Page 59 of Hell's Claim

I liked that. Sunny was obviously very close to his mom and Liv. Before he ate anything, he made sure the three of us had our plates full. Sunny got our drinks, brought the breadbasket and salad, and generally ensured we were happy before he ate himself. That level of consideration I was unused to, although Liv and Cherry took it in stride.

“I’m fine,” Cherry replied, but she clearly wasn’t.

“Let’s move into the living room,” I suggested.

Cherry looked relieved. “That would be nice.”

“I made cheesecake, we can eat in there,” I said, and Cherry glanced at the stove.

“There’s so much left over,” she murmured, stricken.

“Ah, no. That’s for the others when they come home. They were out doing some checks on an investigation and should be back in an hour or so,” I replied.

“You’re on an investigation?” Cherry asked, looking excited.

“Yes, but a private one, not for the programme,” I answered as Chance helped Cherry up.

“I didn’t realise you did that,” Liv responded as she began gathering the dirty plates.

“I’ll do that,” I said, and Liv shook her head.

“Go talk to Nana. You cooked so we clear. Come on,” Liv cocked an eyebrow at Sunny.

“Hey, I made the salad,” Sunny protested.

Liv screwed her face. “That ain’t cooking, Dad. Move your ass!”

I chuckled as I led Cherry into the living room. She sat down gingerly, and I placed cushions around her for comfort.

“Would you like coffee or another drink?” I asked.

“Sit down, Callie, Sunny will do all that.”

“I don’t mind,” I replied.

“Relax. That was a wonderful meal, thank you. It made a nice change not to cook,” Cherry said as she relaxed back with another wince.

“Do you need some medication?”

“No, sweet girl, I’ve got a couple of hours before I can take more. Tell me about you and Sunny,” Cherry urged, and I paused.

“We’re dating,” I finally responded, somewhat lamely.

“Which means you’re pretty special. He hasn’t dated anyone since Julie died,” Cherry informed me.

That gave me pause for thought. “Really?”

“Yes. Sunny didn’t love Julie, but he did care for her. When he joined the army, he was away, so it never gave him time to develop a real relationship. It was something that saddened me. Sunny has a lot of love to offer someone, and he aimed it all at Liv and me, prioritising our needs. I can’t say how happy I am that Sunny’s finally found somebody he can take a risk on.”

I considered Cherry’s statement. Her words touched me but also scared me. Sunny and I had been progressing in our dating, and he claimed he wanted me, but I wasn’t used to being wanted.Hell, even my relationship with my siblings was strained. Rain was just easy going, but my sisters were anything but.

“What is it?” Cherry asked softly, sensing my worry and stress.

“Did Sunny tell you anything about my life?”

“No. He said it was your story and nobody else’s,” Cherry answered with curiosity. “I am aware that you and your siblings were separated.”

“Thalia stayed with my grandmother as she was ill, but Clio, Rain, me, and Polly were given up. Good families brought Rain, Polly, and Thalia up. Clio and I weren’t so lucky, although Clio did end up finding the man she calls Dad. I was shunted from foster family to foster family. People hear stories of abuse happening in foster places, I was a victim of that. Not every home, but there was a lot of neglect, and I did suffer abuse.”

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