CLINT
R owdy and I were halfway to our parents’ community when I got a text from Lula asking me to meet her at her office. We made a U-turn and headed back downtown. Lula’s office took up the top floor of a shiny, three-story building. I waved at the receptionist at my mom’s business on the first floor before heading to the elevator.
Once inside his sister’s office, Rowdy sat his ass on the front desk and let me meet with Lula alone in a conference room.
Lula looked like an entirely different kind of beautiful when she was suited up like now. She felt untouchable, as if the expensive pantsuit acted as armor. She slid off her round reading glasses when I entered.
I dropped into a chair near her and rolled it closer. Lula smiled at me, looking not so different from the little girl I followed around when I was a boy. She’d been nine when I came along. Lula always seemed smarter than everyone else, and I trusted in her intelligence then like I do now.
“I anticipated the expedited court order would be dealt with quietly,” Lula explained. “But Linus Humphreys immediately filed a request for a full hearing. He claimed Ivy suffers from a health issue, and her current situation could be dangerous. He made a very dramatic yet vague filing. The Reno judge decided we should hash everything out in front of her.”
“What does that mean?”
“I’m flying to Reno to ensure things work out,” Lula said and then added, “In the uncle’s filing, he claimed someone might be taking advantage of Ivy for her money.”
“I thought they were broke.”
“I didn’t get any specific details, but there was a mention of Ivy having a trust. Her financials and past are hazy. However, I learned her grandmother was the only child of a rich European fuck. So, at some point, these people were loaded. The uncle may be broke, and that’s the real reason he wants Ivy back.”
“But he was going to pimp her out.”
“Are you sure? Is it possible she was attacked to gain access to her money?
“I only know what Ivy told me, and that’s what she believed.”
“Well, if her money is in a trust, she can’t simply head down to the bank and empty it out for her uncle’s debts. But that doesn’t mean her money isn’t paying bills he needs paid. Either way, I thought you should know that she holds value to him beyond blood. Humphreys might not walk away easily.”
“Who are you taking with you to Reno?”
“I’d like Rowdy to go. Send whoever else you can spare. I don’t know what we’re walking into there.”
As my mind zeroed in on Ivy’s “health issue,” I considered her recent exhaustion. I assumed she was overwhelmed emotionally, but what if she had something genuinely wrong with her?
“Did they hint at what her health issue is?”
“No. Like I said, the filing was vague. Did she mention anything?”
“No,” I mumbled and exhaled hard.
“This woman is a stranger,” Lula pointed out before adding, “You can walk back what’s happening.”
“I assume by ‘walking back,’ you mean how we’re trying to get her shit from Reno,” I muttered while Lula watched me with a wary gaze.
“She’s keeping secrets.”
“Of course. We met two days ago. She’s been surrounded by new people. We’ve only had a few hours here and there to be alone. Of course, she hasn’t told me everything.”
“I’m not trying to piss on your parade here, Clint. But this woman could be literally anyone . All we know is her name and address. You’re banking your safety on her being worth the effort.”
Exhaling deeply, I muttered, “Your divorce left you jaded.”
“No, my marriage left me that way. I know how people can fool themselves. That’s what I believe is happening right now with you. Ivy isn’t the only one telling the lies. You are, too. You’ve convinced yourself that she’s so special that nothing else matters. Do you even like her?”
I studied Lula and considered her marriage to Jarred. They made sense on paper, and she was a pragmatic woman.
Except, having felt this connection with Ivy, I couldn’t understand why Lula chose to settle with a man who didn’t make her crazy. She was a beautiful, successful woman, yet she accepted an easy solution to a nonexistent problem. There was no need for her to marry anyone.
Of course, everyone had their own blind spots. That was what Lula thought was happening to me right now with Ivy. But it was actually what happened with her years ago.
I suspected Lula’s issues stemmed from her early childhood. She wasn’t like her babied younger siblings with two loving parents. A part of Lula remembered an unsafe world. Maybe that’s why she was in such a hurry to settle with a stable man she didn’t love.
“I wasn’t looking for a woman,” I told Lula. “I liked my life the way it was. And, in all honesty, a relationship is inconvenient. Half of my day has been spent focused on Ivy. It’s like a second job. Now, with this health thing and her uncle making trouble, I feel a pressure I wish I wasn’t facing right now.”
“Does that mean you’re coming to your senses, then?”
“I’ve been sensible since the first moment I met Ivy. Otherwise, I might have walked away and always regretted that decision. But I knew she was mine.”
“How?” Lula asked, staring horrified as if I’d lost my damn mind.
“Something came alive inside me. Like a part of my heart opened for only her.”
Lula considered my words. She was overly rational at times. I saw how she could seem cold to people. But Lula’s biggest stumbling block was her fear of being wrong or embarrassing herself.
“Our fathers both took on women with baggage. Your mom came with an obnoxious kid,” I said, making her grin. “Everyone said you were a tyrant back in the day. But Pax wanted Bebe, so he was willing to ride through hell to keep her.”
Seeing how Lula’s gaze softened, I continued, “That’s what I’m choosing to do with Ivy. If backing down to the asshole uncle keeps Ivy safe, I’m willing to do it. If he needs to cease breathing, I’ll do that, too. I need this woman to stay with me. Everything else is secondary.”
Lula’s dark eyes were like warm chocolate. Their softness lulled many people into believing she was a teddy bear.
Proving her unflinching nature, she asked, “What if you find out this woman is fucked up in some way?”
“I already know she is. Ivy can’t drive or pick her own clothes. She has no idea about the real world. If I let her, she’d hide in the condo and play with Hanzee all day. Maybe she’s that way because of her family, or she might have deeper issues. But I can’t walk away.”
“Then, I will fly out to Reno and get her shit packed up. If they claim she’s too sick to make her own decisions, you’ll need to get your girlfriend into a doctor to run tests and prove she’s of sound mind. Are you ready to jump through those hoops?”
“Yes, but I already regret going the legal route rather than killing the guy and stealing her shit.”
“Of course,” she said, reaching over to pat my chest. “You’re very scary, Clint. Everyone says so.”
Grinning at her taunt, I texted Rowdy to ask if he wanted to travel with his sister to Reno. Based on how fast he agreed, I assumed Lula already suggested the idea to him before we arrived.
“Pick three people to go with you.”
Lula glanced at my phone and smiled. “Don’t worry, Clint. I will make very clear to Linus Humpherys that if he drags Ivy through court, we’re willing to press charges over what happened at the mansion. I sense Linus’s loan shark won’t appreciate the attention. You might get the asshole buried without lifting a finger.”
“Thank you,” I said as Lula still watched me like I might need an intervention. “Just spit it out.”
“This woman didn’t choose to leave her home or go on the run. In a very real way, she never chose you, Clint. You might want to ask yourself what happens when she doesn’t need you anymore.”
“If Ivy feels about me like I do about her, she will stay.”
“Because it’s not a choice?”
“Not really, no. The need is real. You can feed it or fight it, but it won’t be ignored.”
“Well, I’ll keep that in mind while I’m in Reno.”
Rowdy strolled into the room and asked, “How dangerous is this job?”
“Why?”
“I wanted to ask Vanessa to come along, but if we have a real chance of dying, I don’t want to leave Mom with only one live kid.”
“Aww,” Lula said and hugged him. “Such a sweet boy.”
Rowdy glanced at me and winked. He grew up as the youngest of four and the only boy. His every accomplishment was treated like a glorious revelation. I grew up assuming he’d become insufferable. So far, he’s managed to keep his head on straight.
I didn’t really know what to expect with Linus Humphreys and his criminal associates. He might be a scared rich boy trying to bully Ivy like he had all her life. If so, Lula and Rowdy alone would scare the shit out of him. But if he was more dangerous than his driver’s license photo suggested, I wanted my people to be ready.
Rowdy decided to take Vanessa along with Stevie and Cher, who usually did security for Lula.
Lula smiled at me. “If the uncle doesn’t back down, I’ll get the names of his criminal associates into the court record. That ought to get shit done.”
Despite everything coming together, I found myself nursing a bad mood. I rode back to the condo to pick up my truck. My mind flashed back to this morning. Panic cut through me when I thought about how tired Ivy was during the walk this morning. I figured she was cold and unaccustomed to being outside.
Lula’s words came back to me, too. She was right about how Ivy hadn’t chosen this new path for her life. Most people didn’t get choices. We were stuck with the hand dealt to us. But Ivy might be able to return to Reno. If she had an inheritance and her uncle was out of the way, she could return home and live any way she wanted.
I wasn’t used to feeling insecure. My worries bounced back and forth between Ivy’s health problems and her leaving me for a life in Reno.