Scum probably doesn’t know his own name anymore, since he’s trapped with Cody Hollingsworth, Zebulon Blackwood, and Odhran Murray in a warehouse right now. Not in the city, which is too overrun with police officers and immigration enforcement to be safe considering the hornet’s nest that we poked.
“Really?”
“I said I’ll give you twenty grand,” I grumble. “Isn’t that enough for you?”
“I want to live in peace,” Oske says. “Brinley might be content to get money and run off, but I’m not.”
“Who says I want to run off?” Brinley says. “I’m takingthe money and then we’ll be back because they’re gonna solve it. Right?”
“Right.”
Oske glares, because that’s what she does – gives us lectures like she’s our mom.
“Okay. So let’s say you idiots have some upper hand over this gang of bikers. Perhaps a captive. You must not have Tylee, or Wyatt wouldn’t have called me in a total panic.”
“Correct,” Ethan says. “We don’t have her. Are you going to help or just bitch?”
“No,” Oske says. “I’m going to take the twenty thousand dollars Isaac promised and fuck off for a bit. But I’m coming back. And I wish you all would realize that the more you get into trouble, the more likely it is that one of you gets killed.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Gabby
It’s over. Not quite, but soon. Isaac has his kids back and instead of Ethan’s basement, his family has been working on getting him a brand new place to raise the kids. The house isinsane– it’s a five bedroom house in Brooklin that’s a fully updated colonial with fireplaces in every bedroom, two dining rooms, two kitchens, a two car garageanda basketball hoop. They have a finished basement too which essentially has its own studio apartment. Isaac insists I come back with them for the night and because of what happened with Tylee, I don’t feel like I’m really in a position to argue.
The kids are adorable and I love spending time with them, but whenever there’s a lull in activity, the knot in the base of my stomach tightens. I can’t get attached to them or to this. I can’t get attached to anything here. It’s clear that Isaac’s priorities are his kids. I could never ask him to put me first. I could never ask him to prioritize a relationship over building stability for his kids. I can tell they missed him.
While the baby falls asleep first, the other two kids stay up until eleven when their bodies physically can’t stay awake anymore. We’re all watching Disney movies on the living roomcouches together. I sit on the chair so the other kids can sit with their dad and they both fall asleep clinging to Isaac like baby monkeys. It’s like they’re afraid they’ll close their eyes and he won’t be there anymore.
It’s heartbreaking.
Isaac carries them off to bed and I’m about to sneak off to the guest room when he returns and calls my name. “Gabby, where are you headed?”
I look over my shoulder and when I see him standing there, all my emotions come slamming into me at once. What the hell am I doing here with this man? I feel like I spent all day living in this fantasy where we were a family. The truth is, Isaac is with me because he feels obligated to keep me safe. He already has a family and this family doesn’t need me to be a part of it.
“To sleep.”
“The kids won’t wake up until tomorrow,” he says. His warm smile will make turning him down even harder. “Stay up a while. Have a drink with me.”
I look over at him. I can’t turn him down, even if I really wanted to. I just can’t stop myself from yielding to his voice and nodding along. Where will his offer for a drink lead? A serious talk about my future? Eviction? Ever since Isaac’s kids came back into the picture, I know my time here is running out.
It’s not like I don’t have a life to get back to. I have to prepare for Harvard classes starting next semester. Go out for matcha with Averie…
“Wine?” Isaac offers.
“Since when do you drink wine?”
“Since I started feeling again,” Isaac says, reaching for a bottle of wine that he has to dust off, so it must be at least a little bit old. I can smell the red wine as I approach the glass and I feel like the scent alone is almost enough to get me drunk. Isaac pours me a healthy glass and an even healthier one for himself.
He watches me take my first sip.Holy shit it’s strong.The first sip almost burns my nostrils. But the wine tastes good.
“Do you like it?”
“Yes.”
Isaac puts his hand on mine and as he stands next to my seat at his kitchen counter. His gaze burns into me. I don’t know if I want to read his mind.
“I care very deeply for you, Gabby.”