When I wake, Isaac is already taking a shower, but there is a small box on my pillow.A smile curves my lips as I lean against the headboard and I still hold the box.Opening it gently, I pull out a miniature chessboard keychain. It's tacky and clearly from some bargain gift shop. It's a foolish thing to give a person, and yet I can't help my heart stutter.I unfold the note and read Isaac's handwriting.Congrats, Anna Muzycuk. You're beating me sometimes now.I burst out laughing. Anna Muzycuk is a chess grandmaster, and I truly admire her. There is something that stirs within my chest. I am surprised he would even go out of his way to do something like this. It is in these moments, these moments when the Isaac cool guy façade crumbles, that you get a glimpse of something warmer beneath. A fleeting moment that makes my body hum and heart beat a little faster, knowing I am the only one who is seeing it so carelessly laid bare.And unsteadily, I shake my head and propel myself out of b
I exhale and scratch the nape of my neck. "Er, well…"But when I look back at L'Oreal, her face is so hopeful. So goddamn desperate for my approval.Kyoline looks at me. "She spent the entire afternoon dressing them up," she says. "It was…a battle of wills."I chuckle. "And the dogs lost?" "Clearly," Kyoline clips.L'Oreal swoops up to Killer, wrapping his great, fluffy neck in her tiny arms. "The doggies are so pretty," she keeps saying, burying her face in his coat. "Just like pretty princesses."My heart tightens in a way I don't know that I'm ready to cope with. I hadn't expected to get so close to this child. Didn't think I'd get used to her laugh in my house, the way she clings to me when I'm reading to her, and the way she looks up at me like I'm a fuckin' superhero. Didn't think I'd get this close to any of them.I shake my head, releasing the laugh that's been coming for so long finally. "Yeah, kid. They look…good."L'Oreal beams at me, and it’s a beautiful smile just lik
I'm working the bar when Isaac stops in for a meeting with Vincent Danza."Whiskey," he orders.I give him a big smile as I reach for a glass and pour his whiskey—straight up because that's the way he drinks it."You taking a break today, Ky?"I haven't even had time to answer when a man slides up to the bar. And my heart plummets. The last person in the world I wanted to see here is him."Ah, ah, Kyoline. Didn't expect to see you here." A man's leering eyes scan me up and down. "Pretty dress. You're doing all right for yourself. But then I wouldn't expect anything less from you."I can tell that Isaac immediately recognizes who the man in the cheap suit is. He's Xender Fish, my mother's boyfriend."Do you want something?" I snap. I'm trying to restrain myself, not make a scene.I notice Isaac's fists tighten. He knows Xender well, and I know he has had a man on him, digging up every single bit of information on his life, including his string of failed businesses, his gambling habit,
Isaac is standing over her, his hard fingers gently smoothing her, before she can get up to speed on what's happening. It never ceases to amaze her the manner in which he can alternate between hard and coarse to soft and gentle."Yes or no, Kyoline." His fingers play with the edge of her shirt, gently drawing it up and down.Her heart beating in her chest, her blood boils beneath her skin, and everything is hyper-sensitive. "Yes. But…"She maintains eye contact with him. "May I?" Her fingers tease at his belt."Fuck…yes."He backs up until he's standing between her legs beside the bed. She comes up onto her knees, looking at him for a moment. Absorbing his sense of this man who is always so together but is now unraveling piece by piece.He helps her peel him out of his shirt and pants until he's standing before her in his boxer briefs.God, this man. Hard lines and lean muscle make up every inch of him.Glaring her down, he backs himself out, curling his hand around the base and jacki
His heart races wildly inside his chest as she just stares. Greedily, he devours her, the way her dress hugs her delectable curves. The way she gazes at Damon and L'oreal with such a warm smile. "Joining us?" he asks.She shakes her head. "I need to go back out and get some things done. Just stopped by to see what everyone was up to. You guys look...cozy."We're having so much fun, right?" He looks over at L'oreal, who nods vigorously."I'll leave you two to it, then. I already took a picture to commemorate it and send to the group chat.".She's goading him, and as bad as he wants to take the bait, he doesn't. He lifts a shoulder in a nonchalant shrug before turning back to the table fully. "We'll finish up and then order that pizza, huh?""Yes!" both Damon and L'oreal shout loudly with excitement.And Kyoline's laugh fills the space before she leaves them to their little party once more.When Kyoline returns late after his shift, he gently shifts L'oreal from his leg where she has ma
And his world comes to a standstill.He isn't breathing.He doesn't blink.Is this what happens in cardiac arrest?Air from his lungs is sucker-punched out of him, and he nearly rocks back on the force of it. His muscles lock in a twisted position as he stares at the tattered bear with the frayed bow tie. The room seems to close in on him, and he starts to mouth something but can't get it into words."They're a happy family," she continues as if he's not staggered, her attention solely on the bow-tied bear.Family.An f-word that's never meant a shit thing to him. But everything to Kyoline and her siblings.His face never shifts to that same expressionless mask he's perfected over the years. His eyes lift from the bear up to the little girl standing in front of him. She smiles so gleefully. Like she's proud of what she just told him."Great," he exhales, unable to think of something else to say.His brow furrows as he looks at the bear. A happy family, she had called it. Does such a t