Page 93 of Songbird: Black Kite
According to Sabrina, he was perfect for me because he was new in town, had no idea about all the bullshit that had plagued my family for years, and he was ‘respectable and hot in that business daddy kind of way.’
So, after weeks of hearing about him after every one of her shifts, I finally relented, and agreed to a date.
One date had turned into two, then half a dozen, and I found myself really enjoying spending time with Evan. He was older than me by almost ten years, but that only made him more appealing, because unlike the guys my age, he wasn’t still looking to go out partying every weekend. Instead, I found myself taken to nice dinners in restaurants with cloth napkins and menus in other languages. Evan opened doors and held my coat, and I thought I might have found everything I was looking for.
He was even aware of Cooper, and while I had felt it was too early to introduce my three-year-old to a man, I was definitely picturing us becoming a little family, white picket fence and all.
It wasn’t until after I’d slept with Evan that I learned he alreadyhada family. One with a wife and two kids that he was in the process of moving to town.
The blowout fight we’d had was huge, and it had resulted in him asking why I thought a man would ever be interested in something permanent with ‘damaged goods’ like me.
When I’d told Sabrina, she’d threatened to murder him, but settled for quitting her job without notice, because she was ride or die like that.
It was the first and last time I’d attempted to find some kind of relationship for myself. Since then, every ounce of energy I had had gone into making sure that Cooper had everything she could ever wish for and that she’d never find herself discarded by her family like I had been.
I’d die first.
“I’m just saying,” Cooper went on, oblivious to my spiraling thoughts. “If you maybe wanted to date someone, that’d be okay.”
“Did your Aunt Sabrina put you up to this?” I asked suspiciously.
“No, but you know she’d agree with me. You should find a boyfriend, Mom. That’d be cool.”
“There’s more to life than—”
“Boys,” she cut me off with an eye roll. “I know. You may have mentioned it once or twice. I’m just saying. You’re allowed to put yourself first once in a while, you know? And that guy might be a good place to start.”
Something in my heart cracked at her words, my sweet, compassionate, mature daughter. She was too precious for this world, and I worried that one day, she was going to have her heart broken in the worst way, and that there’d be nothing I could do to stop it.
But for now, she was still here, still mine to protect, and I planned on doing just that.
Even if it meant I had to protect her from Hawk Jameson and whatever scheme he might be up to.
Chapter fifty-five
Hawk
Present
Iwasreadytotry again.
Two days had gone by since I’d surprised Wren on the front porch of her house. Two days since she’d slammed the door in my face and I’d headed back to the rental with my tail between my legs.
I couldn’t exactly blame her; after all, I’d shown up without warning after nearly fifteen years with nothing but a hand full of letters and a half-remembered night between us.
Did I really expect anything different?
If I was being honest with myself, I had. Somehow, I’d convinced myself that when Wren saw me standing there she’d smile, maybe throw her arms around me, but she’d have at least been glad to see me.
Instead, she had thrown some seriously confusing words at me. Words I’d spent the last two days thinking over.
One thing was clear: Victoria was even more involved than I’d originally suspected.
You tell her I don’t want any trouble.
Wren being mad at me was one thing, but she’d been scared, and that pissed me the hell off.
When I’d relayed the interaction to Charlie, he was at least gracious enough not to give me anI told you sobefore he hauled me back to the house and told me to get my head out of my ass.
