Page 14 of Defending A Promise
“I need my cape!” He says as he grabs a red piece of cloth off the floor and wraps it around his neck.
Riley gets up off the bed and I follow her out of the room as Nicholas is trying to decide which truck should go on this adventure with him.
“Where’s your husband?” I ask her as we go into her childhood room. Man, the memories are everywhere.
“No husband.” She pulls out a duffel bag from the closet and pulls out a few things and throws them into the bag.
“Where’s his father?”
At my question, I see Riley’s shoulders slouch as if she’s given up. That’s when I see her shoulders move and her hands drop the bag as she tries to cover up her crying – unsuccessfully. I grab her shoulders and turn her around and pull her into my arms. The last time I held her, she was crying as well.
We stand there quietly for a few moments. Well, we’re quiet but Nicholas is in the other room chattering away about this and that. It’s adorable, but right now is not the time to acknowledge that.
Riley pulls away and tries to wipe away the tears from her face. “No father, either.”
“I took biology in high school and college. I’m pretty sure there’s a father in the mix.”
She smiles at my joke, “His father was Nicholas Masterson.”
Hearing the name sparks immediate recognition. He was in River’s squad and was one of the men that died with River. “Oh shit. I’m so sorry, Riley.”
She tries to busy herself with packing her bag, “Yeah, well. It was one night and then he was gone.”
“Fuck, Riley. I’m so sorry.”
She stops in her tracks and looks directly at me. “I’m not sorry. He gave me Nicholas, which is the greatest thing that has ever happened to me. I just wish he could have met his son.” She starts packing again. “I wish River could have met his nephew, too.”
“Mommy, I’m done.” Nickels bursts into her room announcing himself. He’s got a suitcase filled with toys sticking out.
“Did you pack any clothes?” She laughs at him.
He looks at her as if that was the dumbest question she could have ever asked him. “Duh. I’ve got my bathing suit.” He rushes out of the room and down the hall towards his bedroom dragging his suitcase of toys.
She laughs, “I better go grab him a few other things to wear. Give me a few minutes and we’ll be ready to go.”
“I’ll go watch him,” I tell her just as we hear a crash.
“Thanks.” She holds my stare a bit longer than I’m expecting. “For everything.” Then I watch her walk out of her room and I’m standing here with all of this information flowing through my head. Riley’s home. Really home. She’s a mom. And someone is fucking with her.
I made a promise to my dead best friend that I would take care of her, and I plan to keep that promise until my dying day. And now that includes her son, his nephew, as well. She and her son, Nicholas, are safe with me.
‘I’ve got them, River,’ I say to his ghost.
Chapter 7
Riley
Seeing Declan walk into my home when I was talking to the detectives was like seeing a flowing river in the middle of the desert. Suddenly, the relief that I wasn’t alone came over me and when he took my hand, I held on for dear life.
When Nicholas came into the room and called for me, the look on Declan’s face was priceless. The other night at Mia’s grand opening, I never mentioned Nicholas although Declan was standing against my car that clearly had a child seat in the back.
I’m following Declan’s monstrous pick-up truck through some backwoods area. The road isn’t even paved, and my car is bouncing all over the place. I check my rearview mirror to see how Nicholas is handling the ride but he’s out cold again. Today has been a long one for him. Actually, it’s been a long day for the both of us.
Finally, we pull into a paved driveway in front of a humongous house. There are no neighbors in sight. The house is an arts-and-crafts built home and it’s beautiful with a manicured lawn, flowering bushes, and an alligator shaped mailbox at the end of the driveway. It’s gorgeous.
I turn off the car and look to see if Nicholas has woken up, but he’s still out cold. After pulling him out of his car seat, I follow Declan in the front door and down a hallway into a bedroom.
“I thought he would be comfortable in here. There’s a Jack-and-Jill bathroom that connects to the room next door. You can have that room if you want,” Declan whispers as he stands at the doorway to the room.
