Chapter 12
LAWSON
Each leg felt as if it weighed a ton as I trudged up the steps to my house.
I’d sworn the day would never end. A mountain of paperwork.
A town council meeting. Reed and Clint getting into it about something that didn’t matter at the station and me having to soothe egos.
Nash demanding that he wanted to meet the new, mysterious nanny.
And a call from Luke’s English teacher telling me he had failed to turn in the paper that was due today.
All I wanted to do was crawl into bed and sleep for a week. No, a month. A month might actually catch me up on what I’d been missing.
I slipped my key into the deadbolt and turned it. Opening the door, I stilled. Charlie’s and Drew’s voices came from the kitchen, and warmth blasted me. They were laughing as they debated who would win in a fight, a great white shark or a grizzly.
But it wasn’t their laughter that knocked me sideways; it was my house.
The living room hadn’t been this clean since the place was built.
Toys, books, and games had been put away.
Blankets were folded on the backs of the sectional.
The pillows were even fluffed, with that little karate chop thing you only saw in furniture showrooms.
When I stepped inside and closed the door behind me, the smell hit me. Chicken. And maybe bacon? Something else I couldn’t identify, but it smelled damned amazing.
I rounded the corner to find Hallie mixing something in a small bowl with a spout. Where the hell had she found that? I couldn’t remember the last time it had been used.
She had her white-blond hair piled atop her head in a bun that somehow stayed in place. But the look exposed her neck. Long and sinewy, I found myself wanting to trace a finger down it.
I gave my head a good shake. Since when did I find someone’s neck attractive?
I cleared my throat, turning my focus to Drew and Charlie, who were perched at the island. “Did I come home to the wrong house?”
Charlie’s forehead scrunched. “Of course, you’re in the right house.”
Drew snorted. “It doesn’t smell like feet in the living room anymore. That’s what confused you.”
Hallie wiped her hands on a towel as she shifted her weight from foot to foot.
Instead of dropping the towel back to the counter, she threaded it through her fingers and pulled it taut.
“I should’ve asked what you wanted for dinner before you went to work, but I didn’t think of it.
And I didn’t want to bother you once you were there, so I just kind of guessed—”
“Hallie,” I cut her off as I moved into the kitchen. “Whatever it is smells amazing.”
A little of the tension left her shoulders, but the towel stayed pulled tight in her hands. “It’s a roasted chicken salad and homemade mac and cheese.”
“I helped with the salad,” Charlie said, sitting up straighter on his stool. “I added bacon. And also, I like cucumbers now.”
My gaze flicked from my son to Hallie. “My kid likes cucumbers now? Are you some kind of sorcerer?”
Drew shook his head. “Don’t get any ideas about me and oranges. That ship has sailed.”
Hallie’s lips twitched. “I solemnly swear not to try to sell you on oranges.” She turned, seeming to check the timer on the oven but the towel stayed firmly in her grasp.
I followed behind her, lowering my voice. “You’re nervous.”
She pressed her lips together and shook her head. “I’m good.”
“You’re not,” I growled.
Hallie jolted a bit, and I cursed myself.
“I can’t help if you don’t tell me what’s going on.”
Her gaze flicked up to me, the gray in her eyes seeming to swirl, pulling me in. “Is it really okay? What I made? Not too kiddish?”
I barked out a laugh. “Hallie, if you haven’t noticed, I live with three kids. And I’m not exactly a gourmet foodie.”
Her hold on the towel loosened, and stray tendrils of hair fluttered as she let out a breath. “Good. That’s good.”
I leaned in closer, not having a clue how to ease the worry that obviously had her in knots. “What’s all this about?”
Hallie started to shake her head and open her mouth as if to say nothing, but my narrowing eyes stopped her. She huffed out a breath. “My parents are into the gourmet stuff. My mom was always telling me that I ate like a five-year-old.”
“So what if you eat like a five-year-old? That’s the privilege of being an adult. You can eat whatever the hell you want.”
“You sound like Adrian,” Hallie said with a smile.
I stilled. Adrian. Who the hell was Adrian? Friend? Boyfriend? I shifted to lean a hip on the counter. “Who’s Adrian?”
My voice sounded light, casual, as if I didn’t particularly care who he was. God, I was grateful I was a good liar.
Hallie’s entire face lit up as if someone had flicked on a light switch inside her. “My brother Emerson’s husband. He’s an amazing cook. He’s the one who taught me the basics. He’s always saying I should cook whatever makes me happy.”
I didn’t want to look too closely at the relief coursing through me. “Sounds like a wise man.”
“He’s one of the best.”
The oven timer dinged, and Hallie grabbed two oven mitts from the counter. Opening the door, she slid out a casserole dish, and the entire space filled with the scent of heaven.
Drew was off his stool in a flash, coming to peek over Hallie’s shoulder. “Dang, bruh. That’s fire.”
Hallie sent me a puzzled look.
I chuckled. “That means he likes it.”
“I need to brush up on my teen language,” she mumbled.
“You’ll get there in no time around here,” I assured her.
I clapped Drew on the shoulder. “Will you go get your brother for dinner?”
He made a face. “Do I have to? He’s been in a piss-poor mood ever since you took his phone.”
I fought a groan but nodded. “You can yell it from outside his door, then run.”
“If I get decked with a textbook, I hope you feel really guilty.”
My lips twitched. “Fair enough.”
Charlie slid off his stool as Drew headed out of the kitchen. “What about our dressing?”
Hallie grinned down at him. “I think it needs one more stir, and then it’s ready to go.”
She grabbed the bowl and a whisk from the island and held it out for Charlie. He took the whisk and gave it a few stirs. “Is that enough?”
“I think it’s perfect.” Hallie turned and poured a healthy amount over the massive salad.
“I’ll get the drinks. What would you like?” I asked.
She glanced up as she tossed the salad. “I made some iced tea earlier. I’ll take a glass of that.”
“It’s really yummy, Dad,” Charlie added. “I helped.”
“Then I think I’ll have some of that, too.” I grabbed the pitcher and poured five glasses, putting them on the already-set table. There were even placemats and cloth napkins I hadn’t realized I had.
I glanced back at Hallie. “How did you do all of this?”
She looked confused.
“You cleaned, went grocery shopping, cooked,” I explained.
“I didn’t get all the laundry done, but I should have that finished tomorrow,” she said.
I just shook my head. “Thank you. You’re kind of a miracle worker.”
“And Emmaline loves her,” Charlie added as if that were the most important thing in the world.
I grinned at Hallie. “Well, that seals it. You’re stuck with us now.”
A smile lit her face, morphing her beauty from something that stopped you in your tracks to something you’d never forget. It was the kind of beauty that could change a man if he let it.
“I think I like being stuck with the Hartley fam.”
Charlie grabbed Hallie’s hands and started dancing around the kitchen with her. He was singing some made-up song about Hartleys and Emmaline and Hallie. She laughed as he spun her in circles. It was the kind of life this house had been missing for far too long.
Drew came back and stared at the scene and then at me. “Bruh, I wanna smash that mac and cheese while it’s hot.”
I fought the urge to roll my eyes. “Then bring it to the table, bruh.”
He just grinned and headed for the food. Hallie took that as her cue and extricated herself from Charlie’s dance moves. We were all sitting down in a matter of minutes, Luke included.
He was quiet at dinner, which was typical, but the tone of the silence tonight had a different quality to it. Every now and then, I caught him stealing glances at Hallie. Only it wasn’t with derision this time. It almost looked like worry or guilt.
I knew something was really wrong when he didn’t argue when I asked him to do the dishes with Drew. Pushing back from my seat, I glanced at Hallie. “Do you have a few minutes before you head home?”
A hint of apprehension passed over her features, but she quickly rose. “Of course.”
I led her toward my office, slipping inside and closing the door after us. I motioned to a large couch opposite my desk. Hallie sat and immediately twisted her fingers into a series of intricate knots.
“You’re not in trouble, I swear,” I said quickly.
Hallie nodded but didn’t seem entirely convinced.
I blew out a breath, wondering how long it would take her to be completely at ease around me. “Did something happen with Luke today?”
Hallie stiffened, and I had my answer.
“What did he do?”
Her fingers tightened, knuckles going white.
The instinct to touch her was so strong I had to bite the inside of my cheek to stop myself. “Hallie.”
Her gaze flew to mine. “I might’ve messed up.”
I doubted that. “Whatever it is, we’ll deal with it.”
She swallowed hard. “I wasn’t thinking, and while I was making dinner, my sleeves were pushed up.”
My brow furrowed.
Hallie took a deep breath and pushed up one sleeve of her sweater and then the other. Thin scars crisscrossed her forearms. So many there was no way I could count them all.
Bile churned in my gut. I’d known the man who kept her had cut her.
After I’d found Hallie half-dead in the snow, I hadn’t been able to let go of the case.
I’d read everything I could get my hands on, which hadn’t been much since I wasn’t on the state investigation team.
But I’d read enough. I knew he’d tortured her—hurt all the women he held.
Hallie stared down at her arms. “Luke made a comment about me being a cutter.”
My body jerked, hands fisting on my knees. “He what?”
“He’s angry, Lawson. It wasn’t about me. I informed him that I didn’t do this to myself, but if I had, I’d need help and not judgment. It might’ve been the wrong thing—”
“No, that’s exactly what you should’ve said, but I’m damned ashamed that he said something like that in the first place. I’m going to talk to him and—”
I started to rise, but Hallie put a hand on my forearm to stop me. “Don’t.”
It was the first time she’d touched me since the interview.
I’d thought for sure the jolt I’d felt that day was simply shock at seeing Hallie after all these years, but I’d been wrong.
Because her fingers ghosting over my skin now felt like a bolt of lightning to the system.
Every part of me was attuned to every part of her.
“We have to find our way, the two of us. If you step in every time, that’ll never happen.”
I stared at the woman opposite me. So damn brave. So damn strong. “I don’t want my son to be cruel. That’s not how we operate in this house.”
Hallie’s expression gentled. “I’ve been here forty-eight hours, and I already know that. I think Luke got the message. If it happens again, I promise I’ll tell you.”
“Or if anything else happens,” I demanded.
“Okay. We can have check-ins about him and how he’s doing.”
I nodded, slowly lowering my hand atop hers. I searched her expression for any sign of discomfort, but there was none. Gently, I turned her wrist over so I could see the worst of the scars. I traced one with my finger. “I’m so sorry this happened to you.”
Hallie’s breathing grew ragged. “I got out. You saved me.”
“I wish I would’ve gotten to you a hell of a lot sooner.” She’d been missing for thirty-three days. Spent over a month with a madman. What did that do to a person?
“But you got to me. That’s what matters. When I had what felt like endless cruelty, you gave me kindness. You gave me blue.”
My gaze locked with hers. “Blue?”
The corners of Hallie’s mouth lifted. “Your eyes. I thought I could drown in all that blue, but it would be okay because there was only goodness there. Safety. Peace.”
Pain struck my chest, jagged and brutal. “I want you to have all of that.”
Her smile widened. “I’m finding it. Because you’re giving it to me all over again.”