“Some.” I smiled at her. “I need to move, if I’m being honest.”
She slid away and came to the other side of the bed, gathering Mouse in her arms. I stood, stretching and bending my back, trying to ease the aches. As Liv settled Mouse back into her bed, I used the bathroom, then headed to the kitchen. I poured a cup of cold coffee and heated it in the microwave.
Liv shuffled in, and I wrapped my arm around her, pulling her close to my chest as I sipped the warm liquid.
“I can make a fresh pot.”
“No, this is fine.”
“I’m sorry about last night.”
I set down the coffee and cupped her face, forcing her to meet my eyes. “Don’t you dare apologize for that. It was hardly a surprise you broke down after the shit Nolan put you through yesterday. Frankly, I’m surprised it hasn’t happened before now.”
She wrapped her hands around my wrists. “Thank you for being there for me.”
I brushed my lips over her head. “There is nowhere else I would have been.”
Her voice was quiet. “Did you mean it, Van?”
I knew what she was referring to. “Yes, Liv, I meant it.” I held her gaze. “I love you. I’ve loved you for weeks, but I’ve been holding it in. I thought it might help you somehow if you knew.”
Her sigh was ragged. “It does. I love you too.”
I kissed her. “That’s a good thing.”
“What am I going to do?” she whispered.
“Do you trust me, Liv?”
“Yes.”
“Enough to let me do something?”
“As long as that something doesn’t involve you hitting Nolan.”
“Not physically. But what I have in mind will deliver a punch, but I need your permission to do it.”
“You have it.”
“Okay. We’re going to meet with the BAM boys this morning.”
Panic filled her eyes. “Why?”
“They need to know, and they need to hear it from us.” I wasn’t looking forward to telling them. They weren’t going to be happy, and I wished I had confided in them before now.
“It’s personal.”
“Not anymore. Working with an ex is one thing. He is threatening your future and your well-being. It is something completely different. We need them on our side.”
She swallowed, staying quiet as she thought about my words.
“But it’s Saturday.”
“I know. I already checked, and they’ve agreed to see us. We need to do this today, Livvy. I don’t want to wait until Monday.”
“Okay.”
I squeezed her hand. “Okay. But first, I promised Mouse pancakes.”
Bentley, Aiden, and Maddox listened to what I had to say. Jordan sat at the other end of the table, a quiet support for us. Liv sat beside me, her hand clasped in mine under the table. I could feel her tremble as I spoke, telling them everything, leaving nothing out. When I finished, I sat back and squeezed her hand.
For a moment, there was silence. Then Bentley leaned forward, his hands folded on the table. He regarded us for a moment.
“I’ll start off with this. Your relationship is private. I have no objection to it whatsoever. There’s no company policy about dating within the office, so you’ve broken no rules. To be honest, the two of you work so well together, I’m not surprised it’s carried over into a personal relationship.” He held up his finger. “But to be clear, if this doesn’t work out, I expect you both to act professionally.”
“Not an issue,” I replied. “Since it’s not going to happen.”
“Understood. Now the second part is more troublesome.” He ran a hand over his face. “I wish you had told me of your past relationship with Nolan, Liv. I realize it was personal, but a heads-up might have been helpful.”
Jordan spoke up. “I knew the situation, Bentley. I have been watching it closely. Liv and Van have been completely professional in their dealings toward each other and Nolan. I can’t say the same for his behavior—especially lately.”
Bentley’s gaze swung his way. “And you chose not to say anything because?”
Jordan met his eyes directly. “Because Liv and Van both assured me they had it under control. There are many times we work with people we dislike. As I said, I have been watching the whole thing closely. Even Van will admit, Nolan is a complete ass, but he is getting the job done. If he hadn’t pulled this, we wouldn’t be here.”
“But here we are.”
“I never expected this to happen, Bentley,” Liv assured him. “Not in a million years. Nolan walked away from us and has never expressed any interest. I thought I could handle myself, work the project, and he would be gone again.”
Bentley pursed his lips, looking angry.
“From what Van has said, you have handled yourself, Liv. It sounds as if he’s the one with the issues.” He looked between us. “Toward both of you.”
Aiden spoke. “What if we pull Liv and Van from the project—assign someone else? Then they don’t have to deal with him on a daily basis. Would it make things easier?”
Liv and I shook our heads.
“We aren’t running, Aiden. If we did that, it would show him we’re scared.”
“Van is right,” Maddox stated. “Nolan is a bully of the worst kind. He wants them to run. He wants the upper hand.”
For a moment, the room was silent. I knew they were upset over this news, and I hoped they would give me a chance to explain further. Especially Bentley. He trusted me, and I didn’t want his trust to waver. I was grateful when he spoke again, showing he was concentrating on the problem at hand.
“What do we do?” Bentley asked. “What do you need from us?”
I leaned forward. “We don’t expect you to do anything. I’m going to get Liv a lawyer, and we’re going to fight this all the way. We needed you to know because it could cause friction between WIN and BAM.”
The three partners looked at each other, then Aiden addressed us. “If you expect us to do nothing when one of our own is under attack, you’re sadly mistaken.”
Liv began to protest, and Bentley silenced her. “Samantha is your daughter, Liv. You’ve raised her on your own. Given the new feelings I’ve discovered since becoming a father, I can only imagine the terror and anger you’re feeling at the thought of Nolan being part of her life if he’s the terrible person you describe him as being. If someone were a threat to Addi, I would move heaven and earth to eliminate them.” He leaned forward, tapping the table with his finger. “You aren’t going to lose your daughter, Liv.” He met my gaze, his determined. “I won’t allow it.”
I sat back, relieved. I needed to hear those words. We needed the clout of BAM behind us, and now we had it.
Bentley stood, directing his attention to Aiden. “Call John and arrange a meeting today—and tell him Nolan needs to be there as well for part of it. I want all of the cards on the table. If he doesn’t agree to my terms, the contract is being canceled. I don’t care about the ramifications. And get Reid on this. I’ll call Hal Smithers—he’s a shark in family law. I’ll get him on retainer.”