As if he’d conjured the devil himself with his words, I heard Hope’s voice from the other room talking to someone.
“Can you watch this?” I gestured to the sauce. “I’m gonna check on Hope.”
“Pffttt, in my sleep.” He waved me off.
I entered the hallway and was going to head to her room when I heard a woman’s laughter from the direction of the front door. I made my way to the front and noticed the door was open and the screen closed.
My heart started pounding as I saw an adult’s dark brown head next to Hope. I dashed forward and the screen door slapped against the frame when I plowed through.
“Izzy! Look at what I got.” She jumped to her feet and held up a brand-new Barbie doll. Wrapping paper littered the porch around her checkered Converse.
The woman stood and turned around.
Veronica.
“Hope, come here.” I reached for her hand and tugged her to my side.
She pushed the toy toward my face. “Look! The nice lady said the doll looks like me and she does!” She squealed in delight.
I clenched my teeth and glared at Veronica.
“Little miss, Uncle Jasper needs help with that sauce. His arm is probably getting tired of stirring, waiting for you to come back.”
Her eyes widened and she hugged the toy to her chest. She twirled around and looked at Veronica. “Thank you, Roni! But I have to go. Uncle Jasper needs me!”
“Goodbye, sweetheart. See you soon!” she said sweetly, and I wanted to kick her right in the lady parts.
When Hope was out of earshot, I stepped onto the porch and shut both the wooden door and the screen behind me.
“What are you doing here?” I growled, not hiding the anger pouring through my question in the least.
She sneered. “Technically, this is my house. My husband. And my daughter. Really, I should be asking you what you’re doing in a married man’s house playing mommy to my daughter!” Her words dripped with a poisonous venom.
“How dare you show up here like this. Did you wait for Kyson to leave?”
She smiled and shrugged her shoulder. “I wanted to see my daughter. There’s nothing wrong with a woman wanting to see her child.”
“It’s been years, Veronica. You can’t just show up out of the blue and bring a toy and expect everything to be okay. That’s not how things work when you abandon your child!” I tried to keep my voice down but apparently, it didn’t work.
Out of nowhere I felt a large presence behind me.
Veronica looked up and I turned my head to see Milo standing behind me with his arms crossed and his black hair down around his shoulders. He looked like a Native American warrior from a hundred years ago, come to save the day.
“Leave.” He bellowed the single word.
Veronica took two steps back as the hair on my neck stood up in response.
“You can’t tell me to leave my own house,” she mocked and crossed her arms over her chest, copying Milo’s stance.
“I can. I have. Leave before I make you leave,” he warned and began to make his way down the four steps that led to the sidewalk where Veronica stood.
She took another two steps back and I smirked.
“Who are you anyway?”
“Uncle Milo,” he said clear as day, and my heart pitter-pattered while I literally swooned where I stood. Milo wasn’t much for speech but when he did speak, he meant every word he said.
“Hope doesn’t have an uncle Milo,” she scoffed.
“She does now. Leave.” He took another step down.
I stayed where I was and hoped that Kyson and Lincoln would show.
Veronica squinted and her lips twisted into a snarl. “You can’t scare me away from my own home and daughter!” she cried out.
“Leave!” he thundered and took the final two steps down.
Veronica jumped and scampered toward the beat-up Honda Civic that had a primed back passenger door with no paint.
I came up behind Milo and put my hand on his shoulder right about the time that Evie came traipsing out the door.
Veronica’s gaze flitted to the tall, golden beauty and frowned. Evie came up behind me and wrapped her arm around my waist.
“Izzy, you’re trembling.” Evie pulled me to her side. “Milo, what’s wrong? I heard your voice shake the windows all the way from inside.”
Milo didn’t speak, just lifted his chin toward Veronica, who was scrambling to get into her car.
“Tell Kyson he hasn’t seen the last of me!” she screeched and I winced at the sound.
“Who was that?” Evie asked as the car started up and pulled away, leaving black skid marks in front of Kyson’s house.
“That was Veronica.”
“She just showed up out of the blue?” Evie choked out the words and I nodded. “What in the world would possess her to do that?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know.”
“I do not like this woman. Her eyes show her soul is black,” Milo stated as he continued to stare in the direction that Veronica disappeared.
Evie linked her elbow with mine. “Come on, let’s get inside. Hope needs you.”
Her words broke me out of my stupor, and I nodded. “Let’s go. I want to feed my family.”
* * *
Later that night after everyone had left, Kyson tugged off his shirt by lifting his arm behind his head and yanking it off in that manly way that made me drool.
I licked my lips and watched my man pace as I sat on the bed cross-legged fully clothed.
“You’re spending the night,” he stated in a way that was more of a demand than a suggestion.
“Honey, I don’t know if that’s a good idea. Hope made that comment earlier...” I tried to remind him of the discussion we’d had.
He stopped midpace, put his hands on his hips and stared me down, making me lose track of what I was about to say. I couldn’t help but check out his muscular chest and cut abs. I wanted to run my tongue down every ridge. Maybe twice. Okay, three times.
“Isa, we’re done with this. You are in Hope’s life and if I have any say, you’re going to be in her future. Forever, baby.”
I clenched my hands into fists. “What she said about me being her new mommy concerns me. And then Veronica showed up. Maybe it was a sign,” I blurted.
I’d told him everything that happened before and after Veronica arrived. We’d agreed to enjoy the evening with family and talk about it when Hope was in bed. Hope was now in bed and I was freaking out.