Chapter 10
Watching the family dynamic unfold before Cassie’s eyes was interesting. She felt for Beau. She felt for everyone else. The one person she didn’t feel bad for was Beaumont. Death sounded like too good an end for a man who’d deserved prison time for abusing this amazing group of people.
The thought of Jarek abusing another woman sat hard in her chest. Cassie had escaped, and she might even succeed in staying away from that man for the rest of her life. What about the next woman he dated? And the next?
Who would protect them?
She exhaled a slow, deep breath, knowing full well that she couldn’t hide forever, nor would she want to.
But how could she bring Jarek to justice?
She’d been too afraid of getting caught escaping to collect evidence while living under his roof.
It was bad enough that she’d taken some of the blood-stained money.
Stealing from him had been a necessity. Spending the money to escape was poetic justice.
But that didn’t change the fact the money was dirty.
It came from illegal weapon sales, drug trafficking, and extortion, among other crimes she could scarcely fathom.
Going to the Feds meant possibly going back to Jarek or letting him catch her. What then? Wear a wire? Gather evidence? How long would it take before he figured it out? Killed her this time?
She would be no good to anyone dead.
At some point, Kade and Chloe got up and started heating up food. The smell of sour cream chicken enchiladas filled the room, reminding Cassie that it had been a long time since she’d eaten anything.
Plates were handed out as others got up to make drinks. Beau returned with a filled backpack, set it down next to the door.
“Stay and eat,” Chloe said in a tone that left no room for doubt that Beau was wanted. He nodded, and then took a seat a few chairs over from Cassie.
She started to get up, but Hudson shook his head before standing. “I got this.”
She drummed her fingers on the table, looked up, and realized the only other person at the table was Beau. So, she scooted over three chairs to sit next to him. “We’ve already been introduced, but I wanted to say hi.”
From the corner of her eye, she caught Hudson’s glance from across the room. His eyebrows shot up, but then he smiled.
“Sucks to meet under these circumstances,” Beau said, setting his phone aside, screen down.
“You can say that again.” There wasn’t a normal-life scenario she could think of that would have their paths crossing, though. “Have you always lived in Texas?”
“Yes, but I moved around a lot when I was a kid.” There were no pictures of Beaumont on the walls. She wondered how much he looked like his father. “So, there’s not exactly one place I’d call home. You?”
“Same,” she said. “I was in foster care from a young age, so I moved around a lot, and family to family.”
Beau’s face wrinkled like he’d just taken a bite out of a sour pickle.
She laughed. “I had some good experiences.”
“Really?”
“No. Not really. I had some tolerable experiences. I got used to making the best out of every situation, or I would’ve lost my mind.”
“I can relate there. My mom has a lot of issues that made her unreliable as a parent.”
“You didn’t get put into the system?” she asked, surprised.
“No. I became good at covering for her and making it seem like our life was fine. I was tall for my age, so I lied and said I was older to get jobs washing dishes at restaurants. It kept us from starving.”
“Where do you think your mom is now?” She almost hated to ask.
“That’s the sixty-four-thousand-dollar question. The landlord said she packed up and disappeared with some guy. That’s never a good thing when it comes to my mom. Her taste in men is the worst.”
“I’m sorry, Beau.” She glanced around the kitchen.
His comment hurt a little. She also understood how charming a guy could be in the early stages and how well he could hide his darker side until you were trapped.
“I can only imagine how worried you must be.” He’d stepped into this family situation not just blind but unwelcomed. “Did you know who your father was?”
“Not until after he died.” Beau dropped his gaze to the table; a classic move when you didn’t want someone to see how truly upset you were about something.
“Everyone here seems lovely, but this is a lot to have thrown at you out of nowhere, and with no notice.”
“They weren’t ‘lovely’ to me. I didn’t exactly make it easier for myself by coming in hot.
” He issued a sharp sigh. “But then I had no idea what to expect or how to act. I was angry at Beaumont for the fact that he knew I existed and did nothing to help my mom. She received no money from him. Nor did she ask for it from what I can gather. But, damn. If he knew about me, then I’m guessing he watched from the sidelines, which means he didn’t give a shit about us going hungry some nights. ”
“From what Hudson has told me so far, the man was a monster.”
Beau tapped his finger on the back of his face-down cell. “What does that say about the rest of us?”
“That you were all dealt a crappy hand, but that doesn’t mean you’re anything like him, not unless you choose to be. That’s a whole different story.” She studied Beau. Really looked at him. “I’ve been around a truly horrific individual. Trust me when I say that none of you could ever be like that.”
“You don’t know me,” Beau said. “How can you be so sure?”
“You took on odd jobs at a very young age to make sure your mom had food, Beau. That’s not the sign of a bad person. It’s just the opposite. So, maybe you should stop being so hard on yourself.”
He gave a slight nod.
“I haven’t met one person in this house I’d consider bad,” she continued. “Look at how everyone is rallying around to help me, and I’m a complete stranger.”
Beau moved his hand on top of hers. “No, you’re not. Not anymore.”
Hudson walked over, balancing two plates and a pair of water glasses. His gaze landed hard on Beau’s hand. “Mind if I join you?”
Beau withdrew his hand. “Be my guest.”
Cassie helped with the plates.
“I’ll be right back with utensils,” Hudson said before shooting what looked like a warning glance in Beau’s direction. “And a plate for you.”
“I can get my own.” Beau stood up, picked up his cell, and walked away.
When Hudson returned, Cassie whispered, “Why are you upset with your brother?”
“Half-brother,” Hudson corrected. It was the first time she’d heard contempt in his voice. Or was it jealousy?
Cassie bristled as memories crashed down around her of another jealous man. Jarek had done a number on her. Would she ever be able to trust another man?
Hudson wasn’t proud of his initial reaction when he’d first seen Beau’s hand on Cassie’s. He’d been a jerk about it. Jealousy wasn’t his usual M.O., and he was embarrassed, as he should be.
“Sorry,” he whispered to Cassie. “I need to apologize to Beau. Be right back.”
He walked over to his brother, who stood next to the sink with a plate of food in his hand and a fork in the other.
“Hey, man. I’m sorry about what just happened. That wasn’t like me. I was a jerk, and I’m hoping you’ll accept my apology.”
“You were a jerk.”
“Like I said.” Hudson probably deserved some hostility.
“Why should I expect anything different?” Beau asked. “I’m only half related to you.”
Shit. He heard that.
“I didn’t mean it like that,” Hudson said.
“No,” Beau countered. “What you really mean is that you didn’t intend for me to hear you say it.”
“You’re right. I’m a dick. I’m also trying to apologize.”
Beau’s face twisted in disgust. “No, thanks.” He set the plate down, shouldered his backpack, and then walked away, out the back door, and away from the house.
Dammit. Hudson had royally screwed that up. If he expected to see empathy when he glanced over at Cassie, he’d be dead wrong. It dawned on him just how much he’d messed up there. She was coming off an abusive relationship, and he’d just acted like a jealous asshole.
Great.
First, he needed to fix things with Beau, so he headed out the back door to follow his brother. “Hey, wait up.”
Beau kept walking toward the barn where his pickup was parked, and didn’t turn around.
Hudson picked up the pace, jogging until he was beside Beau.
“You know the messed-up part about all this is that you were the only one who believed in me in the beginning,” Beau finally said. “You had my back when no one else would even stand in the same room with me.”
“It was definitely a dick-move on my part back in the kitchen,” Hudson said. He took a deep breath. “When I saw you touching Cassie, another side of me came out. I’m not proud of it, but I can guarantee it’ll never happen again.”
“You and Cassie…are you serious about each other?”
“Honestly? We just met.” Hearing those words out loud brought on a slap of reality. “Even if we hadn’t just met, and especially if we were in a relationship, there’s no excuse for my actions. I’m sorry, Beau.”
Beau nodded. “Okay, I accept your apology. No real harm done. It’s not like I’ll ever be part of this family.”
“That’s not true.”
Beau issued a grunt. “For example?”
“You’ve been added to the group text,” Hudson pointed out. “And you’re here right now. We wanted you here.”
Beau didn’t argue. A good sign?
“This family has been broken for so long, we’re all trying to find our way to each other,” Hudson said. “Kade looked out for us in his own way. The twins have always been joined at the hip. Chloe has always done her own thing. She’s closest to Kade. Half the time, I don’t know where I fit in.”
“You fit.”
“Maybe from an outsider’s perspective.” Talking about it made Hudson realize just how disconnected he felt from the group.
“They call me the quiet one, but I have plenty of opinions. I just keep them to myself since Kade talks over everyone. Before Beaumont died, we didn’t have much reason to keep in touch and he’d done an excellent job of ‘dividing and conquering’ us.
So, in many ways, we’re just starting to learn who we are as grown folks.
Our childhood wasn’t something to envy. Beaumont kept us apart or tried to instigate infighting.
What I’m trying to say is that you didn’t miss much by not growing up here. In some ways, you might be better off.”
The words seemed to strike a chord in Beau as he nodded along. Good. Hudson knew what it was like to feel on the outside of the Sturgess family. It was high time they all broke down walls and accepted each other, moving forward.
“Trust takes time to build in a normal situation,” Hudson continued. “Beaumont made trusting even harder for all of us. We all have scars, physical and mental.”
“I’m no better,” Beau conceded. “I came in hot and then tried too hard. I can be stubborn when I want to.”
Hudson laughed. “How else do you think I knew you were one of us?”
Beau cracked up, too, and some of the tension broke.
“Are we good?” Hudson asked.
“We’re good.”
“Good, because I’m trying to be a better human, and I’d like it if we could start today over.”
“There are no do-overs in life, my brother. I wouldn’t want any, either. How else would I learn?”
“Look who’s the wise one now,” Hudson teased.
“You also realize we just said the word ‘good’ three times in a row,” Beau said.
“Then, it must be true.”
The back door opened, and Cassie stepped out. She must’ve been wondering what was taking so long. Or, maybe, she ran out of things to say to his siblings.
“She likes you,” Beau said quietly.
Despite the smokin’ hot kisses they’d shared, Hudson wasn’t convinced she wanted more. What did he have to give? His emotions were all over the place about everything—except the way he felt about her.
“Everything all right out here?” Cassie asked as she approached.
“Yes,” Beau answered before Hudson could. It was probably better coming from him anyway. “I need to check something in the barn before I head out.” Beau excused himself before Hudson could get a word in.
Thin worry lines scored Cassie’s forehead. A muscle under one eye twitched. Was she angry? Frustrated? Scared?
“What was that in the kitchen?” she asked, folding her arms over her chest like she needed some kind of barrier between them for safety’s sake.
Hudson had some explaining to do. “I made a fool out of myself, is what happened.” He exhaled.
“I owe you an apology, Cassie.” Given her past, he didn’t want to be seen as an abusive jerk who had no consideration for anyone’s feelings but his own.
“That’s not how I normally act. I’d say that I don’t know what came over me, but I’d be lying.
I want you to know the truth. I don’t have any designs on you.
Even if I did, I’m not normally jealous.
When I saw Beau touching you, a switch was flipped. ”
Her lips compressed into a frown.
“I’m not that person, Cassie.”
She lifted her gaze to meet his. The pain in those jeweled eyes nearly knocked him back a step.
There was no way he was coming back from his mistake. It was time to face facts. Cassie would never see him in the same light again.