Page 22 of Benga's Rise
He smiles. “I like seeing you love on my boy. I want him comfortable with my family. That was Banks. He’s got the women with the kids in this neighborhood, but nothing for the HR chick. She’ll be in a cast for a while so he’s looking for one floor. It was a bad break.”
Seren is standing at the door watching and asks, “This is Leo’s mom?”
I nod for her and ask Cort. “How long is a while?” I’m wondering if I need to hire someone, then I remember Jinx took half my job so I’m just checking numbers. Cort shrugs.
“I can help. There’s nothing close to here?” Seren is a sweetheart.
“He hasn’t found anything. The condos have bedrooms upstairs so they won’t work right now. She’ll end up there when the cast is off. The whole first floor is open, so there’s no privacy if she stays downstairs and there’s only the half bath down, then the kid is upstairs alone.”
“She can stay with Raid until the cast comes off. He’s right up the road and I can help her while she’s recovering. We’re talking maybe a month.” She’s lost her mind.
I’m fucking speechless. Cort isn’t, but I’m not close enough to hit him. “That would work, Kram. The kid likes him and she let him take her boy, so she trusts him.”
“What the fuck?”
Seren takes Caelan from me as Leo comes out with two small plates piled with pizza pillows. “Seren made extra and said it’s okay to eat in here.” He hands one to me then Cort.
Cort smiles at me, then asks Leo, “Where’s yours?”
“I ate them in the kitchen. I had five so I can eat dinner. Mom will blow her top if I eat too much junk.” He looks at Seren. “I saved some for you on the counter. Want me to get ‘em?”
Seren smiles like everything is good. It’s not fucking good. I pop a pillow in my mouth so I don’t stop her from following Leo in. They can’t stay at my house, I don’t even know this woman. These are good. “Pizza pillow poppers. I like these. We need to find them a house.”
“It’s like pizzabites,but these are better than the store ones. Banks is still looking, Brother. He’ll let us know if he finds something.” It’s not said in a way that I believe it.
Stores have them? “When did you eat shit I haven’t?”
He laughs. “I haven’t. Seren made them for the As and Web told me. She stole my boy. It was my turn.” He goes for Caelan and I finish my pillow popper bites.
Jinx calls and we go over the day. He got Web to give him the HR info so he can watch until Lorelei is ready to start. I just shake my head. Her name is Lorelei, it’s pretty. He’s already moving on so I focus and get the latest on the Brothers in Colorado. When he’s done, he says he’ll see me tomorrow and hangs up. I said one sentence. I smile putting my phone away and swipe some of Cort’s pizza pillow bites.
Inside, I pull up the steakhouse and give my phone to Leo. “Do you know what your mom likes?”
He looks at the phone then me with huge eyes. “She eats steak, but it’s pieces. We mostly eat chicken and spaghetti now.”
I nod. “Okay, but if she was picking food from there, what would she pick?”
“Steak pieces. She likes that, but it’s too expensive. She said she got the new job, but now she’s hurt.” He’s worried about the bill. From what I’ve seen, he’s a good kid.
“She works for us now and I wasn’t making her pay. I promised dinner, that’s on me. If she promises me dinner, it would be on her.”
He doesn’t believe me, it’s all over his face. “You sure? We eat sandwiches and salad too.”
Seren laughs. “He’s sure, Leo. Order what you like. It’s his treat. If your mom works for them, it will be normal. What’s your mom’s name?”
“Lorelei,” I say automatically as Leo scrolls through the menu.
“You’re kidding? Lorelei works for you? This is L.?” Her look could be good or bad, all I see is surprise.
Cort pays attention. “Yeah, why?”
“She was a couple years ahead of me, but she’s smart. Valedictorian and went to college in California. I’ve only seen her a few times over the years. I babysat Leo a couple of times when he was a baby. She was working out of town and she works a lot so we lost touch.”
Everyone seems to relax. People fucking with Seren is an ongoing concern. She’s been dealt enough shit from the people in town. They’re not as bad now, but not many really talk to her. Thank fuck for the Brotherhood.
“She worked at the hospital as an admin. She’s taking over running HR. She’s got plenty of good references,” I tell her.
She nods with a smile lighting up her eyes. “That’s good. I’ll help where I can. Do you need me at HR until she’s released?”
