Love's Liability

by Flynn Eire

  “Yeah, they’re assholes like that,” I grumbled. “Here Mark is an actual prince and will be king of a country one day, and all of his family acts as if they’re royalty instead of a warrior and council family. My parents totally bought into it, treating them like they were royals and us lowly servants when my parents had their own florist and gardener company. They tended the gardens and flowers for their parties.”

  “And Linden?”

  “He never seemed to buy into it.” I shrugged when he opened his mouth. “But I was a kid, and now I have kids, so yeah, things change. I didn’t think others of his family believed that crap either, and I was wrong. I can’t risk being wrong again because it’s not just me that could get hurt.”

  “Yeah, I get you, but there are people here who can tell if he’s lying or a dick,” he said after a moment. “And he seems to really care about you, so maybe think of that as an option instead of hurting him as you push him away.”

  “Who? And how do I know if I can trust them?”

  He sighed, probably understanding my point. “I trust Matteo and he can see auras, so unless the guy is a sociopath and can lie without emotion, he would know. Helios I would trust, but I know his mate, Rune, way better. He can make people answer.” He gave me a look. “You made it clear you didn’t want him around your kids. Should he not be around other kids?”

  “No, he would never hurt a child,” I said firmly.

  “Other people here?” He nodded when I winced. “If you don’t trust him to be here for whatever reason, valid or not, you’re sowing distrust for him, and it might be best to clear the air. If not for you, for him so people don’t start giving him looks.”

  “I’ll think about it.” I sighed when he gave me a look. “I promise. I hear you. I just saw him yesterday after years and it was a shock. Plus, I don’t know people here, so I wanted to simply duck and keep to myself, but that doesn’t seem to be an option if he’s going to keep coming around.”

  “Fair enough.”

  We got back to work, and just as the first trailer was completely unloaded, the ingredients delivery arrived. Another hour and everything was all unloaded and the humans were driving off with the trailers in some very complicated dance of scheduling that I was extremely glad I wasn’t in charge of. Nero and Seneca handled it, as they were in charge of the construction and shipping or something.

  I really didn’t have the mental capacity for it all.

  Another hour and I had the first batch of taffy out of the kettle and on the cooling table… With a line of people asking how to help and excited to play. I showed them, letting Gary go first and start mixing and flipping while I went for the additives to make it mint. I didn’t believe in artificial ingredients, as sugar was bad enough for people, so I rarely used dyes and let the colors be what they were.

  Given I worked mostly with chocolate, there was a lot of brown at times. Then again, all my chocolate bars were basically chocolate bark, so there was always flecks of this or that color.

  “This is a good workout,” Gary admitted as I poured the mint leaf puree made with additional mint extract over the taffy.

  “I’m short, not weak,” I chuckled, having thrown that line out way too many times when people were shocked as I lugged something in the store. “So some taffies it’s just one flavor. The mint chocolate I actually do in a mix so the chocolate side will be done to cool like this after the mint batch is on the puller.”

  “Teach me, Yoda, so I never feel bad for grubbing,” Gary said with a bright smile.

  So I did. We got it on the puller, and by then a lot of everything else was ready so after quick instructions, I left Gary to handle it. There was still dozens of crates to open, and people were working on that and asking how to help me set it all up. I was pretty shocked if I was honest.

  People weren’t normally so helpful and eager even if they thought they would get candy out of the deal. Then again, it was warm in the garage and outside wasn’t, so any excuse to be useful but warm?

  Cases of the booze arrived at the perfect time, and I had someone handle that, smirking when I got several surprised looks that I knew what I was doing. “It’s not new to make booze chocolates. They even teach the basics. We’ll try a batch with each flavor and go from there.”

  It sounded like a solid plan to me.

  “You seriously make all these types of chocolate bars?” Falcon asked, his eyes wide. “Can you make those cherry Kisses?”

  “No, those are probably trademarked, and I don’t copy companies. I can however make you lots of chocolate treats with cherries. I’ll even let you use the enrober if you buy the supplies.”

  “What’s an enrober?”

  “I’ll show you,” I muttered, heading over to it. I explained how the conveyor went through a puddle of chocolate to get the bottom of whatever and then went under a waterfall of chocolate to cover it.

  “So we can have chocolate covered anything?” he asked excitedly.

  I blinked at him. “How sweets deprived have you all been?”

  He rolled his eyes at me. “You’re just spoiled. This is really cool to us normal people.”

  Fair enough.

  Another hour of working and I not only got a better jump on everything than I’d planned for the day, but there was taffy for my helpers and everyone was having fun. Lunch came, and people paused in the work to eat. I got the twins settled, and they were certainly going to be ready for their nap with all the excitement of the day.

  Danek sat down next to me, some of his friends joining us. I felt my cheeks heat as he gave me a sexy smile like he was thinking this was a date and also how he wanted to date me later.

  “As glad as I am that you’re not objecting to the attention, I prefer to know I’m not walking into a situation that won’t end well for me,” he said vaguely, smiling at the twins to not worry them. “Do you love him?”

  “I don’t know,” I admitted. “I did.” I chuckled as I opened my sandwich and chips. “I was desperately in love with him for as long as I could remember. I started dating because I wanted to get good enough to be with him. I never got attached because I knew my heart.”

  “But that changed,” he said when I didn’t continue.

  “But that changed,” I confirmed.

  “I think you both need some answers in a safe way because he’s a tad panicked that he’ll end up back with his family or have nowhere to go.”

  “I don’t want that.”

  “What do you want?” he asked me gently.

  I sat with that while we ate a bit. “I want answers but not at the cost of risking the twins. To get them I would have to tell everything, and I don’t trust they’ll be safe. I can’t trust my gut that Linden’s a good guy or not part of what I know. Not with the twins on the line.”

  “What if I could guarantee that? We have an array of powers that could reveal if he was lying, make him tell us the truth, or make him forget if the information was dangerous for him to have.” He nodded when I shot him a look on that last one.

  “And in return?”

  He was quiet a moment. “You get a babysitter and allow me a private dinner date no matter the answers you get just to see if there’s something here.” He chuckled when my cheeks heated. “Yeah, you are delicious, and wow, do I want to date you, but I also don’t want to hurt you or me, and I think this is the smartest path.”

  “Okay, let me see if someone will watch the twins during their nap,” I whispered, realizing I had to handle this before everything blew up in my face.

  Which would make things so much worse.

  He nodded, leaning in and brushing his lips against my cheek in a sexy way that made me shiver. I wasn’t sure what I was going to say to that, but I froze when I saw Linden watching us from across the garage, his eyes full of fire and anger. I had always loved his ocean eyes that seemed to swirl with his emotions, but I’d never seen them angry and directed at me.

  Or was it what Danek had just done? I looked b
etween them, realizing Linden’s gaze was focused on Danek and not me from what happened before, and my stomach flopped. Now I really wanted answers because if Linden was getting jealous over a kiss on the cheek… I honestly couldn’t imagine that, never would have dreamed of it.

  Then again, didn’t I deserve something good after how much I’d been through? Maybe?

  “Dance time, Dad,” Ethan announced the moment he finished his lunch, his mouth still full.

  “What are the rules about eating too fast?” I reminded him quietly, not wanting to embarrass him with so many people around.

  “It makes us sick, and that makes Dad cry,” he mumbled, ducking his head. “Sorry.”

  “I love dancing with you guys too,” I promised, kissing his hair. “We can dance all the time, so don’t rush eating. You could choke, and it’s my job to protect you.”

  He apologized again and slowly chewed his food as if that last mouthful would make it all okay. Goofy kid.

  “How about we ask Marissa if she would like to dance too? I’m going to ask her to watch you during nap time since I need to have a meeting, okay?”

  “In the house?” Evan asked hesitantly, looking worried as he glanced in the direction of the mansion.

  “Sure, we can do it at the house so you’re not far from them,” Danek said before I could answer. I shot him a relieved look. There had been too much change and crazy for the twins. While they were enjoying the excitement, it was also overwhelming, and I was worried about them.

  When we finished eating, I brought the twins over to Marissa, smiling when she beamed at them. “We were wondering if you’d like to join us for after lunch dancing and if it was possible for you to hang with them during nap time.” I gave her a nervous look. “I’m going to try and handle that other matter.”

  “Good, because your fear is… Distracting,” Proximo muttered as if not sure what to say but wanting me to know he probably knew everything. Or so I thought. He was an odd one.

  But I didn’t judge because I was an adult who got excited over candy like a kid. All kinds of different people were needed to make the world go round.

  “I love dancing. Gary and I have had dance breaks when we need it since he was a tyke,” she told us. “What is your after lunch dancing?”

  I smiled at the twins, letting go of their hands. They faced each other and slapped their hands together like when people played “Rock, Paper, Scissors” but missed the mark. They both made gestures on the third one, and Evan cheered. Proximo and Marissa both gave me questioning looks since they didn’t look like the normal gestures. I shrugged. “It’s a twin thing. They know what it is.”

  “Fair enough. So what now?”

  “Now Evan gets to dance with me,” I explained, glancing at Ethan. “Do you want to dance with us or Marissa?”

  “Marissa pretty,” he giggled, going over to her and practically lunging at her for a hug.

  She chuckled and hugged him, standing with him as I lifted Evan on my hip. We went over to my iPod that was already docked in speakers. I’d set it up right away thinking everyone wouldn’t stick around and I always needed something to amuse the twins, but they had so we hadn’t needed it until now. I found something quick, taking Evan’s hand in mine as Nickelback’s “Savin’ Me” started.

  I sang softly to him as we danced, unable to keep the smile off my face as he giggled and told me he loved me. I glanced over and saw Ethan was having just as much fun with Marissa.

  “Again?” Ethan asked with a yawn when the song was over.

  “Should we switch?” Marissa asked gently. The three of us nodded, and we traded twins while I picked “Lullaby.” It was actually the twins’ favorite song for after lunch dancing, thinking it was just for them before nap time. I always told them it was, not wanting the twins to know the song was actually about struggling with thoughts of suicide.

  Three year olds should never know something so dark, and if I had my way, they never would even if I knew that wasn’t reality.

  Everyone seemed to understand what we were doing and lowered their voices, most watching us. By the time the song finished, Ethan was softly snoring against me, and I saw Evan was losing the battle against sleep when I looked over.

  “Sleep, Evan,” I whispered to him as I kissed his cheek. “It’s okay, Dad will handle everything. We’ll play with the chocolate waterfall when you get up.”

  “Green chocolate?” he asked.

  “Sure, we can make some green stuff.”

  “Love Dad most,” he mumbled before his breathing deepened with sleep.

  “They are delicious,” Marissa giggled softly as she followed me out of the garage and into the house. “Green chocolate?”

  “Mint white chocolate,” I explained. “I was thinking of doing a mint mojito bar with lime pieces. I’ve done mint white chocolate covered truffles, and they are ridiculously popular. I was thinking of doing them again for St. Patrick’s Day and spring if I got the help I needed.”

  “That sounds ridiculously good,” she groaned. “And I saw there was mint vodka among the case Mark brought over.”

  “That sounds even better,” I chuckled.

  We tucked in the twins, and I kissed her cheek, thanking her for staying with them. She gave me a wink, saying she was going to take a nap on the daybed in their room and she expected to become my favorite taste tester.

  Yeah, I could suffer through that. She was such a positive person and wonderful woman that I not only enjoyed her company but found myself wishing I’d grown up with a mom like her instead of mine.

  My good mood ended when I came downstairs and found a large group gathered in the kitchen. It wasn’t only Danek and his friends but Seneca and his friends, as they had brought Linden in and were working with him, knew him. And Linden was there, looking less than thrilled.

  I swallowed loudly and went over to him. “You wanted answers, but I also have some questions, and I think we need to clear this up because you’re right that it’s not fair to act like you’ve done something wrong when I don’t know for sure.”

  He gave a slow nod, glancing over at Danek. “So you want us to talk with people you know can protect you and know if I’m lying?”

  “Yes.” That was the truth, I simply left off the part about them changing his memory if needed.

  “Fine, but I want a dinner too,” he said quietly. “If Danek gets one for helping, I should get one for going through this, being willing to go this far without any idea of why.”

  A light wind could have knocked me over I was so shocked. I bobbed my head but then shook it. “Only if there isn’t a problem. I won’t agree to that and then find out that every one of my fears was right.”

  “Fine, because no matter what I am or have done, there is no reason for you to ever fear me, so I know we can clear this up, Zeke.”

  “I hope so.” And not just for the idea of a date with him. I wanted the twins safe. I wanted to not have loved someone horrible like my twin had. I wanted to remember the memories I had of him being a prince and white knight when I’d been a kid and smile instead of hurt as I had for a while now.

  We all sat down, and I felt like grabbing a bottle from the cases of vodka, but the twins would only be down a few hours, and day drinking was seriously out when a parent of toddlers. It did take me a few moments to compose myself and figure out how to start.

  “What do you know of your branch family?” I asked him quietly.

  He frowned. “Cousins and stuff?” He shrugged. “There are lots of them. I mean, the immediate ones come to parties, but I know there’s lots of offshoots of Hennings.”

  “I mean the bastards,” I clarified.

  He blinked at me as if waiting for a punchline. “What are you talking about?”

  “He really doesn’t know what you mean,” one of Danek’s friends promised me. “But I think we need to know what you do.”

  I gave a slow nod, meeting Linden’s gaze. “Zara was dating your older brother.” I felt
better at the shocked look he gave me. “She loved him, thought he loved her and wasn’t all pompous with the Henning name like I never thought you were.”

  He winced. “All of my siblings take linage and all that bullshit I hate way too seriously.”

  I nodded. “She didn’t know that, adoring him the way I always did you. I knew. What I didn’t know was he gave her signals he was interested or there was something more than a crush there. I found out once I had already left home and she told me they were dating.” I let out a shaky breath. “She got pregnant and went—”

  “Are you saying the twins are my nephews too?” Linden interrupted, understanding where I was going.

  “Yes.”

  He swallowed loudly. “Does my brother know?”

  “No, but he probably suspects there’s a reason that Zara suddenly disappeared and was never heard from.”

  Linden winced. “I’m not sure that would actually hit his radar. Any of my brothers are like that given she is of ‘servant linage.’”

  I turned my head like he’d slapped me, tears filling my eyes. “Probably, but given she died giving birth to his children… She deserved better than that.”

  “Yes, she did, and I adored Zara,” Linden whispered. “I’m so sorry, Zeke.” He reached over and covered my hand with his. “Why don’t you want me near the twins? What was that fear in your eyes when I was near them?”

  I swallowed loudly, staring at his large hand over mine. “She found out she was pregnant and went to tell your brother. Instead, she overhead a conversation between a few of your siblings and found out not only how he truly felt about ‘insignificant women’ like her, but that your family spreads their seed around purposefully.”

  “Wait, like trying to knock women up?” someone asked when Linden couldn’t seem to find his voice.

  I nodded, meeting Linden’s gaze, needing to see his reaction for myself. “Your eldest brother was boasting that he’d knocked up some nobody when he’d traveled to New York and was having another son. Another bastard. That’s what a whole branch of your family is. They call it the distant branch family, but really it’s their bastards.”