Filthy Daddy (Baby Daddies 2)

The landlord names a number well into the four figures. Liam sees Willow’s face blanch at the number. He knows she’d never be able to afford it. No wonder she was trying to take off. Liam can’t believe what he’s about to do. He takes a deep breath and blows it out loudly.

“Stay here. All of you,” he barks.

He moves quickly to his bedroom and pulls out a drawer in his dresser. Reaching into the hole, he slides out a stack of money. He counts out the required amount, amazed at how much the stack has shrunk. He’ll definitely have to look into getting a job now. He’s spent almost all of what was left of his savings on Willow’s apartment. He guessed it was worth it to keep her and the kid from being homeless.

He walks back to the hallway, they’re all still there, an abject little group. “Here.” Liam smacks the pile of bills into the landlords waiting hand. “Now, her rents paid.”

The little, overweight man counts out the bills and smiles at them all. “Thanks to you, my man.” Then, he moves to Willow’s door and slips an exterior lock on the knob, twisting it shut and dropping the key in his pocket.

“What the hell, man? I just paid you.” Liam can’t believe the balls on this little man.

“Yes, you pay me rent she owe. Not pay for now. She no go in. She no live here anymore. Okay, thank you.” Then, the little round landlord turns and bounces down the stairs like the beach ball he resembles.

Liam looks over at Willow. The stunned look on her face couldn’t be more plain. Her mouth opens and closes several times but she never says anything.

Liam is floored. This chick was winding up to be more trouble than she was worth. He can’t believe he just handed over thousands of dollars for her and she still wound up homeless. So much for being a shining knight and all that.

Willow finally wakes up and crosses the hall to where he’s standing inside his door. “I’m so sorry, Liam,” she says. Tears fill her eyes, “It’s just that. With my mom and his dad, I just don’t know what to do with myself?”

Liam’s a bit confused about her mentioning the two people that she tries to avoid talking about most of the time. He mumbles a few choice words before rubbing his fists roughly over his forehead. “It’s okay, we’ll figure it out.”

Willow lays a soft hand on his arm and squeezes lightly. “It’s okay. We’re not your problem. Thank you for…everything really. Everything thing you’ve done. No one’s ever been as nice to me as you. I’ll never forget you.” She reaches around him for her bag.

“Wait.” He puts his hand on hers to stop her. “Where are you going?”

“Uh.” She seems stumped by this question for a minute. She looks over her shoulder at Frank still standing by the door. “I guess, to the shelter.”

“Shelter?”

She leans forward and whispers to him, “Homeless shelter. I’ll tell Frank it’s a hotel.”

“What? Willow, no. I can’t let you do that.”

“I

don’t have much of a choice right now, Liam. I’m broke and homeless. That’s where broke and homeless people go.” She grabs the handle of her bag and starts to wheel it out of the apartment.

He can’t let her go. “Stay here,” he blurts out.

What did I just say?

Liam has a feeling that there was something more than rent that made Willow want to leave. If she’d tried to get a job at another place, then he could understand, but she hadn’t and just seemed bent on leaving.

He must have because Willow stops dead and turns to face him. “What?”

Liam clears his throat. “Stay here. You and Frank. Just for a little while. I can’t let you take him to a shelter, Willow. Those places…can be…not so nice, sometimes. You guys can have the bedroom, I’ll bunk on the sofa.”

“Uh.” Willow is fidgeting, glancing back and forth between Liam and Frank. He can see her wavering. She doesn’t want to go to a shelter with her son in tow. Who would?

“Mommy, are we staying?” Frank pipes up in a small voice.

Frank’s tiny voice is all it takes to break her resolve. Her shoulders slump and her hand drops from her bag. She sweeps Frank up and hugs him to her. “Yeah, baby. We’re staying, just for a few days.”

When Liam looks at Frank, he sees the boy studying him with a serious expression on his preschooler face. “Okay,” he lisps “but no being mean.”

Liam presses his lips together to hold back a chuckle. Schooled by a three-year old. “Okay, no being mean.”

“Yeah.” Frank grins at Liam. “Cause we’re bugs and bugs don’t be mean to each other.”