Torn Bond (Bonded Duet 1)

She shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest, and I grinned at her. I’d never had this level of banter with anyone else, and I was going to soak up every inch of it. I’d have to go home at some stage, and what we were doing right now would end. I knew that. I just didn’t want to think about it.

Lottie trotted back over to me, and I stroked her head, then she jumped into the car. After a couple of minutes, we were back on the road, half of our journey complete. The silence stretched between us the farther down the road we got, and that was when I realized Belle had fallen asleep. I didn’t bother waking her up, not until I was pulling into the long driveway that led to the lake house. And it was then I regretted not kissing her at the service station. That had been our last chance.

“Belle?” I stroked my palm over the side of her face as I pulled to a stop behind Brody’s Mustang. “We’re here.” It was just after eleven now, and most of the lights in the house were off. “Belle?”

“I’m tired,” she moaned, turning her head on the seat to face me. “I need my bed.”

“Come on,” I told her, pulling my keys out of the ignition. “It looks like they’re all asleep anyway.”

She turned to stare at the lake house, her lips lifting into the biggest smile. “Nah, Dad will still be up. In fact, I bet he’s”—the outside light turned on, and Lottie perked up on her seat—“yep, there he is.”

Brody’s large figure appeared in the doorway to the lake house, and as soon as he spotted my car, he took three giant steps forward and flung open the passenger door. At the sight of the newcomer, Lottie growled and darted forward. The belt she was attached to snapped, and I widened my eyes. How the hell had she—

“It’s okay, Lottie,” Belle said, and I stared wide-eyed at a very still Brody. I’d forgotten to tell him about Lottie. “Hold your hand out to her, Dad,” she said, keeping very still.

Brody reached his hand forward, and Lottie snarled again. A couple of seconds went by, and Lottie finally sniffed his hand, then licked it. She was a protective dog, but she was also a big softie.

“You didn’t think this was something you should have told me about?” Brody gritted out, his gaze focused on me as he pulled his hand away from Lottie.

I swallowed as Belle jumped out of the car, followed by Lottie, and I stared at them as they embraced. Brody hadn’t seen his daughter in three months, and the sight of them together made me realize what I was doing. I was sleeping with his baby girl, and I couldn’t bring myself to regret it.

Lottie’s side pushed against Belle’s leg, trying to gain her attention, so she pulled back, then turned to face me. Her gaze met mine as she smiled, and that was all I needed to get through the next seven days.

* * *

BELLE

I hadn’t woken up with the sun shining on me, and birds chirping around me, in so long, and I knew instantly where I was. There wasn’t a single place as special as the lake house. It was full of memories of my childhood, but more importantly, it was a place where we all had fun and just spent time together. Mom insisted on no cells at the lake house, and the rule was mainly for one person—my dad. He’d work all day every day if he could. He loved his job, just like Ford did, but he never knew when to switch off.

I stretched and opened my eyes, but I couldn’t deny I missed having Ford’s heat pressed against my back. For the last few weeks, he’d slept beside me every night, but now, we had to have separate rooms. He dropped me off outside my bedroom last night, and I was sure if Dad hadn’t been standing there, he’d have kissed me. But all he’d managed to say was a quick goodnight, and then he sauntered down the hall and to his bedroom.

“Belle Easton!” Mom shouted, her fist banging against my bedroom door. “You better get your ass out here right now and explain to me why there is a giant furball in my lake house.”

A brash laugh escaped my throat, and I jumped out of my bed and dashed toward my bedroom door. I flung it open and didn’t waste a second throwing my arms around Mom and hugging her as tight as I could. Her arms wrapped around me just as fiercely, and I basked in the safety of them. I hadn’t spoken to her much, not since someone had tried to break in. And although I liked to put on a front that I was okay, the reality of the situation had sunk in, and I was scared. But right then, I didn’t feel an ounce of fear. Not when my mom had her arms around me. There wasn’t anything that compared to a mother’s love and protectiveness.

“I missed you so much,” she whispered, and I nodded, not able to voice a reply. I wasn’t sure how long I stood there wrapped in her arms, but after a while, a second set came around us both.

“I missed you too,” Dad’s gruff voice said, and I tilted my head to look up at him. “Didn’t get to say that last night, thanks to your guard dog.”

At that, Mom pulled back and placed her hands on her hips. “Yeah, missy. Don’t think I’ve forgotten about your furball that you didn’t tell us about.”

I laughed as I spun around to grab my fluffy robe. “She’s not my dog,” I told them as I pushed my arms through it and tied it around my waist, then walked past them both, feeling the wood floorboards against the soles of my feet. “Ford adopted her from the shelter.”

“The shelter?” Dad repeated. “You mean, the shelter you didn’t tell us you work at?”

I didn’t turn to look at them as I walked down the stairs, but I could hear them following me. “I don’t work there,” I said, walking into the large kitchen. Dad had remodeled the lake house ten years ago, completely updating

it. Now the kitchen had floor-to-ceiling sliding doors, which took you out onto a balcony and then led to the dock and lake. “I volunteer there.”

I spotted Aria standing at the kitchen counter, her hands wrapped around a coffee cup as she stared out the doors and onto the lake. Her red hair was pulled in a messy bun on the top of her head, and her face had a small smile on it, which got bigger as she looked at me.

“Semantics,” Dad growled. “You should have told us.”

I pulled the refrigerator open and moved closer to Aria. “You would have made me quit.” I didn’t look up at Dad, because he knew it was true. I’d needed something just for me.

“And the coffee shop?” Mom asked. “You don’t need to work, Belle. You—”

“I wanted to.” I poured myself a glass of OJ and finally stared at them both. They were putting up a united front as they stood across the counter. “I don’t want to talk about it. I don’t even want to think about college and what is going on right now. I just want to spend time with you all and not look over my shoulder in case someone is trying to get me.” I took a swig of the OJ and heard nails clacking on wood. A couple of seconds later, Lottie whizzed into the kitchen and straight to me.