She shook her head. “We’re not together.”
“Yes, we are,” Walker practically shouted back.
The guy needed a handbook or something. Callen refused to believe he ever sucked this bad at handling women. “Contradicting her is not the best idea.”
He’d learned the hard way not to take on Mallory. She did not take any shit. Which was why the relationship with Walker didn’t make much sense. The way he’d operated was not her style at all.
Walker did not back down or lower his voice. “On this subject it sure as hell is.”
After an exasperated eyeroll Declan talked right over Walker. “Beck and Sophie had to cut out.”
“Because Beck is a big fucking chicken,” Callen mumbled under his breath, still a bit tweaked over the way this was rolling out.
Grace sat across from Walker and Mallory and seemed to be biting back a smile. Mallory shook her head. “Stop making that you-know-something-I-don’t face.”
Grace shook head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” But the smirk said she clearly did.
Enough chitchat. Callen grabbed the packet Beck had left and slid it down the table to Walker. “This is for you.”
He caught it under his palm but didn’t open it. “What’s in it?”
Callen thought there was an obvious way to figure that question out. “You could look inside.”
Walker held up the file, turned it over in his hands. “You’re saying whatever is in here is why Beck wanted me to come back to Sweetwater?”
Mallory turned on him. “You came back for Beck and some paperwork?”
The poor guy went white. “That’s not what I meant.”
Since Callen had been on the wrong end of that conversation more than once, he jumped in to perform a Walker rescue. This was the sort of time when men had to band together.
“Let’s stay focused.” Callen sat in the chair at the head of the table and glanced down to Declan at the other end. “I don’t understand all the language or how it works, but you have an interest in the house.”
Walker stared at the folder for a second before looking up again. “What house?”
Sweet hell. “Shadow Hill, dumbass.”
Walker returned Callen’s glare. “Maybe you could skip the name-calling?”
“Won’t be as much fun.”
Declan banged his hand against the table. “Start over.”
As if she couldn’t stand one more second of nonsense, Grace stepped in. She reached across the table to Walker. “The house was supposed to go to all of Nanette Hanover’s grandkids. That includes you.”
“I never met the woman.” Walker put a space between each word as if he was turning the information over in his mind.
Callen guessed the plotting had begun.
“That’s not the test,” Leah said.
“Hell, we barely knew her.” And from what Callen had learned that was probably a good thing. “Though we now know Charlie probably learned a lesson or two from her.”
Grace sighed. “The point is, you have a right to a share in the house. You can demand a buyout.”
Callen winced. They should have worked on talking points because he didn’t really need her to highlight that part. Let the guy do his own scheming.
Walker looked around the table then shoved the folder away from him. “I don’t want the house.”
“You didn’t inherit the whole house, sport. You inherited a quarter of the interest in it.” Clearly they were missing something. Callen secretly cursed Beck for not being here to explain all of this the right way. “I know it’s still in disrepair and needs a lot of TLC, but the property is worth some money.”
“Can I sign something?” Walker still hadn’t looked at even a single document inside.
But Callen couldn’t complain. The guy had rights. “Sure, there’s a deed in there. Beck also included an agreement, in the event you’re willing to wait to collect your share.”
Walker shook his head. “I meant a document that gives my rights to you three.”
A stark silence fell over the room. Grace finally piped in with the most obvious question. “Why would you do that?”
“I don’t want anything from Charlie.”
Callen felt a reluctant admiration for Walker. “I get that. Believe me, I do. But this is from his mother.”
“I’m not touching your house.” Walker pushed and sent the file flying back down the table toward Callen.
Leah, who had barely said one word during this discussion, tilted her head to the side and studied Walker. “Interesting.”
“Meaning?” he asked.
“Nothing. Just listening to you and being a bit surprised at your position on this.”
Grace tapped the table and brought Walker’s attention back to her. “Walker, your brothers are trying to include you in this.”
It was the law and they didn’t have a choice, but Callen let that point go.
Walker stood up and walked to the refrigerator. “There’s no need.”
Okay, for some reason that ticked Callen off a little. “Because you don’t consider us brothers?”
Walker let the door shut as he slowly turned around to face them all again. “Because despite what you think, I’m not a total asshole.”
“Maybe,” Leah said.
“I’m not touching the house. I’m not forcing a sale or asking for money. This is yours.” He kept his death grip on the water bottle in his hands. “Have Beck write something up giving you guys my interest and I’ll sign it.”
“Walker.” Mallory’s tone was softer and more concerned than usual. “You should take a few days and think about it.”
He shook his head again. “I don’t need to.”
Even though this decision would benefit the rest of them, Callen didn’t want the guy making a rash decision or one based on ego. He deserved a piece of the house. Walking away from that without any fight didn’t make much sense. “Do it anyway.”
Walker’s gaze shot to Callen and the determination was written right there on his face. In the intensity of his stare. “I’m not going to change my mind.”
Callen didn’t get this at all. “You want to throw me in jail but you won’t consider taking my house and throwing me into the street?”
“Are you in jail now, Callen?” Walker shook his head as he lowered the water bottle to the butcher block island.
“Not yet.” But there was a lot of day left.
Walker continued to stare. “If I wanted you there, you’d be there.”
“Really?”
He nodded. “Yeah, really.”
Chapter Thirteen
Today qualified as one of the most confusing on record. Every time Mallory thought she knew what someone was going to do or say the opposite happened. It was as if the whole world kept shifting.
Even now she hung out by her loveseat and watched Walker pace the small area in front of her kitchen. He stared at the floor and grumbled now and then. He was so lost in thought she doubted he even remembered she stood in the room or that she paid the mortgage here.
He handled the news about the property without anger or threats. That made one of them. She was still reeling from the bombshell that Walker could have a concrete tie to the area. Not just family he wanted to avoid and forget. A physical commitment of sorts.
Callen had dropped the news and the room started spinning. Now, an hour later, if she turned her head too fast she still got dizzy.
She couldn’t imagine how Walker felt. His life kept getting flipped around. Every time things seemed to stabilize, a piece of the foundation got knocked out from under him. The house news should have been good, but the way he pushed off any claim, refusing to even open the file and examine his options, made her wonder what was happening in his head.
Was this all some new tactic? Maybe he stayed back waiting to move in and deliver a killing blow.
She hated that her mind even went there.
The quiet made her jumpy. S
he sat down then stood back up again. Her mind kept racing with questions, and she finally asked the most obvious. “Why did you say no?”
He didn’t even look up. “The house is theirs.”
The refrain repeated in her head. He’d already said it. It didn’t make any more sense to her now.
“Is this some sort of ‘I’m not a Hanover’ stand you’re taking? If so, I think you need to ease up on the stubbornness. That house is worth some money.” It might be a calculated thing to say, but it was realistic and he needed to think it through or he’d have one more thing to be bitter and angry about later.
This was another issue where Mallory got torn from here to there. She knew how much the house meant to Leah. She’d lived there as a kid before her father lost it and everything else following Charlie’s con being uncovered. She had a bond to the building and the land. She looked at Shadow Hill as a place to exorcise demons and build something new with Declan.
But Walker needed grounding, too. Mallory didn’t want him to demand payment and rip the Hanover world apart. Worse, she didn’t want him to take the money and go.
She looked at the house as an opportunity for him to stay and grow roots. Despite their fights and her ultimatum, her bottom-line desire remained the same. She wanted him to stay. For her, for them, forever.
Leave it to her to pick such a hard fantasy to fulfill.
Walker stopped shuffling around. “This really isn’t a question of value.”
It probably would be to most people. As far as she knew, Walker didn’t have a lot of money. Other people would welcome the windfall. “Okay.”
“They’ve been working on the place. They live there. It’s theirs.”
The response gave her hope. No talk of revenge or arrests. It sounded as if he honestly believed his brothers deserved the property. The Walker she’d met a few months ago would never have made that concession. Back then he barely saw the Hanovers as human. He’d tagged them as criminals who needed to be locked away. Now he expressed concern and something that sounded like respect.
It was a huge step, and Mallory loved the change. “That’s a pretty healthy response.”
The corner of his mouth kicked up. “You sound surprised.”
“A little.” Really, why sugarcoat it? His reaction had stunned her.
She’d sat at the Hanover table and forced her foot to stop tapping and the whirring in her brain to quiet. From the looks she’d seen around the room, she was not the only one who had been tensed for an outburst of some sort.
“That’s not very flattering.”
But it was realistic. Truthful, which was something their relationship lacked. And exactly what she vowed to change.
She walked over and stood in front of him. Her hand rested on the knot of his tie as she stared into those dark, bottomless eyes. “I was proud of you tonight.”
His eyebrow lifted. “Really?”
She realized he probably didn’t hear those words very often. Without parents around she hadn’t. No one ever congratulated her or stood behind her, and she’d craved that acceptance. Still did now and then.
She smoothed her hand down until it lay against his chest. “You didn’t have to do what you did today, and you did it for them, which is pretty amazing.”
He shrugged as if the sacrifice didn’t amount to a big deal. “It’s the solution I can live with.”
No way was she letting him toss this stand aside like it meant nothing. Emotionally, this amounted to a huge step forward for him. He didn’t spend his days plotting. Hell, he didn’t even do much to seek out information about the goods his brothers found or the reason behind the house offer. He accepted and lived moment to moment, which was all very un-Walker-like.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and tugged his head down until their lips were just inches apart. “I’m thinking we should celebrate.”
“I’m not sure what, but I like the sound of that.” His hands went to her waist as his mouth brushed over her forehead.
“This is a good start, what with you all willing.” She loosened his tie and slid it from around his neck. “But maybe we should get naked.”
His mouth went to that delicious space behind her ear. Then to her neck. All while those hands toured her back and started to dip lower.
“One question.”
She moved her head to give him better access to her bare skin. “Anything.”
“Do I get to put my clothes on before you kick me out in an hour or so?” The rumble of his voice tickled her.
She smiled both at the touch and the way he poked around to figure out if the rules were still in effect. She had to give him credit for trying to change the parameters.
A reward could be in order. She cupped the back of his head and ran her fingers through his soft hair. “If you’re very good I might let you stay.”
“And if I’m bad?”
The intensity of his gaze sent a shiver racing through her. “Then you definitely can.”
Her fingers went to his belt. The buckle clinked as she opened it. The zipper ticked down. His hands skimmed over her as she dropped to her knees.
“Mallory.” He said her name like a plea.
“You first.”
They stood in the middle of an open area. He put out a hand and balanced his body against the refrigerator as she slipped his boxer briefs down. Her hand tightened around him and the warmth of his skin heated hers.
His breathing deepened as her fingers moved up and down. When she added her tongue, brushing every inch from base to tip, he started making that sexy grunting noise at the back of his throat.
His hands found her hair as her mouth covered his tip. She sucked and held him with one hand while the other snaked behind him to grab on to his ass and bring him in even closer.
“God, Mallory.” His hips started to buck.
She pumped faster.
Fingers tugged against her chin and she glanced up at him, never dropping his erection from her mouth. She loved this position. Looking up the length of his impressive body and seeing the want shining in his eyes. Feeling him grow in her hand and mouth.
“We need a bed.” His voice cracked on the last word.
She pulled back but did not fully let go. “You don’t like the kitchen?”
“I want to be inside of you.”
She still didn’t see the problem. “Yes.”
“And I need you on your hands and knees.”
***
Callen stopped at the bottom of the staircase and listened for voices. After the bombshell everyone had gone and it grew late. He didn’t know if Declan and Leah were at awake or even at home. If they were smart they would have gone out and forgotten about everything that happened tonight since anything could happen tomorrow.
But he heard them talking. It sounded as if Declan was trying to reason it all through. For once, Leah wasn’t pushing her anti-Walker agenda. That made joining them in the kitchen easier.
“That was unexpected,” he said as he walked in the room.
They didn’t miss a beat. Leah shook her head. “I don’t get it.”
Callen didn’t either. They’d handed Walker ammunition and now offered him a way to financially destroy them, and he ignored it all. Could be his love for Mallory really did color everything, but Callen worried something else was at play.
“I thought you’d be insisting it was all a ploy.” He didn’t mean it as an accusation. More as a recognition that Leah was slow to trust and Walker had hurt her friend and threatened her new family. It was a deadly combination.
She smiled. “I probably should be, but he’s not wrong.”
Declan stretched an arm across the back of Leah’s chair and his hand disappeared into her hair. “About?”
“He stood in our yard a month ago and Grace told him about the contents of the holes. He knew we found stolen items.” Leah leaned back into Declan. “Walker could easily have jumped to the conclusion we were all in on it and gone after us then.”
“True,” Declan said. “But he didn’t.”
Not to be a downer, but Callen felt an obligation to bring up the hard questions. “Are we sure about that? Maybe there’s something in the works right now to take us all in.”
Leah ran her finger over the back of Declan’s other hand where it lay on the table. “I think he really cares about Mallory.”
Declan flipped his hand over and brought Leah’s fingers through his. “He loves her.”
“No question on that score.” Callen wasn’t sure if he said the words out loud. The scene in front of him kept distracting him.
He liked his brother’s casual comfort with Leah. For a man who spent a lot of his adult life carrying a gun and serving his country, the simple act of sitting in a warm kitchen with a woman in his arms had to come close to a miracle. Declan deserved that level of peace.
Leah sat up straighter. “Are you guys guessing or do you know that to be the case?”
“He told us.” Callen thought that was close enough to what happened. No way was he giving a play-by-play. For some reason he felt protective of this part of Walker’s life. The poor guy looked like shit as he unloaded about Mallory and the sex thing.
Declan, ever the practical one, fine-tuned a bit. “Well, not really, but we ferreted it out.”
She made a face as if she smelled something rotten. “You guys did?”
Callen had to laugh at her stunned tone. “Listen to the skepticism.”
“We recognize the signs of a male losing his mind over a good woman.” Declan lifted their joint hands and kissed the back of hers. “We’re evolved.”
She snorted. “Since when?” Then her gaze flicked from one brother to the other. “Ah, how cute.”
That couldn’t be good. Callen didn’t want to know what came next. “Don’t do that.”
“You guys are getting all brotherly with Walker.” She said it in a singsongy voice.
Amazing how that killed Callen’s amusement. He went to the refrigerator in search of a bottle of water. “That’s an overstatement.”
“It’s not.” Declan angled his body and stared at Leah. “But I would think you’d hate the idea of us talking with him.”
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