Chapter 25
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
THANE
“Let’s go, Wilder.” My head snaps up at Boone’s demand. He’s standing in Lottie’s doorway, and I didn’t even hear him approach.
“Where are we going?” I wake up my computer screen. I don’t remember seeing him on my calendar.
“We’re going to meet with my architect so I can get started next door. You’ve got some shit to pick out.”
Kara bounds down the stairs. “Can I come?”
“You want to go meet an architect?”
She stares at me, and I can hear the word “Brad” being dragged out in her mind.
“Yeah, Lottie said I might be able to ask for a book nook window.” Her cheeks pinken, and she stares at the ground.
“Is that what you want?” My heart beats an uncomfortable rhythm. Kara should have the world, but she’s still resistant to ask for what she wants.
She shifts her weight from foot to foot. “I saw some stuff on Pinterest that looked cool.”
I stand abruptly, accidentally knocking over my chair. I’ve been jittery as fuck since I stopped sleeping in Lottie’s room. The conversation about her hacker has been weighing on me too.
Should I have just come clean about integrating more security that will keep out my father and others without telling her? It seems like an unnecessary thing to worry her with. It’s not as though I’m actively in her cloud services anymore. I get alerts if someone breaches my security, and otherwise, I remain undetected.
And it’s for safety, of her and her company.
“Geez, Brad. Settle down.”
Boone snickers, and I glare at him.
“Have you heard from the insurance company yet?” he asks, smartly changing the subject.
“I don’t give a shit about the insurance. They’re saying something about the previous owners being held responsible and it could take over a year for the claim to come through. I’m not waiting around for that.”
“It’s your dime, moneybags.” Since Boone’s family came and went, he’s been a real asshole.
“Why do you still have a stick up your ass?”
“Boone and his brother Cal had a falling out years ago, and now he’s upset because Sharky is telling him to get over it and be there for his brother.” Kara really needs to stop spending so much time at the library. “I’m hungry. Can we get some lunch while we’re out?”
“You haven’t had lunch yet?” Boone flashes a disapproving glare my way. “It’s three in the afternoon.”
“She didn’t get up until noon. Google said it’s normal for teenagers to sleep in.”
He shakes his head. “Yeah, kid. We can get some lunch.”
It’s hard to pull away from my computer. I have so much damn work to do, and I’m days away from proving that Rupert Sinclair is a piece of shit.
Tell Charlotte what you’ve done. My narrator has been relentless lately. It’s not that I don’t want to tell her about LotiTech, I simply haven’t found the right time.
“Thane. Are you coming?” Kara shifts her weight again, and my heart volleys between her and the shit I promised to solve for Charlotte.
“Are you upset about something?” I’m learning that twitchy legs usually mean she has something uncomfortable to say.
She doesn’t make eye contact but shakes her head.
“You excited about this book nook thing?” Boone asks. He’s so gentle with her and a barking crab to me.
“It’s amazing. I—” She lowers her voice, as though she doesn’t want me to hear. “It would be epic if I got to see it finished before I had to, you know, move again.”
Boone glares at me with a sharp edge to all his features, but I ignore him while my mental lists shift like pieces of a puzzle.
Make Kara feel safe.
Prove Lottie didn’t build her company on her father’s systems.
Build Kara a book nook, whatever the hell that is.
Get Lottie to marry me.
Tell Lottie about LotiTech.
Somewhere in there I must run my company, figure out how to sleep with a wall separating me from Lottie, ensure my father can never regain custody of Kara, and make sure no one takes advantage of Lottie while she builds an empire.
Easy.
“Let’s go. We have a book nook to build,” I say, slamming my computer closed.
“Slow your roll, Handy Manny. You need a house before you can build a book nook.”
Who the hell is Manny? And why does this town insist on adding to my friend list?
* * *
This place is my version of hell. Untamed children run in every direction while lights, bells, and whistles from video games scream above us every five seconds.
“Never take me to a…” I glance around the place. “Jillian’s ever again.”
Boone laughs next to me while his architect friend, John, rolls out another set of paperwork. At least someone has a normal enough name.
John hands over a baby with grabby hands to Boone, who takes the child without questioning it.
“Here’s what I was envisioning. Boone told me you’d need a couple of home offices, four bedrooms with en suites. All fabulous ideas. The current blueprint of the old place won’t allow for all this, but you can pull new permits.”
I crane my neck, attempting to find Kara, who ran off with John’s oldest child. I didn’t like the way that little fuck-face JJ was making googly eyes at my baby sister though, so I’m two seconds away from pulling the plug on this godforsaken meeting and dragging her out of here.
“Uncle Boo. Uncle Boo.” John’s third—or is it his fourth?—child runs at Boone with a lollipop the size of her head in her hands.
Boone swings to me and shoves the drooling baby into my lap, as if I have any fucking idea what to do with a baby.
“Hey, squirt.” He lifts the sticky little girl into his arms.
“Sorry about this, Thane. My wife was supposed to grab them from my office, but she got stuck at work. I’m thankful for the opportunity though. Especially given the…” John waves his hand in the air. He has lead or charcoal covering the entire bottom of his hand, and now I’m picturing that shit everywhere. “Unusual nature of our meeting.”
“It’s fine, John,” Boone says. “Kara needs to get out and meet more kids before school starts, so we were happy to meet you here.”
Boone can speak for himself.
“I thought you said you lived in Charbrook Falls?” The more space between Kara and JJ, the better.
“Oh, we do. But the schools are done by county here. All the middle schools filter into the same high school, so Kara and JJ will probably have a class or two together.”
Over my dead body. I mentally high-five my narrator. At least we’re on the same page about Kara.
Something wet and sticky slides down and over my fingers. The child I’m holding peers up at me with a toothless grin, and another giant glob of goo slips down her face and coats my fingertips.
I’m going to be sick.
The little girl in Boone’s hands squirms in his lap, and he sets her down. Thank God. I wait expectedly for him to grab the goo goblin, but he simply goes back to eating his burger while I’m left holding Slimer.
“Boone.”
He ignores me and points to something on blueprints that I’m ninety percent sure is also covered in syrup.
“Is that where the outdoor fireplace will go?”
“Yeah. If he wants an outdoor kitchen, we can add it here. It’s really going to depend on what kind of permits he can get for the lot.”
The two of them go back and forth while I watch in silent horror. Boone and I never even had a conversation about rebuilding, but here he is with an architect.
“What the fuck?—”
“Hey,” John scolds me. “Language.”
Boone makes a tsking sound, but I know he’s laughing at me.
“Do I get any say in this home you’re building?”
“You could.” Boone pops a french fry into his mouth. “Or you could sit there and listen while John explains Lottie’s dream home to you.”
My mouth snaps closed, and the asshole laughs. “That’s what I thought.”
“How do you know about Lottie’s dream home?” The volcano in my chest has been dormant the last couple of weeks, but it fires and bubbles now.
“Oh.” John actually blushes. “Every holiday season, we do a tour of homes in Charbrook Falls. Lottie has come through many times, and we’ve talked about my designs a lot. The framework of this one is similar to one I designed last year, but she and my wife got to talking last Christmas at the library fundraiser. My donation was to make a mini-scale dream home, and Lottie won it. So her design is already mostly done.”
Boone smirks at me.
“Why did you do this?” I ask. The creature in my lap leans back, curling her head into my ribs as though I’m a pillow made specifically for her.
I don’t understand it, but one small gesture by a slippery ball of baby eases the tension stabbing around my eye sockets.
“In all the years I’ve lived in Sweetbriar, I’ve never known Lottie to accept help from anyone, yet here you are, chasing down demons and giving her a shoulder to lean on.”
Great. Does he have a thing for my woman too?
“She went out of her way to help me when I first arrived, Thane,” Boone explains. “My parents had recently passed away, and I was pretty messed up. If it weren’t for her, my construction company never would have taken off here the way it has. If I can do something to repay that kindness, I’m going to. Even if that means making friends with Sherlock.”
I glance at John. He doesn’t meet the criteria to be Sherlock.
“In this scenario, you’re Sherlock.” Boone studies me closely while chewing his burger in the side of his mouth. It’s disgusting.
Great. Sherlock Holmes. The character known for being socially awkward.
I tuck the baby higher onto my chest because somehow, she’s fallen asleep in the middle of this chaos. “It’s not that I disregard social norms, Boone. I just don’t always see them until it’s too late.”
“Then I suppose I’ll be your Watson. Everyone needs a little help from their friends. Even you. Now say cheese.”
He holds up his phone while I’m figuring out when we became friends, and the flash nearly blinds me.
“What’s that for?” My words are too loud, and the little girl startles in my arms but doesn’t so much as bat an eye. Weird. I wish I could sleep like that.
“She’s the baby,” John says with a tenderness all fathers should wear like a badge of honor. “The blessing of having three older siblings is you learn to sleep anywhere.”
“I sent it to Lottie.” Boone puffs out his chest.
The muscles in my neck and shoulders tense. “Why would you do that?”
Both men shift in their seats as I study their features. It’s as though they know something I don’t, and it irritates the hell out of me.
“Trust me. You’ll thank me for this later.” Boone’s cryptic message is interrupted when I catch sight of Kara behind his head.
She’s talking with her new friend, Emma, and another boy I don’t recognize.
“She’s not old enough to date.” My teeth grind together as another set of boys join them.
Boone follows my line of sight. “They’re just hanging out, Thane. It’s good for her.”
“And you’d know, how?”
He shrugs and focuses on his burger. “My little sister isn’t that much older than Kara.”
“Do you miss her?”
His head snaps up. That might be the first personal question I’ve ever asked him.
“Every day, but as much as I hate to admit it, my brother Cal could offer them a stability I couldn’t at the time. It’s better this way.”
Perhaps that’s why he’s taken such an interest in Kara. I’ve read that guilt can be a powerful motivator.
The baby in my arms sighs, and her little chin quivers, matching the sensations in my gut.
“Maybe you’ll actually join us at one of our poker nights now.” Boone’s been watching me as I study the ball of goo in my arms.
“Poker’s not really my thing.”
“Because you’ve never played, or because you don’t want to?” Boone asks.
“Because I’ve never been invited.” I snap my mouth closed and stare at the blueprints so intently I expect them to go up in flames at any moment. “What kind of permits will we need to get all this done?”
No one answers me, so I’m forced to make eye contact when it’s the very last thing on the planet I want to do. It’s like I’m working against the pull of gravity to make it happen.
Boone nods in a slow, calm way. “We’re inviting you, Thane. It’s a standing invitation whenever you’re ready. As for the permits, I’ll get them started and let you know what I’ll need from you, but I have a feeling the Scuttlebutts will help get them pushed through.”
My groan vibrates against the little girl. Owing the Scuttlebutts a favor is also at the top of my never-want-to-do list, but I’m learning I can put up with a lot more than I thought when it’s for my girls.
My phone vibrates on the table, the notification coming from Lottie.
Charlotte: You’re a natural (heart eye emoji)
She must be talking about the picture Boone sent, and he’s staring at me too damn proud of himself, so I flip my phone over. I’ll get back to her when he isn’t playing Watson.
* * *
The automatic light on the back deck flickers to life. I jump out of bed and look out the window. Lottie appears to float across the grass as she heads toward the lake.
What is she doing up in the middle of the night?
Tugging on a pair of lounge pants and a T-shirt, I tiptoe past Kara’s room and down the stairs to follow Lottie.
By the time I get to the lake, she’s sitting in the tall grass with her head resting on her knees.
“Did I wake you?” she asks when my footsteps stop a few feet away from her.
“No, I was awake and staring at my ceiling.”
The corners of her lips tilt up as she stares at the water before us. “You couldn’t sleep either?”
“Not since I left your bed.”
“Me too.” Her words are so quiet they’re hard to hear over the grasshoppers and other nighttime noises that all blur together. “I don’t know how to handle it.”
Sitting beside her, she tucks both arms around my biceps and rests her head on my shoulder.
“How to handle what, sweetheart?”
“The dependency. I’ve never been a clingy person. In fact, I’ve worked hard not to need anyone, and when I do, I hire someone so I’m still in control. But with you? It’s like…”
I drop my chin to the top of her head. She brings a silence to my world I’ve never known before, but I still hope she’ll finish her sentence.
“Like what?”
“When I’m with you, it’s like you’re an extension of me. You’re my left lung, and I’m the right. I’m your right hand, and you’re my left. Singularly, we’re capable, but together, we function on a new plane.”
The moon is so bright here that I can see her clearly. When she tilts her face to mine, the dark circles show under her eyes, and I know it’s not just from lack of sleep.
I gently sweep my thumb over the dark spots I wish I could erase. “What else is bothering you, sweetheart?”
She attempts to dip her chin, but I cup it and search every inch of her face for answers.
When she finally understands that I won’t let this go, her eyes well up, and the lava flares to life in my chest. It burns differently for her. My entire life, the sensation of a volcano being a living, breathing entity in my chest was always…manageable. But when it roars for her, it’s an uncontrollable force of nature that’s ready to tear down everything in her path.
“My father’s attorney asked for an injunction today. He’s trying to force me to stop all operations. If he succeeds, it could bankrupt me. I hate him, and honestly, the sentiment is probably mutual. If he can’t control me, I’m of no use to him.”
“You’re his daughter, not a prop to manage.” Make a list, Thane. The sooner you prove that the company is hers and hers alone, the sooner you can go after her father.
She squeezes my arm tighter to her chest. “I need you to stop thinking so hard over there.”
I bite the inside of my cheek to remain silent. She doesn’t want to hear my plans. At least not right now. I’m a little upset about that, so I keep everything inside. For now.
“I’m not telling you this so you can rescue me, and that’s something you’re going to have to come to terms with. I’m not asking you to save me. But as my boyfriend, I need you to listen.”
“As your fiancée, you should just let me fix your problems instead of being so damn stubborn.”
“We’re not engaged.”
“Agree to disagree.”
“Thane, if we ever get engaged?—”
“Not if, Charlotte.”
Her lashes flutter against my arm, and I can easily envision her eye roll. “When I get engaged, then I will consider allowing my fiancé to participate in solving my problems. Until then, I simply need you to listen and support.”
I keep my mouth closed so I don’t say the wrong thing.
“I’ll figure it out. I always do. Now, tell me something about you. Something I don’t know.”
It takes me a moment to rearrange my thoughts from problem-solving to life-story-sharing, and even then, it’s a struggle to keep my attention from how I’ll dismantle her father’s legacy, so I say the first thing that pops into my mind.
“Rafe wants us to do family counseling.”
She squeezes my arm again as though she’s hugging me, and her cheek presses against my skin. I want her to stay there forever.
“That sounds like a good idea.”
That might be the first strike to my heart I’ve allowed to hit since I was ten years old, and she has no idea.
Charlotte thinks I’m broken.