They crossed the parking lot to Brad’s car, Gwen hopping across the asphalt, her pigtails swinging. It was hard to imagine she still needed another surgery—but Ian had looked so weary at the thought of the hospital visits, that Brad took care to watch Gwen. From what he’d read of heart surgeries, the chances of complications weren’t so terrible.
What was to say that Gwen’s surgery would go perfectly, though?
It made him uneasy, knowing that Gwen’s life wasn’t a guaranteed thing.
“How was your day?” he asked, shoving the weight in his chest away.
“Exciting,” Gwen said, climbing into the passenger seat of Brad’s car. “We went to the playground. Phil fell down and broke his arm, so Mr. Dale had to call his husband to take Phil to the hospital.”
Brad frowned. “Dale didn’t call an ambulance?”
“Mr. Dale is Phil’s dad,” Gwen said. “So we got to see Mr. Dale’s husband. He’s young!”
“Yeah?” Brad perked up. “How young?”
“I don’t know. He looks like you.”
Well, that was interesting. There was at least a ten-year difference, if not twenty, between Brad and Dale. Brad tapped on the steering wheel, pulling them out of the parking lot.
He’d thought about it sometimes, why Ian would want to stick around with an alpha like him. Brad was young. He didn’t have the wealth and status like older alphas had.
But it seemed as though those other relationships were working out—Harris’, and Dale’s, and maybe there might be hope for himself and Ian. Gods knew Brad wanted to prove himself, wanted to show Ian he could be just as good an alpha as any other.
“So do you want to stick with me and listen to some tunes, or do you want to go wait for your dad at the college?”
“Tunes!” Gwen smiled brightly. “Can I have a lollipop while I listen? Daddy says once a week, but that doesn’t include lollies from you, does it?”
Brad hesitated. It probably wasn’t a good idea, giving Gwen candy while Ian wasn’t around. “What about celery sticks?”
Gwen pouted. “You’re no fun!”
“What’s your favorite fruit, then?”
“Grapes,” Gwen said. “But only the green ones.”
“Let’s get you some grapes,” Brad said, changing lanes to make a left turn. “I don’t want to get into trouble with your dad.”
“Why? In case he doesn’t want to kiss you anymore?”
Brad paused. Then he decided there wasn’t any point hiding it, if he was hanging around long-term with Ian and Gwen. “Yeah. I want to stay on his good side so I get kisses.”
Gwen wrinkled her nose. “What’s so great about kisses? They’re gross.”
“But your dad kisses you too, doesn’t he?”
“Not on the mouth!” Gwen made a face. “I tried kissing Benjamin in class, his tongue is gross.” She retched.
Brad narrowed his eyes, something in his chest growling like a tiger. “Who is this Benjamin person?”
Gwen shrugged. “He has rabbit teeth. He picks his nose in class. I kind of like him.”
Brad hesitated. He needed to mention it to Ian before he said anything about kissing to Gwen. But all the same, he wasn’t sure he wanted some random kid touching his daughter. Didn’t sound right at all. “Look, stay away from that Benjamin kid, all right? He can’t be good for you.”
Gwen sniffed. “But you don’t know him! He rolls his snot into snot balls and sticks them back into his nose.”
How the fuck is that cute? Brad bit his tongue. “Well, don’t kiss him again.”
“I won’t,” Gwen said, shuddering. “You can have all the kisses in the world.”
“Good.” Brad pulled into the parking lot of the department store. “C’mon, let’s get you some grapes.”
They parked and crossed the asphalt, Gwen’s tiny hand in Brad’s.
He’d fetched Gwen from the childcare center before, but he’d always taken Gwen to the college. This was the first time Brad was spending any extended period of time alone with his daughter.
He texted Ian their location, and how long they’d be staying for. His phone buzzed almost immediately.
Thank you, Ian said. I hope she doesn’t give you too much trouble.
“Your dad said not to give me any trouble,” Brad told Gwen, grinning. “Do you give him cheek?”
“No!” Gwen smiled, looking down in thought. “Well, maybe. When he’s happy.”
Brad stared at her, his smile fading. Had Gwen seen Ian at his worst? She had, hadn’t she? I should’ve been there. Shouldn’t have let him get to that point. “What does he do when he’s not happy?”
“He doesn’t care about me when he’s in a mood,” Gwen said, her eyes downcast. “He locks himself in the bathroom.”
That was probably when he did the cutting. It couldn’t be good for either of them, Ian trying to cope like that. Even though Ian didn’t want Gwen to know what he was doing, she still knew he was locking himself away.
How was Brad going help?
“If you see him locking himself in the bathroom, will you text me?” Brad asked. “Just tell me your dad’s in there. You don’t need to tell me if he’s pissing. I’ll give you my number.”
Gwen wrinkled her nose, but she nodded. “Okay.”
They stepped into the department store, heading to the produce section. Brad grabbed a box of green grapes, handing it to Gwen. “This okay?”
She turned it over in her hands. “Mm-hm.”
“Want anything else?”
Gwen shook her head.
“What about your dad? What does he get when you guys go to the store? Or, wait. I’ve got a better question. What does your dad always look at, but he doesn’t buy?”
Gwen chewed on her lip, glancing around. “That’s the butter cookies.”
“Yeah?” Brad turned her to the cookie section. “You know which ones?”
Gwen scanned the shelves. Then she pointed to a navy-blue tin printed with an assortment of cookies. “Those!”
The Danish cookies were a good choice. Kind of pricey. Brad remembered Ian’s shadowed eyes, the way his shoulders had sagged when he’d talked about the debt. He couldn’t imagine Ian had spent much at all on the things he liked, with how little he thought of himself.
“What soap does he like?” Brad asked.
Gwen shrugged. Brad took them on
