LOGAN
Chapter Twenty
Surly was the new black. At least in my home. I remembered being moody when I was younger. I remembered Bex being endlessly frustrated at me and Mason and our moods. But surely we were nothing like the five-foot-nine scrawny lump of pissed off currently doing homework at the kitchen table.
That in itself was a reason to be pissed off, apparently. Dom couldn’t understand why he needed to do his make-up homework in the first place. Then when I suggested he do it at the kitchen table, it was another struggle.
There was a part of me that wanted to give in.
The kid had been through so much, and what did I know about parenting?
Maybe he wanted privacy. But with Landon napping and Vicky enjoying some time on her back, he had the quiet he needed while I caught up on some bills and other paperwork while I waited for Bex to get home.
I had to have another uncomfortable conversation with him.
Bex had called earlier to let me know what had happened to Dom’s grandmother.
She wanted to be around for support when I broke the news.
So, I was keeping busy until she got here. I even organized my online grocery order and made sure that Landon was enrolled at the same pre-school as Nick and Jared’s boys. They would only be together for the current school year since Mattie and Cooper would be starting Kindergarten next fall.
All in all, I was being a family man and loving it. Even with the fifteen-year-old shooting me daggers over his science textbook.
“I’m finished.” Dom announced a short while later as he closed the book. “I did the math earlier and I can do the reading when I go to bed later.”
I narrowed my eyes. “That’s your thing isn’t it? To read before bed. Or in bed, as the case may be.”
“Reading relaxes me. I don’t always enjoy the prescribed books from school but they’re not all bad. Still, I prefer mysteries and suspense.”
“I love suspense, too.” I gestured to my bedroom. “I have a small bookshelf in my bedroom if you want to take a look through it. You can read anything in there.”
I made a mental note to add a bookshelf to the living area when I got a new place.
Bex and I had a meeting with Nick to discuss where our new safe house would be.
I wanted to have a look at it before we moved.
If the house was perfect, I wanted the kids to feel at home while we looked into keeping all of them permanently.
If that was not the case, I would make sure none of them got their hopes up.
I turned to Dom. “You want to clean up here? Dinner will be ready soon and Bex should be here in the next couple of minutes.”
Dom nodded, picking his books up off the kitchen table. “What time do you have to leave?”
“Not for a little while, yet.”
I was pleased we were fitting into each other’s routine.
Bex dropped Dom off at school while I was with the younger ones in the morning.
If I was on shift at the hospital, then Mrs Salinger would look after them.
As soon as Landon got into preschool, that would be a permanent fixture as well.
Mrs Salinger looked after all the babies, so Vicky naturally fell into that anyway.
The front door opened drawing our attention. “Hi, honey, I’m home.” Her smile lit up the whole room as she looked at Dom but the sadness buried there concerned me, but we would get through that, too.
Yeah, I knew she wanted our arrangement to be permanent.
And I believed down to my soul that we were the best thing for all three children.
But we needed to prepare those kids for the possibility the courts may not agree.
Hell, first I needed to prepare Bex for that.
Not that she would listen to me. On that we were on the same page, we would rather get hurt than have those children feel even a little more insecurity.
Both Dom and I greeted her. One surly and one with over-compensated enthusiasm. She pursed her lips and closed her eyes as she dropped her bag on the small coffee table in the living room. She picked up Vicky from the floor and planted a big kiss on her lips.
She frowned between the two of us. “Is Landon still napping?”
“He fought it for so long.” I smiled as I settled three placemats on the kitchen table. “I figured he could sleep a little.”
“He’s going to be up all night.” Bex took Vicky and went into the room where the kids slept. “Hello, munchkin, did you have a good nap?”
She was there long enough for Dom to change course and continue setting the table.
We overheard Bex promising to let him watch a little Paw Patrol after dinner.
I could easily picture Landon’s smile. He was still not talking to anyone except Dom, but he was communicating.
And that bright smile of his was showing more and more.
Both Bex and I were confident the kid would be talking to all of us real soon.
Dom rolled his eyes at me. “She spoils him.”
“I think she just loves seeing him smile.” I lifted a brow at him. “I think she wouldn’t mind seeing yours from time to time as well.”
Bex strolled through to the kitchen holding Vicky in her arm with Landon holding her hand. Everyone was all smiles and my heart did a funny flip thing and I had to resist the urge to rub my chest. Dom was staring at them, too. I wondered if he was thinking the same thing I was. Probably not.
Bex took a deep inhale as I took Vicky from her. She picked up Landon and placed him in the high chair. “What’s for dinner?”
“Chicken stew and rice.” I wasn’t a gourmet chef or anything but I could hold my own.
Eating out or even ordering in, was expensive while I lived in New York.
It also got tedious after a while. I followed YouTube tutorials and called Mrs. Salinger often, until I knew what I was doing in the kitchen.
Bex could cook, or at least she could ensure that we would not starve.
One thing we had learned in the few weeks we lived together was that we could not be in the kitchen at the same time.
Since we had very different methods of doing things, we came to the conclusion that whoever cooked would clean as well.
I was more of a clean as I go kind of person and Bex found the need to dirty as many surfaces and containers in the process.
Once we were all seated and every one had dished, conversation flowed better than I expected. Dom was considering joining the football team even though the season had already started.
“And the homecoming dance is next week. We’re not going to that.”
Bex and I shared a look before she spoke. “We? Do you have a girlfriend already?”
“Your surprise is noted.” Dom said deadpan. “But no. Since we’re all grounded, we decided to hang out at Holden’s house.”
“I don’t think you understand what being grounded means.” Bex's frown deepened. “No hanging out anywhere.”
“I’m still grounded?” Dom looked between the two of us expectantly. What he was expecting, I wasn’t sure.
It was Bex’s turn to roll her eyes. “Just because you actually like spending time inside, doesn’t mean we’ve become more lenient.”
We kept up the litany of small talk until the little ones were ready for bed.
I told them I was considering applying for the Head of Department for the Emergency Room at the hospital.
“It's more regular hours, and more money.” Besides, I had the experience. “Also, the current Head said I was his recommendation and he would advocate for me.”
“Great.” Bex smiled, pride evident all over her pretty features. My heart stuttered and my dick twitched. We were going to need to find some time alone together again soon. “But you’ll also have more responsibility.”
“To be honest, I always liked the idea of running my own ER.” I pushed my plate aside and leaned my forearms on the table. “Calling the shots and running things my way, has a certain appeal. I’ve already thought of a few things I would do differently if I was in charge.”
“I like that for you.” She smiled and then stared at her empty plate. I hated we were delaying the conversation that needed to be had.
It was obvious she had hardly shared anything since we started eating. I had known Bex almost my entire life. I could tell when something was on her mind.
“What’s up, Bex.” Dom scowled at her, indicating he was getting to know her, too. “Did something happen at work?”
“A few things. You have to go down to the station after school.” Her voice was small and I knew she hated that the kid would be going through it all again.
“The FBI and the State’s Attorney will be there.
You will be accompanied by my brother Oliver and a police officer.
A US Marshall will also make sure we’re safe. ”
“What about you and Logan?” There was something in the way he asked the question that settled me. “I’m not going alone with them, am I?”
Bex let go of my hand and took hold of his. “I will be there with you, all the time. So will our family lawyer.”
“I will be there, too.”
The wince in Bex’s expression told me I was wrong. “You and Nick are going to check out the safe house. Once we’re done, we’ll have decoys sent to the apartment and Dom and I will meet you and the kids at the new house.”
I narrowed my eyes at her, not happy to be sidelined when Dom was going to be put through the ringer. “Bex…”
“The idea is to get everyone to safety. I need you to be with the little ones and make sure they’re safe.” She made a good argument. “I’ll make sure Dom is safe. There’s just one thing.”
I did not like the sound of that. “What?”
“Well, a few things really, but let's deal with the station visit first.”
“Lilly will also be there. The FBI believes Dom knows more than he thinks.” She looked away as she spoke further. “They want to put him through a cognitive interview.”
“Absolutely fucking not.” I pushed from my chair and stood. “I’ve seen those being done. A few times they couldn’t wait for a patient to fucking heal and did it in the ER. Those people were further traumatized after that. Absolutely no fucking way are they subjecting my kid to that.”
I was breathing hard and angry Bex would even consider such a thing. Yeah, they’ve shown some semblance of what it could be like on TV but in reality, it was never that simple and hardly ever that successful.
Dom looked over at Bex. “What is a cognitive interview?”
She looked from me back to Dom. “Basically, you’re guided to go back to that night on the staircase.
It's scary, because we don’t know what will trigger a memory and how it will affect you emotionally.
” She pulled me back into my seat. “I will be in the room with you for the whole thing, and I’ve insisted that I pick the interviewer.
They agreed to let Lilly be the one to interview you. ”
Dom raised a brow and it was like looking in a mirror. “Is she any good?”
Bex smiled, obviously seeing the same thing I did. “I wouldn’t trust anyone else with one of the most important people in my life.”
Dom stared at her for a moment before looking into his lap. “You promise you won’t let me get separated from my family?”
“I will fight with my last breath for all three of you. But Dom, we have something else we need to talk about.”
His face was weary and I couldn’t blame him. “What now?”
She took a deep breath. “Dom, your grandmother was killed about a week ago. SFPD had no idea where you were, which was why it took so long for us to be informed.”
I watched as his face turned to stone. One minute he was scared as hell. The next moment all hell broke loose as his voice roared through the apartment. “What more must I lose? They are determined to take my whole family from me. Everyone I love.”
I put my hand on his arm. “Dom, calm down.”
“Calm down?” His anger was directed at me.
I took that as a good sign. “My grandmother is just a nice old lady. She knew nothing.” He took a moment to breathe.
“Oh, God. What if they come after Landy and Vic? What if they come after you guys? I need to leave. That was why they wanted to separate us in San Francisco.”
Bex grabbed him and held his shoulders. “We’re not going anywhere. None of us thought she was in danger since she was your dad’s mother. But Dom, she died protecting you. She would want you to know that.”
“How do you know that?”
Bex inhaled and blinked away her own tears. “Because she knew you were adopted. She knew Logan and I were from Marina De Ferrier. If she told them that, they would’ve been here already. She kept that secret to protect you.”
The tears fell from his eyes and Bex pulled him closer as he cried. “I can’t lose more people Bex, I can’t. I want them caught and I want them gone.” He pulled away and turned to me. “I will do that cognitive thing if it means we can end this.”