Chapter 51
Why is the world shaking?
My eyes flew open at the thought and I sat up in bed, the glowing green dials on the clock on the nightstand telling me that it was three a.m. I frowned, still groggy and disoriented, but then I realized that the world hadn’t been shaking.
Colten was shaking my arm, his face just inches away from my own. “Wake up, Dad. Wake up!”
I squeezed my eyes shut and opened them again, but he was still here. And so was Jewel. My stomach sank when I realized we’d just been caught in bed together. I opened my mouth to explain, grasping for words I couldn’t find in my foggy brain, but as soon as my eyes adjusted in the low light and I saw Colten’s face, I realized that he seemed frightened.
He didn’t seem to care at all about Jewel being in bed with me. Instead, his eyes were wide and round, his lips mashed into a thin white line. “Daddy, wake up. Are you awake?”
I jerked my head in a nod, reaching out and putting my hand on his shoulder. “Yeah, bud. I’m awake. What’s going on? What’s wrong?”
“There are three cars parked outside,” he muttered in a rough, half-whisper. “One of them is that red car that crashed into us the other day.”
At those words, I was hit with a rush of adrenaline. Immediately, I knew something was wrong. I didn’t doubt for a moment that he was right. He hadn’t dreamed it. Dallas was here, and apparently, he’d brought backup.
Jewel was slowly coming to and I glanced at her, my voice low and urgent. “You two need to get dressed. Right now. Colt, run back to your room and grab some clothes. Bring them here. Jewel will help you pack a bag. Jewel, you need to pack too. Stay inside.”
Colten nodded, pale in the silver moonlight filtering in through the window, but he took off, giving Jewel and me the minute we needed to cover up before he came back. Jewel glanced at me as she pulled on the pajamas she’d been wearing earlier.
“What do you think he wants?” she asked, obviously having come to the same conclusion I had about who was out there.
It seemed she didn’t think someone else had the same car as Dallas either. It was definitely him. I shrugged as I shoved a T-shirt over my head. “I don’t know, baby. Just go get dressed and pack a bag. Keep Colten with you please. I need both of you to be ready to leave if we have to.”
“Yeah, okay,” she said nervously. “Are you really going to go down there?”
I nodded. “I have to. If I don’t, they’ll come in and that’s the last thing we want. Just stay out of sight, okay? I’ll meet you guys back here as soon as I can.”
I could see the nerves etched into her features, the anxiety shining from her eyes. When Colten came running back into the room with a stack of clothing and his bag, I saw the same thing from him. Annoyance raced through me, setting my blood to simmer as I marched downstairs.
I didn’t care what had happened between Dallas and me. I’d paid him to stay here for the whole summer and it was absolutely unacceptable that he’d show up like this in the middle of the damn night.
As I got to the foyer, aggressive knocking started against the front door. The banging thundered through the silent house. Aggravation tightened my muscles and I ground my teeth as I yanked open the front door, throwing up a hand to shield my eyes against the flashlights that were suddenly blinding me.
“Get the hell out of my house,” Dallas slurred the command, swaying slightly as he jutted his hand toward the front gates. “You’re not welcome here anymore. Not after humiliating me in front of everyone and getting me that DUI. So get the fuck out.”
While I knew it hadn’t been my fault, it was easy to see that Dallas was drunk again. A quick glance at the men who were with him told me they weren’t just regular townsfolk. They looked like goons, hired guns for our eviction.
Both of them wore tight black T-shirts, and they were huge. Built like houses with dangerously vacant gleams in their eyes. With Jewel and Colten inside, I decided not to pick a fight. I needed to focus on getting them out and away from here safely.
Tomorrow, I could take up the matter of this rude intrusion and demand a refund of the money I’d already paid. But for tonight, all I needed was to keep Colten and Jewel safe. There was no telling what he’d do in this state and Colt had been traumatized enough, by Dallas and by Kaitlin.
I wasn’t risking any more drama or trauma.
“Fine,” I spat at him. “I’ll leave, but I need to get my son.”
Dallas smirked, the scent of bourbon radiating from him as he shot a pointed look at his goons. “The kid is scrawny. He won’t be able to take us, so let Daddy go get his baby, boys. We don’t want a nerdy boy like him hanging around anyway.”
He made a few more rude comments about “the kid” that made my blood boil, but I retreated anyway, focused on my mission to get them out before these men came in. As I reached the staircase, however, I heard the front door smacking open against the wall and their footsteps rang out as they strode into the house.
Fuck.
My pulse spiked, my level of concern suddenly sky high. I didn’t want Dallas to know that Jewel was here. There was no telling how he’d react. I knew he had a thing for her. She’d told me that he always made a point of stopping by her place when he was in town and that he’d asked her out numerous times.
Spinning around with my hand already on the banister to ascend the stairs, I gave them a hard look that stopped all three men in their tracks. “Stay right here until we’re out. I’m willing to leave, but I won’t have you anywhere near my son. We’ll need a minute to pack things for the night.”
Dallas sneered, but one of the men grabbed his arm and held him back, exchanging a glance with the other guy before he nodded at me. His voice was cold and stony as he inclined his chin toward the stairs. “We’ll give you five minutes, but then you need to be gone.”
“Yeah, yeah,” I muttered, not at all afraid for my own safety.
If it hadn’t been for Jewel and Colten, I wouldn’t have hesitated to dig in my heels. I knew this type. Dallas had probably picked them up at a biker bar somewhere, promising payment of some sort if they provided him with some scowling faces to help scare me away.
I didn’t doubt he’d hatched this plan while drinking tonight, but I would make sure he’d regret it in the morning. For now, though, I turned and headed upstairs, breaking into a jog as soon as I was out of sight.
Throwing the lock on the bedroom door once I was inside, I turned to face Colten and Jewel. Three packed bags sat on the edge of the bed, and she had her arm around his shoulders where they’d been waiting right next to the bags.
Apprehension stared back at me from both of their expressions, their eyes glossy with concern and fear. Keeping my voice down and even, I strode to pick up the bags, slinging all three over my shoulders.
“Dallas is here,” I said to confirm their suspicions. “He brought backup and he wants us out. He’s drunk again, so it’s safer to comply for now, okay?”
I glanced at Colten and flashed him what I hoped was a reassuring smile. “They’re not going to do anything to us, bud. Remember what I told you about big egos? This is just part of Dallas’s. He’s still embarrassed about what happened the other day and the only thing he can do is to chuck us out of his house.”
Colt sighed but nodded. “They didn’t hurt you?”
I chuckled dryly and shook my head. “They didn’t even try. If they had, the police would already be on their way here.”
Once he looked mildly less panicked, I turned to Jewel. “I need you to go out the back, baby. Don’t let them see you. I don’t want Dallas knowing you’re here in the state he’s in. There’s no telling what he’d do.”
Her face was ashen as she stood up and touched her fingers to my cheek. Her eyes were full of worry but it didn’t seem to be for herself. “Are you going out the front?”
“We’re going to have to. He needs to see us leaving, but we’ll meet you on the south side of the house, okay? I have a feeling we’re going to be walking. He won’t let us take the truck, but I’ll call the driver that brought us here just as soon as we’re clear.”
She nodded. “We’ll be okay. Let’s just focus on getting out of here first.”
“Be careful,” I warned her quietly, not wanting to alarm Colten more than he already was, but I really didn’t want Dallas to know she was here.
She might’ve told me that he was more bark than bite, but in my profession, I’d seen what alcohol could make men do. When they’d had enough to drink, some people just couldn’t help themselves. They committed heinous acts that they didn’t have the courage for when they were sober.
Jewel’s eyes latched on mine. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be careful, but I’ve gotten to know this house pretty well. They won’t see me. Are they in the foyer?”
“Yep, I told them to stay put while we packed a few things for the night.”
She inclined her chin in a nod at me to let me know she’d heard, but then she bent at the knees and looked at Colten, even managing to give him a reassuring smile of her own. “We need to go our separate ways for now, but I promise you that I’m going to be okay and I’ll meet you right outside.”
Colt suddenly threw his arms around her, giving her a tight hug as he nodded. “Just be safe. That guy is scary.”
She chuckled, but the sound was more high-pitched than usual. As much as she tried to appear calm, she was afraid. “He’s not so bad. I’ll see you soon.”
The thought of both her and Colten being so scared of one drunk asshole made me want to rip his head off his shoulders with my bare hands, but I didn’t let either of them see the fury eating me up inside.
I need to keep them safe. I need to get them out of here.
With that mantra in my mind, I crossed back to the bedroom door and unlocked it, checking that the long, wide hallway outside was clear before I nodded at them. “Okay, let’s go.”
“I think it’s best if I take my bag,” she said as they approached the door. “It’ll save you having to answer questions about why there are three.”
I sighed but handed it over. “Stay safe, Jewel. South side. Remember.”
Voices filtered up to us from downstairs, but it was mostly Dallas’s, boasting to his goons about how much money he had. Not a great idea, buddy.
They were almost certainly going to insist on being paid more now that he’d let them see this house and he was telling them all about it, but that wasn’t my problem. Watching as Jewel stole off to the side to take one of the smaller staircases, I waited until she’d disappeared from sight before I took Colten’s hand.
“I’m sorry about this, kiddo. We’re going to be okay, though. Just keep your head down and follow me. Let’s do this. Let’s just get out of here.”