Pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, Little One nodded. Then, after taking a steadying breath, she moved. Slipping her hand into Carmen’s, she looked up at me, emerald irises ablaze with an emotion I couldn’t read.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
That wasn’t what I expected her to say.
Sliding my hands into my pockets, I relaxed my shoulders in an attempt to look less intimidating. “For what?”
“For coming to check on me that night below the mill. If you hadn’t shown up when you did and given Mama C the stuff to clean me up, I wouldn’t have healed as fast.”
Carmen’s chin trembled.
Fairly sure mine did too.
“And thank you for the pizza.” Her voice grew less timid and more carefree with each high-pitched word she spoke. “Faye cried when the delivery guy showed up. I almost did too. But Amelia, Faye’s daughter”—a huge smile, one of the most beautiful I’d ever seen, spread across her face—“she looked at us like we were dumb and just started eating.”
My frame vibrated with laughter as Carmen turned, facing me fully. Tears shimmering in her amused gaze, she simply shook her head as she grinned from ear to ear.
Warmth speared my chest.
Seeing them both happy…
It did funny shit to my heart.
“You should’ve seen her,” Little One continued, throwing her arms up in the air all dramatic-like in a move that reminded me of Maddie. “She’s physically smaller than me”—that was saying something since she was as petite as Carmen—“but she ate an entire pizza all by herself. Half of the breadsticks too. And don’t even get me started on the Cokes. I only got a few sips!”
Tossing her head back, Carmen laughed. Hard. Like always, it was a beautiful sound. I’d never tire of hearing it.
Chuckling, I crossed my arms over my chest and rocked back on my heels the slightest bit. “Guess I’ll have to order twice as much next time. That way you won’t miss out on—”
The slamming of the station door behind me drowned out the last of my sentence. Pulling my gaze from the girls, I looked over my shoulder to see which pain in the ass was undoubtedly headed my way, intent on ripping me from the blissful moment I was submerged in.
Only, it wasn’t a pain in the ass.
It was my boy.
Not paying us a bit of mind—does he even see us?—Hendrix headed toward the back of the building, dribbling a faded basketball as he went. A shirtless and stone-faced Tuck followed.
“Hell,” I mumbled. “Here comes World War 3.”
I turned, intent on focusing my attention back on Carmen, but stopped short when I glimpsed the conflicting emotions flashing across Little One’s face. “Who are they?” she asked, tone suddenly laced with both curiosity and fear.
“The one with the basketball is my son, Hendrix,” I answered quickly, hoping it would ease her worry. “And the big dumb gorilla trailing behind him is his best friend, Tuck.”
Her lips twitched. “Big dumb gorilla?”
I chuckled, then nodded. “That’s what he reminds me of when he gets pissed and starts throwing stuff around.” I shook my head. “He likes to make a scene, but he’s harmless to everyone except Hendrix and one of my other guys, Ty. All three of them have always liked to beat on each other from time to time. It’s been that way since they were kids.”
It probably wasn’t the best thing to say.
Yet, my dumbass did it anyway.
Maybe I’m the big dumb gorilla…
To my surprise, Little One beamed a smile my boy’s way instead of slinking back in fright. “I used to live beside three brothers. Triplets, in fact. They always beat each other up too. Especially when it came to sports and video games.” She shrugged. “My daddy always said it was just harmless sibling rivalry.”
My smile returned. “Sounds about right.”
Shifting her weight between her feet, she nibbled on her lip once more. “I used to play basketball, ya know.”
Mouth gaping, a shocked Carmen stared at Little One as she continued to speak to me with ease. It was such a stark contrast to the last time we were all face to face and she was too afraid to let me come close.
But things were different now.
Not to mention, a whole lot better.
“In middle school, I was the best on my team.” Nervously wringing her hands, she looked from Hendrix and Tuck back to me. “Do you think they’d let me play with them? I know they’re older and I won’t be as good, but—”
“Hendrix!”
Carmen’s desperate shout rang out, loud and clear, beating me to the punch. If I hadn’t been in such damned shock, I would’ve laughed. Little One’s behavior had shifted so quickly. All it had taken was an assurance that she was safe, along with talk of pizza and the sight of a faded old basketball to pull her free of her fear-constructed shell.
We couldn’t ask for more than that.
Upon hearing Carmen’s voice, Hendrix snapped his head to the side and looked our way. His eyes widened at the sight of my pixie, followed by a hopeful-looking Little One.
“Yo, Robina Hood!” he hollered, tucking the ball under his arm and jogging our way. “Fancy seeing you again, pretty lady.” Coming to a standstill next to me, he focused on Carmen first. “You doing alright?”
Her eyes flicked to me. “I’m doing better.” Reaching forward, she slipped her hand in mine and laced our fingers together. I inhaled sharply at the feel of her warm skin against mine. “A lot better actually.”
My kid smirked.
I could only imagine what he was thinking.
“That’s good.” His gaze slid to Little One. “Hi, Shorty.”
Eyes wide, Little One gave him a small wave, further surprising me. Carmen too if her expression was anything to go by. “Hi,” she whispered, before peering down at the basketball he still held. “You two about to play a pickup game?”
Hendrix’s brows rose. “Yeah.” I held my breath waiting to see what he would do or say next. I hoped like hell he’d invite her to play instead
