I let Tia sleep through the evening and into the night, holding her close to me. I alternated from having my arms banded tightly around her to slowly stroking her hair when her ragged breaths turned to whimpers.
She stirred in the night, rambling incoherent words, and it was obvious her sharing her story with me had brought back her trauma.
I want to kill the sick bastard who touched her, gut him slowly. And I will. But first, I need to reassure her that I’m here for her no matter what, her and her little girl, because I’ll be damned if I let some rich fucks from Chester bring up her daughter. Not when she has a loving home here with us.
“I can hear you thinking.” Her soft voice trickles over my skin, and I squeeze her tighter.
“I’m going to help you get Harper back where she belongs.”
Tia’s head snaps up toward mine, her mouth open in shock. “How?”
“I have ways.”
I shrug a shoulder, and Tia darts up, kneeling to stare down at me. “No, Cole. I can’t do anything to risk them taking her from me.”
I glide my hand up her thigh and lace our fingers together. “Beauty, they already took her.”
She shakes her head. “More. They can force the adoption through, they told me. Warned me they’d do it.” Her chest rises, panic visible on her face.
“Tell me, who warned you?”
“The Lancasters, her foster parents. They want to adopt her, but I won’t sign the papers. They have a lawyer, Cole. A freaking lawyer.” She jumps to her feet and starts pacing. “Look at me . . .” Her words are broken, full of torment.
I stare my girl up and down, looking at her. I see her.
“I see you, beauty.”
She chokes on a sarcastic laugh. “I’m a twenty-one-year-old student in a one-bedroom apartment who is juggling two jobs just to try and get more than the two hours a month with my lawyer so I can try and fight this. What the hell do I have to offer her, Cole?”
Anger boils inside me. She’s been fighting this alone for too long, far too fucking long, and I refuse to let her fight it alone any longer. “We’re getting her back.” I stand with a steel determination. “Let me call my brother; he’ll know what to do.”
Her eyes bug out. “What? No. I . . .” Tia begins to shake, panic taking over her small body. I step toward her and pull her into me. “I don’t want anyone to know.” Shame drips from her words, and I hate it. She has nothing to be ashamed of. Absolutely nothing.
I stroke over her hair and kiss her head. “I know, beauty. But this, please trust me.” Pulling back, our eyes fix on one another’s.
“Can you . . . can you ask him not to dig too deep? Just up to when I had Harper?”
I jolt at her words. Does she not trust me? What the fuck? Is she hiding some shit from me?
As if hearing my thoughts, she goes on to explain, “I haven’t dealt with my past, Cole, and I don’t want to. Please.” The desperation for me to agree seeps into her eyes, and I know I have to lie to her, because I know, without a shadow of a doubt, I’ll make whoever hurt my girl pay.
