Protecting You: A Small Town Romance Origin Story (The Bailey Brothers Book 1)

by Claire Kingsley

  But no, I will not take off your ring. No, I will not find someone else. No, I will not move on. No, I will not let you go.

  That’s not how this works.

  You are what’s best for me. I love you, and I’ve loved you for most of my life. That hasn’t changed, and it isn’t going to.

  This is not the end of our life together. This is a great big, soul-sucking, heart-wrenching tragedy. But it will only ruin us if we let it. And I refuse to let that happen.

  Your only job right now is to survive. Don’t let them break you. Do what you have to do to get through each day. I’m counting on you to make it through to the end.

  I’ll be out here, doing the same thing.

  And let me be perfectly clear about this, Asher Bailey. I’m not going anywhere. Eight years is an interruption, not a lifetime. We can survive this. I realize nothing will ever be the same. You’ll be different, and so will I.

  But when you walk out those prison doors, you’ll come home to me. I’ll be waiting for you, with your ring still on my finger.

  Love always,

  Grace

  Bonus Epilogue

  Grace

  Note: This bonus epilogue also appears at the end of Gaining Miles: The Miles Family Book Five. It takes place six years after this book, Protecting You, and two years after the end of the Miles Family series.

  I stood outside the house, a set of keys dangling from my fingers. My keys. A jolt of excitement sent a little shiver down my spine. I’d done it. I’d planned and saved for years for this. And today, after signing paperwork until my hand felt like it was going to fall off, the house was mine.

  A tangle of blackberry bushes covered the front window—most of the windows, actually. The front yard was knee-high grass and weeds, the fence was rotting, and that was just the outside. The interior was going to be a total gut job. At least the structure was sound. It needed a lot of drywall repair, but the walls were sturdy, and the roof was good.

  The rest? It was pretty much a disaster. It needed a new kitchen, new bathrooms, new flooring, new paint, new windows. My realtor had tried to talk me out of buying it. As had my mom.

  But this was more than just a house. It was a dream. A dream I was fighting to keep alive.

  Asher and I had walked by this house on the way home from school every day for years. Most kids crossed to the other side of the street, calling it haunted or creepy. Not me and Asher. We’d both loved the old abandoned house on Evergreen Street. Years ago, we’d made a pact that we’d buy this house, together. It was where we were going to live our life. Start our family.

  The plan had been to buy it after we were married. But those plans had been interrupted. Asher wasn’t here. He was in prison.

  Another shiver ran down my spine, but this one wasn’t excitement. It was cold fear. It ran through my veins whenever I thought about Asher and what he was going through.

  I took a deep breath. Smelled the fresh air and shook off my dark thoughts. There wasn’t anything I could do about Asher right now. He wouldn’t be gone forever. And when he got out, he’d come back to a dream that I’d turned into reality. Our dream. This house.

  A strange way to cope with your fiancé being in prison? Probably. But I wasn’t going to sit around doing nothing for eight years while I waited for him to come home.

  My phone rang and I pulled it out of my pocket. It was Shannon, my father’s ex-wife. My mother had unknowingly been the other woman in an affair, having two children with Lawrence Miles—me and my much younger brother, Elijah. Four years ago, I’d gone looking for my father—he’d gone deadbeat dad on my little brother—and discovered he was not only married, but had four other children.

  It had been a shock to everyone, but my new family had embraced me and Elijah—and my mom. Mom had become good friends with Shannon. We’d been at Shannon’s wedding two years ago when she’d married Ben Gaines. And when my mom had married Jack Cordero last year, Shannon had been her matron of honor.

  I swiped to answer her call. “Hey, Shannon. Aren’t you still in Barbados?”

  “We are,” Shannon said. “But I wanted to call and see if the house closed today.”

  “It sure did.” I walked up to the front door. “I’m here now. I just got the keys.”

  “Congratulations. Benjamin says congratulations, too.”

  “Thanks. It’s so sweet of you to call.”

  “Of course,” she said. “Send me some pictures if you get the chance. We’re here another week, but when we get back, I want to come see it in person.”

  “Definitely,” I said. “Are you guys having fun?”

  “This place is paradise,” she said, her voice a little dreamy. “We’re having a great time.”

  “I love that. You guys go get a yummy tropical drink or something. Enjoy yourselves. You certainly deserve it.”

  “Thanks, Grace,” she said. “We’ll see you next week.”

  “Bye.”

  I ended the call and slipped my phone in my back pocket. It was the moment of truth.

  The key stuck in the lock. I had to jiggle it to get the doorknob to turn. That was fine, I’d change the locks anyway. That was the first thing Jack had said—make sure you change the locks, Grace. I liked my new stepdad. Navigating the new relationship had been a little tricky for me, but he sure did love my mom.

  After jiggling the key a little more, I finally got the door open.

  The interior was just as dilapidated as I remembered. But all I could see was potential. New paint, new floors, cozy furniture. I was going to take this old abandoned house and turn it into a home.

  Before I’d even shut the door, a truck pulled up on the street. I’d invited my siblings to come see the house. My brother Cooper hopped out and pointed through the windshield at his wife, Amelia. It looked like he was telling her to wait. He went around to the passenger side and helped her out, keeping a firm grip on her arm, as if he was afraid she’d fall without him.

  Of course, Amelia was a little off-balance. As tall as she was, I was surprised her pregnancy was showing so soon, but she had the cutest baby belly. It hadn’t been long after their wedding that they’d announced Amelia was pregnant. I wondered if they knew if the baby was a boy or a girl yet. So far, they hadn’t said.

  Cooper stopped, his eyes widening as he took in the house. “Holy shit, Gracie, what the hell did you buy? This place is falling apart.”

  “I told you it was a fixer-upper. Hey, Amelia.”

  “Hey. The house is…” Amelia glanced around. “I bet it’s going to be nice someday, but I kind of agree with Cooper.”

  I waved a hand. “I know. It’s a lot of work, but it’ll be fine. The inside is… well, it’s not much better, but do you want to see it anyway?”

  “Yes,” Amelia said brightly. She looked adorable in a light blue t-shirt that said Beauty and the Bump.

  Cooper had traded his cute husband t-shirts—which had replaced his extensive collection of boyfriend t-shirts—for new dad shirts. The last time I’d seen him, his shirt had said future awesome daddy. This one said Sorry Ladies, This DILF is Taken.

  “Come on in.” I moved aside and held the door open.

  “You’re right, the inside isn’t better,” Cooper said. He kept a firm grip on Amelia’s arm as they stepped over a pile of debris. “Careful, baby.”

  “Yeah, but it’s going to be so beautiful when it’s done.” I heard another car pull up outside. “I’ll see who’s here, but you guys are free to look around.”

  Cooper eyed the place warily, as if dangers to his pregnant wife lurked everywhere.

  I went outside and waited on the front step while Leo and Hannah unloaded their little family. Their daughter Madeline was about twenty months, and their newest addition, a son named Zachary, had been born five months ago. Madeline had been a surprise, but they’d loved being parents so much, they hadn’t waited long to have another baby.

  Leo’s hair was shorter than it used to be, but he still had a t
hick beard. He held Zachary up against his shoulder. Madeline slipped one hand in his, the other in her mom’s, as they walked up the path.

  “I know,” I said, holding up a hand. I could see the doubt on their faces. “It needs a lot of work.”

  “No, it has so much potential,” Hannah said. “I love it.”

  Motherhood looked great on Hannah. Despite the splotch on her shirt that was probably baby spit-up, she looked fantastic. She and Leo had moved into the house they’d built on Salishan property shortly before Zachary had been born.

  “You have such a great eye for color, I’m totally going to pick your brain,” I said.

  “I’d love to help,” Hannah said.

  “Uncle Cooper?” Madeline asked, looking up at her dad.

  “Yeah, sweetheart, I think Uncle Cooper and Auntie Amelia are already here.”

  “They’re inside,” I said. “I don’t know if there’s anything sharp on the floor, so we’ll need to be careful with her.”

  “I’ve got her,” Hannah said, scooping Madeline up and perching her on her hip. “Should we go see Auntie Grace’s new house?”

  “Yeah,” Madeline said, her little pigtails bobbing as she nodded.

  “Go on in,” I said. “Cooper and Amelia are in there somewhere.”

  “We can wait until everyone gets here for the official tour,” Leo said.

  “Sure,” I said. As if on cue, two more cars pulled up. “And here they are.”

  Brynn and Chase got out with their dog, Scout. Brynn held his leash to keep him from running off.

  “Scout, chill,” Brynn said. “He loves car rides, but I think he loves getting out in a new place even more.”

  “Scout, sit,” Chase said, his voice authoritative. Scout immediately obeyed and Chase scratched his head. “Good boy.”

  “Hey, you guys,” I said. “Thanks for coming. You can bring Scout inside, but be careful. I don’t know what he’ll find in there.”

  “We’ll keep an eye on him,” Brynn said.

  Roland and Zoe had pulled up behind Brynn and Chase. Roland got their three-year-old son, Hudson, out of the car. Zoe was pregnant with their second child, a girl this time.

  “Hey, Zoe,” I said. “How are you feeling?”

  She leaned against the car, resting her hand on her belly. “Not bad, all things considered. Four weeks and we get to meet her.”

  “How does Hudson feel about having a baby sister?” I asked.

  Zoe shrugged. “He says he’s excited. But I think he figures this baby will be like his cousin Zachary. He’ll come over and then leave when he gets fussy. We’ll see how he feels about her when she’s in his house all the time and he has to share his parents with her.”

  Roland came around, holding Hudson’s hand. “Huddy, can you say hi?”

  “Hi, Auntie Grace,” he said.

  “Hi, buddy,” I said. “Listen, I told Leo and Hannah this too, but I don’t know what you’ll find on the floors in there, so just be careful. It’s… well, it’s a mess.”

  “No problem.” Roland picked up Hudson. “Come on, buddy, let’s go check out the new house.”

  I followed everyone inside, then showed them around. They meandered through the house, peeking in bedrooms and wandering through the kitchen and living rooms. It wasn’t very big, but the lot had room to add on if we wanted to, down the road. Of course, making it livable was the first step, and it was going to be a while before that happened.

  It was fun to see everyone with their growing families. My family dynamic had changed so much in the last several years. First with discovering four new siblings, then with my mom getting married. They were good changes, but it had taken some time to process.

  And it was sad not having Asher here to share in it. We should have been married by now. Maybe even starting our own family. I wrote him letters regularly, so of course I’d told him everything. But when he got home, these people would be strangers to him. Moments like this made my chest ache with the pain of missing him.

  “Oh, hey, we’re all here,” Cooper said, as if just realizing that fact. Glancing at Amelia, he grinned. “Should we tell them?”

  “Tell us what?” Brynn asked. “Oh my god, did you find out if the baby is a boy or a girl?”

  Amelia’s face lit up with a grin to match her husband’s. “We did.”

  The room went quiet, as if everyone was holding their breath. I certainly was.

  “Okay, first of all, I knew this from the beginning,” Cooper said. “I can even tell you where we conceived, that’s how soon I knew she was preggers. We were—”

  “Stop,” Hannah and Zoe said together.

  “Coop, know your audience, buddy,” Zoe said, gesturing to the two very curious children looking at him with wide eyes.

  “Oh, right,” Cooper said. “I’m going to have to get used to that, aren’t I? Anyway, I’m just saying I totally called it. Didn’t I, Cookie?”

  “That’s actually true,” Amelia said. “I didn’t even know I was pregnant, and Cooper looked at me one morning and said I looked pregnant, and he wanted the record to show that he thought it was twin boys. And I said that was probably impossible, but you never know. And we found out yesterday he was right.”

  The room went dead silent. Even among the dust and debris, you could have heard a pin drop.

  “Did you just say twins?” Brynn asked.

  Amelia beamed. “Yep. Both boys.”

  “Holy shit,” Leo said. “Two baby Coopers?”

  Cooper puffed out his chest and put a protective hand over Amelia’s belly. “Is anyone really surprised? Of course I’d make two babies at once.”

  “This is amazing,” Brynn said, rushing over to hug Amelia.

  “Aw, you big goofball,” Zoe said, hugging Cooper.

  “Congrats, you guys,” Roland said. “Wow, life is definitely getting interesting.”

  “Okay, Chase and Brynn,” Zoe said. “When is it your turn?”

  Brynn and Chase smiled at each other. “We’re talking about it,” Brynn said. “Soon.”

  “Do Mom and Ben know it’s twins yet?” Roland asked.

  “Nah, we’ll tell them when they get back,” Cooper said.

  Madeline tugged on Leo’s pant leg. “Daddy, are Grandma and Grandpa coming?”

  “No, sweetheart,” Leo said. “They’re still on vacation. But they’ll be back soon.”

  I glanced around at our broken-down surroundings. This was sweet, but we didn’t need to keep standing around in my dilapidated house. “Well, now that you’ve seen it, we can go get some food or something. It’ll be a while before I’m ready to entertain guests. But there are a bunch of good restaurants in town.”

  “Okay, but can we talk about how scary this house is?” Cooper asked. “Seriously, Gracie, this place looks like it’s going to cave in.”

  Everyone looked around, murmuring in agreement.

  “You know, we can help,” Chase said.

  “Thank you,” I said. “I appreciate that, but I didn’t ask you guys to come over here to put you to work.”

  “Yeah, but—”

  Chase was interrupted by the sound of a loud engine outside. A very loud engine, followed by rowdy voices. I sighed. Of course they were here.

  “Hang on a second,” I said, and went to the front door.

  Four men poured in, still talking to each other. Arguing, really. Typical brothers.

  “Guys,” I said, raising my voice so they’d hear me.

  They all stopped, looking around—whether at the house or my family, I wasn’t sure.

  “So, guys, these are my brothers and sisters and their families. Roland, Zoe, and their son Hudson. Chase and Brynn, and the furry one is Scout. That’s Leo and Hannah, and their little ones are Madeline and Zachary. And that’s Cooper and Amelia.” I paused to take a breath and gestured to the newcomers. “These guys are my fiancé’s brothers. Evan, Levi, Logan, and Gavin Bailey.”

  “We’ve met,” Logan said, and pointed
at Brynn. “I was part of the entertainment at her bachelorette party.”

  “Oh right, the firefighter,” Brynn said.

  “Dude,” Cooper said, pointing at Levi and Logan. “Are you grown-up twins? We’re having twins. It’s like seeing into the future.”

  “Identical,” Logan said, glancing at his brother. “Sweet, man. Are yours boys?”

  “Yep.”

  Logan grinned. “Awesome.”

  “Grace, can we talk about this?” Levi asked, looking around, his brow furrowed. “This place is worse on the inside.”

  “Exactly,” Cooper said. “I like him.”

  “I know, I know.” I put my hands up. “It’s a fixer-upper. That means it needs a lot of fixing. But I got a full inspection, so I know what I’m dealing with.”

  “Can I get a copy of that?” Levi asked, wandering farther inside.

  “Later,” I said.

  Logan put his hands on his hips. “I don’t think it’s that bad. Don’t worry, Grace. We’ll whip this place into shape.”

  My brothers glanced at each other, giving subtle nods, as if acknowledging that I’d be fine. And that was true. Asher’s brothers had always taken care of me. His whole family had.

  “Who wants pizza?” I asked.

  Hudson’s hand shot into the air. “Me.”

  Madeline glanced at her cousin and giggled, then copied him. “Me.”

  “All right, Baileys, scoot,” I said, trying to shoo Asher’s brothers out the door. “You can come with us to pizza, but I don’t think any of us wants to hang out here in all the dust anymore.”

  “That’s fine, Grace,” Evan said. He was the second oldest, and also tallest, at six-foot-four. “We’re on our way to Gram’s anyway.”

  “But, pizza,” Gavin said. He was the baby of the family.

  “Later, Gav,” Logan said, slipping on a pair of sunglasses. “Grace, we’ll see you later. Miles fam, nice to see you.”

  The Baileys said goodbye, then went out and piled into Logan’s muscle car. It ran some of the time, so he loved driving it when it did. The engine started with a loud rumble as the rest of us made our way outside.