Page 170 of All The Things: The Last Thing He Needs Omnibus

How long had this been going on? Had these assholes been in their home before? Or was this the first time? Ben didn’t like it either way, but Jesus, he needed to know who to yell at first.

For a long moment—a moment that felt like a year or two—no one said anything.

Gavin nudged him. “Could you take the groceries into the kitchen?” he asked, passing the rest of the shopping bags to Ben.

Ben didn’t breathe a word, but the look on his face must’ve been murderous because Gavin whispered, “Don’t.”

Don’t what? Don’t make them bleed for all they’d done to Gavin? To Tina too, really. Don’t let every jumbled, hateful thought running through Ben’s mind out in a litany of curses and threats? Don’t grab Gavin and run out the door? Don’t take James back from them as if he had any say in that kid’s life, as if he were anything to them?

As he stormed into the kitchen, Ben figured don’t covered everything, and he hated it.

He set the groceries down on the counter and counted to ten in his head. It only made things worse. He shoved the perishables into the fridge without even taking them out of the bags and then turned for the kitchen door again. He pushed it so hard, it swung out and hit the wall with a clatter, making everyone jump. Well, everyone but Gavin. He looked like he’d been waiting for a crash, waiting for a bomb to drop.

“Can I get you guys anything?” Gavin asked, as if these people were guests in their home, neighbors dropping by for a visit.

Carter didn’t look up, didn’t meet Gavin’s eye. “No. We’re fine, thank you.”

Ben clamped his jaw shut and grit his teeth so hard, he thought they’d crack.

Something in Gavin shifted. The shock had apparently worn off, and Gavin settled on the arm of the chair Tina sat in. “What brings you two by?” he asked, his tone light and casual on the surface, but Ben could hear the strain there too.

Still not looking at him, Carter said, “We wanted to meet our grandson.” He reached over and took Baby James’s hand.

Ben hadn’t thought it was possible, but he liked the baby a little less when James smiled at the asshole. Shouldn’t the kid have some kind of instinct? Some sense that he was flirting with the devil himself? He shook the thought off and tried not to remind them that they had no right to meet him, all things considered. “Well, you’ve met him.” He hadn’t meant to say that out loud.

Gavin shot him a look Ben couldn’t read.

“He’s a great baby,” Gavin said, as if trying to smooth things over. Ben couldn’t figure out why, though. They’d made it clear to Gavin a long time ago that they wanted nothing to do with him. Why be polite to them? “And he’s really smart, ahead of everything on his milestones and stuff.”

Patricia picked James up from her lap and turned him to face her. “That doesn’t surprise me,” she said. “You can see it in his eyes, how inquisitive he is.”

Seriously? She wanted to play doting grandmother when she’d kicked two of her own children out? One of whom was the mother of said grandkid. If the evening didn’t end in bloodshed, if Ben didn’t get hauled away by the cops, it would be a miracle.

Gavin nodded in agreement. “Tina too,” he said. “Did she tell you she graduated?”

Carter still hadn’t looked at Gavin, but he said, “Yes. She mentioned that.” He looked at Tina and then at James. “We’re here to bring her home so we can get this mess sorted out.”

And wasn’t this exactly what Ben had worried about from the start? He wanted to shout called it! But the look on Gavin’s face stopped him.

Carter went on. “We’ve spoken to Brian and his parents. He’s ready to do the right thing.”

Patricia set James back down on her lap then and said to Gavin, “It’s not too late for you, Gavin.” She made his name sound like an insult, though, as if she had a hard time getting it out of her mouth. “There’s a camp in Montana and it… well, it helps with…”

That was it. Ben was done. He didn’t know when he walked closer to Gavin, when he’d put himself between Gavin and his parents, but there he was. “It’s time for you to go,” he said, his voice calm, deadly quiet.

Gavin put his hand on Ben’s arm but didn’t say anything.

Carter spoke, though, as if he hadn’t heard Ben. “You’ve got the devil in you, son. We don’t know how or why, but that’s the truth and deep down, you know it too.”

The asshole still hadn’t looked at Gavin, but he had the nerve to call him son.

Gavin’s grip on Ben’s arm got tighter. Ben nearly shook him off.

“This lifestyle you’ve chosen for yourself…” Carter paused, as if he weren’t sure where to start. “It’s filthy. This kind of sin is an abomination, ugly in the eyes of God.”

“One more word,” Ben said. He couldn’t stop himself, couldn’t stand there and listen to this guy—Gavin’s father—talk to him like that. “One more word and I’ll beat you to death with your own arm.”

Carter heard that. “I’ve got God on my side. I’m not afraid of you.”

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