Page 8 of Callow

“You know what? I don’t want to hear it,” her mother cut her off. “Get your ass in the car. We will talk about it, at length, on the way home,” she said, making Daphne’s face harden. But she went and got in the car.

The mom sucked in a steadying breath at the sound of the passenger door slamming hard. Tilting her head up, she closed her eyes for a three count before exhaling and looking at me.

“Thank you,” she said, the emotion thick, likely knowing exactly what had almost happened to her kid. “She was supposed to be at her friend’s house.”

“Maybe having an eighteen-year-old best friend isn’t the best idea then,” I said, shrugging as said friend walked out of the bar with a group of guys, making me nod my chin at her.

“That’s… another conversation I need to have, I guess,” she said, looking at the young woman like she’d never seen her before.

I glanced hard at her gorgeous face again, not understanding how Daphne could be her kid.

“You’re her mom?” I asked, brows scrunched.

To that, she let out a small laugh. “Let’s say the apple didn’t fall far from this tree,” she said, waving down at herself. “I was seventeen when I got pregnant with her. With a guy who had no business showing an underage me attention.”

That would make her, what? Thirty-two or three? She could still practically pass for an older sister to her daughter instead of her mom, though.

“Is that… blood?” she asked, looking down at my hands, making me automatically flex my fingers.

“Yep,” I said, nodding. “Let’s say the assholes didn’t want to be interrupted.”

“Jesus,” she said, sighing. “Seriously, thank you…”

“Callow,” I said.

“Callow, thank you. I don’t want to think about what might have happened to her if you weren’t here.”

Her body jerked hard as her daughter had the audacity to honk the fucking car horn.

“Is she too young to send to the military?” she asked, sighing.

“Day she turns seventeen,” I shot back, not realizing my hand instinctively went to my leg until her gaze followed.

“Oh. Shit. Sorry, was that insensitive?” she asked, looking horrified that she might have offended me.

“Not at all. Trust me, my parents wanted me to join as soon as I could too.”

“Did it make you less crazy?” she asked. “Because while young motherhood definitely forced me to calm down, I don’t really think I want to recommend that to my kid.”

“It made me a different kind of crazy, I guess,” I admitted.

“Fineee,” she said, feigning disappointment. “I guess I have to rein her in myself then. Oh, I’m gonna kill her,” she said as the horn beeped again, longer. “Really, Callow, thank you.”

“It’s nothing,” I said, shaking my head.

“It’s everything,” she said, hazel eyes full of emotion before she turned and walked back to her car.

By the time she reversed and started to pull out, Daphne was slumped down in her seat as her mom chewed her out.

Mission for the night complete, I decided against going back into the bar and just took the walk back to the clubhouse.

Where I shut myself in my room.

And couldn’t get a frazzled mom’s gorgeous fucking face out of my mind. All the while knowing I’d never see her again.

CHAPTER THREE

Sabrina