Less Broken

by Eve R. Hart

The memories were too strong and they wouldn’t fade until I was out of this damn bed and miles away from this building.

  “Let’s see what the doctor has to say today,” he said and it made my eye twitch in anger. “Besides, now that you’re up, I think there are a few things we should get worked out before you leave here.”

  “Like what?” I growled again.

  I had an idea but the truth was, we’d all been avoiding the shit that was hanging over our heads.

  Theon had left to go pick up Silvie from school. He was taking her for ice cream before heading here. I knew he felt guilty about staying in the hospital with me and he was trying to make it up to her. And to be honest, I was a little pissed at him about it. He should have been there for her, especially after all that she’d been through. But then there was the other side of the coin. Theon had been on the verge of breaking himself and honestly, he probably hadn’t been any good for her then.

  If it hadn’t been for Reed, well, this shit would have been even more of a mess.

  And here I was, treating him like shit.

  Oh well, he was probably used to it by now.

  Life was about to change for all of us. I knew it. He did too. I felt like I’d just gotten him back in my life and now I wouldn’t be going back home. It hurt, but it also wasn’t a hard choice. Silvie needed Theon, and so did I. So there wasn’t even a choice. We’d stay here because it was what was best for Silvie. She’d been through so much and the last thing she needed was to move away from all her friends and the school she was familiar with. I didn’t even need to talk about it because my mind was already made up.

  I just hadn’t actually told anyone that.

  I might have been getting ahead of myself considering that I hadn’t even met Silvie yet. What if she didn’t like me? I had no doubt that I’d love her. Just hearing Theon talk about her, being there to see the love he had for her, well, all I could say was that I was excited to get to know her. And maybe a bit nervous too. Again, what if she didn’t like me?

  “You have that same look on your face that you had when you told me you enlisted.” I snapped back into focus at the sound of his voice. There was this smile on his face. It wasn’t quite smug, but it was close.

  “What are you talking about?” I asked with my brows pinched together in confusion.

  “You’re about to tell me that you’re staying,” he replied. “That face says you’ve made up your mind, and we all know what it means when that happens.”

  He couldn’t talk me out of this and he knew it.

  I swallowed hard, a wave of sadness washing over me.

  I wanted to stay, but I also didn’t want to leave Reed. He was family and I found that I had the same feeling twelve years ago when I told him I was leaving.

  The door swung open and in walked one of the doctors. I hadn’t bothered to remember anyone’s name. I suppose it was shitty but I didn’t care.

  “Mr. Jones, how are—”

  “Unless you are going to tell me I can leave, get the fuck out.”

  “Cade,” Reed scolded but I heard the damn humor in his voice.

  The good ole doc shut his mouth quickly and got to checking me over in a hurry.

  “I would like to see you stay for observation one more night, but if it’s more stressful for you to be here—”

  “It is,” I gritted out.

  “Then I guess I will have them get your discharge papers ready,” he finished with a tight smile.

  “Thank you, doctor,” Reed called out right before the doc scooted out of the room.

  “Uncle Reed,” an adorable little girl called out as she bounced into the room.

  I knew instantly it was Silvie.

  And it wasn’t because Theon was hot on her tail.

  He sent me a smile the moment his eyes met mine.

  Apparently, she’d started calling Reed uncle. When Reed told me this, there was something in his face that said he didn’t have the heart to correct her. Though I wasn’t really sure what she would call him otherwise. It was an awkward situation all around and it didn’t fucking matter to me. If she wanted to call him Uncle Reed, then so be it. I suspected Silvie needed that sense of family— the good kind. And I knew Reed did too.

  “What’s up, squirt?” Reed asked her with happiness written all over his face. I couldn’t hate that he’d taken the little girl into his heart while he’d been in charge of her. He was so much like his mom it wasn’t even funny. That thought sent a spike of pain through my heart. Yeah, it hurt that his parents were gone, but at least I could see parts of them living on through Reed.

  It was that thought that had all sorts of ideas and images floating through my head. Things like what a future might look like with Theon. Watching our kids grow, seeing how our personalities mixed and came out in our children. And how they didn’t as well. Then again, maybe they’d be as different as day and night, the same way Theon and Silvie were. It didn’t matter how they turned out as long as I had that future. With Silvie and Theon and Reed. And anyone else that might join this perfect, little mash-up family.

  But it would have to wait. As much as I wanted to grow our little family, now was not the time.

  “Mountain asked me to come to his birthday party!” Silvie said with a load of excitement in her tone.

  I looked over to see Theon scowling.

  Yeah, those thoughts weren’t going away. I wanted more with Theon. There wasn’t a single doubt in my mind that he would be anything less than an amazing father.

  “I wish I could be inside your head right now,” Theon said right before he leaned over and brushed a sweet kiss across my lips. It wasn’t enough, but with Reed and Silvie not even ten feet away, it would have to do.

  “Introduce me,” I whispered against his mouth.

  He shot up like he couldn’t believe he’d forgotten to do just that.

  “Silvie,” he called out capturing her attention. He was probably happy to stop the talk of this Mountain kid that I knew he wasn’t thrilled about. Such a good big brother. “Come meet Cade.”

  She bounced over. Her hair was curly and golden blonde. She didn’t really look much like Theon, but you could see the adoration in their eyes as they talked to one another.

  “Hi,” she said with a bright smile. “My name is Silvia Renée Graham-Alberts. But you can call me Silvie because that’s what I let all the people I like call me. Reed told me you’re a hero but I told him that I already know that because you saved me and Theon. I made you some cards. Colored them myself. Most of them have rainbows on them because that’s the only thing I’m good at drawing. I also tried to make a unicorn on one and it didn’t come out so well. But I hope you like them. I put them in my bookbag to keep them safe but I left it in the car.”

  I didn’t think she paused the whole time she talked. And her movements were so animated. It didn’t matter that I had a hard time following along because all I saw was happiness radiating off of her. It was kind of hard not to feel it too.

  She was so adorable and bright. Her smile alone could light up the darkest soul. She didn’t even seem shy around me or hesitant. I had expected it at least a little, she’d seen me shoot her father and I imagined that wasn’t something she’d forget anytime soon— if ever.

  “Thank you, Silvie,” I replied. “I can’t wait to see them.”

  “Well, I wanted to thank you for saving our lives. I’m sorry you were hurt but I hope you’ll be okay because I’m pretty sure my brother loves you.”

  I opened my mouth but was all choked up at the moment.

  “Are you going to live with us or are we moving with you?” she asked not even aware that it was an uncomfortable question.

  “Silvie,” Theon cut in with a stern tone.

  “What? I heard Uncle Reed on the phone with someone and he said Cade might stay here, but he wasn’t sure. And I just want to know what will happen with me.”

  This was the first time I’d seen her look anything other than happy and b
ouncy. I wanted to ease her worry right away.

  “I’m staying here with you guys, so you don’t have to leave your friends.” The words came so easily that I wasn’t sure if I’d said them out loud.

  But then I looked up at Theon and the wet twinkle of happiness was shining in his eyes and I knew he’d heard me.

  “Good,” Silvie said so casually. “Because I really, really want to go to Mountain’s birthday party.”

  “We’ll talk about that later,” Theon clipped out. The unhappy look on his face wasn’t very effective. It was Theon, after all. And I loved it.

  “Doc is letting me out,” I told Theon. “Are you going to take me home?”

  A look of panic crossed his face. Reed must have either sensed something was wrong, or knew something that I didn’t.

  “Hey, Silvie, I was just about to walk down to the cafeteria and grab some food. Would you like to go with me?” Reed asked.

  “Yeah, but I just had two scoops of double fudge ice cream, I might not have any room for anything else,” she replied, unaffected by the odd shift in the air.

  “Talk to me, baby. Tell me what I’m missing here,” I said to Theon once we were alone.

  He let out a long breath and then sat on the edge of the bed facing me.

  “The house is a disaster. I don’t even know how…” He shook his head. “Reed’s been keeping Silvie in a hotel suite this whole week. He bought her new clothes too, which, I feel bad about. How did I not know?”

  “You’ve been doing the best you can, Theon. Don’t go down that road. She’s safe now. You’re safe now. We’ll fix this and move on together.”

  He nodded like he’d heard me but it was easy to see that he still felt lost.

  “Get me out of here and I’ll show you,” I went on.

  “Are they really releasing you, or did you force them into it?” he asked with a raised brow.

  “Does it matter?” I shot back.

  Theon laughed and it brought a smile to my face.

  “I’m glad you’re okay and ready to go and all,” he said, his face losing that sense of humor. “But it’s a lot to ask you to take on. I don’t feel right doing it. I have to be here for her. She has no one else. And there’s so much stuff to take care of, I don’t even know what it all is. Reed’s been awesome, but it’s time I start sorting this out myself and let him get back to Chicago and the business.”

  “We’ll fix it together, baby,” I reinforced hoping he’d get it this time.

  “Together,” he nodded.

  Then he curled up against my side and I held him tight.

  Theon was my home. My heart. The love between us was real and strong.

  There wasn’t anything we couldn’t get through as long as we did it together.

  Epilogue

  Theon

  Three months later…

  “Mmm,” I moaned, still half asleep, as Cade kissed the curve of my neck. His fingers were already torturing my nipple and I could feel his hardness pressing against my back. “Don’t stop.”

  “Don’t plan to,” he shot back, his voice thick with sleep telling me that he was about as much awake as I was. “I need you.”

  “You just had me like,” I cracked my eye open to see the light streaming through the window, “two hours ago.”

  “Three,” he corrected and I rolled my eyes even though he couldn’t see it.

  Not that I was complaining because, in all honesty, I needed him too.

  I turned in his arms and lifted my lips to his. My hand drifted down his hard abs until my fingers wrapped around his thick shaft.

  “Fuck,” he grunted and started working himself in my grasp. “Ride me, baby.”

  He rolled over onto his back. I let out a small laugh as his hand shot out to grab the bottle of lube so quickly that he nearly knocked it over. Which only caused him to shoot a scowl my way.

  Cade was supposed to be the smooth one. And normally he was. So, yes, I’d take joy in these moments because they didn’t come often.

  Plus, it made me feel special that I could throw him off his game.

  “Stop playing with me,” he said as I worked lube all over his cock with my hand. “Need to fill you up again.”

  He held himself upright as my hands went to his chest. This was round three in the last six hours and so I knew I was ready to take him in.

  I sank down slowly, my eyes on his the entire time. And once I was fully seated, he pulled me down for a kiss.

  I wiggled my hips letting him know that I couldn’t stay still any longer. I needed to feel him moving in and out of me. He let me go and I wasted no time getting to work. I rode him hard, and as he gripped my hips and shoved up into me, I knew he was getting close.

  “Grab yourself, baby,” he demanded in a strained voice.

  My hand left his chest and with a firm grip, I started working myself to our rhythm. My head fell back and my lids nearly closed.

  “Come all over me while I fill you up,” he grunted.

  It was as if his cock became hotter inside of me. I knew he was holding back, waiting for me so we could come together.

  “Cade,” I called out his name and the first jet of cum shot out and landed on his chest. Heat flooded inside of me and all I could do was smile.

  Spent and sweaty, I collapsed onto his chest and he wrapped his arms around me.

  I loved that there was nothing between us. I loved the fact that when he pulled away from my body, there was a part of him left behind.

  I loved Cade. Period.

  Every single thing about him.

  I mean, how could I not love a man who’d— despite the fact that it wasn’t his thing— offered to bottom for me once before? It wasn’t my thing either and I quickly shot any ideas of that down. There was just something about having his power hanging over me, owning my body, that did it for me.

  Things weren’t how I imagined they would be. They were so much better.

  After I brought him to the house that Silvie was living in with Carl, he said it wouldn’t do. And he’d been right. I had no idea what Carl had done those few months I’d been away, but the place was destroyed. Even if we were going to make it a home, it would have taken months to fix and clean up. My first concern had been getting Cade settled because he wasn’t supposed to be doing much of anything. And I wanted to give Silvie some sense of normalcy. So we ended up staying in the hotel suite with Reed for a while. Reed ended up sticking around for a few weeks just to make sure Cade wouldn’t do anything to hurt himself.

  Then Cade found this house. The one we were still working on to make it our home. It was well on its way, but not quite there yet. We now lived on the outskirts of Atlanta. We’d asked the school board for special permission to let Silvie remain at the elementary school she’d been at. They granted it to us as long as we got her to and from every day. It was a forty-five-minute drive, but it was worth it. As long as she was happy.

  I, on the other hand, wasn’t thrilled that she was still around that Mountain kid. Okay, so I was slowly warming up to him. And It was hard to hate him when he was protective of my sister and pretty much her best friend at this point.

  I was going to keep my eyes on him though.

  So was Cade. And I couldn’t forget about Reed, as well.

  No charges were brought against Cade for the death of Carl. We were doing our best to move on from it all. Cade and Silvie were both in therapy. I think it was Silvie that helped give him the courage to try. We went as a family, sort of. Both of their therapists worked in the same building and they had their appointments at the same time every week. Cade went off to his on the third floor while I stayed with Silvie on the second. Sometimes she’d want me in there with her, and sometimes she didn’t. Either way, I was there for her, just waiting for whatever she might need.

  Cade was doing better. He was facing the things that tormented him and held him in darkness. It wasn’t always easy but he was trying. I knew it would take time and I told him that Sil
vie and I would always be there for him. On good days. On bad days. And whatever came in between.

  “How much longer do we have?” I asked and my words came out muffled against his chest.

  “Reed will be here in four hours,” Cade replied.

  Reed was down here often. He’d recently bought a huge penthouse with a stunning view of downtown Atlanta. He loved to be right in the middle of it all. Silvie had spent the night at his house and this morning Reed was taking her shopping for a special outfit to wear tonight.

  “Have I said happy birthday yet?” Cade asked and of course, I smiled.

  “Yes, this is the third time now,” I told him as I lifted my head so I could kiss him.

  “I think I’ve got at least one more in me before we have to go.”

  I chuckled and shook my head. He might have had one more, but right now, it was all I could do to lift my head.

  Big Tony was still in my life. In fact, that was where we were headed tonight. Tony was throwing me a family-friendly party at the bar. We’d also spent Thanksgiving with him. Every year, he shut the place down, had Mario make a big feast, and invited all his friends there to eat. Even Reed had come because he’d been down then and I couldn’t leave him to spend the holiday alone.

  I was a little sad that I didn’t work for him anymore. But Tony said he understood and that it was important to take care of family. Yeah, I ended up quitting school, there was just no way around it. I wasn’t really sad about it though, I just hated that Reed had spent all that money on me for nothing. But Silvie was my number one priority and taking care of her came first. I was granted legal guardianship of her and things were going great.

  Cade was absolutely amazing with her.

  I shouldn’t have doubted that things would work out.

  She had him wrapped around her finger, for sure. And I couldn’t have loved it more.

  That was how we ended up with three chickens, two baby goats, and recently added, three kittens. All she had to do was bat her big eyes at him and smile wide, and he folded like a piece of paper. It was a good thing this farm-style house came with two acres. Oh, and Cade, he was taking the farm part of that a little too literally. Though, he did look sexy out there first thing in the morning, shirtless as he took care of all the animals and gathered the fresh eggs.