His stomach sank. “Oh.” Not only had he made a complete fool of himself, but chances were that if he stayed here, he was going to see her again.
A lot.
Dammit.
Bobby’s head fell back as he let out an irritated breath. “I’m not going back there, Dad. As a matter of fact, I had planned on asking you to drive me home tomorrow so I can just…you know, finish this recovery back in Myrtle Beach.”
His father didn’t speak for a long moment. “So you’re going to run away?”
His eyes went wide. “Excuse me? I don’t think going home is running away. Gimme a break!”
“Unfortunately that’s what I’ve been doing and look where it’s gotten you!” Jack cried.
“Dad! What the hell?” How was this happening? Where was his mild-mannered father?
“I don’t think going back to Myrtle Beach is the answer, Bobby. I know right now you think it is, but you’re wrong. Now that we’re being honest with each other, I think we can finally move forward. We’re all here to help you, you know.”
Seriously? “There’s nothing you or anyone else can do, Dad. This is all on me and no one else. Believe me, I wish there was something you could do—wish there was some way someone else could take away the pain and disappointment, but there isn’t. And as long as I stay here, the longer I’m going to sit around and just…I don’t know, do nothing.”
“Why?” Jack challenged. “Why are you willing to sit here and do nothing, but you think you won’t do that back home?”
“Because here I have people around me willing to help. I don’t have to put in an effort. I tried it while you were away and lasted all of five days, and then I knew I could run to Anna. I’m getting soft sitting here, and that’s no way for me to be. It’s not going to get me back on the force!”
His father studied him for a long time.
Then he seemed to admit defeat. With a curt nod, he said, “Fine. If you want to go back to Myrtle Beach, I’ll take you. I won’t stop you.”
Bobby let out a sigh of relief. “Thank you.”
“But…”
Great, here it comes.
“You’ll have to tell your mother. I’m not doing it for you. And you’re going to go back over to the Shaughnessys and not only apologize to Teagan, but you’re going to apologize to everyone for making a scene.”
“I did not make a scene!”
“Take it or leave it, son. You want a ride back home, this is how you’ll get it.”
“Dad, come on. Be reasonable.”
“I am. Now it’s your turn to be an adult.” He started to walk away. “I’ll see you over at the Shaughnessys,” he called over his shoulder, but he kept walking.
For several minutes, he stood on the front porch, still a little stunned by what had just gone down. His father was threatening not to drive him home if he didn’t fall in line and go apologize? Seriously? Part of him was incredibly pissed. “What am I, twelve?”
He’d find another way home.
Bobby was about to open the front door when he saw one of the kids sneaking out the Shaughnessys’ gate. He stood back and watched to see who was being bold enough to leave the yard. Peeking out, he was surprised that he didn’t recognize the kid. Was he a friend of one of the Shaughnessy kids? Moving to the steps, he quietly climbed down and watched as the boy—who couldn’t be more than five or six—went and sat under the massive oak tree in Ian’s front yard. He took a closer look and saw the kid looked like he was crying.
Well, damn.
He waited for a minute or two to see if anyone would come looking for the little boy, but when no one did, he walked over. The kid looked up at him with the biggest eyes he’d ever seen on such a small face. They were dark brown and so sad he almost felt himself tearing up.
“Hey, bud,” he said casually. “Whatcha doing out here? The party’s in the yard.”
The kid shook his head. “I wanna go home.” He looked down at the grass.
Crouching in front of him, Bobby did his best to keep his voice calm and soothing. Part of his job meant talking to school kids, and he’d even helped his share of lost ones. Smiling, he said, “I know what you mean.”
Looking up, the dark eyes went wide. “You do?”
Nodding, Bobby said, “Uh-huh. I was trying to go home, too. But it turns out I need to stay for a little bit longer.”
“How come?”
Unable to help himself, he laughed softly. “Because my dad told me to.” He thought for sure the kid would be able to relate, only…
“I don’t have a dad,” he said sadly.
Without a thought, Bobby sat down on the grass beside him. “I’m sorry,” he said gently.
Shrugging, the kid stayed silent.
“So how come you’re out here when everyone’s back there?” he asked, hoping to change the subject.
“Pops is too busy to play with me.” Big tears rolled down his chubby cheeks. “I kept asking and he kept saying later, but then I asked again and he still said later! So I said if he wouldn’t play with me, I was going to go home.” He crossed his little arms defiantly over his chest. “And he didn’t even care!”
This was all more than a little confusing. So if the kid didn’t have a father, who was Pops? For that matter, he should probably ask his name just so he could call him something other than “kid.”
“I’m Bobby, by the way,” he said, holding out his hand. “And you are…?”
“Lucas!” someone called out.
A female someone.
Bobby didn’t have to turn around to recognize the husky voice. He looked at the kid—Lucas—with more than a hint of shock. This was her kid? Quickly, he came to his feet and faced her.
Teagan.
Studying her approach, he realized the name kind of fit. She gave him only a cursory glance before she dropped to her knees in front of her son.
“You scared me half to death,” she said fiercely but lovingly, right before she picked up the boy and wrapped him in her arms. “You know you’re not supposed to leave the yard.”
It was fascinating to watch. He didn’t know either of them and yet he could see how strong their bond was. Lucas rested his head on his mother’s shoulder even as he continued to cry. “Pops didn’t care when I said I was going home.”
Teagan pulled back and cupped her son’s face in her hands. “Oh, sweetie, yes he did. We’ve been looking all over the house for you!”
“But he wouldn’t play with me!” he cried.
“Sweetie, he’s talking with his friends and he knew there were a lot of kids here for you to play with,” she said sweetly. “There are so many of them back there, I can’t even remember all of their names.”
Lucas straightened and pulled out of her embrace a little. “I know all their names!” he said excitedly.
“You do?” she asked, sounding impressed.
“Uh-huh!” he nodded vigorously. “C’mon, I’ll prove it!” Then, taking his mother’s hand, he led her toward the yard. Bobby followed quietly.
Teagan noticed, because she looked over her shoulder at him and quietly said, “Thank you.”
He smiled and nodded, holding the gate open for them to walk through. When everyone spotted them, he felt beyond foolish. Luckily, everyone was so relieved that Lucas had been found that no one paid much attention to Bobby.
Without a word, his father walked over and handed him a plate of food. “Go sit and I’ll grab you a fresh beer.”
“Thanks, Dad,” he murmured with a sheepish grin.
He was seated and halfway through his burger when Teagan came and sat beside him. Unsure of what to say, he simply finished chewing.
“Thank you,” she said.
Bobby offered her a small smile. “I didn’t really do anything. I just happened to be at the right place at the
right time.”
“Not according to Lucas,” she said with her own grin.
“What do you mean?”
“Well, according to him you were like a giant who stopped him from running away,” she explained. “And you were trying to run away too, but your dad made you stay.”
He could feel his cheeks flaming hot with embarrassment.
“He said that was the coolest thing, since he’d never heard of a grown-up getting in trouble. If I hadn’t come out, he thought the two of you could have hung out together. Honestly, he was a little annoyed I showed up when I did,” she admitted with a nervous laugh.
“I would have brought him to the yard sooner,” Bobby said defensively, “but I was trying to figure out who he was and what was wrong. I was just asking him that when you came out.”
Teagan reached over and placed her hand on his and gently squeezed. “I wasn’t saying you did anything wrong.” Her tone was soft, reassuring. “By the way, I’m Teagan. And you’re…Bobby, right? Anna’s brother?”
Still feeling more than a little embarrassed, he nodded. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“Same here.”
As awkward as it would be, he needed to rectify things. “Listen, about what happened earlier…you know, when I walked away…”
“You don’t need to say anything, Bobby. It’s not a big deal.”
He kind of liked the way she said his name. It probably wasn’t the best time to be noticing that.
“No, it is,” he countered. “As you can see, I’m recovering and my arm just isn’t getting the memo to heal as quickly as I’d like. So when the plate started to slip…I don’t know, I just snapped.” He paused, hating having to admit any of this. “I don’t like needing help. Ask anyone. I’ve been the worst patient.”
Just then, Quinn walked over and grabbed the bottle of ketchup next to Bobby’s plate. “True story,” he said with a grin before walking away.
Bobby shook his head and laughed. “He really is a pain in the ass.”
He was pleased when Teagan laughed with him. “The last time I saw Quinn, I was about twelve, and he was obnoxious then. I just figured he’d grow out of it.”
“Yeah, well…” Bobby caught Quinn looking at them and frowned. “He’s not so bad. Of course I kind of have to say that, since he’s married to my sister, but it’s mostly true.”
Teagan looked at him as if she didn’t believe him before leaning in and whispering, “It’s okay if you don’t really mean it. It will be our little secret.”
And damn if her breath on his face wasn’t a turn-on as well.
He’d already walked away from her once, so he had no choice but to sit and suffer in silence right now. The safest thing for him to do was find something to talk about that would keep his mind off of her breath on his skin or how soft her hand felt on his—a hand that was still there.
Interesting.
Slowly, he took his hand away and picked up his burger. “I hear you and Lucas just moved to town. How are you liking things so far?”
“Me? I’m loving it. The beaches are fantastic. I’m renting Anna’s old place, as you probably know, and I love it.”
“And Lucas?”
Her slim shoulder lifted in a small shrug. “He’s not quite on board yet.”
“There’s a lot of things for kids to do around here. If you ask Anna or any of the Shaughnessys, I’m sure they’ll be able to give you some suggestions.”
“Oh, they have. Believe me,” she said. “Lucas and I have gone to the aquarium and we’ve gone shell collecting… We’re having fun. Once school starts, we’ll both be busy, so I’m enjoying this time to settle in.”
“Where did you live before?”
“Colorado.” She explained about her life growing up with a military father, and how they’d finally settled when her father got stationed at Fort Carson.
He finished eating as she talked and found it fascinating how she’d moved around so much. Bobby had only ever lived on the North Carolina coast before moving an hour south—to the South Carolina coast. He couldn’t help feeling a little inferior to her. He’d been perfectly content living and working in his home town for the longest time, then he’d gone and done something stupid and felt the need to immediately move on. Not his greatest moment, but he didn’t regret the move. Up until he got shot, it had been really good for him. But where did it leave him now?
What if he didn’t get clearance to go back to work? Would he stay in Myrtle Beach or move home?
“Bobby?”
He turned back and realized Teagan was looking at him oddly.
“You okay? You kind of zoned out there for a minute and then your expression got pretty fierce.”
“Yeah, um…sorry. My mind wandered and I started thinking of things I’m really trying not to think about.” Would he ever be able to not embarrass himself in front of her? “Sorry.”
For some reason, her sympathetic smile made him feel better in a way no one else’s had.
“You’re dealing with a fairly traumatic injury. I’m sure you can’t help but be in your head more than you want to be.”
He knew he was staring, but…she understood. “Yeah, well. I’m getting kind of tired of it, and so is everyone around me.”
Now it was her turn to look fierce. “Tell them they get to have an opinion when they’ve been shot.”
Wow. Just…wow. “You wouldn’t mind standing up on the table and saying that to the group, would you?”
He was only partially kidding.
Teagan glanced around the yard, and from the stern look she was giving the crowd, Bobby thought she was seriously considering it.
Now he was truly impressed. Not that he was looking to have her—or anyone—fight his battles, but after the argument he’d just had with his father, it was more tempting to consider it.
She straightened in her chair. “I hate when people try to tell you how you’re supposed to think, act, or feel when you’ve suffered some kind of trauma or loss.”
“Speaking from experience?” he asked and immediately regretted it. She opened her mouth to answer and then seemed to think better of it.
Instead, she stood and smiled warmly at him. “Don’t let anyone get to you. You’re entitled to feel the way you feel.” She looked over to where Lucas was playing and waved. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to finish letting my son introduce me to all the kids.”
Bobby was enjoying the view as she walked away when someone smacked him on the back of the head. He turned to see Quinn glaring at him.
“Watch where you’re looking, dumbass,” he said before walking away.
A slow grin crossed Bobby’s face. It wasn’t the only reason he’d be watching Teagan, but knowing that it annoyed Quinn just made it so much more fun.
* * *
A week later, Bobby was standing on Anna’s doorstep smiling at the shocked expression on her face.
“Bobby? What…? How…? Does this mean…?”
As much as he wanted to shout that everything was perfect, he was completely healed and ready to go back to work, he couldn’t. “I only have to wear the sling for a couple of hours a day, and I got cleared to drive.”
She launched herself at him for a big hug and it felt good to wrap both arms around her with only mild discomfort. When she pulled back, she was grinning from ear to ear. “And on your first car ride on your own you chose to come and see your favorite sister!”
“Only sister,” he corrected and laughed when she stuck her tongue out at him.
Anna stepped aside and motioned for him to come into the house. “So what does this all mean? Are you heading back to your place now or are you going to stay in town?”
“Honestly, I’m not sure. I’ve been working with the local doctors and I’m already starting physical therapy here, so I thought it
would probably be easier to just stay for a little longer. It’s not like I can go back to work yet.”
The house was way too quiet. Sitting down on the sofa in the family room, he looked around. “Where are the kids?”
“Bailey and Brian are napping, and Kaitlyn’s at a playdate with Lucas.”
That piqued his curiosity. “As in Teagan’s Lucas?”
She nodded and then looked at her phone. “I’m supposed to pick her up in an hour. I didn’t expect the kids to nap so long and I’m kind of relishing the silence.” She paused and seemed to think for a minute. “I’ll call Quinn and ask him to pick her up. No big deal.” Then she gave him her full attention. “So? How does it feel to have your arm out of the sling and have a little more freedom to move around?”
He laughed softly. “Right now it’s still a little weird. I find myself still holding my arm in that position. But I think I’m going to sleep like a baby tonight.”
She nodded. “I imagine sleeping with the sling couldn’t have been comfortable.”
“It wasn’t. Believe me.” And as much as he didn’t mind talking about it, he couldn’t help thinking about Teagan. They’d talked some more at the barbecue last weekend and he found she hadn’t been far from his mind all week. She intrigued him, and not just because she was a beautiful woman. She was smart and funny, and pretty insightful. All of that packaged together was damned appealing.
“Although I’m sure you’d be sleeping even better in your own bed,” Anna commented.
“Technically, I am,” he said with a wink. “It just happens to be my childhood bed.”
“Be thankful Mom didn’t put the Batman sheets back on them for you.”
This time he laughed harder. “A full-size bed is no match for a king, that’s for sure. So yeah, ideally I’d like to be sleeping in the one I have at my place.”
“Maybe you should be looking for a place here? How long will you be doing therapy?”
“Six weeks minimum. And if it really gets to me, I can commute. It’s not like I’ve got anything else to do.” He paused. “If you hadn’t rented out your place, I would have loved to stay there.”
Anna nodded. “It’s a great house and, really, I almost wish you could have.”
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