When they came back in, I held my breath. Tackle looked stressed, which told me everything I needed to know.
“What do you need at the house?” my mother asked, maybe to break the tension in the room. “We’ll go shopping.”
Tackle looked at me, and I shrugged. “Food?”
“Sure.”
“Let’s go, Carolina,” said my father. “We’ll check with Sloane and Tackle after they’ve had a chance to get settled and better figure out what they need.”
My mother kissed my forehead and rested her hand on my belly. “I love you, mija.”
After my father kissed me too, they both left and I turned to Tackle.
“Tell me what happened.”
“Your father said there’s a job opening with State.”
“My mom told me. How do you feel about it?”
“I don’t want to be away from you and the baby.”
I breathed a sigh of relief.
“I told him the only way I’d consider it is if I worked from home.”
“Home? What about the travel?”
Tackle’s eyes scrunched. “I’d never take anything that involved travel. God, I can’t even imagine being away from you and our little girl for a couple of hours, let alone days.”
“You’re serious, aren’t you?”
He studied me. “Of course I am.”
“Thank you.”
“I don’t know why you’re thanking me, but you’re welcome. You should know my reasons are entirely selfish, though.”
“No, they aren’t, and it’s only one of many reasons I love you.”
The door opened, and the doctor I’d seen in the emergency room walked in. “Ready to go home?”
“So ready.”
36
Tackle
“What are you doing?” Sloane asked when I lifted her from the car into my arms.
“Carrying you inside.”
“Tackle, I can—”
“The doctor was very clear. You have to stay off your feet unless you want to spend the rest of your pregnancy in the hospital.”
Instead of arguing, she put her arms around my neck. “I’m heavy.”
I laughed. “You’re anything but heavy.”
“Did you fight back?” she asked, barely touching the area beneath my still-swollen eye.
“Only to try to protect myself.”
“Knox had no right.”
“We both knew he’d be angry.” As I approached the back steps of our house, the door swung open and Halo walked out.
“Want me to take her?”
I tightened my grip on Sloane’s body. “I’ve got you, peanut.”
She rested her head on my shoulder as I carried her inside and up the staircase.
“Everything ready?” I asked when I got to the top of the stairs.
“Sure is,” Halo answered.
Sloane raised her head when I turned toward the smaller bedroom rather than the master.
“Close your eyes,” I whispered.
She looked at her brother, who stood in front of the closed door, and then back at me. “What’s going on?”
“Close ’em, Sloane.”
When she did, I nodded and Halo opened the door. I carried her inside and set her down in the rocking chair in the room that had been empty when both she and I had last seen it. “Okay, you can open your eyes.”
She gasped, taking in the room that her brother had spent last evening and most of this morning decorating. “Oh my God, Knox. It’s beautiful,” she cried.
“It really is,” I said, walking over to pick up the tiny pink football that sat on a shelf and tossing it to him. “You outdid yourself.”
“How did you know?” asked Sloane, motioning to the hand-painted lettering on the crib that read, “Landry.”
“A little bird told me,” he answered with a wink. He walked over to the bedroom door. “Tara, sweetheart? Where are you?”
“I didn’t want to intrude,” I heard her say from the hallway. When Halo pulled her into the room, I walked over and hugged her. “Thank you,” I murmured.
“You’re welcome,” she answered before walking over to the rocking chair. “You must be Sloane.”
“And you must be Tara. It’s so nice to meet you.”
Tara knelt down and put her hand on the chair’s arm. “I feel like I already know you. Knox talks about you endlessly.”
“Oh dear.”
“It’s all good. I promise.”
“Sloane, Tara is an artist,” said Halo, running his hand over the name on the crib. “She did this along with the rest you see.” Each piece of furniture, the rocker included, was adorned with flowers, vines, even birds.
“It’s so beautiful.” Sloane looked at me and smiled. “I take it you knew about all this?”
“After the third text asking my opinion, I relinquished all remaining decisions to your brother.”
“He does have really good taste.” I saw Sloane wink at Tara, who smiled too. “I told him he’d make someone an excellent husband someday. I’m so glad it’ll be you.”
Tara’s cheeks turned pink, and she looked up at Halo. “Me too.”
“Got a minute?” he asked me, motioning to the hallway.
“You’ll be okay?” I asked Sloane.
“I promise not to get out of the chair. Tara will be my witness.”
I followed Halo out and down the stairs.
“What’s up?”
“I checked in on Nick before you got here. She’s going to be fine. Whoever got to her, broke her arm in a couple of places, and that’s why she needed surgery.”
“Is there any more information about the hit on Caruso?”
“Negative, and I doubt there will be.”
“I warned her,” I said as much to myself as to him.
“About that.”
I raised my head. “What?”
“Evidently, she’s agreed to go back to California.”
“Who told you that?”
“Doc told me, but he heard it from Messick.”
I remembered seeing something pass between the two of them when he brought her to the house from the airport. “Her and Ranger, huh?”
Halo shrugged. “No idea, but it kinda sounded like it.”
“If so, he knows what he’s getting into. It’s none of my business anymore.”
When Halo and I walked back into what I now thought of as Baby Landry’s room, Tara was sitting cross-legged on the floor and both women were laughing so hard tears ran down their cheeks.
“I don’t think I want to know,” said Halo.
“What they’re laughing about? Me either.”
When she saw me, Sloane held out her hand.
“Need to go lie down?”
“I do. I’m sorry, Tara.”
“Don’t
