“No. I want it.” She cupped his face with her hands.
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“Then stay, be my old lady and make a real go of it.”
She studied him from beneath her thick lashes.
“Don’t go, Ardy!” Rocket’s small voice echoed in the room. He’d sat up in the bed.
Little sneak wasn’t sleep after all.
“We want you to stay.” Rocket slid off the cot and ran over, wrapping his arms around them both. “I want you to be my mommy, like my friends have.”
Ardy’s jaw dropped. “Rocket, I don’t…D?”
Demon smirked. “Great minds think alike, little man. How about we give this thing a chance to grow naturally before we put labels on it?”
Rocket wrinkled his nose. “Okay. But...” His voice shook. “You’ll stay, right?”
Not above using a little dose of guilt to get his way, Demon looked at her. “Right, Ardy?”
She nodded her head. “Yeah, I’ll stay.”
“Good, because everyone’s about to be locked down tighter than Fort Knox. This can’t be left unanswered.” She tensed in his arms. “When they’re asleep for the night, you and I are going to have a long conversation. For now, how about we get out of this room, huh?”
Arty nodded.
Rocket stepped back. “I was scared, Daddy.”
“I know you were buddy, but you did a great job. I want you to remember this room in case anything ever happens again, okay?”
“Yes, sir.”
Demon smiled, relieved they were all fine, but furious that it ever happened.
The tension in the house was palpable, as they played nice for the kids. A brother who did construction work came to fix the door Then prospects came to help set the house back the way it had been.
The kids held on until ten when their heavy lids got the best of them and they passed out on the couch. Demon carried them to their bedrooms one by one, tucking them in and kissing their heads. He had boys doing patrols around the house, but he wouldn’t feel right until he got his revenge. This time, I’m going to put that bitch down for good, too. He shoved the thoughts to the back of his mind. Now was the time to deal with Ardy. He hadn’t gotten the answer he wanted out of her earlier. I’ll rectify that now.
He walked to his bed and paused in the doorframe, admiring the way she looked sitting on the bed freshly showered, clad in a pair of boxer shorts and a tank top. Her hardened nipples poked out. No bra. He bit back a moan. “You ready to talk?” He walked over and sat down on the edge of the bed facing her.
All the stoicism left her expression and she launched herself into his arms. Silent sobs shook her frame.
He rubbed her back. “It’s okay, baby girl. I got you.”
“I was so scared, D. I was sure they were going to come in, take the kids and kill me.”
He clenched his jaw, swallowing the angry words that wouldn’t fly. It wasn’t what she needed. “I’ll never let anything happen to you, Ardy. I don’t know how you did it, but you came into this house and filled all those empty spots, in me…in my kids.” He shook his head. “I’m not good at this shit. I can’t whisper pretty words, but I can promise to protect you for the rest of your life and take care of you.”
She pulled back, wiping at her tears. “I don’t need you to do that.”
“No and that’s part of why I like you so much. Fuck, Ardy. You have to know I’m half in love with you.”
Her eyes grew as round as quarters. “Y—you are?”
“Why else would I be making an ass of myself right now?”
“You’re not.” She shook her head. “I thought—I hoped, but...You—men like you don’t want women like me.”