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She scoffs. “When it wasn’t our home,” she mutters. “Now it is.”
Another conversation I have to table for now. Charlie’s living out a Cinderella story, but she has to understand Nathan and I just started dating. This is stillhishome in which we’re guests. I’m not going to rush into forever this time. Not because I can’t picture my life with Nathan.I can. But I want to savor this. I don’t think I’ve ever really fallen in love before. It’s creating a shift, where my happiness matters just as much as Charlie’s. Being self-full is a new concept for me, and I want to take my time, approach this with care. I want Nathan and me to build something solid and everlasting together.
I open the front door expecting Miller who drops by daily to check on us. Instead, there’s a man I don’t recognize standing on the stoop. He looks homeless. His beard is unkempt and patchy. Thick in some places, sparse in others. His red, long-sleeved shirt and dirty jeans have holes in a variety of sizes.
“Who are you?”
“Peter,” a small voice says from behind me. Claire approaches us, but stays mostly hidden behind me, an obvious display of fear and apprehension.
“It’sDad,” he growls out. “Get your shit. We’re going.”
His breath is rancid. Not just morning breath after coffee, it smells like rotting. He tries to smile, and there’s the source. Several teeth are missing, and the swelling and discoloration on his gumline is screaming for emergency dental attention.
I turn around, blocking Peter’s view of Claire’s face with my back. I raise my brows, wordlessly asking if she’s supposed to go with him. Taking the cue, she widens her eyes with a pleading look and subtly shakes her head. I nod, concluding the most dramatic game of charades I’ve ever played.
“Go find Charlie, and get changed for the pool, sweetheart. I’ll talk to your dad and see if you can stay to swim.”
With my permission, she flies down the hallway out of sight. My mama-bear instinct kicks into high gear. I wheel around, ready to give Peter a piece of my mind for showing up in this state. Not just his tattered clothing and dirty mouth. His eyes are bloodshot and he’s swaying in place like he’s drunk or high. He’s out of his damn mind if he thinks I’m letting him take Claire anywhere.
“Peter, you need to go.”
My intuition tells me to shut the door about two seconds too late. Before I can lock him out, Peter digs into his pocket and produces a handgun. He points it between my eyes. “I’m not going anywhere without my fucking kid.”
46
Nathan
Ruby stopped late last night just outside of Tucson at a seedy-looking motel. We caught up to her in the middle of the night, but I was not about to knock on her door at midnight. The way she’s behaving, she’s scared, paranoid, and not in her right mind. I don’t want to frighten her into a heart attack.
Instead, we waited all night, dozing off in our vehicles, until she emerged from the motel, dressed in all black, and opted for breakfast at the small diner across the street.
Dad and I are in his Jaguar. Terry, one of Hodge’s PIs, is in a plateless sedan behind us. We’re all watching Ruby through the diner window. “I’m going in alone,” I announce.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Dad answers.
“Dad. Trust me.” I step out of the car and head toward the restaurant. Dad must have faith because I don’t hear footsteps behind me. A politedingannounces my entrance. I bypass the hostess stand, giving a curt nod to the waitress. “Meeting someone,” I say, and proceed to Ruby’s booth. She’s buried in her phone and doesn’t notice me until I plop down across from her.
Shock blanches her face the second she peers up.
“Good morning, Ruby. Where are you headed with three black duffel bags full of cash?”
No longer surprised, she’s angry. Her eyes narrow to pin-sized. “Ithoughtyou were having me followed. Peter warned me. I should’ve listened.”
“Ruby…I’m tired of this war. Aren’t you? Don’t we all want the same thing here?”
My statement gives her pause. She opens her mouth like she was armed with a comeback, but I took her off guard. “No. We don’t. You want Peter in prison, or worse.”
All true. But that’s not why I’m here. “I want Claire safe and happy.”
“You want to take her from me too,” Ruby whispers.
She looks so weary. Not at all like the calculating villain I remember from the past. She’s frail, her blue veins pressing against her thin, pale skin. How could I not pity her right now? “We could’ve done this together,” I say. “Did you ever consider that?”
She wets her dry, cracked lips. “How so?”
“I can’t forgive Peter. But I could’ve forgiven you. You let Elise down in so many ways, but you could’ve had a fresh start with Claire. I didn’t want to own that little girl. She wasn’t part of a power struggle. Did you ever stop to think that I wanted a relationship with Claire not just to spite you? Why wouldn’t you want your granddaughter’s life filled with even more love and support after she lost her mother?”
She drops her head, unable to meet my gaze. “Elise kept her from me. You guys wouldn’t let me see my only grandchild.”