Chapter 15 #3
Oz closed his eyes and took a big breath in through his nose before opening them again.
“Your trust means the world to me,” he told Logan.
“I’m not your mom, or your dad, but I’ll do everything in my power to keep that trust. I want only the best for you, and your sister, and I’ll always do what I think is right for you.
That might not always make you happy, but in the long run, I hope you can look back and understand why I made the decisions I did.
Thank you for sharing your secret. As I told you before, sometimes sharing a secret can feel really scary, but afterward, it’s as if a load has been taken off your shoulders. ”
“I do feel better,” Logan admitted.
“Good. Now go find something on TV that will rot your brain.”
Logan smiled. “You’re weird. Watching television won’t rot my brain.”
Oz stood at the same time Logan did. He watched as his nephew headed down the hallway toward the master bedroom.
He maintained his composure until the boy was out of sight, then he clenched his fists and squeezed his eyes shut.
His entire body trembled. It took everything within him not to lash out, not to punch the wall or throw something.
But doing anything like that would scare Logan, and that was the last thing he wanted to do.
It was unconscionable that no one had told him he had a niece!
And while he partly understood why Bria would be placed with her biological father, it still angered him.
He definitely didn’t like the fact that her father may be doing drugs.
His niece had been with the man for over a month.
Oz hated to think that she might’ve been in a precarious situation for that long.
But maybe he was wrong. Maybe her father was thrilled to get his little girl full time and she was being spoiled living in his house.
Oz’s first instinct when he had himself under control was to call Riley.
He needed her. Needed her support and even-keel way of looking at things.
But she had work to do, and he had to let her—because he was definitely going to need her when he took Logan to see his sister.
And nothing was going to keep him from doing that today.
Oz walked into the kitchen where he’d left his phone after breakfast and grabbed a piece of paper and a pen. He sat at his dining room table and clicked on an internet browser on his phone. He needed answers. Now.
Three hours later, Oz had gotten the information he’d needed.
It had taken several calls, and waiting way too long for someone to call him back, but he’d finally gotten ahold of the woman who’d been responsible for placing Logan and Bria.
She’d quickly informed him that she couldn’t allow him to visit Bria by himself.
But eventually, she’d agreed to meet him and Logan at the house where Bria was living with her father.
Said she’d move up the home visit she’d been planning for next month.
Apparently, someone was supposed to visit his apartment as well, to make sure Logan had settled in all right and there were no problems. But Oz hadn’t been informed of that when Logan had been dropped off, and he had no idea when that was supposed to happen.
So far, he wasn’t impressed with CPS, but he tried not to judge too harshly. There were a lot of kids in the system and not enough employees to check on them. But that didn’t mean the pit in his stomach wasn’t churning and spinning.
He’d checked on Logan a bit ago and had found him asleep in the huge armchair in the corner of his master bedroom. The kid had probably slept like shit the night before, worried about revealing his secret.
Reaching for his phone, Oz shot Riley a text. He knew she might not hear him knocking on her door if she had her headphones in and was working.
Oz: I need you.
He could’ve explained more, but he didn’t want to get into the goat-screw that the morning had been over the phone.
She responded immediately.
Riley: I’m on my way.
Oz loved that response. The second he said he needed her, she dropped everything to come to him. And that was why he hadn’t bothered her earlier. She would’ve sat next to him, holding his hand and helping him find the right numbers to call, but he didn’t want to be the reason she lost any clients.
He got up and headed to his front door. By the time he opened it, she was halfway down the hall.
She hadn’t wasted any time. The second she was within reach, Oz wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into him.
She came willingly and held on tightly as he backed them into his apartment and shut the door.
“What’s wrong? Was Logan’s secret that bad? Is he all right? Are you all right? What can I do?”
Oz’s throat got tight. He swallowed hard, then, standing right there in the short hallway, explained what was going on.
“We’re okay. Logan’s secret was that he has a sister.”
Riley stared up at him for a second before his words registered. “Holy shit, you have a niece?”
“Apparently. Her name is Bria. She was sent to live with her biological father.”
“How come you didn’t know about her?” Riley asked, her ire rising. “That’s bullshit! You should’ve been informed that your sister had two kids from the get-go.”
Oz knew it was wrong, but he loved that she was so pissed on his behalf.
“I know. And believe me, I made sure the poor woman who had the misfortune to pick up the phone at CPS knew that too. It took some doing, and several phone calls back and forth, before they agreed to let me bring Logan down to see his sister today.”
Riley’s eyes got wide. “Today?”
“Yeah. How much of your work did you get done this morning?”
“Almost all of it,” she said immediately. “It seems that when I have the right motivation, I work a lot faster. And before you ask, you’re my motivation.”
“So you’ll come with us?” Oz asked.
“Of course. How’s Logan?”
“He’s sleeping right now. I think he was probably up a lot of the night stressing about telling me his secret.”
“Poor thing,” Riley said with a frown.
It was obvious she was going to be a great mother. Oz pushed that thought away. They weren’t at that point in their relationship…yet. “A CPS worker is going to meet us at the house down in Austin. We can stop and grab something for lunch along the way.”
“Okay, I just need to grab my purse and put my shoes on, then I’ll be ready to go,” Riley said.
Oz looked down and realized that her feet were bare. She’d been in such a hurry to get to him, she hadn’t even bothered to put on shoes. God, had he ever been with someone as unselfish? He didn’t think so. “Take a breath, Rile. We’ve got time.”
She did as he requested, then rested her forehead against the center of his chest. “You have a niece,” she whispered.
“I know.”
“How old is she?”
“Six and a half,” Oz said.
“So that’s what, first grade?” Riley asked.
“No clue,” Oz admitted. “We can ask Logan for more details about her on our way to Austin.”
Riley looked up at him as her hands rubbed his back gently. “How are you really doing?”
“Honestly? I’m pissed. It was bad enough when I found out I had a nephew I didn’t know about.
But this seems worse, somehow. I’m not mad at Logan for keeping it from me.
He didn’t trust me, and he’s used to being Bree’s protector.
But I’m more upset at the system. Logan said he thinks he’s using drugs. ”
“Who?” Riley asked, her brows furrowing in confusion.
“Bree’s father.”
Her eyes widened. “And yet she was still placed with him? That’s so wrong!” she hissed.
“They can’t exactly take my word that the man is an addict. I’m sure they hear all sorts of stories from people who want custody of a kid. A father is also a closer relation than an uncle,” Oz said, repeating what he’d been told several times over the phone.
“I. Don’t. Care. You’re an Army soldier. You’re employed in a respected job. You should’ve at least been given consideration. Not to mention the fact that they separated siblings!”
“Which is what I told the woman on the phone,” Oz told her. Again, he couldn’t help but love how pissed off she was on his behalf. “I’m also a single man, which worked against me. They weren’t sure about placing a little girl with me.”
“And that’s bullshit too,” Riley hissed. “Is her dad married?”
“Living with a girlfriend,” Oz said.
“So how is that different?” Riley asked.
It was a rhetorical question because she went on.
“Just because someone is married or living with someone doesn’t make them a good person, or the right person to trust with a child.
And if Logan said he uses drugs, that’s even worse!
When are we leaving? You need to go wake Logan so we can go. I’ll go grab my shit.”
Riley pulled away from Oz and turned to open the door to his apartment.
He gently grabbed her arm and pulled her back against his chest. One hand went behind her head and the other to her back. “Shhhh, Ri. It’s okay.”
She shook her head. “It’s not!” she insisted. “Logan’s sister is probably scared and confused. I can’t stand the thought of her wondering where her brother went. And if her dad’s not looking after her properly? We need to get there to see for ourselves that she’s okay.”
“And we will,” Oz soothed. Trying to calm Riley did wonders for his anxiety. It took him out of his own head. “Take a breath, Ri.”
He felt her inhale, then slowly let it out. Oz took her face in his hands and tipped it up to his. “Better?”
She nodded but said, “No.”
Oz smiled. God, she made him feel so much better, just by being herself. Then he sobered. “I need you to help me keep it together today,” he said. “If I think there’s been one hair on Bree’s head that’s been harmed, I’m going to need you to reel me in.”
Riley immediately nodded.
“I mean it, Ri. Don’t let me do anything that will put my custody of Logan in jeopardy.”
“I won’t,” she vowed. “She’s gonna be fine. It’ll be a good visit.”
Oz could tell she was doing her best to rein in her own frustration and anger over the situation, and he loved her all the more for it.
Yeah…
He loved her.
“Thank you,” he said, bending down to kiss her to try to distract himself. Now wasn’t the moment to declare his feelings, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to keep them to himself for long. He had no problem saying the words first, but now wasn’t the time or place.
Riley kissed him back, and they made out in his front hallway for several minutes. Oz finally pulled back and took a big breath. They needed to get going. “You’re staying tonight, right?” he blurted.
She blinked up at him. “Why?”
“After today, I’m gonna need to hold you,” Oz admitted without embarrassment.
“I’ll stay if you want me to.”
“I want you to.”
Riley smiled up at him. “Then I guess I’m staying.”
“Great. Now go put some shoes on, woman. I’ll get Logan up and we’ll head out.”
Riley nodded and turned to the door. She turned back at the last second before she opened it. “Porter?”
“Yeah?”
“I think you’re doing an amazing job with Logan. Not everyone would be as upset as you are about learning they have a niece they didn’t know about. They’d just be grateful they didn’t get two kids dumped on their doorstep with no warning.”
“Then they’d be stupid,” Oz said without hesitation. “I’m not saying having Logan has been easy, it’s disrupted just about everything in my life. But he’s a blessing. One I’m privileged to have. And two kids placed in my care would’ve been twice the disruption, but also twice the blessing.”
He saw tears in Riley’s eyes as she gave him a small nod, then opened his door.
As Oz turned to go wake Logan, he thought about how much his life had changed.
He’d never realized how difficult it was to be a single parent, especially one in the Army.
He loved his job, but the government didn’t make it easy to be a parent while expecting him to give one hundred percent to his country.
He’d been afraid he might have to quit Delta Force, but with the help of his teammates, and their women, and Riley, he’d become more confident in his ability to continue on with his career.
Thinking about quitting Delta was as painful as losing a limb.
Pushing those thoughts to the back of his mind, Oz opened his bedroom door.
It was time to reunite Logan with his sister.
They’d been apart too long. And a small part of Oz hoped that maybe, just maybe, Bria might come to like him too.
Maybe not immediately, it hadn’t been easy to gain Logan’s trust; but down the line, she might someday call him Uncle Oz.
First things first—finding Seth Matthews’ house in Austin and reuniting two siblings. Oz couldn’t help thinking that if Seth—and his girlfriend, Vanessa Huff—hadn’t been treating his daughter as if she was the most precious thing in their world, someone was going to pay dearly.