Chapter Fourteen
Justice
A nother week has passed and although I am making headway with Hannah, I am no closer to being where I really want to be and that’s with my family.
I’m tired of saying goodbye to her every night and waking up without her. Even more than that, I hate leaving her and Ryanne at that house every night alone and unprotected.
I want more than scheduled visits. The problem is I need to sort out my feelings for Ryanne. Most of the time I’m still angry as hell at her but the need to fuck her is always there, that pull between us stronger than ever.
If I’m being honest it’s more than that.
I’m finding myself wanting to be around her just as much as I do our daughter.
I like watching the two of them together.
I’ve never seen a mother love their child the way she does.
My own mother hated me, couldn’t stand to even look at me, which is why she’s now buried six feet under…
I let that haunting thought trail off before it can pull me into the depths of hell I keep it in.
Until my brothers and Thatcher came along, I never knew what family really meant. Now that I have Hannah, I’ve learned there’s an even stronger love out there. An instinct I didn’t have to learn, it’s always been there, ingrained into my heart just for her.
I’m more than ready to see her again, to witness the smile on her face when she sees what I have for her.
I went back to that store and bought out the entire section of fucking Beanie Boos.
I bet I have at least seventy of the little bastards.
That Gemma chick is going to have nothing on my little girl.
My cellphone vibrates in my pocket, yanking me from my thoughts. Shifting in my seat, I pull it out to see Braxten’s number.
“Yeah,” I answer.
“Well, ho-ly shit. Is this my brother who I haven’t spoken to in over a week? I thought maybe you lost your phone. Now I’m hurt.”
I grunt at the smart-ass greeting. “It’s barely been a week and I’ve been busy with my daughter. Since when did you become so fucking needy?”
“Since you moved away and left us to fend for ourselves. I’m starving, Justice,” he whines dramatically. “It’s like living on the streets all over again.”
Fucking drama queen.
It’s always been his way of dealing with hard situations, using humor to deflect what is actually bothering him.
“I didn’t move away,” I tell him.
“Does that mean you’re coming back soon?”
“Eventually,” I reply vaguely.
“What does that mean?”
“It means I’m waiting for the right time.
Hannah’s almost finished with school for the year and until she does I don’t want to move her.
” I pause briefly, thinking about the other obstacle in my way.
“I also have to wait for Ryanne to be on board because right now she is hell-bent on never returning to Winchester.”
“Why the hell not?”
“There’s plenty of reasons why, some I’m sure you can figure out on your own.”
His silence speaks volumes. He knows and probably even understands it better than I do because he’s always been more levelheaded than Knox and me.
“I’m ready to meet her and be a part of her life, Justice.”
“I know and you will,” I promise. “We just need to tread carefully. I want to do what’s best for Hannah. She comes first, even before all of us.”
“Agreed.”
“Good. How’s Knox?” I ask.
I’ve only spoken to him once and he was quiet and withdrawn. I miss my brother.
“Antsy,” he replies. “You know how he acts when we aren’t all together. It makes him fucking nervous.”
It makes me nervous, too. Which is exactly why I want all the people I love in one place. Why I’ll make this right for us all, including Ryanne.
“Dad misses you, too,” he adds carefully. “You need to call him.”
The bitterness I fight daily rushes to the surface. “I’m not ready to deal with him yet.”
“Well you need to get over it. It’s torturing him, and even though I understand where you’re coming from I don’t like this rift in our family.”
It’s a rift that wouldn’t be there if he would have been honest with me from the beginning. I might have to get over it but it’s a tough fucking pill to swallow so they will just have to give me some time.
I’m about to tell Braxten exactly that but the heated words get stuck in my throat when I pull up to Ryanne’s to find her and Hannah exiting the house in a hurry.
“Brax, I’ll call you back.”
“Yeah, yeah,” he grumbles. “Don’t wait another week to do it.”
“I won’t.” The promise is cut short when I hang up and jump out of my truck.
“Daddy!” Hannah rips from Ryanne’s hold and runs over to me.
Bending down, I sweep her up into my arms, feeling like I can finally breathe again since leaving her last night.
“Hey, baby. Looks like I got here just in time. Where you headed?” The question is directed at Ryanne as she comes hurrying over to us. I notice she’s in her work clothes; my eyes drawn to her long lean legs in cut-off jean shorts and cowgirl boots.
“I’m so sorry,” she apologizes, out of breath. “I should have called you.”
“What’s going on?”
“I have to go to work.”
“I thought you don’t work weekends.”
“I usually don’t but they’re short staffed tonight and really need my help and we could use the extra…” She trails off before she can finish that sentence.
My jaw locks down as I think about the fact she wouldn’t even need money if I had been here to begin with. However, I push the argument away for another time. “So where are you taking our daughter?”
“I go to Miss Peggy’s,” Hannah answers. “She babysits me when Mama has to work and I don’t have school.”
I have no clue who Miss Peggy is but I don’t like the thought of anyone watching her that I don’t know.
“She lives down the street from us,” Ryanne rushes to explain. “She loves Hannah and takes very good care of her.”
“That may have been the case before but it’s not necessary now. I’m here and I will stay with her.”
“Yay!” Hannah cheers. “Can he, Mama, please? I wanna be with Daddy.”
I shoot Ryanne a hard look, daring her to say no. I’ll be damned if someone else takes care of my kid when I’m around.
“Are you sure?” she asks, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth, a nervous habit that wreaks havoc on my cock. “I won’t be home until well after midnight.”
“She’s my daughter, Ryanne, not just some kid I’m babysitting.”
Her shoulders deflate on a heavy breath. “I know. I’m sorry you’re upset. I didn’t do this on purpose. I only got the call twenty minutes ago and I did what I always do without thinking. I should have asked you first if you wanted to stay with her.”
Satisfied with that response, I accept the apology with a nod then look over at Hannah. “I have something for you.”
“What is it?” she asks excitedly.
Placing her down on her feet, I open the back door, revealing all the stuffed animals piled in my backseat.
Her small mouth drops open. “Holy cow! Are these all mine?”
“Every one.”
Her squeal penetrates the air as she throws herself at my leg, hugging it tight. “Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!”
My chest inflates with her happiness, her smile worth so much more than money could ever buy.
She leaps into the truck and begins counting them all.
I look over at Ryanne and find her watching me, a soft smile on her pretty face. “You spoil her.”
“She deserves it.”
“All of it is unnecessary. You know that, right? She doesn’t need this stuff, she just needs you.”
“She has me.” When that answer doesn’t seem to satisfy her, I step closer, forcing her to tilt her head back. “I’ve missed more than five years of her life, Ryanne. That’s birthdays, Christmases, and more. I’m making up for lost time. Don’t take that away from me.”
Guilt flashes in her eyes. “Fair enough. Do you need anything before I go?”
My gaze drops to her lips before I can stop it, a smirk taking over my face upon seeing the blush that stains her cheeks. “No. We’ll be fine.”
Swallowing hard, she takes a step back. “You have my number if you need me. Otherwise, I’ll see you when I get home.”
At my nod, she crawls into the truck, moving for Hannah. “Bye, sweetheart. I’ll see you in the morning,” she says, kissing her cheek.
My cock stirs at the sight of her tight ass in those short fucking shorts; my fingers curling into a fist to quell the urge to claim and possess.
“Bye, Mama.”
Ryanne backs out and turns around, the smile she was wearing slipping when she catches the expression on my face. I make no effort to hide my thoughts, letting her see exactly what I was just thinking.
“Bye,” she whispers, her face flushed and voice breathless.
“Bye.”
My eyes never leave her, watching her every move until she disappears into her small car and drives away.
“We are going to have to make a lot of trips to get all these up to my room.” Hannah’s muffled voice yanks me back to reality and has me turning around. Her arms are full of the stuffed animals, they are topped so high you can’t even see her face.
Chuckling, I step forward and take a couple from her so she can jump down. “Come on, I’ll help you, then afterward we’ll go out for dinner and ice cream.”
“Ice cream?” she says, perking up. “I’m down for ice cream.”
“I figured you’d be all right with that plan.”
It’s not an easy feat but eventually we get them all up to her room then we head into town like I promised. I end up taking her to the local diner I’ve been eating at. It’s a place she seems to know well by the way she’s greeted by a few of the waitresses when we walk in.
A middle-aged woman who has served me a few times is quite surprised to see us together. “Well, hello again,” she greets me before looking over at Hannah. “How are ya, sweet Hannah?”
“I’m good, Miss Tanya.”
The woman jerks her thumb toward me. “Who is this handsome fella you have with you?”
“This is my daddy,” she tells her proudly, her smile reaching from ear to ear.