Page 28 of Soft Tissue Damage

“Hey, Dad. Good day today?” He heads straight for the refrigerator and pours himself a soda, no trace of anger, disbelief, or disgust in his face.

Elena didn’t tell him anything. That’s a relief.

But a moment later, my heart sinks. If Elena didn’t tell Leon about the kiss, it means she’s pretending it didn’t happen. It would have been difficult to navigate the storm of anger and betrayal as Leon processed the hurt we caused. But after that storm, and their inevitable breakup, there would have been space in Elena’s life for me.

When she clung to me in the aftermath of all that violence, I hoped that maybe we could…

I rub my hand over my eyes. Of course not. Stupidfucking Cullan. Elena’s not going to break up with her boyfriend and start dating his father. Nice girls don’t do crazy shit like that, and Elena is a really nice girl.

“Dad?”

“Sorry. Sudden headache.” I open my eyes. Rosie is sitting on the counter in front of me while I hold her with one hand, and despite everything, I smile at the way she bounces enthusiastically. Both my kids are home, and I want to enjoy this. I haven’t spent enough time with them since Mercer drew me back into the dark underbelly of Blackport.

“Leon, we missed out on the game yesterday, so how about the three of us go out to dinner? You can pick the place.”

“My pick?” Leon asks, brightening.

“To make up for shoving you out of my truck yesterday,” I say in a conciliatory tone. I don’t believe my son should be rewarded for not taking Elena’s plight seriously, but he did comfort her after her ordeal.

Leon picks a ribs and steak joint, and the three of us head off.

Once we’re seated at the table with Rosie in a high chair, my son makes funny faces and plays with her. He tickles her tummy, and she laughs while we wait for our food. This is rare behavior for Leon. Maybe Elena’s patience and sweetness toward Rosie is rubbing off on him.

I feel a pang. Elena makes my son happy, and she’shaving a positive influence on him. Them being together is probably for the best.

Our food arrives, and Leon bites into some fries. “So what happened when you went to pick up Elena yesterday? It must have been one epic fight.”

“Didn’t Elena tell you?” I put some of my penne on a side plate for Rosie.

“She didn’t say much. Just that she got grabbed, and you fought the guys off.”

Elena kept things vague. Good girl. No mention of murder and holding each other while bodies were strewn about us. “That’s basically it.”

“Thank you for going to get her. She was pretty shaken up about the whole thing.”

I frown into my food until Rosie kicks her legs, asking for more pasta. I feed it to her. What does that mean, the whole thing?The attack, the murders, and the kiss?

“No need to thank me. She’s a lovely girl. You’re very lucky.”

“Yeah, and she’s banging as well,” Leon says with a grin.

I glare at my son from beneath my brows. Banging. What a crude way to speak about Elena.

Leon bites into his burger, but I find I’ve lost my appetite. Elena’s not mine, and I shouldn’t care about what goes on between them, but my chest feels tight, and a bitter taste fills my mouth.

I put down my fork. “Leon, are you sleeping with Elena?”

Leon chokes on his mouthful. “Dad, what the fuck?”

“Excuse me?” I raise an eyebrow. My children do not swear at me.

Leon wipes his mouth on his napkin. “What the hell, then. Dad, I’m twenty-one. We had ‘the talk’ years ago.”

“You’re living under my roof.”

“Sometimes.”

“Most of the time. So answer my question.”