Page 7

Nat

Considering there’s a twenty-year-old college student in charge of the Hawkins household, the fridge is surprisingly well stocked with fresh vegetables, fruit, and meat. I don’t know if Chase is responsible or if he has a delivery service.

It doesn’t matter because whoever is responsible, they’ve given me plenty of options for dinner and Chase’s lunch. Pulling out a container labeled chicken salad with a neatly printed date of two days ago, I crack the lid and give it a sniff.

Smells fine to me. Looks good too. It’ll do for a quick sandwich for Chase, and I’ll eat the rest while I work out what to cook the family for dinner.

I can’t hear the water running in the pipes and I hope that doesn’t mean Chase hasn’t made it into the shower. He might not need one, but it will help him feel better after his breakdown.

And that’s what it was. He broke down in my arms.

The breakdown I understand. He probably hasn’t let himself feel emotions or grief, in the misguided belief that he needs to be strong for his sisters.

The twins have each other and Candace doesn’t have a clue what’s transpired around her. Who does Chase have to talk to?

What I can’t wrap my head around is the way I stepped forward and pulled him into my arms, held him while he cracked.

Other than the girls, I’ve never held anyone when they cried.

And none of them cried the way Chase did.

It only takes a few seconds to make Chase’s sandwich. Moving it to a plate, I shove away all thoughts of my need to support him while he cried and instead concentrate on giving his body nourishment before he has a rest.

He might be the hottest man—and I have to admit, as much as I want to focus on his age, he isn’t a boy, he’s all man—but he looks exhausted. Ravaged. Like he’s waged a war on the ice for days instead of hours.

Plate of chicken salad on sourdough in hand, I grab a bottle of water from the fridge as I pass on my way upstairs.

The house isn’t huge—not like the one I grew up in—but it isn’t small either. When I get upstairs, I see the top level is split in two.

On one side are three bedrooms, on the other there’s a set of closed double doors—which I assume is his parents’ room—and a second door barely cracked open, a soft lullaby floating through the gap into the hall.

Candace’s room. I’ll peek in on her before I head back to the kitchen.

Straight in front of me is an empty bathroom. The wisps of steam and fogged mirror tell me Chase has at least done the first part of my directions.

I’m holding his second.

Turning to the left, I glance into each room until I find him in the last one. He’s showered, pulled on sweatpants that conceal nothing and have my insides clenching like they haven’t in years, and is laid out flat on his back on the bed.

At first I wonder if he’s passed out, but as I walk closer, I hear a light snore slip through his parted lips.

Part three of my directive complete.

I look at the plate in my hand and smile. I’ll wrap it and keep it for when he wakes but I’ll leave the water on his bedside table.

The position he’s in has me frowning though. It looks like he sat on the edge of the mattress and fell backward. His legs, bent at the knees, hang off the end, his bare feet on the floor.

Instinct tells me to move him.

Common sense tells me that won’t be easy.

He’s six feet four inches and while I’m six feet in heels, I admit to neglecting my exercise regimen in recent months and doubt I’ll be able to lift him without disturbing him—or straining something.

I could wake him and get him into bed properly, but I don’t want to risk him arguing about taking a rest—one he obviously needs.

Best option for both of us is to leave him as he is.

After putting the water on his bedside table, I lower the blind on the only window in the room to stop the afternoon sun from shining in.

He doesn’t disturb and I head for the door. Before I close it, I look at him sprawled out on the bed one last time.

He really is a fine-looking man.

If I were a few years younger, and he were a few older, I’d seriously think about making a move.

I don’t know what’s more shocking. The thought of hooking up with him if our ages were closer together, or the fact my body is in full agreement with the idea, ages be damned.

I haven’t had sex with anyone since my early twenties. My hand and vibrator don’t count.

My marriage to Johnathon might have been in name only but unlike my husband, I have never stepped outside those vows.

Maybe that’s why my body is reacting to Chase.

As of yesterday, I’m weeks from being officially divorced, and consciously I might not be thinking about men, but my libido must have been lying in wait.

It might not be Chase; I could have the same reaction to any good-looking man now I have the option to do something about any attraction I feel.

It’s a thought to ponder later. Right now, I need to check on Candace, wrap this sandwich, and plan out the rest of the afternoon.

If Cassidy and Crystal arrive home before Chase wakes, I’ll need to make sure my presence doesn’t freak them out.

A strange woman in their house, cooking them dinner, is bound to have them panicking even if they don’t understand why.

I mentally add to my list of questions for Chase as I check on Candace.

Are the girls in counseling?

Is he?

They should be. Together and separately.

They’ve experienced a traumatic life-altering event, and they should talk about their emotions to help them process the loss of their parents.

God knows I’d have had an easier time if my grandfather had taken Eli’s suggestion and taken me to a counselor. Then again, my grandfather didn’t care about anyone but himself.

Not even his disabled sister, the one he’d been legally responsible for since my great-grandparents deaths.

No, helping Aunt Florence had fallen on Dad and Mom, and when they were killed, I was the only one who cared about her. Took the time to visit her in the home my grandfather had shoved her into.

I’ll forever be thankful to Eli for taking me to see a counselor the day I turned twenty-one and could do it without my grandfather’s approval.

It had been the first day of my independence and I hadn’t looked back after that first trust fund had been unlocked.

I make another mental note to look into counselors in Baton Rouge. I can get Trevor on that. We should have a list for the Rogues organization and Rogue sportswear employees anyway.

Back in the kitchen, it takes no time to find the plastic wrap. Chase’s mother has everything in logical places and I doubt he’s done any rearranging since he moved back in and took over the parental role.

Putting the sandwich in the fridge, I decide on a simple meal of grilled chicken and salad for dinner. I’m not sure what any of the Hawkins children like to eat and as there is the produce to make the simple meal, I’ll go with it and hope for the best.

Dinner sorted, I head out to my rental car to grab my laptop bag. I brought it in the hope of Chase agreeing to listen to our offer, which comes in handy now I’ll be here the rest of the day. I can get work done while taking care of Candace and the twins if Chase isn’t up by the time they get home.

First thing I need to do is call Eli. He’s bound to have some information on Kent Quinn and Limitless for me by now.

I set up on the kitchen island. The space is large enough to spread out and I can keep an eye on the monitor next to the bottle warmer on the counter.

Candace is still sound asleep. And there are three bottles already prepared in the fridge, so I won’t have to hunt up formula and figure out how to make one.

Deciding to video call Eli, I open my laptop and wait for it to start up. While my computer is doing that, I shoot Trevor a message to research counselors in Baton Rouge.

I get an affirmative from Trevor, and Eli answers on the first ring.

“Is he considering the offer?” he asks. No hello, no how are you.

I laugh. “Hello, Eli, I’m good, how are you?”

“Funny.” He smirks at me. “So, is he?”

“Not yet.”

He frowns. “Where are you?”

“In his kitchen.”

“In his…” He shakes his head. “Okay, start from the beginning.”

“I’m not rehashing my morning. Did you get any information on Kent Quinn?”

“Yes. He’s a good choice. The best within the company to take on the role you said Chase offered him, but he might find better going outside.”

“No. Chase needs to have someone he knows in the position. It’s a reluctant move on Chase’s part.”

“Really? Why?”

“He feels as though he’s letting his parents down by stepping away from actively managing the company.”

“Ah, are you seeing similarities?”

“Yes. Except he doesn’t have a tyrannical grandfather trying to take everything away from him.”

“No, he doesn’t. He’s still no more equipped than you were to run the company and take care of his sisters.”

“I learned though.”

“Yes, you did. But you also found trusted people to help you. He doesn’t have that. Well, he has Kent.”

“And what did you find out about him?”

“Mitch Hawkins met him when he was a sixteen-year-old punk trying to jack Mitch’s car.”

“He’s a car thief?”

“No. He was a thief. But only because he was homeless and trying to survive. Mitch and Sienna took him in and turned his life around.”

“Thoughts?”

“Perfect for taking a CEO role in the future. If I were Chase, I’d see how he goes over the next twelve months in this new job then offer him the bigger one. Especially if I were thinking of signing a contract to play hockey in the NHL.”

“Okay, so we can take the worry about the family business off his shoulders without selling it. Now the girls.”

“That’s going to be tougher.”

“Are you saying I can’t do it?”

“No. And I know you well enough to know you’ve taken my words as a challenge.”

“You’re right. I have.” I glance around the room. “I think the biggest hurdle will be getting them to move from this house.”

“Cassidy and Crystal are going into high school. New school. Best time there is to move them. In another year they’ll have friends and outside school activities.”

“Hmm…”

“I see the wheels turning.”

“Our captain has a daughter.”

“The secret, not so secret one?”

“Yeah. I don’t know what the deal is there other than he keeps his private life extremely private. Anyway, what I was getting at is she’ll be attending Hannon Grove.”

“She’s older than them, if I remember correctly.”

“Yes, but if I could connect them, it would help them all settle into their new school, new homes.” The more I think about it the more I think having a friend whose father plays on the same team as their brother would be a tick in the pro column. “

“I can find out if we can get them in. Possibly ask them to hold a couple of places just in case.”

“Do that.”

“If they won’t?”

“The usual donation should make them agreeable.”

“All right. Now what about the baby? Do you want me to look at available care for her?”

“No. Not yet. I think we can manage to juggle her to start with. She’s not even six months old. I doubt Chase is going to want her in care yet.”

“How are you going to do that?”

“I’ll rearrange my schedule so I’m free to have her when he’s training or playing.”

“You’re going to take care of the baby?”

My gaze meets his. “Yes.”

“He’ll be okay with that?”

“I’m looking after her now. Although she’s currently sleeping.”

“Where’s Chase?”

“Sleeping.”

“Nat…”

“Don’t say it.”

“You kept your distance from Johnathon?—”

“He’s a prick and I knew it going into the marriage. That reminds me. Has he signed the papers yet?” There’s an idea brewing, one I’ve got experience with, but I can’t mention it until I’ve untangled myself from my current husband.

“According to his lawyer, he’ll be doing it sometime this week.”

“Can you put pressure on him? Make it happen sooner?”

“You know what will make it happen faster.”

“I did say he was a prick.” I take a deep breath and hold it.

There’s no sympathy in Eli’s gaze. He knows why I went into my marriage and why I remained in it even though my husband stepped out on me every chance he got.

Pushing the air from my lungs in a fast burst, I keep my eyes on Eli’s. “Offer a two million bonus for signing today.”

“And if he doesn’t?”

“Then he misses out on two million and I’ll rethink the house in New Orleans.”

“Natalie.”

“He’s fucked me around long enough. It didn’t matter before, I had other things to deal with, but now it’s time to deal with him. He gets two million extra if he signs today, if he waits until tomorrow I’ll take that two and the house in New Orleans off the table.”

“Okay, if you’re sure.”

“Yes.”

“Want to tell me why else you want this done now when you didn’t yesterday.”

“Not yet.”

“Do I need to prepare another prenup?”

I laugh. “You really do know me.”

“I’ve known you since before you were in diapers, girly.”

We both laugh at his words. “Yes. And if I haven’t said it recently, I love you. For everything you’ve done for me and for standing in for Dad when he couldn’t.”

“I love you like my own. You feel more like mine than his most days.”

“You’ve had me as long.”

“Are we doing the usual on the anniversary this year?”

“I don’t know. It’ll be the Rogues first game in the league.”

“I know.”

“We’ll work something out.”

“We usually do.”

A cry from the monitor has my gaze lifting over the top of my computer screen. “Looks like the little one is up.”

“All right, shoot me a message or email with anything else you want me to do. I’ll concentrate on the divorce then move on to the school.”

“Perfect. Let me know how it goes with Johnathon.”

“Of course. Talk later.”

Eli disconnects a milli-second before a loud screech fills the room. Jumping from my seat, I race to the fridge and grab one of the bottles of formula. I drop it into the warmer and hit the start button before I jog out of the kitchen and up to Candace’s room.

I don’t need her disturbing her brother yet. I want to have her cleaned up and fed before he surfaces.