by Emma Renshaw
“Don’t want it.” I know he’s making a promise he can keep. He could give me enough money so I’d never have to work again, I could breathe easy while putting Brae through school, and I could even have Hudson design and build a house for Iris.
I’ll work myself to the bone to make sure Brae gets through college, studying whatever she wants, and does it debt free. I’ll work until I bleed to build a home for Iris, somewhere she’ll be safe and the nightmares of her past won’t ever haunt her again. Even if I do it myself piece of wood by piece of wood and brick and by brick, even if it takes years, I will do it and without Luca.
“Callan—”
I cut him off and barely reign in the urge to slam my fist down on the counter. “Not interested, Luca. Stop calling.”
I hang up the phone and squeeze the back of my neck. The muscles along my shoulders and neck are as hard as granite. A headache starts at the base of my neck and gets worse with every clench of my jaw.
“Why the hell is Luca calling you?” James growls.
I whip around to face him. His hands are balled into fists and he’s sneering. “After everything we did to get you out, you’re speaking to him?”
“I’m not speaking to him. He’s been calling. I finally answered to tell him to fuck off.” I shake my head and run a finger along my temple.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“The same way you told me you were alive? You let me believe you were dead for ten years, and you’re really standing there asking why I didn’t tell you something? You got some fuckin’ nerve.”
James’s shoulders move up and down with each furious breath. “Thought we got over that, brother.”
I grit my teeth. We have. It pisses me off sometimes, but I fucking understand and can’t say I would’ve done different in his situation. “He wants me to do a job, hung up before I found out what it is.”
A muscle in James’s jaw ticks, and he stares at me before nodding his head once, accepting my answer.
Chapter 22
Iris
Callan hops out of his truck, popping open the back door to let Brae out, and puts his hands on my hips. I can get down from his truck on my own. It’s raised, but not too high. I let him help me down anyway because I love the feel of sliding against his body.
I land on my feet. Callan’s hands are still gripping my waist. His lips, tongue, and fingers have been on my mind since this morning. His hand was lying on James and Tate’s kitchen table, and I stared at it as I ate, wishing those rough fingers were dancing against my skin again.
I don’t know if it will happen again since Brae is at home with us. If we’ll wait until she’s gone, or if we’ll do it while trying to be quiet. I’m not ready for sex, but I would love to explore his body and explore the way he makes me feel.
Pierce is the only man I’ve been with, and sex with him was kind of scary, even before he raised a hand to me. It never felt good and it always hurt. In books and movies—and from hearing people talk—that’s not the way it always is. But I can’t lie; I’m still nervous that this is the way it will always be for me.
And if it is, will Callan be disappointed in me?
He leans down, briefly touching his lips to mine.
“Stop kissing and making googly eyes at each other and come on! There’s a Say Yes To The Dress marathon on.”
I giggle against Callan’s lips. He hasn’t been shy about his affection for me in front of Brae. He doesn’t stick his tongue in my mouth when she’s around, but he will kiss me, hug me, and wrap me in his arms on the couch.
I step into Callan. He shuts the truck door behind me, grabbing my hand, and we head to the apartment with a skipping Brae in front of us. She takes off up the stairs, and we slowly amble behind her. Callan’s thumb grazes over my knuckles. I squeeze his hand in return.
“My baby.”
Callan freezes beside me for a second before leading me up the stairs at a fast clip.
“Get your hands off of her,” he shouts as we crest the landing. A woman with Callan’s dark blond hair and striking eyes is hugging Brae. Is that their mother?
She looks over her shoulder at Callan. There’s a menacing glint in her eyes.
A smirk spreads across her face. Brae is trembling in her arms. Callan steps in front of me, cutting off her view of me. “Get your goddamn hands off of her.”
Callan’s hands are in fists and he’s heaving with fury. The muscles in his neck and back are coiled tight. His arm shoots out and snatches Brae, pushing her behind him.
I wrap my arm around her, holding her close. She’s still shaking, and her face is drained of all its color. I sweep my hand down her hair, comforting her. “It’s going to be okay,” I whisper. “Callan’s going to get rid of her then we’ll go inside and make him watch our shows with us. I promise, sweet girl, it’s going to be okay.”
“Why is she here?” Brae’s question is so quiet and small I almost miss it altogether, but Callan asks it louder and with more colorful language.
“Why the fuck are you here?”
“She’s my baby.”
“She’s mine, Bonnie.”
Brae’s head drops to my shoulder. A tear falls on my skin. I lift her head with my hand, giving her a smile, and swipe the tears rolling down her face with my thumbs.
Bonnie is standing in front of the apartment door, blocking Brae and me from being able to get inside to safety.
“How’d you find us? You have no legal rights to her.”
“A new friend helped me.”
“Another person you’re fucking for drugs?” Brae flinches. Even though his words aren’t aimed at me, I feel like them a whip against my skin.
“Don’t talk to your mama that way, boy.”
“You’re no mother of mine. Or Brae’s.”
“Brae, baby, don’t listen to him. I’m here for you, baby girl. Come give your mama a hug.”
Brae flinches in my arms. I’m trying to keep my panic at bay, but this situation terrifies me. I won’t let her get anywhere near Brae though. She’ll have to go through Callan and me.
“How’d you find us?”
“I helped her out.” A sharp stab of fear slides down my spine, robbing me of my words. My mouth opens in a silent scream.
“Who are you?” Callan demands.
“Iris’s husband.”
Callan whips his head to look over his shoulder, staring at me, taking in every ounce of my fear. His features harden even more.
“Ex-husband. Get the fuck out of here.”
I start to shiver. Now Brae and I are trembling in each other’s arms. Callan takes his phone from his pocket, handing it to me. “Call Maddox, birdie.”
“I’ll leave,” Pierce says. I can’t see him around Callan, and I don’t want to. I want to stay behind him, hidden in his shadow, so Pierce can’t see me and I can’t see him. Every word out of his mouth makes me flinch and causes bile to rise in my throat. “I’m taking my wife with me though. She’s mine, she’s always been mine, and she will always be mine. It’s time she stops playing this silly game and comes home.”
I find Maddox’s name in Callan’s phone and dial his number.
“Wells.”
“Um…Maddox? This is Iris, Callan’s girlfriend.”
His tone becomes alert. “What’s happening?”
“My ex-husband showed up and brought Callan and Brae’s mom.”
“Be there in ten.”
I keep the phone in my hand. Ten minutes. We can handle this for ten minutes.
“Rissy,” Pierce says. “Let me see you.” Every word carries more anger than the last.
I pull Brae closer as the bile lodged in my throat becomes more threatening. “Not ever again,” Callan growls. “Leave. The cops are on their way.”
“I’m standing in the breezeway. I’m not violating any laws.”
“Cops?” Bonnie asks. “That wasn’t part of the deal. You said I get my girl and my money. I’m not stayin’ around for no c
ops. I want my money.”
“Jesus Christ,” Callan mutters. There’s money lying on the ground, and Bonnie is on her knees gathering it up.
“Rissy. I gave you your space and let you have your fun. Letting another man touch you wasn’t part of it. You should’ve known better. I told you that you would always be mine.”
“She’s mine,” Callan hisses through his teeth.
“Don’t know why she’d want you when she can have him.” Bonnie shoves past Callan, taking off down the stairs as she clutches her money to her chest. She doesn’t spare one glance at Brae.
I look over my shoulder as footsteps pound up the stairs. A tall man that I’ve seen only in photos approaches the group. He’s in slacks and a blue button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled to his forearms, with a large gun on his hip.
“Callan,” Maddox says.
“Maddox.”
“What happened?”
“We came home, and this prick was on my doorstep with my mother.”
“I’m in a breezeway and I’m here for my wife.”
“Ex-wife,” Maddox says. “I can’t arrest you for being here, but I can ask you to leave and if you don’t, then I can arrest you. I have my opinion on which one I hope you do.”
“Fuckin’ pig,” Pierce says. “Arrest me. I’ll be out in under an hour.”
Maddox shrugs. “I’d love to. Then I can find out which scum is working for you and clear out the department of crooked cops.” He stands casually with hands on his hips, helping Callan shield Brae and me.
“Get them inside,” Maddox says. Still shielding us, Callan gets Brae and me to the door and hands me the keys. I open his door and Brae and I fall in. Callan shuts it behind us.
I look through the peephole, and Brae wraps her arms around me. Pierce is in his usual attire: an expensive suit, perfectly tailored for him. His eyes are on the door. I shrink back as if he can see me.
I close my eyes, taking a few breaths, before looking out there again.
“Make my night,” Maddox says.
Pierce looks at the door again as if he’s seeing me, and I see the promise in his hate-filled eyes. This isn’t over.
Chapter 23
Callan
I drag my finger down Iris’s nose and trace her lips. It took her a while to fall asleep last night, but she finally did, in my arms. It took even longer for me to fall asleep. My responsibility for the precious cargo I have under my roof is not lost on me. I stayed up most of the night listening for even the slightest noise or the instinctual feeling of something being unsettled. It’s more clear now that I can’t take any chances and Pierce has no limits.
At least I know my mom will stay away now that she has some cash from Pierce. She won’t show her face again, I don’t have anything to offer her. That threat didn’t pan out like he wanted. But, still, the threat is there and I need my girls safe.
“Wake up, sleepyhead,” I whisper against Iris’s lips.
Her eyes slowly flutter open, groggy and tired. I grin and drop a kiss to her lips. “Morning.”
“Mmm.” She groans and tries to roll away from me, but I stop her and gently shake her.
“Nope.” I brush the hair off her face and can’t resist planting another kiss on her lips. “Gotta wake up. We have somewhere to be.”
“Where?” She rubs her eyes with the side of her hands and slowly blinks them open. She stares at me through the narrowed slits.
“You’ll see. Brae’s coming too.”
Iris sits up, running her fingers through her hair, and crawls out of bed.
“Meet me in the kitchen. I’m going to go wake up Brae.”
A couple of minutes later, both girls meet me in the kitchen, just as I finish making green protein smoothies for them. Iris and Brae wrinkle their noses when I set the glasses in front of them.
“Drink up. You’ll need it.”
“Why?” Brae asks and pushes the glass a few inches away from her.
“Drink it.”
Iris’s nose wrinkles, and she lifts the glass and takes a sip. She swallows then gags. A laugh bursts out of me. “Gotta drink the whole thing, birdie. Then change into something you would work out in.”
She lifts an eyebrow. I shoot her a grin. Her lips tilt up before she takes another drink of her smoothie. Brae coughs while taking a sip of hers. Again, I laugh at their disgusted faces. Even with all trouble swirling around us, I realize for maybe the first time in my life, I’m truly happy. Everything I need is standing in front of me with disgusted looks on their faces as they try and drink the workout smoothie I make for myself every day.
I keep an arm around Brae’s shoulders and Iris’s hand in mine as we walk down an Austin street. My head is on a swivel, taking in everything around us, and cataloging every face we pass into my memory. Thankfully it’s a short walk to the front of the building from where we parked.
I ding the buzzer in front of MarxMen Security. Brae and Iris are looking at the building and the blacked-out windows.
“Where are we?” Iris asks, looking for a sign or insignia that she won’t find out here.
“MarxMen,” Kiernan says as he opens the door, gesturing for us to pass him. Brae’s eyes get huge. Iris’s brow furrows and she tips her head in a silent question to me. Kiernan locks the front door as we all enter. Iris looks back when the lock clicks into place and swallows.
“What’s going on?” She asks. Iris looks worried while Brae looks like she’s about to go on an adventure.
“This is cool,” Brae whispers when we pass through the next set of doors and into the pristine lobby. There’s no one sitting at the front desk and it’s so quiet I can hear when Iris’s breathing picks up in speed.
I called Roman last night after the girls went to bed. They’re not going to become trained assassins in a day, but they can learn something. I filled Roman in on everything. He and Kiernan are going to help the girls with some self-defense moves.
“Come on,” Kiernan says. “Everyone is here.”
I didn’t tell Roman to keep it quiet and had a feeling he might fill everyone in, but even I’m surprised that our whole group, including the babies, is inside the large workout area at the back of MarxMen.
Iris stops as soon as she walks into the room, and the women emerge and pounce on her. Savannah wraps her in a hug. “James started teaching me self-defense a long time ago, when I was running from my ex.”
“Holy pancakes,” Iris whispers and widens her eyes as she stares at me. “You told them?”
“Oops,” Harper whispers, and the women slink away, taking Brae with them. I round on Iris, facing her.
“Yes,” I say and hold up my hands when she opens her mouth getting ready to argue with me. I bite back a smile when her hands curl into fists at her side. I haven’t seen her angry, but I’m liking the fire that starting to brew behind her eyes. “I told Roman. He doesn’t know everything, just enough. I need you to be safe. I can’t be with you twenty-four-seven because I have a job, but if even one defensive move can help you gain seconds to get away from him, if he approaches you, it’s important that you learn it.”
Her head falls into her hands. “I’m so embarrassed.”
I tug her hands from her face. “You have nothing to be embarrassed about. You got out. You got out alive. You’re going to continue to get through this…alive. You are living. There is nothing to be embarrassed about. You’ve taken your life back and you’re creating a new family with the people in this room. I’ll be honest, when I first got here, I didn’t want their attention. They don’t take no for an answer. If you try to hide from them, it won’t be Pierce you need to worry about, it’ll be those women.”
“It’s true,” Valerie says from the girl huddle a few feet away from us. Harper slaps her on the arm.
“They’re not supposed to know we’re listening.
Valerie plants her hands on her hips and tosses her hair behind her shoulder. “Look, I just think the girl should know I will break into
her house and kidnap her if she tries to leave us now. I like her and she said in the group chat that we’re all going to go karaoke. I’m going to give Carmen a run for her money.”
Savannah laughs. “It’s though, babe. You’re stuck with us.”
I wrap Iris in my arms and grin down at her. “You’ve been sleeping in my bed for the past few weeks and I’m definitely not ready give that up. If they didn’t chase after you, I would. There’s no doubt about that.”
Iris nods, licking her lips, then looks around the room. The floor is covered in blue padded material, good for wrestling or learning to get out of a situation when someone pins you to the ground. Punching dummies are set up around the room. And in the very back is a small firing range.
I want her to learn it all. I want her to know how to shoot, how to fight, and how to escape. This fucker isn’t getting near her, but if he does, she’ll get away. She has to. I need her in my life. She’s no longer just something I want, she’s something that I need.
Savannah is standing in front of a dummy with her fists raised. She punches it once and kicks it in the head.
“Whoa! I want to do that,” Iris whispers in awe.
I laugh and guide her to everyone.
“I can’t believe you’re all here,” Iris whispers.
“We’re professionals at what we do and can help you. James has been teaching self-defense for a long time,” Roman says. “Kiernan and I served in the army and now work private security. In the past couple of year, Liam has become heavily involved in self-defense as well. We got you covered.”
“And, Hudson?” Iris asks, swinging her head to him.
“Sweetheart, I’m here for the entertainment.”
Iris throws her head back laughing, the lingering tension leaving her body. I didn’t have anything except for Brae when I left Chicago, and now I have a family and a woman I couldn’t even dream up.
During every drill and lesson we run Iris through, I’m left on the sidelines watching. She trusts me. Roman insisted on one of the other guys doing it because if it’s her ex coming after her, she won’t be trusting with him. She’ll be uncomfortable.