Chapter 18 #2
He saw her? He cared? For some reckless part of her, that was thrilling and terrifying all at once. It might even be enough to redeem a part of the nightmare she was living in right now.
Even with Connor there, the past four days had been horrible. Ms. Talon had come by unannounced every day, at a different time each day. Yesterday, she’d come at eleven o’clock at night. That should be against the rules.
Bliss had already been asleep, but when Connor woke her, she had to trudge to the front door and let that beast of a woman in to look around and check the children.
Of course, she’d scared the twins when she tried to check for bruises. She and Connor had been up for over an hour trying to soothe them back to sleep after the woman left.
After that, every bump and knock that sounded had been like a thunderclap, startling her awake again. It was just one more reminder that peace was fleeting, and her nerves frayed with every second.
Still, there were good things, too. Like Connor holding Nori against his chest, rocking her and humming softly, even after she’d drifted off to sleep. That was something she never thought she’d see.
She’d memorized it so she could tell Nori about it when she was older. It shouldn’t be hard to remember, since each gentle sway of his arm, each soft hum, seared itself into her memory.
Still, now she was on a mission. “Well, it was nice to meet you, Rory. I’d love to stay and chat, but I have to find something suitable for court that doesn’t cost a fortune.”
“Um, hello,” Rory said, pointing to the huge sign on her shop, Second Hand Glams. “I’ll bet I can find you something. Come on in.” It was a good thing she had no intention of protesting because Rory took the stroller and pushed it into the shop.
Amazingly, forty-five minutes later, Bliss left the shop with the perfect outfit, not only for herself, but for Sadie, Sophie, and Nori as well. She felt like she’d just won the lottery, a small victory in a week that had been relentless.
When she tried to pay, Rory wouldn’t take a dime. “It’s the, um, the Musketiara discount. You get everything for free the first time you shop here.”
Bliss couldn’t do that. “I’m not a Musketiara.”
Rory just grinned and winked. “Matter of time, babe.” The sparkle in Rory’s eyes made Bliss’s heart lighten just a little. Maybe she did belong here after all.
She wasn’t sure what it took to become a Musketiara, but she hoped Rory was right.
She could use more girlfriends. She needed to talk to friends who could listen and give her advice on how to handle everything.
Bliss smiled at her new friend. “You know, when I first saw you, I thought you were a Christmas elf. I guess I was right. I can’t thank you enough. ”
“I get that a lot, especially around this time of year. And no need to thank me. We women have to have each other’s backs. If you ever need a babysitter, just give me a call. I love babies.”
Bliss filed that away for future reference. That way, she wouldn’t have to call Winnie constantly. It had been three months, but Winnie still called her four times a day just to check on her. Both of them knew the real reason she called was to ensure Bliss hadn’t run away again.
Right now, she needed to get home and put everyone down for a nap.
She rolled her eyes at the idea of being able to sleep when there were dishes to wash, vacuuming to do, and a hundred other things to make the house perfect for the next visit from the Seagull.
She couldn’t help but laugh at the name.
Just imagining the woman as a bird of prey that feasted on people’s leftovers made some of the tension drain from her shoulders.
It was her own private joke. She’d started calling Ms. Talon the Seagull because, just when everyone was having a great time, she swooped in, squawked a lot, and pooped all over everything.
The drive home took just long enough for all the girls to fall asleep. She couldn’t carry in more than one at a time, and it would be just her luck that the Seagull would swoop in and find two of her babies in the car. That would get scribbled onto the clipboard for sure.
If she weren’t so tired herself, she would drive around while they slept, but she had missed too much sleep to risk it. Even so, the sight of them all finally quiet in their car seats filled her with a tender warmth.
Her problem was solved when she drove up to her house to find Connor’s shiny black Hellcat parked in the yard. A jolt of excitement shot through her. She didn’t need to be excited. She needed to remember this was all the result of his guilty conscience and wouldn’t last.
At least, that’s what her brain said. Unfortunately, neither her heart nor her lady bits cared at all. Every instinct in her body screamed for him to kiss her again, even as her mind scolded her for it.
When he stepped onto the porch, she caught her breath. Why did he have to look so sexy, with his scruffy beard and tousled hair? He looked like he’d just gotten out of bed, but in that way that made a girl wish he’d been in bed with her.
He jogged down the steps to her car and opened her door. It was just past lunchtime. What was he doing at her house? Her pulse hammered like a drum, heart pounding against her ribs. This was going to be trouble. Good trouble, but trouble nonetheless.
A scowl replaced his smile as soon as he saw her. “Why weren’t you wearing your seatbelt, Trouble?”
She shifted in her seat, trying to stop the pulsing in her core that happened every time he used that nickname. That was just so wrong. “I can’t wear my seatbelt when I’m driving with the girls in the car. They might need something.”
She thought for a moment his eyes might bug out of his head. His brows almost touched in the middle. “Are you telling me you haven’t been wearing your seatbelt for almost a year?”
“Well, sort of, but for a good reason.”
“That is not a good reason, Trouble. There is no good reason. Were you wearing your seatbelt when your tire blew last week? Because no one was in the car with you then.”
Her stomach lurched. He was going to kill her. She looked up at him, trying to think of a way to answer his question without landing herself in even more trouble. “Did you know you have a vein that jumps half the time? Do you have high blood pressure?”
“Only since I met you. Now answer my question.”
Her brain fried, heat rushing to her cheeks.
She wanted to laugh, cry, and strangle him all at once.
Pulse racing, she licked her lips and tried to come up with an explanation, but she drew a complete blank.
Oh, this was not going to end well. And yet, the thrill of being so utterly caught by him made her chest tighten in a deliciously torturous way.