Deacon thought his mother would shatter into pieces when the cancer finally took his father. But she didn’t, she managed to keep their patchwork family together.
They all helped where they could. Even if it was just around the house.
But his mother never gave up after losing the only man she’d ever loved. She kept putting one foot in front of the other, day after day.
Whether she broke down where Deacon and Jemma couldn’t see or hear her, he didn’t know. But he wouldn’t blame her one bit if she had.
So, yeah, Reese reminded him of the two strongest women in his life. The only two women he’d ever loved.
With a loud sigh, he slid a hand down his chest and into his boxer briefs. He was hard as fuck this morning and it would have been nice to turn over to find a warm, willing woman next to him.
Not just any woman. Reese.
But she had gone into her room and shut him out last night. Just like she had the previous nights.
She got what she wanted from him and then split.
Wasn’t karma a fucking bitch?
At least it being a Saturday, they’d finally get to spend some time together when she wasn’t exhausted and had nowhere to go.
“Christ, I’m turnin’ into a goddamn girl, Jussie. Gotta be that fuckin’ pot. It’s gotta be tainted.”
Justice turned his head toward Deke and whined, his tail thumping on the mattress.
“Gotta pee as bad as me?”
Justice whined again and scrambled from the bed.
“Guess you ain’t gonna give me time to work out the big muscle cramp I got.” He stroked his hard-on twice, then, with another sigh, threw off the covers and rolled out of bed.
He stopped in the upstairs bathroom and by the time he brushed his teeth and braided his hair, he was able to piss.
He did so and then followed an excited Justice down the steps. The house was eerily quiet and the kitchen empty when they walked through. He opened the door and his dog rushed past him onto the side deck, down the three steps and across the paved driveway into the woods to do his normal morning business by marking a few trees.
Deacon didn’t watch him, instead he stared at the spot where his truck was usually parked.
The empty spot.
“Son of a bitch,” he grumbled. She had snuck out again this morning, trying to avoid him.
That was starting to hurt his damn feelings.
“You didn’t even give me a fuckin’ heads up, Jussie,” he yelled out into the woods, where his dog was now taking a dump.
He should’ve left his bedroom door open, so when she tried to sneak out, Justice would’ve heard her and woken him up.
He shook his head. Had she actually gone to the office today? On a Saturday? Was she that behind on her work?
Or maybe she was out getting him breakfast so she could surprise him.
Deacon snorted and shook his head. Right.
Justice tore across the driveway, up the steps and into the house, acting five pounds lighter.
“Feel better?”
With his tongue hanging out, Jussie gave him his doggy grin.
“Gimme a sec and I’ll feed your ass.”
He snagged his cell phone off the counter where he’d placed it before letting the dog out and typed out a text.
UR gone.
He leaned back against the counter and stared at his phone, waiting for her response.
Nothing.
That wasn’t acceptable.
U OK? he typed out.
He put the phone down and went over to Justice’s container of dog food, throwing a scoopful into his bowl. Within seconds his dog had scarfed it down and snuffled all around the bowl, looking for any wayward kibble that escaped his massacre.
Deacon went back to his phone, not surprised to see a lack of response.
This was fucking bullshit.
He tapped the screen a little harder than necessary. Where R U?
He was going to call her in a second if she didn’t respond. And keep calling until she answered.
She had his fucking truck, she could check in at least.
Finally, his phone binged. Her answer made him clench his jaws.
The office. Swamped. See you tonight.
Deacon knew what a blow-off looked like. He’d done it plenty of times himself.
She was working on a goddamn Saturday. Probably at the office by herself, too. His finger hovered over his phone’s keyboard. He wanted to make sure she kept her office door locked. Even though she probably wouldn’t like that he was worried about her.
She was used to being independent.
He thought back on what she had said. “I don’t have time for anything more than sex right now. And sometimes not even that. Sex can get complicated and my life is complicated enough without some man trying to be my... hero.”
“Goddamn it,” he muttered.
His fingers itched to type everything that was screaming in his head right now. Demand answers, order her to talk to him. But he fought it, knowing it would do no good. Knew that she would just shut him out even more than she already was.