Chapter 11 #2
Nick’s head shot up at that. He set his notebook next to Leo, leaving the other man behind. Nick hovered over me; his arms folded over his chest as he glared at the phone.
I ignored him, as well as Leo’s curious stare.
I tried my best not to sound like an asshole.
If I reacted in any way other than nonchalance, Roger would win.
It had been that way when I was a kid, and nothing had changed since the other man had gotten out of prison.
Not with the way Roger had sneered the word boy.
“You should call me dad. You know I like it when you call me dad.”
I held back my revulsion as Nick took the phone out of my hand and set it on speaker. He gestured toward Leo, who gave us a look and went back to the office, closing the door and giving us a semblance of privacy.
I had a good team, and I was grateful. Right then I just wanted to hang up the phone and be alone.
“I hear you’re out of prison. Not quite sure why you’re calling me.”
“I just wanted to say hi. It’s been a long time, Leif.”
Not long enough.
“Well, you did that. Goodbye, Roger.”
“Don’t hang up on me. You’re not going to like it.”
I hung up on him, knowing the other man had no power over me. He might have when I was a kid, but I was an adult now, and Roger had nothing to do with me.
He was my past and was no part of my present or future.
Then why did just the sound of his voice bring me back to his beatings, to the way that he would grip my shoulder, and force me to listen as he told me how worthless I was?
“He sounds like an asshole,” Nick said casually, though there was nothing casual about his voice.
“He is. I don’t know what he wants, but I’m pretty sure that threat performance was from him.”
Nick nodded, his gaze going dark. “That note? Figured as much. You talk to your parents about it?”
I shook my head. “Roger has nothing to do with them. I don’t want to worry them.”
Nick met my gaze and narrowed his eyes. “You’re keeping secrets. It’s going to bite you in the ass.”
“Maybe. But the other man can’t do anything to me. And all he has done so far is call. And maybe sent that note. Hell, I just don’t want my parents to worry.”
“I think you’re making a mistake, but it’s yours to make. I’m here if you need me. Okay?”
Bile rose in my throat, but I nodded tightly as my best friend patted my shoulder in a way that reminded me of Roger.
I quickly squashed that thought. I’d been hugged, touched, and roughed around before.
I hadn’t thought of Roger then. My real father had never hurt me, never laid a hand on me in anger.
I even played football and soccer in high school and dealt with it easily.
I wouldn’t flinch away when my best friend touched me in comfort.
Leo walked out then, looking between us. “The door isn’t that thick, so I heard most of that, I’m sorry. I wanted to blast music or something because then you’d know I know.”
I cursed under my breath. “My stepdad’s out of prison. Or I should just call him my birth mom’s boyfriend. Technically, she never married him.”
“I’m sorry. Is there anything we can do?” Leo asked.
I shook my head. “Just ignore him. He has my phone number for some reason, and while that worries me, and I think he has the address to this place, he’s an old man now.
He can’t hurt us.” I didn’t know if I was saying that more for them or myself.
Probably both. “It’s probably a good idea to make sure that we keep the place locked-up tight, make sure the security is on. ”
“We always do but will be doubly sure. You should tell your parents,” Nick said again.
I sighed. “I don’t want to bother them.”
Leo looked between us but didn’t say anything. Instead, we went back to work, and after a few moments of pretending to go back to the charcoal, I picked up my phone. I wondered if I was making mistake.
Me:
How did the day go?
Brooke:
Long, I’m glad I’m home. How are you?
I almost told her everything. Right then and there, I almost texted it all to her. She did not need that on her shoulders. She didn’t need anything else on her plate.
Me:
I got to play with art and met some interesting people. So, I guess it’s a good day.
Brooke:
You have to show me some of your pieces. That way I can gear up if I’m ever ready for a tattoo.
The thought of being the one to put art on her skin made me swallow hard. I wanted to be the one to do that, nobody else. Maybe that made me a territorial jerk, but I was what I was.
Me:
You say the word and I’m there.
Brooke:
I would never trust anyone else.
My heart thumped loudly, those words doing more to me than I ever thought possible.
Me:
What do you say to dinner tomorrow?
Brooke:
I say yes. I think I need it.
She was so quick to say that, so I knew it was true. I bit my lip and quickly made plans with her, wondering if I was making mistake.
Then again, I couldn’t be. Not when it came to Brooke. Because I had made the mistake earlier, I wasn’t going to do it again.
Despite my own misgivings, my own issues, I was falling for Brooke.
Too hard. Too fast.
And yet I couldn’t slow down.
Not again.
Not with Brooke.