Page 68 of Twisted Bonds
"Will you follow my rules and not talk back to me?"
"Of course, Sir."
"Will you call me Bain or Dad?"
"If you prefer that I call you Bain, then I will, but I'd like to call you Dad if I can," she answers truthfully, and I could barely contain my smile.
Standing, I slowly walked around my desk until I stood beside Cayley's chair, making her strain her little neck to keep eye contact with me. I then said, "Stand up."
She jumped up immediately and stared at me as I looked down at her. Ever so slowly, a smile grew on my lips. "I'd be proud to call you and consider you my daughter." I opened my arms, and she fell into them, wrapping her own around my waist.
If I hadn't listened, I would have missed her whisper: "Thank you."
"No, thank you. I've always wanted a daughter." My words conjured up a beautiful redhead with caramel eyes, and I had to push it away; it wasn't the time for that. "Did you talk to your mother about this first, Cayley?"
She nodded against my stomach. "Yes. She said she would be fine with it as long as you and I are."
"Well, I'm more than fine with it, honey," I told her.
"Will you and Mom be okay? I know parents usually sleep in the same room, but Mom sleeps by me and cries a lot at night."
I closed my eyes, hearing this. My heart goes out not only to the little girl but to the mother of my son, who is hurting, and I have no idea how to help her. I'd offer the counselor Ryan uses with the other victims, but I'm unsure how she would receive such a suggestion.
"You don't worry about me and your mom. This is your home, and I will care for the two of you no matter what happens." I reassured her, and she smiled up at me.
"Thank you, Dad."
Those three little words made my heart stutter. I remember when Beau used to say stuff like that. Now I have a new child in the house, and I pray to God that I don't fuck up with this one. Cayley could easily pass as my child thanks to her Huntley genes, and I know it will be easy to love her as my own.
I leave the memory and glance at my watch; it's almost noon. Getting up, I go over to the window and make myself a drink from the wet bar. I know I shouldn't, but I'm a fucking adult, and I need one at the moment. Leaning a hand against the frame, I gaze out the window and across the sprawling lawn to where the shelter houses sit.
Bringing the glass to my lips, I take a sip as I watch Beau's truck pull up to the building where Ryan's office is located, and then—she's there. I'd know that head of beautiful hair anywhere. I down the last of the glass's contents and almost break the glass in my hand by how hard I'm gripping it.
"Why do you do this to yourself, Bain?"
Her voice startles me, and I whip my head around, only to find Chloe standing behind me. She's looking out the same window, seeing the same thing I'm seeing, and—I sigh. Chloe's not dumb. Even after all this time, she can still read me like a book.
"Your stutter is gone." I smile at her.
"Yeah, I've been working hard at losing the last of it."
Turning to look back out the window, the person of interest is now gone, and I close my eyes. "I have needs, too, Chloe. I understand that you can't bring yourself to have our old lives back. Just know that I would have waited as long as I needed to for you, but if you don't want me any longer, then what do you expect me to do? There are only two women I have ever loved, and now it seems I can't have either."
"She's your son's wife—er—girlfriend, or at least she was. How do you expect him to feel, knowing that his own father has slept with her after him? He was made to watch the two of you every time you were in your playroom. We were both made to watch it. Liam got a kick out of torturing us. Iunderstood because it had been years, and you thought I was dead, but still, having to watch you love her whilehewas raping me? It fucked with my head. All that ran through it was,'How come she gets to feel his love while I'm stuck here, in this hell? What did I ever do to deserve this?'"
"I'm so sorry, Chloe." My voice cracks a little. "I will never forgive myself for believing that you were dead."
Her eyes wander to the urn on the mantle. "Those are hers, Liam's mistress. The one he knocked up and tossed out. Well, most of the ashes are hers anyway. He burned her body in the back yard where he burned trash, so who knows what kind of ashes are inside there."
I feel for the poor woman. Maybe I should send the ashes to Sergio. He doesn't deserve them, but she deserves to be with her son. I'll give them to Castor. He will make sure he gets them.
"I know what you do for her, Bain. I do commend it, and I will not stand in the way of you helping her because I know of the darkness that she speaks of. She's braver than I am; I never liked the whip."
I smile sadly. "No, you preferred my hand." My hand burns at the memory of turning Chloe over my knee and making her creamy skin a pretty pink.
Her mouth twitches. "That was another lifetime ago. After enduring Liam's cruelty for all these years, I could never return to that. I also think that's why our son can't give Ryan what she needs, but make no mistake, Beau loves that girl with everything he has, and he will not give her up easily."
"I know…"
