“Dispose if it? How? 1–800 Got Old Body Parts?”
I laugh, loving that she’s choosing to find humor in the situation. “I didn’t ask and I prefer not to know.”
“Okay.”
The entire ride to her place, the voice in my head screams at me to pull over and let Mike and JT take her home. Every minute with her is a mistake. The more time I spend with her, the more I want to get to know her, which means giving her an opportunity to sneak into my life. And then what? My history with women is proof I should keep Peyton at a distance.
As I drive, the only words spoken by Peyton are directions to her place. I should offer her some sort of reassurance that she’s safe, but like the asshole I so often am, I hold back and stare out the window. Talking leads to feeling and feeling leads to me getting fucked. I’m not certain how far we’ve driven until she instructs me to pull over in front of a two story four-plex in Logan Heights.
I glace around, noticing bars on the windows of most the homes, although the neighborhood is typically suburban and the surroundings are clean. “You live here?”
“Well, I know it’s not a swank loft downtown, but it’s comfy and affordable and I have great neighbors.”
She gets out of the car and I send a text to Sid, telling him I want an alarm and new locks installed on Peyton’s place. When I get out, I see Peyton staring at her front door, but it’s her trembling hands that peak my worry. Without hesitating, I run up the small path, splitting the lawn.
“What’s wrong?”
“The door’s open,” she says, her voice laced with apprehension. “I locked it before I left this morning. I always do.”
Mike and JT appear behind me with guns drawn.
“Wait here,” JT instructs, pushing the door open. He and Mike enter Peyton’s house and I glance down into her beautiful blue eyes filled to the brim with fear.
“They know where I live?”
Her solemn question comes with a hint of her begging me to fix this and I will.
“They might, but you’re safe. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
She lets me pull her close. As I hold her in my arms, Eduardo’s men breaking into her place doesn’t settle. They knew she was at the loft with me, and they already sent the warning. Something feels off.
Mike and JT come outside, informing us it’s safe to go inside. Peyton bursts into tears when she goes through the front door. Her entire place is turned upside down. The contents of her drawers spread the floor and furniture is flipped over. Broken glass and porcelain cover the kitchen floor. I stay behind her, listening to her quietly sob as she moves from room to room.
As I follow her down the hall, she spins around on me, stopping me in my tracks. Anger flashes in her eyes as she thrusts her fists into my chest.
“You did this,” she yells. “I wish I never met you.”
Arguing would be futile at this point. While I may believe this wasn’t Montez, Peyton doesn’t. But I agree with wishing she’d never met me. I don’t try to stop her when she storms down the hall, into a room and slams the door shut. She should be angry with me. I’m angry.
I want to go talk to her, but there’s nothing I can say. I fucked up. As I trudge through the dense grass in her front yard, I look at the men across the street sprawled out on the front steps of a small apartment building. They watch me as I round the front of my car.
“You lost?” One of them shouts.
I freeze, considering crossing the street to engage the men with some antagonizing comment, but then I hear Peyton. My gaze rises to her running toward me. “Wait! I can’t stay here.” She stops in front of me with tears raining down her cheeks. I want to pull her into my arms and console her, but that’s a line I have no business crossing, although I will eventually. I always do.
“I understand. I’ll take you to a hotel.”
“Thank you.” She smiles, pointing to her front door. “I need a minute to pack a few things.”
As I settle into my car, the voice in my head warning me to be done with Peyton grows louder, but I choose to ignore it. I’m responsible for the horrendous turn of events in her life. I can’t abandon her because I’m afraid of how I might feel. Fuck that my history of comforting women always turns out badly for me. This time, I’m the reason Peyton needs consoling.
Mike follows us in Peyton’s car. JT stays behind to meet a cleanup crew I hired and make certain Peyton’s place is secure. As I drive, I stare at Peyton from the corner of my eye and absorb every ounce of guilt over putting her in danger.
Then it hits me that Eduardo’s men could go after Brady, Tori, Drew, or Little A. My sister. I thought I had nothing to lose by confronting him, but I do. I have people in my life I care about. Knowing I have a weakness should make me abandon my plans, but it’s because of my family that I can’t. The only way to keep them safe is to put an end to Eduardo Montez. Until he’s no longer breathing, no one I care about is safe.
The morning sun filters through my window, but the warmth beside me belongs to my little boy. A smile spreads my lips as I stare down at his gorgeous face while he sleeps. It’s been so long since he’s slept in my bed. Eduardo won’t allow it, yet, here’s my precious baby, curled up next to me in peaceful sleep.
I smile as I remember finding Javier in my bed last night when Eduardo escorted me back to my room. I’d immediately told Eduardo that I’d carry Javier to his room, expecting anger to be spit at me. To my surprise, Eduardo kissed my forehead and told me that it was fine to leave our baby boy sleeping.