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“See you soon,” he called out.
My blood ran cold at his words. I believed him. I didn’t know Mark well other than the fact that Alex referred to him as a screw-up. But the look he gave me made me believe that he would make good on his promise. “Come on, Ash.”
“Why is he mad at you? He’s a scary man. I didn’t like it when he shouted at Slate.”
“Who knows, baby.” I gave her hand a supportive squeeze. “He’s an angry man.” I wondered if he’d always been angry or if something about Alex’s disappearance had triggered this behavior. Having Ash mention Slate, made me think of something else. We still hadn’t gotten around to telling her that Slate was her real father. I wasn’t sure how she’d take the news or even if she’d understand the implications. But she trusted him and was building a relationship, so we figured that soon we’d have the talk.
Ash blinked up at me and then just like that, her worry was gone. “Are we getting ice cream too?”
I smiled. “Of course. Can’t have cupcakes without ice cream, can you?” I had a big dinner planned to celebrate my new job and moving forward with my life, but just like always the appearance of a man put a damper on it.
“No, we can’t!” She jumped up and down as we finished our shopping and headed out to the car, where Mark waited.
Watching.
Always watching.
Even if he hadn’t made a real threat until today, his presence was enough of a threat. It was a reminder that I would never be free of the Edwards brothers. But I reminded myself that I wasn’t alone anymore and made a call for help.
“How did the interview go?” Slate’s first question even before his greeting only highlighted the horrible choice I’d made all those years ago. He wasn’t just a man, he was a protector. He was a man who deserved a family like his brothers and their women. “Em?”
I shifted the car into drive. “It went great. I got the job but that’s not why I’m calling.”
“What’s up?” Instantly he shifted from wonderful boyfriend—even though he wasn’t exactly my boyfriend, we hadn’t quite figured out whatwewere—to protector mode.
“Mark confronted me at the grocery store.”
“That fucker,” he growled.
Ash gasped. “That’s a bad word you said!”
I bit back a laugh. “Speakerphone.”
“Right. Sorry about that Ash.”
“It’s okay,” she answered. “He was very mean to Mommy.”
“Yep,” I sighed. “He was threatening.” I chose my words carefully to convey what I needed to say without making Ash worry even more. “Literally. And he’s back to his old tricks.”
“Understood. Come straight home. I’m on my way.”
“We got cupcakes,” Ash called out before I ended the call.
“I hope you got a lot because Ash is a greedy little girl,” he said, and I could hear the smile in his voice.
She giggled and then I did end the call because I needed to focus on the road, especially with Mark’s threat playing on a loop in my mind. He kept his distance while also staying close enough that I couldn’t forget he was there.
When we arrived home—because that’s what Slate’s home was now—Slate was there waiting. He leaned against his bike and anyone looking would just see a man waiting for his family to come home, but up close I saw the tension and the anger that pulsed through his long, leanly sculpted body as he gazed down the street at Mark’s car.
“You okay?” He asked the question as soon as my door opened.
“Yeah. Shaken but good.”
“Get inside,” he ordered and turned his gaze towards the road where Mark slowed.
I nodded and grabbed Ash’s hand, hurrying us both inside. As we rushed inside, Slate’s voice called out.
“You’re not the only one good at watching Mark.”
