I was happy when Tyson had pushed to stay the night with me and my brothers. What if that man had tried to come back? I like to think I can take care of myself and the boys, but I don’t want my own ego to get in the way of their safety.
Now I can’t stop thinking about him showing up again this evening while I’m working and only the boys are home. I swear my mom is always trying to make my life harder. This isn’t the first time someone has come looking for her. And I’m pretty sure it won’t be the last, unfortunately.
If it was only so easy for me to pick up and move. But there’s no way I could leave my little brothers behind. Mom might not be around, but she does have final say when it comes to them, and she knows she can use that against me at the end of the day. She’d throw a fit if I up and left and not for the reason she should. Nope, she’d be pissed that she wouldn't have a place to crash when she decided to come back.
Dean texts me when he and Logan make it home from school. He does the same when they get to school each morning. I hate how much I put on his shoulders for such a young age, but there aren't a ton of choices.
I have to be at work to keep the bills paid. He told me that he got Tyson to take them this morning instead of taking the bus. He sent me a picture of Logan shoving a giant breakfast sandwich into his mouth. I know it’s ridiculous, but each time Tyson does something for them, it chips away at the walls I’ve built to protect myself.
I text Tyson to see what he’s up to. The second I send the text, my phone rings. His name appears on the screen. I can always count on him. Time and time again.
“Babe, you okay?” are the first words out of his mouth. I should tell him not to call me that, but I find myself liking it a little more each time he says it.
“Yeah, I’m fine.” He lets out a long breath.
“You scared me. You never text.”
“Oh.” Guilt fills me. Right, the one time I text him it’s because I’m about to ask a favor.
“You need something? You know I got you.” He fills the silence that I let hang for too long.
“I’m worried about the boys after last night. I’m at the diner working now, and then I’ve got some deliveries. Is there any way you’d be able to check in on them for me?”
“I’m with them now.”
“Oh,” I say again.
“I picked them up from the bus stop. You cool with me getting a tree? Logan keeps talking about it. I might have promised them already. Sorry. Next time I’ll ask you first.”
“I suppose that would be fine.” I give. The thought of Tyson trying to give them some sort of normalcy has another little crack forming in that wall of mine.
“We’ll wait for you to get home to decorate it.” Relief fills me that Tyson is planning on staying with them until I get home.
“Then who is going to follow me around when I make deliveries?” I tease.
“I’ve got that handled,” he teases right back. At least I think he is.
“Ty! We have some decorations in the basement!” I hear Logan shout in the background.
“I’ll leave you to it. You sound busy,” I say, smiling. Tyson has no idea how much weight he’s taken off my shoulders. I tell myself not to get used to it.
“Never too busy for you, babe.”
“Ty.” I sigh, enjoying his words far too much. I hear the boys calling him again in the background.
“I’ll let you get back to your tables. Love you, babe,” he says before ending the call. I stand there shocked for a minute. Tyson has been telling his followers online he’s in love with me. Hell, he’s even told me he’ll always love me and only me, but he’s never flat-out said the words to me before.
I tuck my phone away before I get back to work. Whenever I get a few seconds, I check my emails to see what deliveries I have lined up after work. I’m kind of hoping I don’t have a ton. I want to get home and maybe help with the tree. It’s the first time I’ve been excited for something in a while.
“What the hell?” I say when I see I have triple the amount than normal. The program is supposed to cap them at so many. It must be broken or something. I groan, knowing I can never do all these without working through the night. How did this happen? It even lets some people book at the same time, making it all but impossible.
“I sat someone in your section. It’s your last table for tonight,” Carol says, walking past me to drop some dishes into the sink.
“Thanks.” I head back out into the diner to see my brothers and Tyson all sitting at one of my booths. All of them smile when they see me. I don’t miss the thick winter coats they both have behind them.
“Hey.” I walk over to the table. I lean down and drop a kiss on Logan’s head. Dean is far too cool for me to do that in public, so I withhold from doing it.
“We came for burgers and milkshakes,” Dean informs me. “I kicked Tyson’s ass in Elite Showdown, so he had to buy us dinner.” I’d bet my tips that Tyson lost on purpose.
“Mouth,” Tyson and I say at the same time. Dean rolls his eyes.
“Dean is the best. Told you not to take the bet,” Logan tells Tyson.
“He is the best,” Tyson agrees, making Dean smile even more.
“You all want your normals?” I ask. The boys both nod.
“I’ll have whatever they are,” Tyson says.
“When are you going to be home? We got a tree. We should all decorate it together!” Logan asks, staring up at me. The excitement rolls off him.
“I think I might be late. I’m sorry, bubs.” I run my fingers through his hair. Logan’s smile drops from his face, breaking my heart.
“Can I talk to you outside?” Tyson asks, standing from the booth.
“Sure.” I rip the sheet off my notepad. “Let me drop this in the kitchen so they can get it started.” I step into the back, putting their order in. Carol tells me she’ll get the milkshakes for me.
When I step outside, I see Tyson standing with three other boys. They are all in high school letterman jackets.
“What’s going on?” I ask as I head over to them. Tyson pulls his coat off, draping it over me. He leans down and brushes a quick kiss against my mouth. It’s so fast I can’t try to get away from it. Though I’m not sure I really want to. He’s becoming far too tempting lately. I’d actually stolen a kiss from him this morning when he was passed out on the sofa. I don’t know what came over me, but I’d done it.
“Don’t get mad” are the first words out of his mouth.
“Oh gosh. What?”
“You might have noticed that you have more than a normal amount of deliveries tonight.” I narrow my eyes on him.
“How do you even know that?”
“I just do. And because I’m the one who allowed them to be placed,” he admits, shocking me.
“The hell, Tyson!”
“I’ve got you. I’ve subbed it all out. I’ve taken all the orders and split them all up between Mark, Jacob, and Ryan.” They each raise their hand when Tyson says their names.
“What are you doing?” I growl.
“Why don’t you guys head out? Remember what I said,” he warns them.