in the corner of the room—were placed neatly in a pile by a blue and white plaid playpen that also looked new. Blocks, toy trucks, puzzles, stuffed teddy bears, a toddler-sized art desk complete with jumbo crayons and multi-colored construction paper—it was all there.
Suddenly, I felt a tad bit faint.
This man … this FRICKEN MAN!
Lucca squealed and kicked my legs with his feet. “Down, Ma-ma!” Wide-eyed, I stood him on the ground and watched as he ran over to the toys and dove in. Plopping his little butt onto the ground, he went for the blocks first. They, however, were quickly abandoned when he saw the foam floor puzzle to his right.
“Oh my God,” Clara whispered as she walked over to the playpen and ran her fingers along the top rail. “I can’t believe he did this.” Her eyes met mine. “Did he tell you about any of this?”
Unable to speak, I shook my head.
Hands on her hips, Maddie turned to look at me. “Shelby”—tears filled her emerald eyes—“I told you…” She shook her head as her voice trailed off. “You didn’t believe me but frigging I told you what I saw on his face at the diner. I told you!”
Her words from yesterday repeated on a loop in my head.
That man wants you, Shelby.
He’s going to be the sucker punch you never saw coming.
I took a couple of steps forward but stopped mid-stride when the door behind me opened. Anthony moved inside and the room fell silent. Even Lucca stilled, watching the scene before him play out.
When I didn’t say anything, Clara decided to speak up, surprising the hell out of Maddie and me both. You see, Clara was notoriously wary around people she wasn’t familiar with. After spending years being abused by her late husband, she had a hard time opening up or speaking to people she didn’t know. The only exception seemed to be the women and children who resided at the shelter.
“Um, hi.” Her voice was quiet, shy. “My name is Clara. I’m one of Shelby’s friends and co-workers.” She waved and offered a shaky smile. Pointing out the window, she continued, “Those two little boys across the street playing basketball with Hendrix are mine. Liam is the oldest. He’s six. Declan is my itty bitty; he’s five.”
Anthony crossed his arms over his chest. “Nice to meet you, Clara.” His gaze met mine. “You alright?” I didn’t speak nor did I acknowledge his question in any way.
What the hell am I supposed to say?
After clearing her throat, Madd
ie wrapped her hand around Clara’s wrist. “Well,” she said, grinning. “It’s time for us to go.” Both girls moved into the foyer.
Stopping in front of me, Maddie wrapped her hand in the fabric of my shirt and pulled me to her. “Remember what I told you yesterday.” She spoke low and quiet. “Live, Shelby. Don’t let that son of a bitch steal any more happiness from you.” She released my shirt and placed a soft kiss on my cheek. “Call me when you get home tonight. I need to know you’re safe.”
Mind whirling, I nodded in reply.
Clara strutted up to me next. She wrapped her arms around my waist, and whispered, “If you don’t hit that, you’re an idiot,” into my ear.
I swear to God I almost had a heart attack.
Well, I’ll be damned… Clara found her lady balls.
Eyes wide, I leaned back and stared directly at her. “Who the hell are you and what have you done with Clara?”
She stuck out her tongue. “Bye, Shelby. See you at work tomorrow.”
Once at the door both women turned and waved goodbye at a squealing Lucca. Maddie scowled, and Clara pouted when he didn’t wave in return. Too engrossed in his new toys to give a crap about anything else, he ignored them both.
The moment they were out the front door, I turned to face Anthony and pointed at the toys and playpen. “You did this?”
“Yeah, baby, I did.”
“Why?” I didn’t understand.
I didn’t understand him or this situation. He played with my son, bought him toys. Not to mention, he said he wanted me, yet he didn’t know me. If he did, I doubted he’d want anything to do with me, and he sure as shit wouldn’t be calling me things like his light, his hope, and his purpose.
If he only knew how damaged, how broken, how tainted I was…
Stop it, Shelby, I chastised myself. Enough is enough.
Closing the space between us, he wrapped an arm around my back and pulled me into him. Our chests collided and the heat of his skin seared into mine.
Holy hell.