Page 4 of Bring Me Back
“Why, yes, that is an excellent observation, Jaxon. However, they are almost two. So I’m not sure theyqualify as babies anymore,” I say, handing Scarlett a purple crayon and watching her scribble furiously.
“Soooo…I’m gonna call Theo and see if they’re doing anything tonight. Cool if I spend the night over there?” He asks, and I laugh. He’s always quick to get the hell out of here whenever there’s diapers to be changed or tiny loud humans invade our home.
“Whatever you want to do, Jax. Just make sure I know where you are and what your plan is,” I tell him. He disappears towards his room, fingers furiously texting his friends his escape plan already.
My son, as kind and gentle as he is, has always been uneasy around babies. I pray for his future wife that trait doesn’t stick around.
Just as I put the pan of nuggets into the oven, he comes around the corner, helmet in hand.
“We’re heading to the quarry. I’ll text you as soon as I get there and when we leave to head back to Theo’s house.” He says, slinging his backpack across his back and planting a kiss on my cheek.
I should have known he would be itching to get on two wheels as soon as he passed his driving test. It wasn’t worth arguing or trying to stop him. But I made sure he had the best protective gear I could afford. Eli and Everett padded my paycheck when I told them what I was saving for, even though they adamantly denied that fact. I’m lucky they care about my boy and only want the best for him.
“Look at me, Jaxon.” I grab a fistful of his black t-shirt and pull his attention from his phone. “You do not drink tonight if you’re going to touch your bike. You do not ride without your helmet. You do not allow anyone on the back of your bike without a helmet. If you need a ride, you call me. Don’t fuck around, Jax. I mean it. I like Theo, don’t change my mind.”
I know my boy is responsible. But until the day I die, he’ll hear the same speech every time he leaves my house. He knows he’s all I’ve got. He nods, pulling out of my grasp and kissing my cheek.
“I know, Mom. I’ll be careful.” He says, sliding his helmet over his dark hair and waving over his shoulder as he walks out the front door. He was home less than ten minutes, but I guess I should get used to that. He’ll be leaving for college soon, if I can make it happen. I know it’s gonna gut me.
I hear the engine rev on his bike. As the sound fades, all the lights go out in my house. The fucking breaker is always tripping, especially when I use the oven. If I could afford a nicer place, I would. But unfortunately, it is what it is. The twins play relatively quietly, thankfully unaffected by the sudden darkness. I turn on the flashlight I keep in the kitchen for occasions such as these. Opening the breaker box in the pantry, I see the culprit. A hint of burned electrical wires hits my nose, and I try resetting it. A pop sounds, sparks flashing as a yelp involuntarily squeaks out ofmy lips. This is beyond my ability to fix while I have the twins.
I know what I need to do, but damn, I wish I had a better alternative. I hate relying on someone else, anyone else, to help me.
I slide my phone from my pocket, pulling up Beckett’s number, and it barely rings once before he picks up.
“I need help.”
three
I’m already halfwayout the door as soon as I hear her voice on the other end of my phone. Willow is like a fucking addiction to me. The more I want her, the more it hurts. But I can’t tell her no, no matter how many times she says the same to me.
“You at home? I can be there in 10.” I ask, opening the door to my garage and making a beeline to my fastest bike.
“Yes, I’m sorry. The stupid breaker won’t reset, and something smells like it’s burning, and I’ve got Em and Eli’s kids over here. I’m sorry, I just…I didn’t know who else to call.” She says, sounding defeated. Great, I’m her last option. That really strokes a man’s ego.
“I’ll be right there.” I hang up without any pleasantries.
The day Willow started working for Grovewood Ink,Eli asked me to come in to add her to the payroll. She had a wild look in her eyes, the kind of look someone has when they’re desperate. She had perfected thefuck-offlook, but that didn’t stop me from offering her everything I had to give. If she needs a handyman, I’m there. Her son needed a tutor? I was ready and willing. On the rarest occasion that she needed a shoulder to cry on when life got too heavy for her to carry on her own? Mine was always available to her. She is the strongest woman I’ve ever met. And the most guarded. She doesn’t want a damn thing from me, even though I’d give her the world. Over the past four years, she’s managed to keep me at arm’s length while simultaneously becoming the one thing I desire most. I don’t date. Shit, I don’t even let my friends get close to me. But with Willow, even though I know there is still a lifetime of lies and secrets I haven’t uncovered about her, I crave that closeness. For now, if all I can give her is my help, then that’s what I’ll do.
I kick my leg over the seat of my black Kawasaki Ninja as the bay door opens slowly. I send a quick text to my gate security to let him know I’m coming down the mountain and I need the gate to be wide open when I do. Sliding the visor of my helmet closed, I wonder if I'm making a mistake coming every time this woman calls. But I already know that won’t stop me. I rev the engine, throwing gravel behind me as the back end of my bike catches traction, propelling me forward.
When I bought this estate just outside of Grovewood, I didn’t think I really needed the space. But finding a property that had a hangar bigger than the main house wasn’t an easy feat to begin with. I didn’t need a huge house for just me, but somewhere to park my growing collection of cars and bikes was a necessity. And most importantly, a helipad.
Over the years since I left the military, I’ve amassed a silent empire. I don’t think anyone truly knows the depth of my wealth, but that’s how I prefer it. When I started my private accounting firm, I expected to attract only the business of my closest friends. To my surprise, my reputation quickly got around to some of North Carolina’s wealthiest business owners. Now, I’m one of them.
Is every facet of my business entirely legal? No. But would anyone be able to prove that? Also no.
The guard booth is barely a blur as I near 100 mph. The road down my mountain is a mean bitch if you don’t know it as well as I do. I don’t have to give the route to Willow’s house a second thought. My bike carries me there the way it has a hundred times before. I’ve spent hours parked in front of the shitty grey box she calls a house. Whether it’s to answer her call or to stand watch when I felt the sick feeling in my gut like she needed a guardian, I can’t stay away.
A horn blares as I blow through a stop sign, knowing they aren’t moving nearly fast enough to hit me. A partof me wonders if somewhere deep down I’m still harboring the thoughts I did when I left the Corps.
Do I want to die?Yes. No. Fuck if I know.
It’s all I can do some days just to make it from point A to point B without eating a bullet. Until I see the one bright light in all the darkness.
Willow. Her darkness rivals my own. The shadows of her past hang around her like ghosts. She may never reveal them to me. Honestly, if I really wanted to know that badly, I could’ve found out everything there was to know from the moment she was born. That’s what having money will get you. But I want her to show me every broken piece of her soul willingly.
I skid to a stop in her driveway, killing the engine. It’s quiet for a Friday night, and even though it’s early in the evening, Willow’s house is pitch black. This is the third time this month I’ve replaced a breaker in this shithole. Fuck, I hate that she lives here. Every muscle in my body screams at me to get her the hell out of here. To take her back to my castle and lock her away in the tallest tower, where nothing else can ever hurt her again.
