Total pages in book: 133
Estimated words: 131888 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 659(@200wpm)___ 528(@250wpm)___ 440(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 131888 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 659(@200wpm)___ 528(@250wpm)___ 440(@300wpm)
She sure as hell hoped his expectations were realistic. If they weren’t, reality was about to smack him in the face.
She normally wasn’t self-conscious. She had accepted the changes having babies did to her body, as well as getting older. But, for some reason, she was worried she might disappoint Nox.
When she was young and not as wise, she worried about impressing men. As life went on, she stopped worrying. They either accepted her as she was, or they could hit the road if they didn’t like the way she looked, acted or her success.
However, she didn’t want the police officer currently standing in her bedroom hitting the road, or rushing to leave, because he was no longer attracted to her.
“No possibility of your father bringing your boys home early?” he asked with his broad back still turned to her.
“They’re with my mother, remember? And that would only happen if an emergency came up. Don’t worry, they’d call first.”
He turned and bent over to unlace his boots. “Your mother remarried?”
Liyah swore she mentioned that fact previously but maybe he was a bit distracted with what was about to happen. “She’s on her third husband.”
“Damn,” he whispered, setting his boots aside and tucking his socks inside.
“She said third time’s the charm. I agree with that since my current stepfather is great. He’s also lasted the longest.”
“He’s good with the boys?”
“He’s excellent with the boys. Another reason I hope this marriage sticks.”
“You said your father and her were really young when they had you.”
“In their teens.”
“That had to be difficult.”
She nodded. “Especially after they had my brother a year later.”
“Being overwhelmed with responsibilities broke them up?” he asked.
“It contributed to it, but the main reason was my mother wanted a better life for herself. She was tired of being poor and my father never being home because he was working hard to provide for his young family.”
“So, instead of working toward making their life better with your father, she kicked him to the curb?”
Damn, the man got it. “She did, then set out to find husband number two.”
“Did the second hubby have more money?”
“He did. But she quickly found out that money didn’t buy happiness or stability. However, she walked away with a nice divorce settlement, so she did benefit in the end.”
His expression turned troubled. “You said she wanted a better life for herself. You didn’t say she wanted a better life for you and your brother.”
She was impressed that the man picked up on that, too. “Because my mother was very selfish when she was young. It was all about what she wanted. Not what was good for her family.”
“Do you think it would’ve been better for you if she had stayed with your father?”
“I can’t say. But what I can is, she shouldn’t have lied to the authorities and also to us about him. Once I found out the truth, it took me a long time to forgive her.” And to this day, she still occasionally had to beat back the bitterness.
“But eventually you gave her a second chance.”
Liyah held it against her mother for a long time. In truth, it was both Magnum and his wife Cait who convinced her to forgive her mother. She forgave her but didn’t forget. And never would.
What her mother did hurt her and her brother’s relationship with their father. It also critically wounded Magnum.
“She’s different now. If she wasn’t, the boys wouldn’t be there for the weekend.”
He nodded and when he began to pull his T-shirt free from his jeans, she yelled, “Wait!”
He froze and his brow furrowed. “What? Too soon?”
“Definitely not too soon… But go slower.”
The creases deepened along his forehead. “Why?”
Liyah wiggled her eyebrows.
Did the man actually roll his eyes?
She grinned. “Do a girl a solid and go slooooow.”
“So you can ogle me?” he teased.
Oh yes, his true personality was beginning to re-emerge. Those little glimpses gave her hope that he would soon shed that heavy blanket of grief.
Of course, he’d still have moments of sadness when he remembered Jackie. She experienced those herself. Especially when she saw Mark in Devyn. In his features. In a look. In the way he smiled or laughed.
Her fifteen-year-old might never had met his father, but he sure took after him in many ways.
And sometimes that caught her off guard.
But it wasn’t Mark peeling off his T-shirt and exposing a body that was drool-worthy.
It was Bradley Lennox.
Her eyes weren’t drawn to his hairless chest. Instead, she focused on his club colors tattooed on his left pec above his heart.
She rose from where she was perched on the edge of the bed and approached him. “Is that your only tattoo?”
“It is.”
If the man was going to have tattoos, she expected him to have one of his wife’s name or one in memory of her. “Most MC members have their club colors inked onto their backs.” She stopped only inches from him and slowly traced the lines of the top and bottom rocker, as well as the center patch lightly with her fingernail.