by Heather Long
The single decent thing she’d ever done—give us Frankie.
Still not enough to forgive her for treating her so fucking badly. Despite being alone in the elevator, Frankie wasn’t talking and none of us were pressing. As it was, we had a plan, and Ian kept her wrapped up close. There was an itch between my shoulder blades urging me to pull her away. I wanted to run my hands over her and make sure she was in one piece. But at the same time, she had that distant look in her eyes and leaned into Ian like she needed to be there.
In the lobby, I took point, with Ian and Frankie just behind me, and Coop and Jake just behind them. We’d parked side by side in a parking lot across the street. Call it instinct, but we wanted to park away from the attorney’s office if Maddy was going to be there. Force of habit had me scanning for Edward’s car.
After his ambush of Frankie at Standish and his offer to testify on her behalf at the emancipation hearing, every warning alarm I possessed kept ringing. We were all missing something. Some key piece of information. I wouldn’t relax until I knew what it was.
The air had a distinct bitter bite to it, and the darkness seemed almost smothering. “You riding with me, babe? Or you want to go with the guys?”
She squeezed Bubba, then curled her arms around Jake. They each held her carefully as hell, though Jake picked her up off the ground and whispered something into her ear before he settled her back on her feet. Coop tugged her to him and kissed her. I actually glanced away from the sweetness in that.
When she headed toward me, I got the passenger door open for her, but Frankie just wrapped her arms around me. I pulled her close and locked her up to me tightly.
“We’re going,” Jake said quietly with a nod toward his SUV. “We’ll grab something.”
I nodded to him and just stroked a hand over Frankie’s hair while keeping a wary eye on the lawyer’s building. We weren’t directly across from it but we weren’t that far, and the wind was getting colder the longer we stood there.
“C’mon,” I murmured against her hair. “Before I have to take you back and put you in the hot tub to warm you up.”
“I wish we had a hot tub at our place.” The muffled words against my throat made me smile.
“Might take a little finessing, but I bet I can get one installed. We’d have to gut one of the bathrooms out.”
The rough choke of wet laughter just added another log to the pyre of anger at that selfish cunt. “You’d do it for me, wouldn’t you?”
“In a heartbeat,” I promised. “I could take you back to my place, too. Whatever you want, babe. Seriously…but can I get you in the car so you don’t freeze?”
She let out a little sigh and lifted her head. The passing lights on the road flashed against the dampness beneath her eyes. “I’m being melodramatic,” she confessed. At my snort, she sniffed and wiped at her eyes before she added, “I could be. You know, I can be girly and emotional.”
“Absolutely,” I agreed. “Car, babe. C’mon.” With care, I steered her into the seat and then closed her inside. She was rubbing her face with her hands as I climbed into the driver’s seat. I should have warmed the fucking car up while we were waiting. Engine started, I glanced over to find her staring out the window. “Do you want to tell me about it?”
“She said I have a trust or something. She’s going to give the details to Wittaker. She pitched a fit in there, but Wittaker shut her down.” She sniffed and shook her head. “I adore him, by the way. He is worth every penny you paid for him. I feel like I should get him a fruit basket or something.”
“Noted,” I said, enormously pleased he’d shut that bitch down.
Frankie cleared her throat. “Anyway, she’s not going to contest the emancipation, and the court date is set for the first week of March. So it looks like I’m gonna get an early birthday present. She did try to say she’d get me kicked out of the apartment and repossess my car, but Wittaker didn’t think she’d be able to do it. I just need to pull some money out of my savings and pay her off and make sure that part is done.”
“How much do you owe?”
She glanced at me. “I don’t want you to have to pay for it. I have it. I mean, it’s college money, but I have the internship and I’ve got the scholarship and we’re looking at going somewhere cheaper than Harvard.” She gave a little shrug, and I flexed my hands against the steering wheel, my rage akin to acid in my system.
“We’ll talk about it, okay?” I wasn’t going to press it. If she pulled it from her savings, I’d figure out a way to replace it. I already had some ideas about how to offset the college tuition for all of us. Housing expenses I’d take care of, and boom there was huge chunk.
“Okay,” she said with a sigh. “I did get a few verbal shots in, and I didn’t give her what she wanted. But she wasn’t fighting for me, she was fighting because of her image. Which I don’t get, she called me her legacy…”
A headache pulsed behind my eye, because I’d heard that crap when I was growing up, too. I had to carry on the family name. I had to prove myself. I was the legacy.
Backing out of the spot, I glanced over at her. “Frankie, I promise, I’ll always fight for you.”
Her smile might’ve been wan, but it was there again and somewhat brighter. “I’ll always fight for you, too.”
“That’s what matters,” I said, then cut a look toward the building in the review mirror. Maddy Curtis exited with her attorney.
She should have taken my offer.
“Let’s get you home,” I said, keeping it light. “Then I’ll have Jeremy bring someone in to look at getting a hot tub installed. Probably increase the value of the apartment.”
Her groaning laughter was perfect. “I’m so glad I never told you I wanted a pony.”
“A pony?” I perked up. “Does my girl want a pony? I can definitely do that.”
Jake
We swung by for tacos, burritos, chips, the works. We also debated calling in Rachel. Seriously, when the fuck had she become one of us? Didn’t seem all that long ago I couldn’t stand her. To be fair, she still irritated me. But more like my sisters irritated me. My phone kept buzzing while we were at the drive-thru.
“I say we hold off,” Coop said from the backseat. “Rach would show up in a heartbeat, but I don’t know if that’s what Frankie wants right now. She looked like she’d been through the wringer.”
“Fair,” Bubba agreed, and I grunted as I dug my phone and wallet out. “Also, you totally just ordered a dozen bean burritos. Pretty sure that breaks the boyfriend rules.”
“It’ll make her yell at me,” I said, thumbing out my bankcard and then checking my phone. If she yelled at me, it would distract her, and then I could tease her out of the bad mood and have to make it up to her. Archie wasn’t the only one who planned.
Mom: We need to talk.
Mom: I’ve heard some things that I’m not altogether comfortable with.
Mom: Don’t blow this off, Jacob.
I raised my eyebrows.
Me: What’s up? Was tied up with Frankie.
Mom: I need you to come home this evening.
Me: I can swing by, but I’d rather be here. Coop and Frankie have both had a rough time of it.
Arguably, Archie had too, but he seemed less off-center by it.
“Problem?” Bubba asked, and I shook my head.
“No, Mom wants me to go home tonight, but I’m not leaving her. Hopefully, whatever it is can wait until tomorrow.”
Coop groaned. “I haven’t fucking looked at my mom since I found out. I don’t even begin to know how to look her in the eye. Did she know? She’s never once acted badly toward Frankie. Not once. Thank fucking God.”
“Fuck,” Bubba said. “I didn’t even think about that. That would have been awful.”
“Right?” Coop said, then rubbed at his face as we pulled up to the window. “So did she know it was Maddy? Did she not? They used to be friendly, but honestly, I can’t remember the last time they had a conversati
on.”
“I’m sorry, man,” Bubba said over his shoulder. “That has got to suck. I can’t…I can’t imagine my dad ever doing that to my mom.”
“Be fucked up if Maddy hit on him,” I mused aloud. Had she just targeted our dads because she was jealous of Frankie? What kind of warped Freudian shit would that be?
In the backseat, Coop gagged and punched my seat. “Seriously, man. That’s fucking disgusting.”
“My dad would never do that,” Bubba said with a shrug. “Though, considering his attitude toward her, I gotta wonder if you’re right.”
I wasn’t the only one staring at him. Coop groaned, and I shook my head. “Ignore me. I’m in a bad mood.”
“Nah, it’s fine.”
After I paid the cash and got the food passed over to Bubba and back to Coop to store, we headed out. “No, it’s not. Coop, we’re gonna drop you at the apartment by the way and run a quick errand.”
“You’re going to go kick the crap out of Reed.” Of course, Coop wasn’t surprised. He’d been incensed when it came up earlier, despite the hangover he’d been fighting all day. The tacos should help with that. Frankie would help most of all. “Thanks for the invite.”
“Nothing personal,” Bubba said over his shoulder. “It’s a football thing. Besides, you aren’t the biggest fan of fighting.”
“I can make exceptions. Douches who make her uncomfortable and suggest she’s a slut are definitely worth the exception.”
“You want to go with us?”
“Not particularly,” Coop groaned. The paper crinkled in the back, and there was the distinct smell of tacos in the air. Unsurprising. He needed to eat. “Just make sure you nut punch the asshole for me.”
“Done.” My phone buzzed again. Mom. I waited for a traffic light, then scanned the screen.
Mom: Tomorrow. No excuses.
I blew out a breath and turned off the screen. Great. Something had her fired up. Hopefully, it wasn’t Dad and Klara. We didn’t discuss Klara at home, at all. Dad? Yes. Klara? No. Fuck, I was still a little surprised I’d brought it up with Frankie. After we came back, Mom wanted that part of her life over. Done. Finished.
She asked me not to ask the second time I brought Klara up, and I’d honored the wish. The girls were all too young, except for Becca, and she’d figured it out the same way I had. Whatever went down between them hadn’t been pretty. The arguments had been audible and intense, but I’d never actually heard the whys of it, and honestly, I hadn’t wanted to ask.
Telling Frankie had been a bit of a relief though. I hadn’t missed the surprise on her face or the element of shock. But my baby girl just rolled with it, and I was glad I’d told her. The situation we were in wasn’t all that alien to me, and even if all I’d wanted was her and I’d been determined if she did pick, she’d pick me, I was glad she didn’t have to.
Weird as that might be to some folks, it was perfect for us.
The Ferrari wasn’t there when we pulled in.
Coop gathered up the food, but left us one bag, including most of the bean burritos, and he grinned when I flipped him off. “Don’t take too long. She won’t buy the errand excuse. We all hover when shit like this goes down.”
“Yeah, but I’m working on dialing back that overprotective streak.”
Coop snorted. “Yeah, that’s why you’re going to kick the crap out of Reed.”
“Well,” Bubba said with a shrug. “In fairness, past Jake would have kicked the crap out of him right there this afternoon and we’d have been mopping up a bloody mess. Taking a few hours to think it over and bring backup is an improvement.”
“Fair point,” Coop conceded. “She’s still going to worry, so be efficient and don’t get arrested.”
Assholes.
Both of them.
I took the longer way around the parking lot to avoid passing Frankie and Archie on their way back in. Better for her to get in and let the guys distract her while we took care of business.
“Did they pick him up?” I glanced at Bubba.
“Yep,” he said. “He’s at the old gym, and they’ll keep him there until we get there.”
“You don’t have to do anything,” I reminded him.
Bubba chuckled. “Oh I know I don’t have to, because you’re going to beat the hell out of him. I’m just there to be a witness and say it’s a fair fight.” He glanced at his hand. “And if he stumbles into my fist a couple of times, he should probably learn to watch where he’s going.”
I grinned.
The old gym had a boxing ring and gloves. It was also under no rules or regulations, so bare knuckles were also acceptable. I might go for the gloves just to give the asshole a sporting chance. But he was getting his ass kicked. It had been a while since I’d had to make a point, but Frankie was off-limits.
Period.
“You know, when you smile like that, you look a little psychotic.”
I smiled wider. “Good.”
Coop
In the apartment, I set the food in the microwave to stay warm while I stripped out of the jacket and shoes. Then I just changed into softer pajama bottoms and a T-shirt. I had zero intentions of going anywhere else tonight.
A text to Trina to make sure she wasn’t giving Mom hell had elicited the response of fuck off from my little sister because she was busy. Well, that wasn’t all that new, but I was ready for this phase of hers to be over. I loved my kid sister, but I didn’t like wanting to strangle her.
I hadn’t spoken to Mom since the day before—before Dad dropped his fucking bomb on me. Falling onto the sofa, I flipped the TV on and skimmed Netflix until I found some series of docs that Frankie had been watching and left it queued up. It was that or bad comedies. Maybe an action flick. It would really depend on how Archie handled her mood before they got back here.
Tiddles yowled at me, and even Tory poked her head around the corner and glanced around the room before the white cat hurried over to leap into my lap. She purred immediately and started kneading my thigh. Tiddles, on the other hand, yowled again.
“Right,” I said. “Fuck. Sorry, guys.”
I dislodged Tory and headed into the kitchen to put out their food. We were all late tonight because of the meeting, and they were definitely put out at the delay. Tabby wandered out as I served up the wet food. Then I checked their dry and water. I’d taken care of the litter box and washed my hands by the time the door opened to let Frankie and Archie in on a wave of cold air.
When she slid her icy cold hands under my shirt and onto my back, I dragged her closer and chuckled. “Frankie-pop. You need a hot shower.”
“That sounds amazing. Archie is offering to get a hot tub installed here.” She laughed, but it wasn’t quite a humor-filled one, more like a sad one desperately looking for some real humor.
“Is he now?” I eyed the man in question. “Well, as long as he understands that there will be shenanigans in said hot tub…”
“I’m pretty sure he can handle it,” Archie rumbled dryly as he settled his jacket on the back of a chair and dropped his keys next to mine. We’d all started just leaving them in the dish in the center of the table. At least we’d done the dishes that morning, or Jake had.
“How’s your hangover?” Frankie asked, leaning back to search my face. Worry crinkled her brow, and I pressed a kiss to the tip of her nose.
“Don’t you have heat in that expensive damn car?” I asked Archie. “Why the fuck is she so cold?”
“Because,” he said, arms folded and a faint smile on his lips, “we had to wait for the train, so she opened the window and screamed at it until it was past.”
I raised my brows and glanced down at her. Her eyes were bright with a hint of unshed tears and her face red. “Okay,” I said, then picked her up. “Naked and in the shower with you.” She let out a laugh as I carried her down the hall.
“I’m starving.”
“Right, there’s food. But you’re half-frozen, and we don’t want you to get sick.”
In the bathroom, I set her on the counter before I got the water started. “Hey, Arch, there’s tacos in the microwave.”
Frankie’s stomach rumbled, and she glared. “I want tacos.”
Before she could hop off the counter, I blocked her in and cupped her face. “I need you to take a shower and warm up. Just in and out if necessary, I won’t even try to pin you to the wall until I have you screaming…” Fuck what was left of the hangover. The best cure in the world was sitting right in front of me.
“You won’t?” She fisted my shirt and dragged me closer, and I grinned. “What if I want you to?”
“Well,” I said, making a face and squinting at her. “I mean…if you insist…”
When she skated that icy hand down into my pajama bottoms and wrapped it around my poor, unsuspecting dick, I yelped.
“You have a cruel streak.”
“Awww…” She stroked me slowly, and I clamped my hands down on the counter to keep from bucking into her touch. It might have been cold as fuck when she got started, but her hand was a lot warmer now. She whispered a kiss along my jaw as she gave me a careful squeeze at the base and teased my semi into a raging hard-on in nothing flat. “Blue Bobs are our thing.”
The heat gathering around my balls and the tension in my gut let go at the same time as I laughed my ass off and then kicked the door closed. “That’s war.” It took me less time than anything to strip us both, and then I dragged her into the shower with me. Two fingers hooked into her, I groaned at how wet she already was, and she fisted me as I lifted her, then I pushed in as she sank down.
Fuck.
Right there.
Eyes closed, I savored the warm fist of her pussy wrapping me up tight and her low groan as she had to stretch for me. Never a complaint, and I knew better than to rush it, but I just wanted to be in her all the way, and she let out a half-scream when I thrust deep.
“Blue Bobs…” I whispered in a strained voice as she squirmed against me. The brush of her hardened nipples to my chest was a distraction, but she dug her fingers into my back as though she wanted me closer, so I gave another little thrust that had us both hissing. “Was a one-time thing… I didn’t know the candy would do that.”
