Page 98 of Breaking Conviction

“Phoe-nik, is there a kitchen downstairs?” Thea asked with a tilt of her head.

Phoenix cringed and looked to Wes for an answer.

“No princess, there’s not a kitchen downstairs. Phoenix was just eating lunch down there, weren’t you, Phoenix?”

Phoenix rolled his eyes, at what, Wes didn’t know, but thankfully he played along.

“Yeah, just had a hankerin’ to take my lunch to the basement. I’ll go take this up right now,” he answered without looking up as he keyed in the code Wes had set up on everyone’s phone in order to shut and lock the hidden door in the floor.

“Wait, didn’t you just get here?”

Phoenix narrowed his eyes. “Yeah, dude. I’m on Ascot’s food duty.”

“No, I mean—”

“Is that a cookie? Like my mommy makes?”

Thea squealed and jumped off Wes’s lap, aiming for the plate on the ground. Thankfully, Wes pulled her back just as Phoenix snatched the plate up.

“This one ain’t for you, kid.”

Thea’s green hazel eyes shimmered with tears. “But why can’t I have one?”

“Damn, do they have a button or some sh-thing? That reaction was immediate as hell.”

Wes laughed. “Don’t worry, Princess T. I’m sure if you ask Phoenix nicely, he’ll run up and go get you one.”

“Dude, seriously?”

Wes glared at him while Thea tried to calm herself down. She hiccuped and nodded before turning on what Wes had come to realize was her “gimme” look. His niece and nephew had one, too, widening their eyes and sticking their bottom lip out. Every time they wanted something, instead of saying “Gimme that,” they just gave the look. It worked every time for Wes and from the defeat on Phoenix’s face, it seemed it worked on him too.

“Please, Phoe-nik. Can I have a cookie?”

Phoenix sighed before looking down at his phone and muttering under his breath. “Sure, kid. I’ll be right back.”

Thea squealed and hopped back into Wes’s lap. Without a thought, he wrapped his arms around her. Naomi had told him how Dean had treated Thea that last time. The thought of anyone hurting her or making her cry made his teeth ache from clenching his jaw, and he wished he could go back and give the asshole a few more knocks to the head to teach him a lesson. But it wouldn’t do any good. Men like that aren’t cured by a taste of their own medicine.

A buzzing in front of him made Wes look to his phone in Thea’s hands.

“Thea, is someone calling me?”

She stilled in his arms like she was afraid she was in trouble, but eventually turned to look at Wes with a toothy grin. “Yes sir, but can I finish first?”

Wes chuckled, shaking his head. “Sure thing, princess.”

He hugged her once with one arm. She was fiery, like her mom. Was there any doubt why he’d almost told Naomi how he felt about her the night she escaped her ex? She’d squeezed his hand three times, just like Thea had before. He had an idea of what it meant, but hadn’t wanted to confront her right then. That type of emotion could scare anyone away if it was admitted too soon.

But she had to know, right? He’d nearly gotten arrested that night for defending Naomi and Thea, and he’d do it again. With that thought, he realized he’d do anything for them.

A crash from below drew Wes’s attention to the still open trap door.

“Fucking Phoenix,” he muttered without thinking and the small gasp in front of him told him he’d been heard.

“Wes, you can’t say bad words,” the little girl admonished him like cursing was the worst thing anyone could ever do. It was refreshing. Hopefully her innocence would remain for as long as possible and her father’s actions hadn’t caused too much emotional damage.

“Sorry, princess.” He tried to lean up to get to the button near the wall to close the trap door. The last thing Thea needed was to hear Ascot downstairs. Finding an interrogation prisoner might taint that angelic naivety quicker than even anything her dad had ever done.

He lifted her from his lap to set her down. “Let me just do something—”