Her Daddies’ Saving Grace

by Laylah Roberts

  Right now, he didn’t care about the job. Which was insane since it should be all he cared about. But all that mattered was her. And the damage he’d done.

  “If I’ve hurt her, I’ll never forgive myself.”

  “Strange thing I noticed yesterday was the way everyone treated her,” Elias mused. “Mostly, they went out of their way to avoid her or they treated her like she was made of the finest porcelain.”

  “Yeah, the sheriff did the same to her today.”

  He remembered how upset she’d been earlier. How her fear had called to him. How he’d wanted to erase all her worries. Christ. She wasn’t his type. He’d always been attracted to women who were bolder, more confident. Juliet would always be shy and quiet.

  Yet somehow, that seemed to be exactly what he wanted.

  “Other clients have lied to you, Brick. Never seen you this worked up about it.”

  “Other clients weren’t her.”

  “Yeah. And you feel things for her. That’s why you were so butt-hurt over her lying.”

  He glared at Elias for the butt-hurt part, but he wasn’t off the mark.

  “Guess the question is: do you care about her enough to want to do something about it?”

  “She’s the client.”

  Elias grunted. “Small problem.”

  “Major problem. My reputation is already shot. I need this job.”

  “Then you apologize for being an ass. And let me take point.”

  His entire body rebelled at that. Not the apology part, he definitely owed her an apology. But he couldn’t stand to let anyone else watch over her. Yesterday, he’d nearly worked himself into a heart attack from worry.

  She was his.

  He grimaced and rubbed his temples. “How pissed will you be if we don’t get paid for this job?”

  “Not as pissed as I’d be if you didn’t grab hold of happiness when it was offered and run with it.”

  “You’re a good friend.”

  “I’m pretty much your only friend. Sterling just tolerates you.” He grinned at Brick.

  “Wouldn’t blame you guys for leaving me. I’ve been a dick to you too.”

  “Hormones.”

  “Fuck you, it wasn’t hormones.”

  “So, now you’ve pulled your head out of your ass, what’s the next move?”

  He let out a breath. “Getting her to listen to me, to let me in.”

  “Don’t envy you that job.”

  There was another knock on her door.

  Huh. He’d lasted longer than she thought he would before coming back to yell at her.

  Not that he yelled, but he didn’t need to. A few cutting words in that cold voice were enough to slice her open.

  “Juliet, I need to talk to you.”

  Awesome. Where were her headphones?

  “Not like before. Not that sort of talk,” he said hastily. “Crap, I wish I knew whether you were listening or not. I don’t want to have to repeat this.”

  She frowned at that. Repeat what? She raised the headphones to her ears.

  “I owe you an apology.”

  Okay. She was listening. This was starting to sound more promising.

  “I was an asshole to you today. I have . . . issues that have nothing to do with you.”

  Why did that sting?

  “And I shouldn’t have taken them out on you. Thing is,” he let out a pain-filled sigh, “eight months ago, I learned my wife had been having an affair for years.”

  Oh no. Her stomach dropped. Who the hell would be stupid enough to have an affair when they were married to Brick? How could they want someone else?

  Like you want two people? You’re attracted to him and Xavier.

  Two completely different people. Maybe she was just the same as his ex.

  Ouch. She winced at the thought. She’d never cheat, though. That just wasn’t who she was. If she didn’t want to be with someone, then she’d tell them. She wouldn’t go behind their backs.

  “Not only had she lied to me, and it’s embarrassing that I never worked it out, but it was with my accountant. A man I trusted. They took everything I’d worked hard for.”

  They took everything?

  “I was over-extended. And Linda had expensive tastes. By the end, all I was left with was debt. The business I worked so hard for was basically gone. Worst of all, I had to let all my employees go. They depended on me. I let them down.”

  And she knew how hard that would be for someone like him. He would take that responsibility seriously.

  Boy, his ex-wife was a real piece of work. She clenched her tiny hands into fists.

  “When your brother said that there was nothing medically wrong with you, I jumped to conclusions. I thought you’d lied to me.”

  She had. In the strictest sense.

  “I overreacted. I had no right to talk to you like I did.”

  There was silence. He sighed. “I was so angry because I feel something for you. I know that’s crazy. I’ve only known you for a few days. I have saved your life in that time, though.”

  Saved her life? Did he mean when he thought she was drowning?

  “And fed you.”

  She shook her head, her lips twitching.

  “That counts as a date, right? Two, if it’s okay to have a date with your best friends along.”

  There was a thunk and she moved quietly over to the door. She touched the wood, wondering if he was sitting with his back to it. She turned and sat, leaning back against the door. Juliet understood why he’d gotten so upset. But it was difficult for her to get past it. Trust didn’t come easily to her. And he’d eroded what little there had been between them.

  “Don’t know why you don’t talk, Duchess,” he said in a soft voice. For the first time, Duchess didn’t come out derisively. It almost sounded affectionate. She sighed quietly and heard him move.

  “So, you are listening,” he murmured. “Okay, Duchess. Okay. It’s all right if you’re not ready to, uh, communicate with me. Listening is enough. Just know that I get that there’s a reason for you not talking. Not sure I want to know what that is, if I’m honest. Not sure I can handle knowing you were hurt, even in the past.”

  Darn. That was kind of sweet. Sweeter than she’d expected from him.

  “Just know, I’m not expecting anything. If you can be my friend, great. More than I deserve. If you wanted more. Well, fuck, I’d be the luckiest man on the planet.”

  More? Did he mean . . .

  “But I don’t want you scared to be around me. Rather have you mad. You’re cute when you’re mad.”

  She was?

  “When you cross your arms over your chest, and your nose goes up in the air as you lay down the law, yeah, cute as fuck. Course, you do that when your health and safety are on the line, and you’re gonna be in trouble.”

  Trouble? What sort of trouble?

  “Damn, I need to shut up before you run from me.”

  She didn’t feel like running away from him.

  She looked down at herself. She was dressed in a pair of long striped socks. They were blue and white. She had on white rabbit slippers and this cute navy-blue skirt that barely went past her ass. Under the skirt, she wore a pair of ruffly panties. A simple white t-shirt finished off the outfit. What would he think if he saw her like this?

  He’d only ever seen her in black. And completely covered. It was only in here that she felt safe enough to dress how she wanted.

  She grabbed for the pacifier that was clipped to her shirt. She stuck it in her mouth, sucking on it to ease the panic. For some reason, it just wasn’t doing the job it usually did, though.

  “Anyway, you don’t have to worry about any of that.”

  Why? Because he didn’t think she could handle that? Handle him?

  “I don’t need that. I don’t need anything. I just hope you can forgive me. We’re having dinner in an hour if you want to join us.”

  She knew it was an olive branch. And she had a choice. Go down there an
d maybe gain a friend. Or something more? Was she ready for more? Could she be anything more? Especially with someone she barely knew.

  But she was scared of ending up on her own, with just her dolls for company and Reuben occasionally calling her to let his kids talk to their crazy aunt.

  Her breath came in sharper gasps and she pressed her eyes closed.

  “I’m sorry, Duchess. I promise, you come downstairs, give me another chance, then I’ll treat you the way you’re supposed to be treated.”

  What way was that? With kid gloves like everyone else? As though she wasn’t capable of doing anything on her own?

  And whose fault is that? You’re the one that acts like a lunatic. No wonder no one believes you can look after yourself.

  She needed to change that.

  But how? When she had no confidence in herself?

  13

  Shit. She wasn’t coming.

  Well, he had no one to blame but himself. He’d been a complete ass.

  He sat in his chair, looking at the chops Sterling had grilled along with the baked potatoes, and didn’t feel that hungry anymore.

  Then Elias cleared his throat. Turning, he saw her. His heart caught. He wasn’t sure exactly what it was about her. She wasn’t the most beautiful woman in the world. Wasn’t the most outgoing or funniest. She was quiet, introverted, and guarded.

  And he wanted to take her into his arms and keep her safe. Wrap her up in cotton wool at the same time he wanted to fill her with self-confidence. So that the next time he invited her down for dinner with them, she’d just stroll right on up and plunk her ass down, instead of standing off to the side looking uncertain.

  He frowned as he took in what she was wearing. He didn’t like her clothes on a normal day. He knew that wasn’t the acceptable way to think. It was her body, she got to decide what she wore. But Brick just hated that everything was black and shapeless. As though she used her clothing to hide. He really hated this outfit though, since she appeared to be wearing a man’s hoodie.

  Whose top was she wearing? And how could he get her out of it and into his clothing?

  Hastily, he stood, sending his chair flying back and making her jump.

  “Sorry,” he said gruffly. Then he ran his hand over his face.

  “Go to her,” Sterling whispered.

  Right. Go to her. Stop standing here like a freaking idiot. Quickly, he moved towards her. Her eyes went wide, and he slowed as he realized that he probably looked like a steam train, about to bowl her over. She was so tiny that he worried for a moment that he was too big, too rough for her.

  Getting ahead of yourself, man.

  Right. Dinner first. Then see how she feels. If she just wanted to be friends, well, he could deal.

  “Hey, Duchess,” he said quietly.

  She barely managed a twitch of a smile.

  “Hope you brought your appetite. Sterling cooked some lamb chops.”

  Her nose wrinkled. She held her whiteboard in one hand and wrote a message.

  Red meat again, huh?

  “Well, we are men.” He winked at her. “Our tastes are simple.”

  Simple is one word to use.

  “Is that so, brat? What other words would you use?”

  Neanderthal. Caveman. Bossy. I could go on, but I’ll run out of whiteboard.

  He grinned, loving her sassy side.

  “You two going to come have dinner before it gets cold or continue this weird flirting thing you have going on?” Sterling called out.

  Juliet went bright red and took a step back. Turning, he glared at Sterling just in time to see Elias smack him around the head then say something quietly to him. Sterling sometimes didn’t think before he spoke.

  “Shit,” Sterling muttered. “Sorry, Juliet. I didn’t mean anything by that.”

  She nodded. But her free hand was curled into a fist.

  “Come eat.” He held out his hand to her, letting her make the decision whether to touch him. To his surprise and delight, she slid her cool hand into his. He turned it over, wanting to see if his suspicions were right. Yep, she had the indent of nails on her palm.

  He ran his thumb over them soothingly, making her jump.

  He had to be gentle. He couldn’t order her not to do that again. Slow and steady.

  “Come on, Duchess. We won’t bite.”

  She raised her eyebrows at that. He wondered what she was thinking. Leading her forward, he hastily pulled out her chair, pushing her in. Right in. Until she was squashed against the table.

  “She might want to breathe, man,” Elias said dryly.

  “Shit, sorry.” He drew her chair back slightly.

  She smiled at him nervously while his two best friends gaped at him like he was an alien. He might be possessed. He’d never been this nervous.

  But he didn’t want to mess this up.

  Reaching for the platter of meat, he held it out to her, frowning when she refused it.

  Again, he quelled the urge to just fill her plate.

  Instead, he grabbed the potatoes. She took one and some salad, then smiled as Sterling started talking about his shopping trip today and how he’d had his ass pinched by some blue-haired woman with her hair in rollers. By the time he was finished, she was giggling.

  Damn, he loved that. Loved the sound of her happiness.

  “You’ve got it so bad,” Elias whispered to him as they washed the dishes.

  “Yeah. I do.”

  Elias’ eyebrows rose. “Maybe you should be sleeping in the big house then.”

  “Not sure if she’d be comfortable with that.” He looked out the double doors to the porch where she sat with Sterling. She seemed uncomfortable with just him. Her gaze met his and she started to relax.

  “I think she’d be okay with it,” Elias commented. “I’ll go grab my stuff. Didn’t unpack anyway. Why don’t you ask her to watch a movie or something?”

  He took a deep breath. He could try that, right? What was the worst that could happen? She’d reject him?

  Where was that biopsy result?

  He’d been here for days, waiting. Maybe he should have gone into the appointment with his mother, but he hadn’t wanted to embarrass her. He couldn’t stay much longer. His missed Wishingbone, his friends, Juliet.

  Sitting on the side of his bed, he knew he should get ready for dinner. His mother always insisted on formal dress and abhorred lateness. But he felt exhausted.

  It wasn’t just from being here with his parents and their relentless badgering about his job, although that was a big part of it. He worked long hours at the hospital, longer than any of his colleagues. An attempt to atone for past sins, but it was wearing on him.

  He was lonely. And tired of it.

  Grabbing his phone, he started flicking through the photos. And he realized most of them were of her. Juliet, smiling shyly into the camera. Juliet, at Wishingbone’s annual fair holding a giant teddy bear he’d won for her.

  Call her. She’ll cheer you up.

  Just as he was about to bring up her contact, his phone buzzed with an incoming call. He sighed as he saw who it was. It was getting harder and harder to hold onto his anger towards Reuben. He guessed it was easier to blame him for everything that happened two years ago than it was to actually deal with his guilt.

  “Where are you?” Reuben asked as soon as he answered.

  “Hello to you too, asshole.”

  “Xavier, I’m dealing with a lot at the moment, I don’t have time for pleasantries. Juliet said your mother is ill?”

  “She found a lump. I took her to the doctor on Monday.”

  “What did he say?”

  Xavier frowned, wondering at the sudden interest in his mother’s health. Reuben had never gotten along with his parents.

  “He took a biopsy.”

  “Yeah? You talked to him?”

  “Well, no.”

  “So you don’t have any proof there is a lump?”

  “No,” Xavier answered. “What are
you trying to say? That my mother is lying?”

  “They want you to move jobs, right? Working at Wishingbone hospital isn’t prestigious enough for a Marson. What better way to get you home than a possible cancer scare?”

  “Reuben, that’s ridiculous. This is my mother. Sure, my parents can be pushy, but she wouldn’t fake being ill.”

  Reuben made a humming noise.

  “I’ve got to go.”

  “Wait! Juliet needs you.”

  “What do you mean? What’s going on?” he asked urgently. They’d texted often and spoke the other day, she hadn’t mentioned anything.

  “I just need you to get back to Wishingbone and check on her. Fuck, I’ve got to go. I know you care for her. So, just go check on her for me, all right?”

  Before Xavier could reply, the call ended. He frowned down at his phone. What the hell?

  A knock on his door had him half-turning.

  “Xavier, please come down for dinner.”

  He closed his eyes with a sigh then quickly sent a text to Juliet.

  * * *

  Xavier: Everything ok?

  Juliet: Of course, U?

  Xavier: Fine. Gonna come home soon.

  Juliet: Yay, miss U.

  Xavier: Miss U more.

  * * *

  He rubbed at his forehead then looked at flights back home. There was one leaving tomorrow at lunchtime. Hopefully, the biopsy would be back by then. He quickly got dressed. As he grew closer to the living room, he could hear laughter.

  Walking in, he saw a tall, thin blonde woman sitting with his mother on the sofa. His father sat across from them.

  Fuck.

  “Oh, Xavier, there you are. You’re late.” His mother shot him a look. “I’d like to introduce you to Yvonne. She works with your father at the hospital. She’s a pediatrician. Xavier loves children.”

  What the hell was happening?

  Yvonne rose and smiled, looking him over. She held out her hand. “Such a pleasure to meet you, Xavier.”

  “You too,” he said in a short voice.

  His mother shot him a sharp look, but he didn’t care. What the hell did she think she was doing?