Page 14 of Flyboy
There was so much mystery surrounding the teenager's arrival. He trusted her, didn't think she was trying to take advantage of her sister in any way, but he couldn't discount the unease gnawing at his gut about the situation.
He needed to find out what had happened to force a fourteen-year-old girl to run away, travel cross-country on her own to reach a sister she'd never met. Maybe now he and Lys had gotten married, Penny would feel safe enough to tell him why she'd shown up out of nowhere.
Closing the bedroom door on his sleeping wife—Jesus fucking Christhis wife—he headed across the suite in search of Penny. He'd left her with Roark to check out the room service menu in the lounge area of their suite. They'd eaten before driving through the wedding chapel, but apparently the girl was hungry again.
Maybe he could get her to talk without Lys around.
They hadn't had a chance to say much since Lys had woken just before they landed. They'd done plenty of talking before that though. Keeping their story simple and the same had been essential and while he knew their plan could work, he'd honestly expected Lys to back out at the last minute.
He'd been wrong.
So wrong they now wore matching wedding bands and had a piece of paper with their signatures on it that tied them together legally.
Jack wanted them tied together emotionally.
He was there. Had been for months, but Lys… Yeah, he had a long way to go before his wife let down all her walls.
"Is she still asleep?" Penny asked from her spot at the bar.
Roark stood on the other side, a bottle of water held up in offer.
"Yeah, I'll take one of those," Jack said as he made his way to them. "Yes, she's still asleep."
"I can't believe she went through with it," Penny muttered as he took the stool next to her.
"It's what you wanted, right?" God, had the girl changed her mind about their plan?
"Yes. Yes. Definitely. I told you what the lawyer said. But I didn't tell you about Mom."
Jack's spine snapped straight. "What about your mother?" He shot a quick glance at Roark.
"She's been calling Lyssa. A lot."
"I didn't think social services or the lawyer could find her?" Jack's gaze stuck to Penny even though he wanted to look at his friend again. "Are you telling me they found her? Is that why permanent guardianship was denied?"
Penny shook her head. "No. They haven't found her that I know of and Lyssa didn't say why they denied the application. Lyssa doesn't know where Mom is either; until I showed up, they hadn't spoken in fifteen years."
"Then how is Gina calling now?"
"I don't know. And Lyssa doesn't know I know about the calls."
"Jesus, kid, how many times do I have to tell you to stop listening in?"
Bowing her head, she murmured, "You know why I do it. I can't turn it off even when I know I don't have to worry about it with Lyssa. Or you."
Fuck. This kid. She wasn't his and yet she'd burrowed her way deep and he'd do anything to protect her. With that thought in mind, he turned to Roark. "Find her."
"We're already on it."
"I know but now we have something else to go on. Tap Lys's phone."
"What?" Penny's head jerked up, her gaze on Roark. "You can do that?"
"Yes." Roark didn't add it wasn't exactly legal.
"Really?" Penny eyed his friend with interest. "You do it yourself or get someone else to do it?"
"Did you decide what you want to eat?" Jack asked, nudging the menu in front of her as a distraction. He knew she was into computers and tech in general. And she was gifted in that regard. Just last month she'd fixed his laptop when it refused to turn on and saved him from buying a new one. Heaven knew what kind of trouble she would get into if she worked out how to tap a phone.
