Chapter 14
CROW
When I rolled over and bumped into something warm, I assumed that Griff had crawled into bed with me.
He didn’t do that very often anymore. But considering the events of the past .
. . How long had it been since Rebecca strolled into my house and dropped a toddler-sized bomb in the middle of my kitchen?
That happened before dinner on Wednesday, and then Darcy and I spent the night at the hospital.
She left for work, and I stayed with Mom, Dad, and Raven for a while before I stopped by to see Marcus at his house.
We left there and went to his office to get some paperwork in order to make sure Rev could stay in my custody and then met the CPS caseworker at the hospital so we could talk.
That was Thursday. I came home to sleep for a few hours, so it was still Thursday, right?
I knew from experience that sleep deprivation gave me a permanent brain fog.
Brighten and I didn’t get more than a few hours of sleep a night for the first six months of Griff’s life even working together as a team.
God, those days were stressful and wonderful all at the same time.
I wouldn’t trade them for the world. At the time, I wondered what the hell I’d gotten myself into and how I’d managed to paint myself into a corner to protect my brother, but I didn’t regret it then, and I don't regret it now.
I was prepared to do whatever it took to make sure Rev had a good life. I wondered who her father might be. Rebecca probably did the same damn thing. Even though I’d known her since she was a kid, I got to know her even better when I agreed to help her get on her feet.
Against my better judgement, I had helped her get into the apartment Raven secured for her and even got her some furniture and basic necessities.
I didn’t outfit her entire house or anything, just bought her a bed frame and mattress, a shower curtain for the bathroom, and some odds and ends for the kitchen.
And I gave her a job, of course.
Rebecca did great for a little while, but then she started to slip. I ignored it for as long as I could because I promised Raven I’d help her as much as I could. Within a few months, she had stirred up so much shit with the dancers and servers that going into work was like walking into a war zone.
I wasn’t the only one who was fooled by her sweet demeanor, so at least I had that going for me.
The dancers felt sorry for her because she’d lost both of her parents to drugs, and was trying so hard to make a good life for herself all alone in the world.
She convinced the servers that the dancers hated her, and then she convinced most of the dancers that the waitstaff was taking her money and stealing her tables.
It was an all-out battle which caused tension between everyone, including the bartenders and security staff stuck in the middle as they tried to keep the peace.
And then she told everyone that I’d been sleeping with her since she was underage and that I wanted to rekindle the relationship now that she was back.
That raised a few eyebrows, and by telling everyone that I’d helped her with her new apartment, it made it seem like that was exactly what I was doing.
I had never touched Rebecca and never would. She was my little sister’s best friend. I had watched the girl grow up, for Christ’s sake!
I called Raven and explained everything.
She was upset, but she was more focused on the stalker that was scaring the shit out of her at the time than anything else, which was completely understandable.
She begged me to talk to Rebecca and give her a chance to redeem herself and to make Raven feel better, so that’s what I did.
So, when I found out that she was bringing drugs into the bar and turning tricks outside, I did everything in my power to get her to stop both, even after I fired her ass.
And that’s when everything went south. Rebecca lost her shit and broke into the bar after we closed, trashing the place and causing thousands of dollars worth of damage, including breaking every single liquor bottle and glass in the place.
I didn’t hesitate to hand the security footage over to the police, knowing that she’d crossed a line I couldn’t erase.
That got her arrested on the first of many charges.
I felt bad for her because, by then, it had become obvious that she had untreated mental issues that were exacerbated by her drug use.
I felt awful knowing that she didn’t have anyone in her corner, so I tried to reason with her and begged her to get help, which she refused, of course.
I bailed her out of jail and took her to a rehab center here, but she ran off within the first twenty-four hours.
Since that was a violation of her bond, she was back on the police radar, and they were somehow able to connect her to the threats that Raven was getting to Rebecca, which brought even more charges.
Raven, who was heartbroken at the thought of her friend’s downfall, pleaded with the prosecutor to give Rebecca a chance to get the help she so desperately needed.
Since the break-in and the stalking were Rebecca’s first run-ins with the law, the prosecutor accepted Raven’s recommendation.
He encouraged the court to remand Rebecca to a facility that was both a rehab center and a mental health institution.
By then, she was pregnant, which made getting her help even more important.
Because of the threats she’d made to Raven, myself, and my family, we were able to get restraining and protective orders to cover ourselves in case she popped back up and started her shit again. I was glad we’d done that now, especially since it was obvious she was off her meds and back on drugs.
As much as it hurt my heart to see a young woman who had so much potential lose everything to drug abuse, I knew there was nothing more I could do to help her.
However, there was something I could do to help her daughter - and that was make sure she wasn’t affected by Rebecca’s disease or choices ever again.
I would make her a Forrester so that her future was guaranteed.
As Griffin rolled over, his arm flopped over and slapped me in the chest. That was par for the course because the boy channeled his inner starfish when he slept. What was weird was the voice I heard after it happened.
“Sorry.”
My eyes shot open when I realized it wasn’t Griffin in bed beside me. It was Darcy.
I turned and found her staring at me, and I smiled when I whispered, “Good morning . . . afternoon . . . something.”
“It’s night again,” Darcy said as she slid even closer to me. “Well, evening, I guess.”
“Shit! Brighten was supposed to wake me up!”
“Well, your phone kept going off, so she knew you weren’t getting any decent rest. She took it with her and has been fielding calls and texts, mostly from family asking for an update.
She arranged for someone else to sit with Rev while you got some real sleep.
We should probably get up now, though, so we can go relieve whoever’s there. ”
“We?”
“I’m going with you.”
“You don’t have to.”
“I kind of do,” Darcy argued.
“You didn’t sign up for this, you know.”
“So far, I haven’t signed anything, but if I’m with you, then I’m with you for all of it. Even though we haven’t exactly had time to talk about . . .” Darcy’s voice trailed off before she frowned and said, “Whatever we’ve got going on here.”
“I know what I want to go on here, but as much as I’ve dreamed of having you in my bed, this is not the way I planned for it to happen, and it’s definitely not the way I wanted it to end up.”
“I meant in the grand scheme of things. The big picture.”
“Honey, the big picture includes having you in my bed every night, waking up with you every morning, and all the good stuff that happens in between.”
“So, this is about sex.”
I laughed before I said, “That’s gonna come into play, but it’s not nearly as important as the rest.”
“The rest of what?”
“The rest of life. Waking up with you next to me and kissing you as much as I can before you head off to work. Showing up with a coffee to help perk you up because I kept you up half the night making love. Bringing you lunch because you forget to pack one half the time or share it with a dog who gives you a sad face. It’s you hurrying home after work to hang out with me while I cook dinner and kissing me goodbye before I leave, promising that you’ll be waiting for me in bed when I get home.
And, of course, there will be the sex whenever we can make the time, but that may prove to be tricky with Griffin running around like the wild man we’re encouraging him to become and Rev doing whatever it is Rev is gonna do. ”
“So this is all the things.”
“The good, bad, ugly, and wonderful.”
“I like the sound of that.”
“I’m glad,” I said as I turned onto my side and rested my hand on her hip. “As much as I love this, I should get up.”
“You’re already up,” Darcy giggled.
“I’ve been a walking hard-on for six weeks now.”
There was a light knock on the door, and Darcy laughed before she said, “Looks like you’re gonna have to make it one more day.”
“I’d like to say it won’t kill me, but it just might.”
◆◆◆
When the door opened, I looked up from my phone expecting to see a nurse, but instead, I found Gamma and Papa Smokey smiling at me. Gamma was carrying a tray of cookies and sweets, and Smokey was holding two brown paper bags that looked full to the point of bursting.
I quickly stood up, and as soon as I got close enough, I took the tray from Gamma and leaned in to kiss her cheek. Once we had everything arranged on the ledge in front of the window, I ushered them back into the hallway.
“We thought for sure she’d be awake by now,” Gamma said after I quietly pulled the door shut.
“They’re weaning her off the meds that were helping her sleep, so she had a rough night.”