Page 10 of More Than a Hero (Baytown Heroes #12)

Pete let out a chuckle, low and rough. “I might’ve been a dumb fuck, but I wasn’t that dumb.

No way I was turning him down.” He shook his head, a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth.

“The store owner agreed, and that was the beginning of the next phase of my life. I worked after school, stocking shelves, sweeping floors, and unloading deliveries. And the cop, Frank, would check on me regularly. Not in a ‘keeping an eye on a troublemaker’ way, but more like… he wanted to make sure I was sticking with it.”

Angie leaned forward, absorbed in every word. “And when you’d worked off what you stole?”

“The store owner let me stay on,” Pete said, his expression shifting to something quieter, more thoughtful.

“Offered to pay me a paycheck, but I told him it wouldn’t do me any good.

I’d just get home, and my parents would take it.

So instead, he paid me in cash but locked it up in the office for me.

Let me take out what I needed when I needed it. ”

Angie’s stomach twisted at the thought that a fourteen-year-old couldn’t take money home because his own parents would steal it.

“Did that surprise Frank?” she asked, already suspecting the answer.

Pete snorted. “Not at all. By that time, Frank had told me exactly why he wanted to help me. He’d put my dad in the drunk tank plenty of times. He knew what I was up against.”

“Oh, wow.” Angie exhaled, shaking her head as she wrapped her mind around everything he’d just shared.

Pete took another sip of his beer, rolling the bottle between his fingers.

“Frank became a mentor. So did the grocer. Frank and his wife even started having me over sometimes, just for dinner. That was the first time I ever saw what a healthy relationship looked like.” A small smile ghosted across his lips.

“They once took me to the Eastern Shore for a fishing trip, and I fell in love with the area.”

Angie’s eyes softened. “So that’s how you ended up here.”

“In a roundabout way,” Pete admitted. “I graduated, joined the military, and thanks to Frank’s influence, I went through military police training.

I liked the structure. I liked knowing the rules.

Hell, I needed the rules. And it wasn’t hard to fall into a role where I helped others keep them, too. ”

Angie let out a slow breath, shaking her head with admiration. “For a quiet man, you really know how to weave an amazing story that holds my rapt attention.”

Pete threw his head back and laughed, the sound deep and genuine. “Yeah, well… I don’t know if I’ve ever told anybody all of this.”

Her brows lifted. “Really?”

He shifted, turning slightly so he was facing her more fully. “Really,” he confirmed. He hesitated, then shrugged. “I don’t like talking about myself. But I like spending time with you, Angie. And eventually, if we keep seeing each other, some of these things would come out anyway.”

She studied him for a long moment, warmth settling in her chest. “So now you pay it forward, right?”

His brow furrowed slightly. “What do you mean?”

She gestured toward him. “Frank and the grocer helped you when you were young and impressionable. It made a difference in your life. Hell, it probably made the difference between you ending up in jail and becoming the man you are now. And now you’re doing it for others.”

Pete was quiet for a beat, then let out a slow exhale.

“Yeah,” he admitted. “I guess that’s right.

I was already helping out with the American Legion and coaching the ball teams, but I started realizing we had some kids slipping through the cracks.

Gangs have started creeping down from Baltimore, and there are a lot of young guys who are ripe for the picking. ”

His fingers absently played with the label on his bottle, his expression unreadable.

“One of the middle school teachers and I started meeting with some of them at the YMCA once a week. We help them work out, get some homework done, and just talk.” His jaw flexed.

“I don’t kid myself into thinking I’ll get through to all of them.

But if I can help some? Then it’s worth it. ”

Angie’s throat tightened, emotion pressing against her ribs. “I think you’re amazing,” she murmured.

His gaze snapped to hers, sharp, searching.

“I mean it,” she continued, her voice steady. “I can’t remember the last time I was so fascinated… not just on a date, but just getting to know someone. I’m so glad you shared all of this with me.”

Pete nodded slowly, his gaze never leaving hers. “Me too.”

Silence stretched between them, thick with something unspoken. Something undeniable. She could feel it in the air, in the weight of his gaze, in the way his hand still lingered near hers. After a moment, she inhaled deeply, shifting slightly. “Do you still see your parents?”

A muscle ticked in his jaw. “My dad died while I was in the military,” he said, his voice measured. “I came home for the funeral, and my mom stayed drunk the entire time.”

Angie’s stomach twisted.

“She died a few years later,” he continued, exhaling sharply. “Liver disease. My dad had it, too. They drank their way into an early grave.”

She squeezed his hand, not knowing what to say, only wanting to offer something.

But Pete didn’t dwell on it. Instead, he tilted his head, his lips curving into something softer.

“What about Frank?” she asked.

A genuine grin spread across his face. “He’s in a retirement home in Virginia Beach. I try to see him at least once a month.”

Angie smiled widely, giving his hand a gentle shake. “Maybe next time you visit him, I can go too.”

Pete’s brows lifted slightly, as if the suggestion had caught him off guard.

She shrugged, smiling. “I’d love to meet the man who helped you become who you are.”

His expression shifted into something warm. And when he spoke, his voice was quiet but firm. “I can’t think of anything better.”

The space between them had shrunk without either of them acknowledging it. Pete’s arm rested along the back of the sofa, fingers grazing the ends of her hair as they sat facing each other. Their voices had quieted, the air between them charged with something unspoken.

Angie could feel her heart beating a little faster, her pulse fluttering at the base of her throat. Pete had spent the last hour telling her things he hadn’t told many people. And she had hung on every word, drawn to the way he spoke, to the pieces of himself he had entrusted to her.

Now, he wasn’t speaking at all. Neither was she. But the silence felt alive.

Her gaze dipped to his mouth for half a second before she dragged it back up to meet his eyes. His dark, steady gaze told her he’d noticed.

Slowly, Pete reached up, fingers brushing a strand of hair from her face, tucking it behind her ear. His touch was light, careful, as if giving her time to pull away.

She didn’t. Instead, she let herself lean in, just enough to feel the warmth of his breath against her lips.

And then he kissed her. A slow, searching press of lips, warm and unhurried.

Angie sighed into it, her hand drifting up to rest against his chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart beneath her palm.

Pete tilted his head, deepening the kiss ever so slightly, and a pleasant shiver ran through her. His hand slid to her waist, anchoring her to him, and she let herself sink into the moment. The quiet hum of attraction. The softness of his lips. The heat of his palm through her shirt.

But just as the kiss started to tip into something deeper, Pete slowed, pressing one last lingering kiss to her lips before pulling back.

Their breaths were uneven, their eyes locked. A slow, lazy smile curved his lips. “I should probably go.”

Angie exhaled a quiet laugh, her own lips curling at the edges. “Yeah… probably.” Neither of them moved right away.

Then, with a reluctant sigh, Pete pushed off the sofa and stood, holding out a hand to help her up. She took it, letting him pull her to her feet, their fingers lingering before she laced hers loosely through his. She walked him to the door, not letting go until he reached for the handle.

But before he could open it, he turned back to her, his expression softer now, his gaze dipping to her mouth again. This time, she met him halfway.

Their second kiss was just as sweet, just as unrushed, but something was different about it. Something that whispered this wasn’t the last time.

When they parted, Pete traced his thumb over the back of her hand. “Can I see you again this weekend?”

Her stomach gave a little flip. “I’d like that. Um… I have a family thing tomorrow. But…”

“Sunday?”

“Sunday,” she confirmed, smiling up at him.

He gave her hand one last squeeze before stepping outside. “Good night, Angie.”

“Good night, Pete.”

She watched him walk to his SUV and waited until he drove off before closing the door.

Her cheeks were warm, her lips still tingling as she climbed the stairs, changed into her pajamas, and slid into bed.

Just as she was settling under the covers, her phone buzzed.

Home now. A second message followed. Good night, Angie.

Her smile was immediate, and her fingers moved over the screen. Good night. She set her phone on the nightstand, rolled onto her side, and closed her eyes. And for the first time in a long time, she fell asleep smiling.