“You should talk to the guys, you know.”
As Summer and I got dressed, her voice echoed behind me. “Don’t worry, I will.”
“Good. They need to know what’s going on. They also need to know that I’m coming back with you.”
I paused before I slowly turned around. “You’re not staying in Santa Barbara?”
And when she smiled, my entire world came alive. “Nope. I’m coming back with you. I want to see this through and know, firsthand, when Cheyenne and I are truly safe.”
I walked over to her as she perched herself on the side of the bed. While she struggled with her bra, I cupped her cheeks and kissed her furiously. I let our tongues slide together in a moment of effervescent love. The kind of love that never faded over time.
And as our lips parted, my forehead touched down against hers. “I love you so much.”
She sighed. “I love you, too. So, go talk to the guys. Santa Barbara is a four-hour drive. That means eight hours and then some of being vulnerable.”
I nodded softly. “All right, I’m leaving now. You just finished getting ready and gathering Cheyenne’s things.”
After forcing myself to pull away from the most perfect woman in my life, I went in search of Brooks. He needed to know the plan and I needed to ask him if there was any way the guys could help us out.
Mostly, if a couple of the guys could tail us there and back in case we hit any issues.
“Hey, Brooks!” I called out.
He looked up from his mug of coffee. “Yep?”
I walked over and stood in front of him as he sat in a recliner in the living room. “Summer and I are about to head to pick up Cheyenne. We’re taking our daughter to Summer’s sister’s place in Santa Barbara. We both feel she’ll be safer there, and we won’t have a kid running underneath our feet while we’re here.”
He looked up at me. “You’ll need a distraction. Something to take the Black Flags’ attention off you guys.”
I nodded. “And an escort, just in case we hit hairy waters while driving.”
He drew in a deep breath. “Santa Barbara is about a four-hour drive from here.”
“Yep.”
He set his mug down and stood to his feet. “You leave the distraction to me. Go talk to whoever you want to use as an escort.”
“I figured Porter and Cole could ride in a car behind us, just in case.”
He cleared his throat. “Great. Then, me and the rest of the guys will come up with your distraction. You don’t worry about that.”
I placed my hand on his shoulder. “I really appreciate that.”
“Just promise me one thing, Tan.”
“Shoot.”
He placed his hand on my shoulder in solidarity. “Don’t do anything stupid.”
I barked with laughter. “You have my word.”
He pointed at my face. “I mean it.”
I nodded. “So do I.”
“Good.”
I’d never seen the look in Brooks’ eyes that he currently had trained on me. So, I had a hard time identifying it. He didn’t look upset, but he did look worried. Not the kind of worry that made him want to stop me, though. Possibly hesitant?
No, Brooks was never hesitant.
Eggshells. He’s walking on eggshells.
“Hey, Tanner?” Summer asked.
I peered over my shoulder. “Yeah? You ready?”
She rolled Cheyenne’s suitcase behind her. “Ready.”
Brooks brushed past me. “I’ll go round up the guys. Hey, Porter! Cole! Get your asses out here!”
Brooks left the room as Summer walked over to me and I took her into my arms. Her cheek fell against my chest as her ear rested against my beating heart. I knew some big moments were about to happen. I knew a lot of things were about to crash down at once. And as Summer trembled against me, I peppered kisses along the top of her head.
“It’s okay. It’s gonna be all right,” I said softly.
Then, Porter and Cole came out to be with us. “We’re ready when you are.”
Cole pointed toward the front of the warehouse. “Got two cars: one’s got a nice engine to it. A bit of pick-up. So, Porter and I will take that one.”
Porter nodded. “The other one is a regular sort of vehicle. Got a bit of space, isn’t completely up to date. It’s unassuming, and we hope that’s going to play in our favor.”
“Tanner,” Summer whimpered.
I kissed her forehead. “That sounds perfect. You guys ready to head out?”
Porter nodded toward Summer. “She okay?”
I went to answer, but Summer turned and answered for herself. “I’m nervous. This is my daughter—”
She caught herself and corrected, which set my heart aflame for her.
“This is our daughter, I mean, and she’s precious. She’s smart, kind, beautiful, giving. She’s the kind of person you want running around in this world, got it?”
Cole nodded. “Loud and clear. I got a little one on the way, and I know that’s not quite the same, but I get it.”
Summer sighed. “Thank you. I appreciate that.”
Porter started me down. “Ready to go pick up your daughter?”
And as my heart stilled in my chest, I drew in a deep breath. “Let’s go get her.”
After Brooks gave us the okay to leave, we all headed out. Summer and I were in some sort of SUV hybrid that was about six years old while Porter and Cole were behind us in what looked like a broken-down race car. I wasn’t sure about their pick on vehicles, but I also trusted them.
So, we all loaded up and headed out.
I wasn’t sure what kind of distraction Brooks had planned, but I couldn’t focus on that anyway. I was about to meet my daughter, and she’d have no idea who I was. I knew it wouldn’t be pertinent to meet like this. To tell her I was her father before dropping her off four hours away and not seeing her until things were safe. That screamed “shitty father” to me.
But when we pulled into the suburban neighborhood where she had surely partied hard at her sleepover, I found myself growing nervous.
“It’s okay,” Summer said as she patted my knee. “Just take some breaths for me.”
I drew a long one in through my nose as we pulled into the driveway. “All right, we’re here.”
I looked in my rearview mirror and saw Porter and Cole parked at the entrance of the neighborhood. Summer kissed my cheek before she got out and walked up to the front door, and she didn’t even knock before a lanky little girl ripped the door open.
And jumped into her arms.
“Mommy!”
It was like hearing heaven sing for the very first time. I heard my daughter’s voice and the entire world came to a grinding halt. I watched her smile and I suddenly had no other purpose in life than to keep her smiling so long as I was alive.
And as they walked back toward the car, I caught a glimpse of her gorgeous emerald eyes.
Eyes that she had inherited from me.
“Who’s this?” Cheyenne asked as they opened the side door.
I waved softly. “Hey there. I’m Tanner.”
My daughter looked at me curiously. “Mom?”
Summer climbed into the passenger’s seat. “He’s a friend of mine, sweetheart. I’ve got some car issues going on right now, so he’s been sweet enough to drive me around today.”
Cheyenne didn’t take her eyes off me, though. “Are you dating my mom?”
Summer gasped. “Chey!”
“What!? It’s a valid question.”
I chuckled. “Just a friend. For now, at least.”
Summer shot me a look as Cheyenne buckled herself in. And without another word spoken, we inched out of the driveway. I rode by Porter and nodded my head before Cole pulled out and eased themselves behind us.
But when we took a right out of the neighborhood instead of a left, the questions started.
“Where are we going?” Cheyenne asked.
Summer turned around to face her. “Surprise! You’re going to go to Auntie Sloane’s for a little bit.”
Chey gasped. “Really!? I’ve been begging you for months and we’re really going!?”
Summer giggled. “Happy birthday, princess. I’m really proud of the young woman you’re growing into.”
Chey pumped her fist in the air. “All right! She makes the best cornbread ever. Oh! I bet I can get her to make her chili. Would you like her chili? Or would you rather have her pasta alfredo?”
I hummed. “Oh, I miss that alfredo sauce she used to whip up.”
I felt Summer’s eyes boring into me as Chey stared at me through the rearview mirror. “You know my Auntie Sloane?”
I chuckled. “I’ve known your mother and your aunt for some time now. I went to high school with them.”
And that seemed to calm Chey down. “Oh! That’s awesome. I’ve always wondered if the friends I have now will be the friends I keep for life. That’s really cool, Mom. Why hasn’t he ever come over to hang out? That’s what friends do, after all.”
I peeked over at Summer. “Yeah, that’s what friends do.”
She pierced me with a look before she shook her head. “You two are peas in a pod, you know that?”
Chey snorted. “Maybe that means we should be friends, too.”
My heart melted with pride. “I’d like that.”
We drove in silence for a while, but about an hour into the trip Cheyenne got talkative. I liked it, but I could tell it was wearing on Summer a great deal. And I could only imagine what all she had gone through with raising Chey for the first eleven years of her life.
So, I took the reins.
“I hate that the show is ending, though. It makes me really sad. I think me and my friends are going to all get together and binge-watch the show before the last episode comes out. You know, to really appreciate it.”
I furrowed my brow. “Are you talking about Supernatural?”
She nodded. “Yeah. It’s my favorite show of all-time and they’re on the last season now.”
I nodded. “I was shocked when they announced that it would be the last season.”
She gasped. “You like Supernatural, too!? Mom can’t watch it. She thinks it’s too scary.”
I quirked an eyebrow. “Still not a Halloween fan?”
Summer clicked her tongue. “There’s haunted house Halloween and Hocus Pocus Halloween. You and Summer are the former, and I am the latter.”
Chey barked with laughter. “She’s so crazy, right? I think it’s all in her head.”
I chuckled as I kept my head on a swivel, looking out for danger along the highway we traveled. “You know, I’ve been working on a little side project whenever I’m not actually working. I’ve been fixing up a car that looks just like Dean’s in the show.”
Chey balked. “You’re joking. Is it the same color!?”
I nodded. “It is for now, though I’m thinking about changing it up a bit. I’ve always loved the color combination of red, black, and gold.”
Chey shook her head furiously. “Don’t change it. Please? I love Dean’s car in Supernatural. It looks so awesome. Don’t change it one bit, okay?”
I shrugged. “I guess you convinced me, then. I won’t change the color of it.”
“Yesssssssss. Mom!?”
Summer giggled and anticipated her question. “Yes, Chey. You can see the car one day.”
“Yeah!” she exclaimed.
I smiled so hard my cheeks hurt. “And when the car is in fine working order, I’ll even take you out for a drive.”
“Ugh, Mom. He’s so awesome. You should date him.”
Summer gasped. “Chey!”
“Well, I’m just saying! I’m tired of seeing you alone. It’s dumb. I don’t like being alone, so you shouldn’t either.”
I peered over at Summer and watched her eyes gaze out the passenger window. I’d never seen her without a response. Summer was always the one to get the last word in. But as she sat there—unwilling to rebuttal her daughter—so many things clicked into place. So, I let the silence ride itself out as we inched our way down the highway.
That was, until I got a call from Brooks just as we cruised into town.
“This is Tanner,” I said.
Summer looked over at me. “Everything okay?”
I shrugged as Brooks rattled off in my ear. “You two get back as quickly as you can. Have you dropped off your daughter yet?”
“No, we haven’t. What’s going on?”
Summer’s face filled with worry while Chey played on some sort of gaming device in the back seat.
“Well, me and the rest of the guys rolled out to The Body Shop. We figured we’d take the distraction to them. The plan was to set off a couple of dumpster fire explosions and let them scramble for a while after cutting their phone lines. But Finn was made and a shootout started.”
My eyes widened. “Is everyone all right? What happened? Are you guys back at the—”
“Simmer down and shut up, dude. We’re good. Everyone’s fine. But the damage will have them scrambling for a while, and now their sights are on us. Right now, we’ve all split up and are just riding around town, keeping them occupied. But we won’t be able to do it all night.”
I nodded. “I read you loud and clear.”
Chey gasped. “There’s Auntie Sloane! There she is!”
A woman waved us down and cleared my throat. “Gotta go. I’ll hit you up when we’re about halfway back.”
“Don’t worry. Porter’s keeping me updated. Just drive like a hellion when you head back.”
I grinned. “Can do.”
“Good. See you tonight.”
“See you soon.”
I wasn’t sure if Sloane would even recognize me, but when we pulled up to her townhome, her eyes connected with mine. She glared at me as Chey ran into her arms, and she didn’t tear her eyes away from me until her and Chey headed back into her place.
And if Summer saw the look her sister gave me, she hid her reaction very well as she slipped back into the car.
“Ready to head out?” she asked.
I peeked in my rearview mirror and found the guys perched underneath a shade tree at the back of the lot.
“Ready when you are,” I murmured.
Summer buckled in. “Great. Then, let’s get out of here. I’m starving, so can we stop and get food through a drive-thru or something before getting back on the highway?”
I stared forward and saw Sloane piercing me with a deadly look through her window.
“Yeah, we can go get food,” I murmured.
Then, I put the car in reverse and headed out of the complex. Leaving Chey behind, even though every single part of my being wanted to stay with her and make sure she was safe myself.
