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“Are you sure Mommy is gonna be alright?” Ashlyn looked up at me with worry-filled eyes and all I wanted was to make her feel better.
I sighed heavily, part of me wanted to lie and say of course everything’s gonna be all right, but I thought back to my own childhood and wished that adults would’ve let me know when the shit storm was coming so I could’ve been prepared, or at least not so devastated by it. Was five too young to learn the cold hard truth? I wasn’t sure, so I tried to sugarcoat it the best I could without lying, “Your mommy is probably going to be all right, Ash. But I can’t say that for sure because sometimes adults get shi- stuff wrong.”
Her lips curled into a smile. “You were gonna say a bad word.”
“I was, but I didn’t.” I flashed a small smile at her and punctuated it with a wink. “Don’t tell your mom.”
Ashlyn mimicked zipping her lips. When a loud pounding knock sounded on the front door, the little girl jumped, and fear clouded her blue eyes.
Instinctively I put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “It’s okay. You stay here, yeah?”
She nodded. “Okay.” The world left her lips barely above a whisper and that pissed me off.
I stomped to the front door with a frown on my face and yanked it open. “Yeah?”
A slender man stood before me with dark brown hair and green eyes that looked too big for his face. He was a few days past a good shave and the way he stood on the doorstep was beyond aggressive. “Who the hell are you?”
I shook my head. “Nah. You’re on the wrong side of the door to ask that question. Who are you and what do you want?”
He weighed his options, probably wondering if he should try his luck with me and I kind of wished he would. As the Tech Captain of the MC I didn’t get enough opportunities to kick somebody’s ass. “I’m Mark, Alex’s brother.”
“Alex isn’t here.” And he wouldn’t be ever again.
“And just where the fuck is Emma?” His brows dipped into a dark frown.
My arms hung at my sides, and I stared at the asshole, waiting for him to make his move. My shoulders were blocking the doorway so if he wanted in, then he was gonna have to get past me first.
“Well?” He took a step forward but not close enough to be threatening so I didn’t so much as flinch. “Where is she? Where the hell is my brother?” He took another step forward. “What did she do to him?” He held up his index finger and poked me in the chest, which was his first mistake. “Ow, what the fuck?”
I grabbed his finger and yanked it down and around until I had one hand pinned behind his back and his face pressed up against the front door. “Looks like you have the same problem as your brother. You can’t keep your hands to yourself.”
Mark struggled against my strength, but I didn’t loosen my grip at all. “What did she do to him?”
I laughed. “She didn’t do anything to him, unlike what he did to her. But you don’t care about that part, do you?”
“She’s a liar,” he spat out.
“My mommy’s not a liar,” Ash shouted from her spot in the living room.
“Ashlyn! Hey, tell this asshole I’m your uncle.” His smile was more of a grimace and Ash didn’t look at all comfortable around him.
“You said a bad word, you shouldn’t say that.”
The little girl was full of fire, and I respected the hell out of her for it. I kicked the door to the living room shut because she didn’t need to hear or see anything that came next.
“Get the fuck off me or you’ll regret it, asshole. Ow, stop!” he yelped as I twisted his arm.
I yanked his arm a little higher behind his back, forcing him off-center. “What exactly will I regret Mark?”
“This. You won’t get away with it.”
I smiled. “I haven’t done anything but prevent a strange man from entering a home he doesn’t own.” I grabbed his wrist, turned him towards the driveway and shoved him away, giving him a kick in the ass for good measure. “Show up again before your brother comes back and I’ll put a bullet in your ass.” I made a mental note to look into Mark Edwards. Soon.
“My brother wouldn’t leave without a word, and he wouldn’t ever leave Emma alone for more than a few days.”
Because he was a controlling asshole. “Then maybe you ought to be out there looking for him instead of harassing a woman and child with your unfounded accusations.”
