Page 56 of Knockout (Whiskey Dolls 2)

“Sweetheart,” I said softly, waiting until he gave me his eyes. “You belong here, each and every one of you. Those other kids, they’re all your brothers and sisters. Every adult here would lay down their lives for any one of you. Hope House is special because it’s not just another rest stop between placements. You aren’t just a job to the people who work here. Trust me, I know the difference. Thisisyour home, and it’s absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. As far as I’m concerned,you’rethe lucky ones. I feel bad for all those other kids, because they don’t have nearly as much love and family as you have.”

He let out a breath, like the weight of the world settled onto his young shoulders. “I know I got it good here, Ms. Layla. It’s just hard sometimes. I got a good group of friends at school, but there’s this other crowd...assholes that make fun of me and the other kids for not having any family. I know what I am and I know what I want, but that doesn’t mean people don’t look at me and think ‘Oh, that’s the kid who lives in that group home. He must be trouble.’ I’m not. But those people don’t even give me a chance to prove it. They made up their minds that I’m no good, and there’s no changing that.”

I twisted on the bench, straddling it so I could look directly at him. “Okay, first off, I’m going to let that curse slide, because those kids reallyareassholes, but you have to make sure to watch your language, got it?”

“Yes ma’am,” he said contritely.

“And second, stop trying to prove to those people that you’re better than they think. That’s their hang up, not yours, Marcus. You have absolutelynothingto prove to anyone. The people who matter, they know how incredible you are. They know they’re lucky to call you their friend. Everyone else? That’s their loss, not yours. You aren’t missing out by not having people like that in your life, so who gives a flying crap what they think?”

A smile broke out across his face, and I felt some of the rage that had been coiling up inside of me begin to loosen at the sight of it. Which was a good thing, because I was seconds away from hunting those sons of bitches down and ripping them limb from limb for hurting my boy.

“The people in your life are supposed to add to it, honey. They’re supposed to make you feel good. Those people fill in the empty holes we all have inside of us that are there to be filled with love. They are theonlyones who matter, you hear me? Anyone else, anyone who makes you feel less than, they’re dead weight. Cut them out and move on. People like that judge because they’re small, pathetic, unhappy jerks, and they’re bitter that you aren’t as miserable as they are. You can’t let them pull you down to their level. You’re already so high above them, they could only dream of being where you are. They see you’re so much better, and instead of working on themselves, they try to pull you down. Don’t let them. Okay?”

“Okay,” he muttered, but that wasn’t good enough for me, I wanted—no, Ineededhim to know that he was absolutely, hands down, out of this world fantastic.

“O-kay,” I stressed, giving his shoulder a poke.

“Yeah, Ms. Layla,” he said with a chuckle. “Okay. I won’t let them pull me down.”

“Da—ng right, you won’t,” I stated firmly, catching myself before another curse could slip out. “Because you’re awesome. Say it.”

He rolled his eyes, but relented when I poked him again. “I’m awesome.”

“I’m so much better than those losers.”

He repeated obediently, his voice growing stronger with each word spoken.

“You have absolutely everything going for you, Marcus, and I can’t freaking wait to see what you’re going to do, what you’re going to become, with all those smarts in that big brain of yours. The world doesn’t know what’s about to hit it.”

He let me pull him in for a sideways hug, and the last of that anger and tension drifted out of me. “Now, as for your girl, if you want to know if she wants you to ask her out, the sure-fire way to figure that out is just to ask.”

He pulled back, looking at me with a worried frown. “But what if I read the whole thing wrong? What if she says no?”

“Then you deal. You pick yourself up and move on. Then, when you meet another girl who catches your eye, you try again. I wish I could tell you that’s never going to happen, but that’s not how the world works. Sometimes you’re going to get shot down, and sometimes you’re the one who’ll be doing the rejecting. It’ll suck each and every time. Let yourself feel that for a bit, then take those lumps, brush yourself off, and carry on. Deal?”

“Deal,” he said, pushing up, a grin still on his face. “Thanks, Ms. Layla.” He started backing away. “I’m gonna go call her, see if maybe she wants to come over and study.”

I managed to tamp down my excited shriek that time, but only just. “Good luck, bud,” I offered, while silently pleading,please, God, let her say yes.

* * *

Jude

Christ, but Layla was amazing.

I hadn’t wanted to interrupt her and the boy who’d come over, but when I heard him asking her advice about girls, my curiosity had gotten the better of me, and I’d hung back, close enough to listen in while making it look like I was still checking things out so they wouldn’t know I was eavesdropping.

I was in awe of how she’d handled the kid’s situation, of how brilliant her advice had been and how wise she was that even a teenage boy was hanging on her every word. It was clear to see how special she was to these kids, and as I’d watched her all morning long and listened in on their conversations here and there, it was clear as day that she felt the exact same way about them.

The woman had outer beauty that never failed to turn heads, but it was her inner beauty that was crumbling the walls I’d kept around myself for most of my life. She was unlike anyone I’d ever met, and as I watched her just then, I couldn’t believe that I’d ever thought she could be anything like Leah.

I spoke up to make my presence known. “You were really great with him,” I said—an understatement if there ever was one.

She turned her head, hitting me with that smile that never failed to make me hard, no matter how inconvenient the time or place.

“Oh, thanks.” I tossed my sketch pad on the table took the seat Marcus had just been in, straddling like Layla was to face her as she shook her head. “A lot of that was just on the fly, and I honestly have no clue if it was good or not.”

“It was, trust me,” I told her, reaching out to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear before lightly dragging the pads of my fingers down her neck, reveling in the way she shivered at my touch. “If I’d known half the stuff you just told him back when I was his age I probably could have spared myself a lot of pain when it came to the opposite sex.”

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