I look back up at him. “It’s hard enough being the kid who’s been alone since sixteen, so I’d really like to ask a fucking favor.” I laugh at how stupid it sounds knowing his kid is in my bed.
He doesn’t say anything, so I just throw it out there, hoping maybe he’ll show me some grace. “I only have a couple months here, and I really don’t want people talking shit about me or trying to ruin my chance at becoming someone good, doing something good, even though I was born in this situation.”
He finally speaks, and it’s the most up-front question, too. “Why were you still sending him money after you knew who he was?”
“Kept saying he was gonna come here, wanted to meet his boy. I thought if I threw him a bone, he’d stay away. Never gave him enough for bus fare at one time. Played the game to shut a fucking door that should have never been opened. But Gabrielle thought maybe I had someone out there who gave a fuck. Never told her. I prefer she doesn’t know.”
I look up to see his head is hung low.
“My birth certificate says father unknown. Once I get to Columbia, I’m not looking back.”
“Your home is here.”
“No.” I shake my head. “Not coming back.”
Fighting fucking tears again, I look toward the ocean. “I care about her. A fucking lot. So, I’m going to ask you another favor. Keep her the fuck away from me. If it takes telling her who I am, then do it. Just keep her away.”
I stand up, pull my keys from my pocket, and then toss the spare to him. “She’s in my room. Get her out of here.”
“You and she didn’t …?” He stops himself.
“Do you think I would take that from her, knowing what I know? Knowing my father beat her mother up and tried to sell her … fucking innocence? I may be from shit, sir, but even I couldn’t look at myself in the mirror if I did that, knowing what I know.”
I start to walk away, and he calls after me, “Tobias!”
“Just get her the fuck out of here!”
“Dad?” I hear Truth and start running. “Oh my God, what did you do to him, Dad! What did you do!”
“Come on, little bird; let’s get you home.”
“He didn’t do anything! He didn’t even try! I did, though, and …”
I outrun her voice, and then I fucking lose my mind.
Chapter Twenty Four
Cyrus
“How are you doing?” Tara asks from over her shoulder as I walk in on her rearranging shit on her dressing table before she turns around and looks at me with eyes that I know will see through my shit if I spew it.
Normally, I can hide shit, avoid conversations, micromanage situations, have little conversations about shit that might get heavy before it does with the kids, taking every fucking precaution I can to ensure that they don’t get weighed down by anything they don’t need to be weighed down with.
Sounds like a lot of stress, but it’s a fucking walk in the park compared to days passed, and nothing, not one fucking thing has come up that I couldn’t handle, knowing that I have this woman, who I love, who loves me, and makes me a better man.
“Come here, Birdie,” I say, sprawling out on our bed and patting my lap.
She smiles and floats over. Yeah, my birdie doesn’t walk; she either flies or floats.
Straddling my lap, crawling her fingers up my abs, outlining every fucking piece of art, she then bends down and kisses the kids’ names.
“On a scale of one to five, how bad is whatever you’re hiding from me?” She looks up, green eyes soft and the tiny little worry lines around her eyes crease a bit more.
I sigh and roll her over onto her back, spread her legs with my knees, and press my forehead against hers. “That all depends on how we deal with it, yeah?”
“But not a five, right?”
I shake my head and rub my nose across hers.
“Is she still not talking to you?” she asks, eyes following her fingers as she traces Truth’s name.
I take her hand and kiss her fingers. “Is she talking to you yet?”
She smiles and nods. “I get an I love you at night, and no, I’m not going to school until Dad says he’s sorry in the morning.”
I kiss her neck and chuckle against her cheek.
She pushes up on my chest and takes my face in her hands. “I’m a grown woman, Cyrus. I love that you want to protect me from things, but they’re my kids too.”
I groan and roll onto my back, taking her with me. I move her hand to Justice’s name. “This one is doing some shit he shouldn’t be doing.”
“What?” She smiles.
“He’ll tell me eventually and, until then, I’ll follow them around and make sure they’re safe.”
She strums her fingers on his name. “So, last Saturday night, when you let them get the beach house?”
I laugh and nod.
“Then you went out with your brothers to take care of some Steel issue?” she tsks.
“Birdie, they are Steel issues. More lately than before,” I sigh.
“Spill it.” She traces his name over and over.
“Kids at school have boxing matches.”
Her eyes spring up.
“Justice decided to try his fists at a few rounds.”
She traces my face. “So the bruises he was hiding …?”
I flip her over again. “So, you’re hiding shit from me now?”
She smiles. “It’s not shit. It’s Steel issues, and I’m a Steel.”
I lean in and whisper, “My favorite Steel.” Then I nip her neck.
She rubs her nose against mine. “Did he win?”
“He got knocked down a few times, got back up, his opponent tapped out. So, technically, yeah.”
“And do we know his opponent?”
I move her hand to Truth’s name. “Here’s a hint.”
“It’s not the Reeves boy.” She laughs.
“Birdie, you almost knocked him out. JT would have killed him.”
I don’t tell her Truth kissed the little prick. Honestly, I want to just pretend it didn’t happen.
I roll her over, and she looks at me while she’s deep in thought.
“The boy who wouldn’t come in, the one you keep saying pissed himself when he saw you?”
I laugh. “Birdie, he did.”
“Gabrielle showed me a picture of him before Truth came up. She told me he was the best kind of guy there is.”
Fuck, I think as I run my hands up and down her outer thighs.
“Was that’s who she was with the other night? She wouldn’t tell me.”
I nod and take her hands.
“Did you threaten him?”
I sigh. “Oddly, no.”
“Then why is she so mad at you still? Surely she didn’t think she wouldn’t be grounded for a bit.”
I drag my ass up on the bed and rest my back against the headboard. “Gotta tell you something that involves a lot of shit, but it’s our girl and that boy I want to hate more than I want to have this conversation that are getting the shit end of the deal.”
“Wait—you actually like him?” She smiles.