Page 29 of Shield and Savior
“I know, Drew. I know.” Grinning at him, I say, “You blamed it on Maria,” and nudge his shoulder. “That was a douche move, but I’m not going anywhere. Okay?”
From behind us, a door creaks open, and Izzy pokes her head out. “Baby, you okay?”
I give her a nod, but quickly realize she’s talking to her son. “He’s fine. Guy talk.”
Izzy’s wearing a light blue tank top and striped lounge pants hanging low on her hips, and for a second, the soft white skin of her stomach shows. My fingers itch to touch it, and my dick needs a refresher course of professionalism. He’s been paying attention to her cleavage. Jerk. I shift on the couch.
She crosses the room, arms out and ready to fix any heartache she can. She pets his brown hair. “You wanna come to bed with me?”
There’s a pause. He looks up at me, like he’s asking permission. Maybe he’s getting too old for that? Or he thinks I might treat him like a kid. “Never turn down an opportunity for snuggles from your mom.”
Fuck, I’d be in there if I could. Not sure if Izzy would want me there, though.
“How about I go tuck you in, and we can talk for a little while?” She offers her arms, and the kid steals my blanket and hobbles back to his room.
He stops and gives me a backward glance before shuffling through the door. “Thanks, Lance.”
The door clicks behind them, and I’m alone again.
I spend the next few minutes flipping through the security cameras we have set up around the building. There’s a blue car parked across the street, the same one as the night before. I don’t love it, but I’m not getting the heebie-jeebies from it. Which means it’s either totally benign, or I’ve become too comfortable here.
A couple of minutes later, Izzy comes out of the bedroom and joins me on the couch, wrapping herself up in the blanket she stole from her kid. “Thanks for looking out for him.”
“Of course.”
“Sometimes I feel like such a failure.” She balls herself up like her son did a few minutes ago.
Now this I can’t handle. I drape my arm around her and pull her into my chest. “You are many things, Izzy, but a failure isn’t one of them.”
“How can someone be so terrible but make such a wonderful thing with me?”
“He didn’t make anything with you. He supplied some of the raw materials, but you turned Drew into the masterpiece he is today.” I add under my breath, “Even though he needs to work on his Slurpee drinking skills.”
Izzy nuzzles into my chest. “This is nice.”
“Yeah.” My fingers move of their own design, wrapping around her hair. Her breathing slows and tiny snores escape her nose. I let her lay there until I know she’s fully out. Picking her up is a struggle. Not because she’s heavy, but the motion is awkward. Once in her bedroom, I place her on her bed like she’s a baby bird and wrap her up in her comforter. She snores more, and I laugh. She’s perfect.
ChapterFifteen
Lance
I get a text from Alana telling me to swing by the office before I head home. And as exhausted as I am, there’s no way I can blow this off.
Alana sits in her third-floor office with her assistant, Macie. She works for Alana, not Mastodon. Alana has made that very clear. Memo to everyone: Do not ask Macie to pull a file for you. Or get you coffee.
She gives me a little wave, “Hey, Lance.”
“S’up, Macie.”
She puts a file on Alana’s desk and brushes past me. “I’ll get working on those issues.”
Alana rubs her temples like she does whenever she’s losing the battle between her and a headache. I give her about three more minutes before she takes an aspirin. “What’s up, boss?”
She pulls some papers off her desk and flips through them. “Insurance shit, celebrity drama, covert operations, and a crazy stalker ex.”
I take a seat in the chair across from her desk. “One of your crazy exes?”
She shoots me a warning glare and tosses me the folder Macie placed on the desk. I grab it, and my heart stops. Emails, death threats, and photos of Izzy through a telescopic lens. “Holy shit.”