Chapter 24
Elyna
I started my afternoon shift with my nerves frayed. Getting Braden to daycare was a task with my stomach tied up in nerves. I dropped Braden off at daycare, kissed his warm cheek, and whispered that Mama would be back soon. He fussed a little as I handed him over but that was usual for him.
When I passed him off to his daycare teacher, I reminded, “Remember, I am the only one who picks him up.”
“Of course.” She smiled.
Phoenix’s voice echoed in my mind, He’s strong. He’ll rock daycare. I clung to that reassurance. We were both strong. Riley wasn’t going to upend the peaceful serenity I was building for myself, which is what I tried to convince myself of as I drove to the brewery.
I walked in ready to start my shift. I wasn’t going to allow my nerves over Riley to ruin my shift.
My customers deserved a pleasant server.
The lunch crowd was steady and nothing I couldn’t handle.
I was grabbing a refill on a basket of fries when Dominic nodded toward the door.
“Table Six. Looks like she’s waiting for you. ”
I wiped my hands on my apron, picked up my tray, and turned.
My heart stopped.
Colette Jansen. Riley’s mom.
She looked the same as always, her ginger hair brushed out and frizzy, she was wearing a tight shirt and tight jeans. But it wasn’t her appearance that froze me. It was the way her eyes locked on mine, sharp and cold, like she’d been waiting.
I forced myself forward, tray balanced in my hands. “Mrs. Jansen,” I greeted, trying to sound neutral.
“Elyna.” Her smile was thin and razor-edged. “Thought I’d drop in to see you since we haven’t touched base in a while.”
“Can I get you something?”
She folded her hands neatly on the table. “I’m not here to eat. I came to talk.”
My throat tightened. “Talk about what?”
Her eyes glittered. “I hear you got a call from my son.”
The tray trembled in my grip. I set it down fast before it slipped. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
She leaned back, voice smooth, rehearsed. “Don’t play games. Riley has been thinking about Braden. About his rights as a father. He may have made mistakes, but he has not forgotten his son.”
I stiffened. “He walked away and told me to leave Montreal.”
Her smile sharpened. “You always did think you were the victim. But let me remind you of something, Braden is Jansen blood. And we don’t take kindly to being cut off.
Besides the news of your whore of a mother has not been sitting well with me.
I don’t like that my grandson has Chabot blood in him. ”
Ice spread through my veins.
“And another thing,” she added, her tone deceptively sweet. “I know exactly where that boy is while you’re working. Sweet little daycare on Birch Street. Lovely place.”
My stomach plummeted. “How. . .”
“Oh, people talk,” she said with a casual wave of her hand. “Val-Du-Lys isn’t that big. Word gets around.”
The ground tilted beneath me. She wanted me scared. And it was working.
Her lips curved into a satisfied smile as she stood. “Do yourself a favor, Elyna. Don’t forget who his family is. Sooner or later, Riley will want to see his son. And there’s not much you can do about it.”
“Maybe you should’ve helped Riley with his gambling problem. He came to me for help. Why didn’t he come to you, Colette?” I spat back, not wanting to take her shit.
Her bottom lip quivered.
“I hear you like to frequent the bingo halls. Is that where all your money goes? Did you teach Riley how to gamble? Because you sure did a good job. He blows all his money on gambling and women.” I didn’t like her talking about my poor sweet mom.
She may have made mistakes, but life had been harsh on her.
Colette gasped and then she glided toward the door, her heels clicking against the wood floor. The sound echoed in my skull long after she was gone.
I stumbled into the backroom, my breaths coming in short, sharp gasps. Panic clawed up my throat, threatening to choke me. The walls felt too close, my chest too tight. My hands braced against the counter as if I could hold myself together by sheer force.
How the hell did Colette find out where Braden was? What did she think she was going to do? And bringing up my mother was just plain cruel.
“Elyna?”
I spun around, my heart lurching. Phoenix stood in the doorway; eyes narrowed in concern.
“I’m fine,” I blurted too fast, too defensive.
He stepped closer, his broad shoulders filling the space. “No, you’re not. You look like you’re about to pass out. What happened?”
“Nothing.” My voice cracked. “I’m just busy with the lunch rush. I needed a minute.”
“Bullshit.” His voice was low and firm, not angry but unyielding. “Why did Colette Jansen pay you a visit?”
My throat closed. Of course he knew who she was. Riley had been in school with us.
“Elyna.” He moved closer, his presence steady, grounding. “Talk to me.”
I shook my head as my panic threatened to spill over. I couldn’t tell Phoenix. I couldn’t burden him with my problems. As it was, Riley knew we were together. I didn’t want to bring Riley’s shady connections into Phoenix’s life.
He reached out, gently tipping my chin until my eyes met his stormy dark gaze. “You don’t have to do this alone anymore,” he said quietly. “Whatever this is, whatever’s scaring you, let me in. I want to help. I want to be there for you.”
Tears stung my eyes. “I’ve always wanted to hear those words and the fact they are coming from a man as solid and stable as you.
A man who knows what he wants. . .it means everything.
” I blinked hard, trying to hold back the tears.
Trying not to break in front of him. But his voice, his touch. . .it was too much.
“You’re scaring me, Elyna. What is going on?” he asked, his tone laced with worry.
“I can’t put this on you,” I whispered.
“Yes, you can.” His thumb brushed lightly against my jaw. “I’m not going anywhere. I’m here for you and Braden.”
A maniacal laugh escaped me. “Phoenix, five months ago you were a bachelor who never had any intention of settling down. You were happy with your life, and I get it. You have a nice home and run a great business. You have an amazing family.”
“Elyna, five months ago you walked into my restaurant and turned my world upside down, and I don’t want it going back to the way it was.
I’m feeling things I never felt before. Not just for you but for Braden.
Trust me. I didn’t see that one coming, but that boy of yours tugs on my heartstrings.
He makes me want to protect him,” he answered with such conviction I felt floored.
Tears spilled before I could stop them. A sob clawed its way out of my chest, raw and ugly.
Phoenix pulled me against him without hesitation, his arms solid around me, his scent warm and familiar.
I buried my face in his chest, trembling, while his hand smoothed circles across my back.
“Shh. I’ve got you,” he murmured. “Whatever it is, we’ll deal with it. Together.”
For the first time in years, I wanted to believe that was possible.
But the fear that lived in me since Montreal was a stubborn parasite.
It wouldn’t let go just because a man with dark searing eyes promised he’d stand by me.
With his arms around me I felt safe. Yet, I was still hesitating.
He pulled back just enough to look at me.
“Elyna, please. Tell me what’s going on.
Don’t make me guess. Don’t carry this alone. ”
I wiped at my face, unable to control the tears that kept coming. His thumb caught the next one before it fell. His patience and steadiness broke me open.
“I left Montreal because of Riley,” I whispered, my voice raw.
Phoenix stiffened, but he didn’t let me go. “Why?”
“He had people after him. Bad people. He got mixed up in gambling, in debts he couldn’t pay. He told me they knew about Braden, and they were the type of people who could hold that over his head, so I decided to leave. I had to protect my son.”
“Were you and Riley living together?” Phoenix asked, his eyes laser focused on me.
I shook my head. “We hadn’t been together since I found out I was pregnant.”
I saw relief wash over him. I liked that he felt possessive of me because it was the way I was feeling about him.
“After I came to Val-du-Lys, Riley started calling and asking me for money. He said he heard I was working for you, and he didn’t have enough to pay off the people who were threatening him. I sent him a thousand dollars but I knew it wasn’t enough. I don’t know how much he owes this time. . .”
Phoenix’s jaw clenched. “Elyna. . .”
“I wanted to get rid of him,” I explained, feeling like such a fool.
“Why didn’t you come to me?” He looked offended.
“Come on, Phoenix, we were sparring constantly,” I stated the obvious.
“I think that was the sexual tension, Elyna, this push and pull I know I’ve always felt when it came to you,” he confessed.
“And I don’t like to depend on anyone. It’s never worked out well for me,” I said flat-out.
“That needs to change,” he deadpanned like it wasn’t an argument.
“I had the situation under control. Weeks went by and I didn’t hear from him. I thought maybe I was free.” My breath hitched. “But now he knows about you.”
Phoenix’s eyes searched mine. “What do you mean, he knows?”
“He called me this morning and said he had friends in town and he knew we were together. He accused me of parading another man around his son. And then today. . .” My voice broke.
“Today he sent his mother to deliver the message. To remind me he knows where Braden is. To tell me Braden is Jansen blood and I can’t cut them out.
Colette also mentioned the whole situation with my mother having an affair with her husband.
I can understand why that would upset her, but she seemed.
. .I don’t know. . .like she had gone a bit crazy over it.
She mentioned Braden having Chabot blood,” I said, and a cold shiver ran down my spine.
“What kind of grandmother speaks like that?”
Phoenix’s face hardened. Not with anger at me, but with the kind of fury I’d never seen in him before. A dangerous, protective fury.
“I don’t know what he’ll do, Phoenix. He’s reckless.
He doesn’t care who gets hurt when he’s desperate.
And his mother also made it clear that she knows where Braden goes to daycare…
the whole interaction with her was very odd and unsettling.
My chest tightened so hard I could barely breathe. What if he takes him? What if. . .”
Phoenix silenced me with a firm hand cupping my cheek. “Stop. Don’t even say it.” His voice was rough, steady. “No one is taking Braden. Not while I’m here.”
I wanted to believe him.
“You don’t understand,” I whispered. “Riley doesn’t care about consequences. If he feels like you’ve replaced him. . .”
Phoenix leaned closer, his forehead touching mine.
“Then he’ll have to go through me. And, Elyna, I’m not going anywhere.
You hear me? Whatever Riley thinks he can do, whatever his family thinks they can do, you are not alone anymore.
I’ll protect you. I’ll protect Braden. I swear it.
” Every word he said was accentuated to show he meant it.
His conviction sank into me like sunlight through cracks in ice. For the first time in years, I felt a flicker of something that wasn’t fear. It was dangerous to hope. But with Phoenix holding me, promising to stand his ground, I couldn’t help it. I gave in and believed him.