22. Colt
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
colt
Clouds blotted out the blue sky with potential rain as I pulled up behind Cam’s truck in Sarah’s driveway. Every light in the house was on.
Sammy jumped out as soon as I parked and I did the same. I was ready to hunt down David, but first I needed to know if Sarah was okay.
The two of us stalked to the door and it swung open. Jake stood there, his eyes wide. “Hi,” he said.
“Howdy,” I said, holding out my hand for high-five.
He grinned and gave it to me before looking at Sammy.
“Can we go to the movies again?” he asked.
“Yep,” Sammy said. “We’ll go again soon. Where’s your mama?”
“She’s in the kitchen with Aunt Haley and Uncle Cam and Emma.”
“Thanks, bud,” I said.
We stepped inside and Jake took off up the stairs. I looked up, seeing Davy sitting at the stop step with a scowl on his face. “Hey,” I said to him.
He didn’t say anything. Sammy hummed. “I’m gonna go talk to him.”
“Okay,” I said.
Sammy went up the steps and plopped down next to Davy. Jake leaned against the rail, watching them curiously. Davy went still for a moment, and then slowly leaned against Sammy. His body language softened and Sammy put an arm around him.
It infuriated me in so many ways, knowing the bastard had just shown up here. Seeing how her boys were handling it, it made me even angrier.
Sammy gave me a short nod as if to say he had them. I continued on to the kitchen and I froze in the doorway when I saw Sarah.
It was like he’d snatched the light right out of her.
Cam looked up at me and shook his head, his expression tight. Whatever anger I had for David, I pushed it to the side, focusing on everyone here.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
“No,” Haley snapped, her arms around Sarah. Haley was pissed, her eyes dark with malice.
“Hal,” Cam said, although he clearly was too.
Hell, we all were. This was the thing we’d all been worried about.
Haley took a deep breath, her nostrils flaring. She reluctantly released her sister, who wouldn’t even look at me. A deep ache spread through my chest for her.
“Sarah,” I said softly.
I went to her and she leaned into me. I hugged her tight and pulled her face against my chest, kissing the top of her head.
“Hunter is already out patrolling the town,” Cam said. “The lawyer has been updated. The police are aware. ”
“Giving them a handful this week,” I said lightly, thinking of Sammy too. “Sammy is upstairs with the boys.”
Sarah drew in a shaky breath. “Davy is mad. I told him everything would be okay and he didn’t believe me. What else am I supposed to tell him?”
I didn’t have a good answer.
“Can you give us a minute?” I asked.
Emma, Haley, and Cam nodded and filed out of the kitchen. I heard Cam’s voice as he greeted Sammy.
“I froze,” Sarah whispered. “I’m so fucking mad at myself.”
I tightened my hug and was about to speak, but she continued.
“Please don’t tell me I’m strong. I’m so tired of hearing it. I’m so tired of this.”
“I know,” I said. “What did he want?”
“He just… he asked who paid for the house, called me a whore, and said I took his kids from him.”
My jaw ticked. I heard footsteps and glanced up as Sammy came into the kitchen. “I might have made an error and told the boys I’d take them to the movies next weekend,” Sammy said. “It seemed to make Davy brighten up some. I hope that’s okay.”
“Are you sure you want to?” Sarah asked.
“Of course,” he said. He stepped closer and gave her a hug. “What happened?”
She told him what she told me and he shook his head, eyes blazing with anger.
“Why would he do that? He knows you have a restraining order,” Sammy said. “This won’t look good in the courts, which is good for you. Cam said you called the lawyer.”
“I did,” she said. “Everyone knows as much as I do now. I have to leave for work in an hour and all I can think about is him showing up there.”
“I’ll go sit at the cafe,” I said.
“You can’t go my entire shift,” she scoffed.
“I sure as hell can,” I snorted. “I have work on my laptop I can do. I’ll camp out all damn day.”
“He can stay with you, and I’ll join Hunter and Cam to be on the lookout. I’ll keep an eye on Honey’s house.”
“You don’t have to,” Sarah said.
“I know,” Sammy said. “But I want to.”
“You still have all of your stuff to sort out,” Sarah said. “Hell, you’re still probably being stalked. Don’t worry about me.”
“No can do, angel.”
Between the two of us, I felt confident we’d be able to help. Although, she had a point. I worried about him too.
“Maybe you should camp at the cafe so you can make insurance calls and stuff,” I said.
“It’s the weekend,” Sammy said. “I can’t do shit until Monday. My apartment is locked and full of broken shit I can deal with next week. David is a bigger issue than anything else at the moment.”
It was a much larger problem than he was making it out to be. His entire apartment had been destroyed. He’d lost all of his equipment, his guitars, and more. I wanted to do something for him, to show him that none of us had forgotten about what happened and he wasn’t alone, but wasn’t sure what that gesture was quite yet.
At the end of the day, I was a gift man. Whatever I did, I wanted it to be perfect for him.
I heard the front door open and close.
“Sarah?” Honey’s voice called before she came into the kitchen, and the three of us all stepped apart.
Honey paused, raising a brow at me and then Sammy. “I have questions, but want to know if my granddaughter is safe first.”
“I am,” Sarah laughed nervously. “We were just talking...”
“Hmm.” She shook her head and turned around, leaving the three of us alone.
“I thought that would go differently,” Sarah admitted.
“Me too,” I breathed out.
I thought back to the day I’d crashed Sarah’s wedding to beg her not to marry David, and how Honey was there that day too. I’d never forget that rain storm or how stupid I realized I was.
“I have to get ready,” Sarah sighed.
“Need any help?” I offered.
Her mouth fell open and she swatted my chest. “While the whole damn family is here?”
“I can be quiet.” I wiggled my brows.
“Not sure our girl can be, though,” Sammy chuckled.
“ Sammy ,” she hissed.
I saw the spark come back into her eyes and felt myself relax. “Go get ready. We’ll be here.”
She nodded and slipped past us, heading upstairs. The moment she was out of sight, Haley came into the kitchen and crossed her arms.
“Hi,” Sammy said.
“Don’t you ‘hi’ me, Sammy Harlow,” she said. “Sarah has been through a lot.”
“We know that,” I said.
I half expected Cam to join us in the kitchen and spotted him beyond the doorway, creeping on whatever talk we were about to get.
“She deserves someone who will love her and be the balance she needs. She’s a mom, she works all the time.”
“We know,” Sammy said.
Haley lowered her voice. “Whatever is going on with the three of you—I’m happy if Sarah is happy—but if one of you steps a toe out of line, you’ll never see the sunshine again. Got it? I don’t care if you’re my husband’s brother and best friend.”
“Both of us care about her,” I said. “We’re figuring out what that means for us.”
“And Sarah can make decisions for herself,” Sammy said.
That was braver than I’d planned to be, but Haley crossed her arms, her shoulders relaxing. “I just want to see her happy.”
“Us too,” I said.
She pressed her lips together. “Okay. Well, now that we’ve got that settled, if you want to win Sarah over, you need to win the boys over first. They had a hard time adjusting to Cam being around initially because of the bullshit their sperm donor has put them through. They don’t trust older men easily, especially Davy.”
I fought the urge to rub my chest where it ached. I knew all too well how hard it could be to have a dad like that. Growing up, I’d never gotten along with my own, and he’d said and done things that had left scars on my heart to this day.
All I could do was hope that, if I was lucky enough to be in their lives, I could be there for them in a way my dad never was.
“Did he ever hurt them?” Sammy whispered.
Haley’s face softened and she crossed her arms. “I don’t know, truthfully. Sarah says David was never physically abusive.”
“There’s more than one way to hurt someone,” I said. “I think we all know that. Haley, your concerns are valid, and I know what has started to develop might be unconventional, but I’d like to ask that we’re given the space to grow and explore what this might mean for us.”
She raised a brow. “I can do that. I just needed you both to know I will fight for my sister, no matter who you are.”
“I wouldn’t expect anything less,” Sammy chuckled. “Is my brother hiding while you talk to us? ”
“Maybe,” she snorted. “I’ll go find him.”
She left us. I crossed my arms, giving Sammy a wary glance. All of us were on red alert now. All I wanted to do was track down David and guarantee he never saw the sun again.
After everything this family had been through, it infuriated me that he dared to show up at their front door. It upset the boys, it upset Sarah, and it worried all of us that something could have happened if we weren't around.
Sammy nodded as if he felt the same way. “I'll help Hunter,” he said. “We'll figure out what's going on. And you'll keep an eye on her at the café.”
“I’ll sit there all damn day,” I said.
Neither one of us wanted to leave Sarah alone again.