Rock Hard Neighbor

Brian was the luckiest man alive to have her in his life.

The front door burst open, and I whipped my head around. Brian stalked in, his face sunken and his form standing tall. Lanie rolled off the couch and ran toward him, wrapping her arms around his leg as he stooped.

He looked down at the little girl, and I could’ve sworn there were tears in his eyes.

“Come here, you,” he said.

“Uncle Bwian! Guess what?” she asked.

I felt my heart thudding in my chest as I stared at Lanie.

“What?” Brian asked.

“Tag! You’re it!”

Lanie smacked Brian’s forehead before she wiggled from his grasp. I covered my laughter with my hand as Brian took off after her down the hallway. I could hear Lanie’s giggles as she ran to her room. The joy that filled this cabin when she was happy swelled my heart so big I thought it would burst.

Soon, I heard Brian’s voice coming from Lanie’s room. I got up from the couch and turned the corner, watching as he tucked her in for her nap. She was clinging to him, her arms wrapped around his neck as she planted a big kiss on his cheek.

“I love you, Uncle Bwian,” she said.

“I love you, too, Lanie.”

My heart melted at that very moment. Tears rose in my eyes as I placed my hand on my chest. Here was this big burly man, with carnal desires and callused hands. He had a stern look and a hard brow, with icy eyes and a low voice. And here he was, professing his love to a little three-year-old girl who had him wrapped around her finger.

“Could we have ice cream after my nap?” Lanie asked.

“Only if you have sweet dreams,” Brian said.

“Okay. But what if I have a nightmare?”

“Then you come get me, and I’ll fight off all the bad guys,” he said.

I leaned against the wall as I wiped a tear away from my eye. There was no way in hell anyone could parent that child better than he could. There was no way anyone on this planet could love her more than he already did. I watched as Brian got up and closed her door before he turned toward me. And when he did, darkness fell back over his eyes.

“What happened this morning?” I asked.

“Come sit with me,” he said.

He held his hand out to me, and I took it. He led me back out to the couch, and we sat down. His hand wrapped around my waist and pulled me close to him, and we sat in silence as he collected his thoughts.

“Have I ever told you what I used to do for work?” he asked.

“No,” I said.

“I built a business with a friend of mine. A security and personal protection business.”

“You did?” I asked.

“Yes. Protection has always been in my veins, but private protection always seemed to be reserved for those who had money. I didn’t like that, and I found another guy like me who didn’t like it, either.”

“What’s your business called?”

“I stepped down from the day to day after my divorce, and I moved out here. But I still own it. Cosaint Protection Agency.”

“Why does that name sound familiar?” I asked.

“We have a warehouse here. We tried to get an East Coast installment of the company up and running back a few years ago. We posted some billboards to advertise it before we put things on hold.”

“Okay. So, you don’t work there, but you still own it?” I asked.

“Majority stock, yes. It’s how I take care of Lanie and live without working.”

“Do you think you’ll ever go back?” I asked.

“No. After living out here for a couple of years, I enjoyed the isolation. So I told Jack, the guy who started this all with me, that I wasn’t coming back.”

“What does that have to do with what happened this morning?”

“The warehouse we have out here was burned to the ground.”

My face fell as my lips parted in shock.

“What?” I asked.

“Yeah. The detective that was on the scene already declared it arson. He could smell the accelerant from a mile away. It had to be Bob.”

“Wait, you can prove that?” I asked.

“No, but it makes sense. Jack never took my name off any formal documents. I’m still technically a sitting board member on the official paperwork. That man walked up onto my doorstep a few days ago. He has someone digging up info on me, and that would be easy to find.”

“So you think he set the fire,” I said.

“I’m almost certain he did. He was trying his best to show me that he has the upper hand.It’s the only thing I can come up with. Except he obviously doesn’t understand how businesses work. It’s a nuisance, but if my P.I. and the detective can link this to him, between that and our marriage, my custody case is secured.”