Page 36 of Single Teddy (Mayberry Protectors #6)

THIRTY

WESLEY

I shot the message to Ruby and Lexi, grabbed my tote bag and bike, and rode to town.

I really hated spending any time apart from Teddy, but it was too soon—way too soon—to get this attached. Even if we were already moving at the speed of light.

I still couldn’t wrap my head around it. Teddy was in love with me. He was in love with me . I had no idea how that had happened, and I still wasn’t convinced I wasn’t going to wake up and find out that last night—heck, the last month—hadn’t been real.

The roads were quiet, serene almost, after the wild summer season, but it wouldn’t last long. Not with the Folklore Festival just around the corner and even more importantly, our month-long Christmas event, Winterberry Festival.

But I, and all the residents, had learned a long time ago to enjoy these lulls in foot-traffic for what they were. A chance to experience and reclaim our island.

I reached the garden center in no time and got the chance to stock up on fertilizer, and pesticides. I seized the opportunity, as usual, to browse seedlings and plants because… I mean, who could resist adding to their collection?

In the end, I went home with more flower seeds than any sane person should and no new plants, which was probably for the best. I really should look after what I already had and make sure they didn’t die on me before getting more babies to look after.

I returned to my bike and, with ten minutes to spare before meeting my sisters, I decided to pop into Books and Claws and also stock up on books.

“What do we feel like today?” Samir, the owner, asked me from his desk while holding a baby kitten in his hands.

I reached for another of the cats perched on top of a stack of books and scratched her head before I answered him.

“I don’t know. I feel like romance today,” I said.

Gee. I wonder why .

“Romance it is. I’ve got all the new releases at that table over there. The one with Missy sprawled all over it,” he said, and I looked around at the book table and the ginger cat on top of it, showing us how long she was.

“I guess Missy also has the romance bug today.”

Samir chuckled and walked up to the table with the baby kitty in his arms, still, and lifted Missy away from the new romance releases.

Books and Claws might be chaotic, but it was always a joy to visit, especially because of all the resident cats who owned the store and loved to show it with all their might.

It was really all Samir’s doing, of course.

Like Duke, he had a thing for rescuing animals, only his thing was cats since he was allergic to dogs.

And really, I couldn’t even begin to imagine the messiness of a dog bookstore.

Or the smells. Yeah. A cat bookstore was far more attractive.

“Oh, Hudson Bell’s new book!”

Samir grabbed the copy of The Enemy You Love to Hate and smiled.

“It’s a riot,” he said.

“I know. He never disappoints. And I’ve heard so many great things about this one. It’s all over TikTok.”

“Trust me, my friend, you won’t be disappointed. How is your bladder?”

I instinctively grabbed my belly and narrowed my eyes.

“Okay? Why?”

“Because if you have a weak bladder, you might piss yourself laughing.” He chuckled.

I burst out laughing.

“That good, huh? Well, if that isn’t roaring praise.

What else is good?” I reached out to take the book out of his hand, and he walked me through all the paperbacks on the display table.

Not all of them were queer romances, but a lot of them were.

As a queer man himself, Samir loved to spotlight the books that would speak to our community.

Another reason why Books and Claws was my go-to place.

“All right. Ring me up,” I said, feeling ten pounds heavier.

That was the danger of visiting Samir’s store. Or any bookstore, if I were honest. I couldn’t just buy one book. Or two. I had to buy a whole new section for my bookshelves every visit.

I put the books down at the counter, and as he scanned them, I saw a small wicker basket with little packs of silvervine.

“What are these?”

Samir looked up with a smirk.

“That’s some good au naturel cat drugs. There’s catnip, and then there’s silvervine.”

I laughed.

“Really? I’ve never heard of it.”

“Oh yeah, brother. Trust me. These will send most cats berserk. But it’s freaking adorable, so totally worth it.”

I inspected a pack in my hands before adding it on top of my pile, and Samir raised an eyebrow.

“Who’s that for? You have a cat?”

“Oh no. Not me. My…friend. He adopted two from Duke’s Sanctuary.”

Samir pouted, but his eyes were beaming.

“Why didn’t you bring him around here? I’ve got so many babies in need of a home.”

“To be honest, we didn’t visit Duke’s with the intention of adopting anything. Besides, I thought these babies were your babies.”

Samir considered the tiny kitten in his arm and rocked his head from side to side.

“Okay, yeah, that’s fair enough. I can’t let them go so easy.”

I chuckled and offered to help with the bag. “Have you got a name yet?” I glanced at the kitten as I put my books in the bag and offered him my card.

“Not yet. I’ll probably do another contest to name her,” he said.

“Sounds good. Let me know when you do, and I’ll bring by my…friend and his nephew.”

“Friend, huh? Is there something you’re not telling me?” Samir wiggled his thick eyebrows, and I couldn’t help but giggle.

“Don’t you start. My sister’s bad enough,” I said.

Hold on a second.

“Shoot. My sisters. I’m going to be late. I’ll talk to you later.” I grabbed the bag and tried to run.

“Convenient,” he mumbled before he shouted. “Hey! My friend. You forgot your credit card.”

I gave him an awkward smile and snatched my card before returning to the outside world and my bike. I dared to glance back at the store and found Samir watching me with his kitten. He smirked at me as if he knew I was hiding something.

Though it wasn’t that I was hiding anything.

I just…wanted to keep Teddy all to myself.

It felt like sharing things about him would dissolve this…

dream I’d found myself in. And I didn’t want to let reality intrude on anything.

Not when I didn’t know if I’d ever get the chance to be this… this happy again.

I waved at Samir with the best, pissed-off expression I could manage and unchained my bike, but as I returned to the road, I spotted someone familiar across the street.

Was it…?

It couldn’t be.

I squeezed my eyes, trying to focus on the tiny kid in the red shirt, but it only confirmed his identity.

It was Niko. And he was talking to a grown man. A grown man who wasn’t his father.

I searched around for Valentin, and sure enough, he was there too, standing over the trash can and picking through it.

Anger rolled in my stomach, and it only exploded when I looked back at Niko and watched him take a manila envelope out of his bag and give it to the man.

Did…did this monster of a man use his sons to do his dirty work? Surely Slade would have picked up chatter on that, right?

I didn’t care.

I dropped my bag and my bike and marched right to Valentin and Niko.

“Mr. Crawford,” Niko said as soon as he saw me and the man he’d been talking to snatched the envelope and dashed out of there, with his back turned to me.

“Boys, what are you doing? Why are you talking to strangers and picking through trash?” I turned to Valentin and beckoned him closer, then kneeled to look at them properly.

“Oh. It’s…it’s okay. We were?—”

“It’s not okay, Niko. Where is your dad? What did you give that man?”

Niko shrugged.

“Dad said to wait here and give it to him.”

I almost blurted out an inappropriate expletive. Or a few, but I bit my tongue and my anger and breathed through it.

It wasn’t the kids’ fault. There was no point exploding at them when they were the victims in all of this.

“Are you hungry? Why were you picking at the trash?” Valentin looked at the ground and shrugged.

That was it. I’d had it.

“Come on. Let’s go,” I told them and offered both of them my hands.

“Wh-where?” Niko asked.

“First, to get some food in you. Then to get you out of this mess.”

And that was exactly what I did. I walked with them to the nearest café, opposite Books and Claws, and bought both kids a grilled cheese sandwich and a drink, then marched with them right into the police station.

I’d wasted enough time trying to pussy-foot around their dad and Teddy’s teammates, no matter how well-intentioned they were. The kids needed to stay as far away from Barnes’s house as possible, and I wasn’t going to rest until they were safely away from him and his bad influence.

Dakota Mitchell, the captain’s son, was the one to take us into his office and take my statement. His warm, concerned smile and kind approach with the kids put my racing heart at ease.

“Any idea where the dad is?” he asked. I shook my head, and then he turned to the kids.

“At home, probably,” Niko said.

“So who dropped you off in town?” I asked.

“Daddy’s friend,” Valentin said.

I bit my lip.

“Do you…? Do you think I can speak to you alone?” I asked Dakota, but as soon as I tried to walk out of the room, the kids started shouting and crying.

Fuck. I’d managed to scare them in all of this. And they were already terrified from everything their father was putting them through.

“We’ll just stand over here,” I told them and stood under the doorway. “See, I’ll leave the door open so you can see me.”

Dakota smiled at them and stood next to me.

His gray eyes would have made me melt a few weeks ago, before I’d met Teddy.

Before I’d become Teddy’s, but now… Now it was nothing.

I mean, not nothing. I was still human and Dakota was still a hot guy, what with his dirty-blond hair, bulging muscles, and the hint of tattoos peaking through his uniform, but I didn’t feel hot or bothered while talking to him.

“What’s going on, Wesley?” he asked.

“I have a very strong suspicion their dad is a drug dealer,” I whispered.

“At the very least, a horrible, abusive father. You should see their living conditions. Dirty, dusty. The other day, he shouted at them for going up the stairs without his approval. I don’t think they’re safe.

And god knows what was in that manila envelope. ”

He nodded and wrote on his clipboard.

“I mean the fact alone that they were in the middle of town unsupervised, digging through trash and talking to strangers doesn’t help the dad’s case,” he said. “I’ll call CPS. Are you okay to stay with them? I think they’ll feel more comfortable with you until they get here.”

Dakota started to walk away when I stopped him.

“Oh, is…is it okay to call my sister. I haven’t had the chance yet, and we were supposed to meet.” I waved my phone at him, and Dakota chuckled.

“Of course. You don’t have to ask.”

I shrugged.

“I don’t know what the rules are.”

“Well, you’re not under arrest, so you’re good.

” He winked and walked off, and I returned to my seat in the office, opposite the kids, feeling almost relieved for doing something.

I shouldn’t have listened to Wyatt and his team.

I should have acted sooner. I just hoped it wasn’t too late to do something.

After a moment or two, I texted Ruby and Lexi to let them know what had happened, and they immediately responded to say they were on their way to join me.

“Hello. What do we have here?” An officer walked in and made me jump.

His badge indicated his name was Bennet, and I nodded a greeting at him.

“We’re just waiting for Detective Mitchell.”

“He’s calling CPS, right?” he asked.

I nodded.

“They’re actually here,” he said.

“Already?” I raised an eyebrow.

“Well, they were here for another case. So I told them they were needed. So you’re free to go if you want.”

I grimaced and turned to the kids, who shook their heads aggressively.

“I’d rather wait for them. I thought they wanted to talk to me.”

“They have your statement. They don’t need much else, and if they do, they have your number.”

That sounded right, but still…

“I think the boys wanted me to stay with them.”

Detective Bennet sighed and looked outside the office, placing his hands on his hips.

“Okay then, come on. Get up.”

“Huh? Where are we going?”

“We’re going to join the social workers if you don’t mind.”

“Join them?” I grimaced. “Join them where?”

“Their car. It’s outside.”

“They’re not coming in?” This sounded…strange.

Or maybe I had learned to be overly suspicious when it came to the kids, but after the way they were treated, could anyone blame me?

“Yeah, they want to take the kids somewhere safe where they can talk to them and you,” Bennet said.

“Isn’t it safe here?” I glanced around the office. “And I thought you said they didn’t need to talk to me.”

“They don’t, but if you’re going to stay with them, they might as well, right?” He huffed.

I had no idea why. It wasn’t as if what I was asking was illogical in any way.

“Okay,” I said. “But I still don’t get what’s wrong with staying here. Isn’t it safe here?”

“Of course it is, but it’s not the most comfortable for the kids, is it? A cold, sterile police station, versus a comfortable, welcoming space designed for kids?”

I guess he did make a good point.

“Okay then. Lead the way,” I said, and just before we exited the room, Bennet scanned the outside area as if he were looking for someone, then he beckoned us to follow him.

He took us outside and stopped in front of a black car with tinted windows.

This…didn’t feel right.

I turned to tell Bennet, but he opened the door and shoved my head inside.

When I looked up and saw him throw the kids inside too, I realized what a fool I’d been.

Because Wyatt and Teddy were right. I should have listened to them.

I launched at the door, but it was slammed shut, and the click of the locking mechanism echoed around us. We were completely trapped.

I turned to the front of the car, where two masked figures were seated. Trying to launch at either of them became futile when the passenger pointed a gun at me and tutted.

Fuck.

“What’s happening, Mr. Wesley?” Valentin asked, pressing close to me as the car sped away.

“What’s happening? I think…I messed up, boys.” I couldn’t even look at him or Niko.

And only a miracle could untangle this whole situation.

All I could do was stare at the barrel of the gun aimed at me and breathe.