“Don’t talk to me like you know me.”
“Okay.” She smiled. “Lecture over.”
“Thank you.”
I heard the front door click closed and Ryan walked in, a smile on his face. “How are my two favorite ladies?”
Ryan stood about five-foot-eleven and had short, dark hair and piercing green eyes. He was muscular, not like Hatch, but definitely more than Niall, and was an all around great guy.
He kissed my cheek, then pulled Ali in for a little too in-depth makeout session for my comfort, but I’d gotten used to it since neither of them seemed to mind an audience to their affection. I stared at my tea until they finished their X-rated moment.
Merrick came bounding in, followed closely by Grace and Poppy. “Hey Dad,” Merrick said, and Ryan pulled him in for a hug, then Grace, then Poppy.
I loved how Ryan treated Poppy like one of his own; lessening the blow of losing Niall by providing a father figure she could look up to.
“We need to get going, Poppet,” I said, and slipped off the stool.
Washing out my cup and saucer, I set it to dry next to the sink, gathered up my daughter, and then we headed home.
As soon as we got home, Poppy and I did our nightly reading ritual. It was my turn tonight and I chose a paranormal romance by Tracey Jane Jackson. Once Poppy was settled, I curled up in Niall’s chair and thought about Hatch. He was everything Niall wasn’t. Niall had a nerdy confidence and I thought he was handsome and sexy, but in a different way than Hatch. Niall was certainly the smartest person I knew, but it was a brain smarts kind of thing. Ryan used to joke that if we got jumped somewhere in Portland, I’d probably be the one to fight our way out… Niall would be screwed.
Hatch, on the other hand, would probably take on several assailants at one time. The man was big… tall and muscular… and commanded a room when he walked in it. Where Niall was clean cut and the type to bring home to your parents, Hatch had long hair and a scruffy beard, and he used the f-word in regular conversation. It was sexy as hell. It shouldn’t be. In my circle, it would be offensive, but for me, it made me want to strip down to nothing and offer myself up as a sacrifice.
I shook my head. What the hell is wrong with me?
I couldn’t get involved with a man like that. I couldn’t get involved with any man, really. I had a daughter to think about, and I needed to make good choices so she’d grow up and make good choices. I needed to steer clear of the sexy as hell Hatch. And this was what I told myself as I climbed into bed.
I awoke the next day feeling groggy, but still resolved to my decision. I had no business chasing after a man who ran in totally different circles than me. He was gorgeous, yes. He was sexy… oh, hell, yes. He seemed like he took care of his family, yes. But I reminded myself I was a single mum and I needed to focus on my daughter and my business. I didn’t have time to date, and a man like Hatch was a distraction I couldn’t afford. Even if he would be a lovely distraction.
I leaned into the hallway. “Poppy, time to rise and shine. We’re a bit late.”
“I’m up, Mum,” she called from her bathroom.
“Will you hit the button for the coffee while I shower, please?”
“Sure.”
“Thanks, love.”
I lost a little resolve when Hatch left a voicemail later that day, and I really lost my resolve when he left another one two days later, but I finally felt like I could relax when two days after that, his third voicemail said, Hey, babe. It’s all good. Won’t be callin’ you again. Have a nice life.
I was sad, but at least I could move on.
Hatch
SUNDAY AFTERNOON, CRICKET walked into the kitchen with a case of beer and a box of cupcakes. Hatch grinned, taking the beer from her and setting it in the fridge. “Just a case, huh?”
“Well, since you blew up my job prospects, I can no longer afford more than that,” she quipped.
“Nice, sis.” Cade grinned, pulling her in for a hug. Cade was thirty-nine, divorced with one kid, and an Army vet. As soon as he’d turned eighteen, he’d headed for war… it was a hell of a lot calmer than home at the time. He and Cullen worked construction, helping out at Hatch’s shop when the weather was bad. “How’s my favorite sister?”
“I’m jobless.”
“Yeah, we get it, Cricket,” Hatch ground out. “Not gonna change, so off the subject.”
“So you didn’t think about the Blush thing,” she accused.
“Thought about it, the answer’s ‘no.’”
“Kinda harsh,” Cullen said. Cullen was thirty-five and had married his high-school sweetheart as soon as she turned eighteen. She’d died two years later.
“His jaw’s tickin’, Cull,” Cameron pointed out. “Maybe drop the subject.” Cameron was thirty and fucked anything with a skirt. The only problem with that was Cam wasn’t good at figuring out sane pussy from crazy, and Hatch was pretty sure crazy was acomin’.
“Maybe you three could back me up once in a while,” Cricket countered.
“Maybe we don’t like your ex beatin’ the shit out of you.” Cameron hugged her gently, ending it with a noogie, which in turn, earned him a punch to the gut. “Fuck, Cricket! Did ya have to hit me that hard?”
“Next time, I’ll aim for your junk, big brother.” Cricket fixed her hair.
Cullen slapped the back of Cameron’s head. “I can’t believe you’re still pulling that high-school bullshit, Cam.”
Cameron went to retaliate with a jab, only he missed because Cullen dodged, causing Cameron to fall against the refrigerator.
“Enough!” Hatch bellowed. “Get the fuck out.”
“Where’s Devon?” Cricket asked, ignoring Hatch’s order to leave the kitchen.
Cade nodded toward the family room. “Call of Duty.”
Cade’s ex, Diana, was off on her honeymoon with her third husband, so Devon was staying with them for the next few months. Hatch had a feeling shit was going down, however, considering Diana was a bitch and only wanted Devon for leverage (and child support). Cade was getting fed up with this arrangement, and now that he’d landed somewhere permanent, he had more of a chance of getting his son full-time.
“So what’s up with this English chick?” Cricket asked.
Hatch’s body locked. Fuckin’ Kim.
His brothers turned to him, all eyes focused and alert, waiting for an answer.
“What English chick?” Cameron demanded.
“Connor helped her with her car,” Cricket provided. “Kim says she’s gorgeous and her name’s Maisie. Isn’t that so sweet?”
“She’s no one,” Hatch said, grabbing the plate of steaks and heading for the deck. His family followed.
Cricket greeted Devon as she walked past the sofa and out onto the deck with Hatch, handing him the tongs. “Hatch met up with her and her daughter at Vincenzo’s after Cassidy’s dance thing.”
“Shut the hell up, Cricket,” Hatch snapped.
“Hold up,” Cullen said. “She’s got a kid and you still met up with her?”
Hatch scowled, but didn’t comment as he threw the steaks on the grill.
Cricket nodded. “Kim said—”
“Kim needs to mind her own fuckin’ business,” Hatch ground out. “I’m done with this conversation.”
“She’s got money,” Cricket continued. “Top of the line Lexus. Wears Louboutin heels, carries a Louis Vuitton handbag, probably wears Perla.”
“What’s Perla?” Cameron asked.
“Panties that cost like a grand,” Cricket said.
Cameron scowled. “Damn, Cricket. Don’t wanna be talkin’ about panties with my sister.”
She grinned in triumph. “Payback’s a bitch.”
“I thought the punch to the gut was payback.”
“That’s because you’re an idiot.” Cricket focused on Hatch again. “Are you gonna call her?”
“Swear to Christ, sis, you don’t drop it, you’re leavin’,” Hatch warned.
She
threw her hands up in the air. “Is it so bad that I want my big brother to be happy?”
He took a deep breath and forced a smile. “Go grab the corn for me.”
She studied him for a few seconds before dropping the subject and heading back into the house. Lucky for Hatch, he only had one sister, and his brothers were smart enough to know that if the subject was closed, it was closed, so they backed off.
The rest of family night went without incident. Cricket headed home around ten, Cameron had a date or a hook-up or whatever, and Cade was takin’ Devon to a movie, so Hatch and Cullen headed down to the basement for beer and a game of pool.
“Maisie, huh?” Cullen asked as he racked. “You really not gonna call her?”
“Already called her.”
Cullen raised an eyebrow. “And?”
“And, we went out,” he said. “Then she ghosted me.”
“Fuck, seriously?” Cullen asked.
Hatch nodded and took a swig of beer.
“You don’t get ghosted.”
Hatch chuckled without mirth. “Yeah, well, now I do.”
“Shit, you like her.”
“Don’t know her, Cull.” Hatch shook his head. “Pretty sure she’s high-maintenance if she’s buyin’ thousand dollar panties.”
“You know her enough to like her though, brother.” Cullen leaned against his pool cue. “I get you think I’m a dreamer and I’m an idiot because I don’t want anyone since I lost Elizabeth. But you’re a good guy, Con, and she obviously made an impression, so if she’s ghostin’ you, I’m sorry. That can’t feel good, especially if you put yourself out there after Jana. Even a little.”
Hatch stuffed down the emotion with a nod of his head. Cullen knew him and he was the only one Hatch would ever admit his true feelings to because Cullen would take anything he shared to the grave, but that didn’t mean he was willing to share right now. “Let’s play, yeah?”
Cullen smiled. “Okay, big brother. Let’s play.”
* * *
Two weeks later, Hatch sat at his desk well past ten, entering a parts order into the computer when his cell phone pealed.
Sunshine calling.
What the fuck? He ignored the call and went back to his task. However, his phone rang again and it was Maisie again.
He debated on whether or not to answer, but he’d missed her, so he gave in. “Hatch here.” All he could hear was sobbing and his heart stopped in his chest. “Maisie?”
“No. It’s Poppy. I can’t wake Mum.”
He stood and grabbed his keys, heading out to his truck. “Okay, baby girl, where are you?”
“I… I don’t know. The car made this weird noise and then Mum said something was wrong with the brakes and then we were driving through the guardrail. Mummy banged her head on the steering wheel and her arm looks funny. She’s got blood all over her face and I can’t get her to wake up.”
“Did you call 9-1-1?” he asked.
“No.”
“Why the hell not?” he snapped.
She sniffled. “Please don’t yell at me.”
Fuck! He took a deep breath and dragged a hand through his hair. “Baby girl, I need you to call 9-1-1, okay? But don’t hang up. Do you have your cell phone?”
“Huh-uh. But we have LexusLink. That’s what I was trying to say. The lady said they’re coming and I told her to send an ambulance, but I don’t know if they’ll find us. We’re off the road. I thought because you’re a mechanic you could figure out… I don’t know… something. I don’t really know why I called you. I just thought you could help Mummy.”
She started sobbing again, so Hatch put her on speaker and texted Booker to trace Maisie’s phone and get him to send Ace with a tow truck.
“Are you still there?” she rasped.
“Yeah, baby girl, I’m here,” he said. “Did your airbags go off?”
“No,” she sobbed. “I hit my head too, but I’m okay.”
“I’m gonna come get you, okay? Where were you going?”
“We were coming from Ali’s. We’re near the zoo I think.”
“Okay, were you on 26?”
“I think so. I saw the exit for the zoo. I think. It’s really dark.”
Hatch swore. It was late, and there were a few winding stretches of that freeway with deep embankments, but the only guardrails you could go “through” were on the exits… everything else was concrete. It was doubtful that she could have gone off the road without a single witness.
“Please don’t hang up,” Poppy whispered. “I’m so scared.”
Fuck!
“I’m right here, yeah? I’m coming.”
“Don’t hang up, Hatch. Please don’t hang up.”
He sped out of the driveway and toward Portland. “I’m here, baby girl.”
“I’m really tired.”
“I need you to stay awake, Poppy, can you do that?”
His phone beeped and he glanced at the screen. Booker hacked into the LexusLink system and sent him the exact location of Maisie’s car… right along Highway 26.
“Poppy?” She didn’t respond, so he bellowed, “Poppy!”
“I’m here,” she said.
He heard sirens in the background and his heart calmed a little. “Do you hear that? The ambulance is close now.”
“Yeah,” she whispered.
“Stay awake,” he ordered.
“I’m just resting my eyes like Mum does sometimes.”
He had a feeling if she closed her eyes she’d be out cold in minutes. “The paramedics will have questions about your mom they’ll need you to answer. You have to stay awake so you can help her, okay?”
“Okay, Hatch.”
“I mean it, Poppy. They’ll need to know if she has any allergies or anything. She needs you to talk to them when they get there. I’m close. I’ll be there soon.”
“They’re here now. I’m gonna hang up.”
“No! Don’t hang up, Poppy. You can put the phone down, but don’t hang up.”
“Mummy’s really hurt,” Poppy said to whoever had just arrived. “Please help her. I can’t wake her up. She’s allergic to grass and a couple of trees. I don’t remember their names.”
“Any medicines?” a female voice asked.
“No. Just grass and trees.”
“We’ve got her, honey, but I need you to come with me.”
“Hatch?” Poppy asked.
“Still here, baby girl,” he assured her.
“Can you tell him where you’re taking Mummy, please?” Poppy asked.
“Hello?” the woman said.
“Hey.”
“Sir, this is Mary Walls, we’re taking them to OHSU.”
“Okay. Maisie is the mom and Poppy’s the daughter. Last name’s Mann. Take good care of them, yeah?”
“We’ll take care of your family, sir. You can meet us there.”
He spoke to Poppy one more time and then the line went dead. After checking in with Booker and being assured Ace was on his way, Hatch headed to the crash site, right off the side of 26 before the freeway interchanges to I-5 and I-405, finding the ambulances and police cars had the road blocked off.
Pulling his truck off to the shoulder, he rushed into the chaos, his heart in his throat. He was glad to see that Poppy hadn’t been entirely correct in her assessment of being alone. A couple of cars had pulled off to the side of the road and called 9-1-1, but one lady had her two young kids in the back, the other car was an older woman, so Hatch really couldn’t fault them for not climbing down the embankment.
Before he could get to the ambulance, it took off just as Ace pulled up with a tow truck. He jogged to Hatch. “What’s goin’ on?”
“Not entirely sure yet,” Hatch said. “Looks like she guided her car off Jefferson where it went through a guard rail and down the embankment.”
“Shit,” Ace said. “Who?”
“Maisie.”
“Maisie?” Ace asked. “Kim’s Maisie?”
Hatch shook h
is head. Cassidy was Ace’s old lady, so even though Hatch didn’t advertise the fact he’d gone out with Maisie, Cassidy and Kim were sisters now, so they’d probably done their woman thing and over-shared. “Shut up, Ace. Just fuckin’ deal with the car, yeah? I wanna get it back to the shop. Her daughter said somethin’ was wrong with the brakes.”
Once Ace was on task to deal with the car, Hatch took off for the hospital. He lied to the admittance desk, claiming to be family until they reluctantly buzzed him back and showed him to a room. Poppy was sitting on the bed alone, crying.
“Poppy?”
She raised her head and relief covered her face. “You came.”
“Yeah, baby girl. Where’s your mom?” He pulled a chair up next to her and frowned. Her head was bandaged and her left eye was starting to purple.
“I don’t know. I’m waiting to find out.” She licked her lips. “I’m thirsty.”
He poured her some water and handed it to her. “Who should we call, Poppy?”
“No one,” she said, and took a sip of water. “Auntie Ali’s here. She just went to get the nurse.” She put her hand to her head with a grimace.
“Are you in pain?”
Poppy nodded.
“Excuse me? Who the hell are you and what are you doing in here?” A petite brunette advanced on him and Hatch raised his hands in surrender.
“It’s okay, Ali. This is Hatch,” Poppy said.
Ali paused and studied him. “You’re Hatch?”
Hatch nodded, bolstered by the fact Maisie had obviously mentioned him. Before they could continue introductions, a nurse arrived and squeezed a syringe of morphine into Poppy’s arm. “I can only give you a little, honey, because we need you to stay awake. We’re going to take you for a scan in a little bit.”
“We’ll keep her awake,” Ali promised. “Any word on Maisie Mann?”
“Not yet. As soon as I know something, I’ll let you know.” The nurse left the room and Hatch waved Ali to the chair he’d pulled next to Poppy’s bed.
Poppy’s eyes were drooping, so Hatch squeezed her arm gently. She looked up at him, her pupils pinned. “Hmm?”
“Feeling a little better?” he asked.
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