Page 42 of The Best of Us

“Of course I’m not. I’m just someone that . . .”That what?What could I possibly say to him that’d get him to back off his interrogation so I could get back to my own.

Colin rubbed his jaw.Shit. Was he in pain after all? What kind of father was I?

One with zero experience.

“Are you okay? What happened before I came in there? Did that asshole hit you more than the one time?”

“I’m fine.” He removed his hand from his face, shaking it off. “You shouldn’t have involved yourself in my business. They’d have roughed me up, then let me go.”

“Oh, that’s rich.” Now I sounded like my old man. “The mafia doesn’t rough people up. They break every bone in your body, then kill you and everyone in your family. You understand that, right?” He probably didn’t. God help me.

His head bowed in shame the moment I uttered the word family.

So, you don’t care about your own life, but you do your mom’s?

“Those guys were mafia?”

“Yeah, and I assume a deal was about to occur between your boss and them.”

“He’s not my boss,” he said as Izzy and Hudson parked alongside the curb.

“And I’m supposed to believe that? You asked his permission to leave with me. And yeah, I saw that.” I went over and opened one of the back doors. “You were trying to boost a car the other night with two of his crew, and don’t lie to me and say they?—”

“They work for him, but I’m only dating his sister. And I don’t owe you an explanation.” He flung his arm in the air. “Why am I even talking to you?”

“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe because you almost died in there, and I saved your life. And because you’re afraid I’ll tell your mother her son is working for a drug dealer. And that I know this because I caught him high at a rave while she was working her ass off to save money to send him to college.”

“What? No. I’d never touch that shit, and sure as fuck never sell it.”

I ignored his language, reminding myself I was no better. I left the door open and went to look at him, checking to see if his pupils were blown, one of the most obvious signs he was rolling. “You’re not on E?”

“Ecstasy? I can barely handle cold medicine without feeling drunk as hell.”

You probably inherited that from my side.Well, from his uncle. Alessandro and drugs of any kind didn’t mix. Satisfied his pupils appeared normal, I backed off. “So, what were you doing in there?”

“Lennon likes to dance to that kind of music. She was going with or without me since her brother would be there. I wasn’t about to let her go on her own.”

Why did I believe him?Probably because I want to.

Izzy lowered her window, pointing her curious gaze back and forth between the two of us.

I know, dammit, I know.“Just get in,” I ordered.

“Why should I trust you? That man up there shit his pants hearing your name.”

Fair point.I glanced at Izzy, lightly shaking my head to let her know thatno, he didn’t know he was my son. “Because I know your mom.”

“No shit, Sherlock.”

Heaven help me with the attitude and that mouth of yours.

Izzy sent her window back up, and I returned my attention to him, unsure how to get through this without revealing too much.

“We know each other from another-time, another-place kind of thing. We go way back. We didn’t recognize one another at first, but I promise you can trust me.”

He opened his mouth, and shockingly, no sound came out.

“Now get in. And after your mom gets off work, you two need to pack. You’ll be temporarily moving in with me.”

---