Page 23 of Lethal Weakness

“I wish I believed that,” I utter softly.

His furrowed brows tighten.

“Are you eating sketti with us, Mr. Jack?” Avery asks, reaching out to tug on his leg.

His eyes settle on her little hands tugging on his pant leg, and I sense his decline brewing.

“Please,” I add.

His gaze snaps to mine, his eyes searching mine so seriously. I feel like it’s the first time I’ve ever seen them so clearly, actually giving me a glimpse into something inside that isn’t so rigid.

There seems to be nothing soft about Jack O’Connor, despite the kindness he’s shown my daughter and me.

Last night when Merrill called me back to the door after we picked up Avery, she questioned the strange mystery man in the truck. And despite all of the unknowns about my neighbor, I found myself defending him.

He is a mystery. But he is my mystery to behold.

Not theirs to judge. To crucify before they’ve even met him.

“Please, Jack. I feel like I’m trapped in here,” I whisper, pitifully.

He gives a simple nod and lets Avery drag him inside.

“Mr. Chaney, this is my neighbor, Jack. He’s having dinner with us.”

“Ah, nice to meet you.” He holds his hand up to shake Jack’s before he really looks. And when he sees the man walking into the kitchen, he blanches slightly.

His discomfort amuses me.

Jack shakes his hand firmly, not exchanging a single word as he looks my landlord dead in his eyes, before sitting in the seat directly across from him.

Avery plops into her seat on the other side of Jack and starts chittering away about the butterfly she’s coloring while I get the food set on the table.

Mr. Chaney reaches for the salad tongs before I’ve sat down, and Jack looks at him sternly, forcing the man’s hand to retreat.

I put Avery’s plain butter noodles in front of her with a piece of garlic bread and take my seat, mentally preparing for this awkward meal.

“According to Avery, any type of noodle is spaghetti, but this is actually chicken fettuccine alfredo. Hopefully you like it. It’s all I had on such short notice.” I smile stiffly.

“Tell me more about yourself, Linden. What brings you to Twinflower?” Mr. Chaney asks, oblivious to my discomfort, loading his plate to the brim with food.

Jack takes more reasonable portions of everything but doesn’t take a bite until I’ve filled my plate.

“Um, I went to school at Virginia Tech. I met Avery’s dad in college. I had her right after I graduated and uh… Haven’t left the area.”

“Virginia Tech? You should have some fancy career in D.C.”

“Yeah. Things change. I’m where I need to be.”

He scoffs, and I can feel Jack’s energy shifting beside me despite him listening to Avery’s endless chatter.

“Shame not to use a degree. What was it in?”

“Early Childhood Development.”

“Sounds like she is using her degree then,” Jack grumbles, breaking his silence. When I look at him, he’s holding Mr. Chaney’s gaze pointedly.

Suddenly, I don’t think it was a very good idea to invite Jack to dinner. He looks like he could kill him. Which seems ridiculous, except that Jack looks like a man who could kill him.