The momentary hope that had planted itself deep within me began to evaporate. It couldn’t be this simple. Teague had done what his father asked.
When would that no longer be enough to keep him satisfied?
“I went to see him.”
I sat up straight. “What?”
“I thought—it was a fool’s game, but I thought I could talk some sense into that man.” She drummed the desk. “There is no reasoning with him.”
Anyone who could kick a dog had no heart, or at least not one that wasn’t rotten.
“You shouldn’t have gone to see him. Not alone. Now without telling anyone.” Fear fueled the volume of my voice. “He could’ve hurt you.”
She blinked at me in surprise. I’d never yelled at her before. What she’d done was plain stupid. I don’t know what I’d have done if something had happened to her.
“I had to try,” she said with far more calm than I felt.
I took in a deep breath, trying to steady the turbulent emotions tossing about inside me.
“I wish you’d told me,” I said once I felt a little more in control.
We were a team. We should’ve worked out a strategy together. But I didn’t blame her for going all in to try to stop this chaos.
“Oh. This envelope came for you. With everything going on, I forgot.” She offered me the overnight package.
“I haven’t ordered anything,” I said as I took it. “What did you offer Teague’s father? You had to bargain with him with something.”
She refused to meet my gaze. “It’s not important. He’s unreasonable.”
Stubborn woman. She’d never tell me even if I interrogated her all night.
I checked the return label on the envelope.
Wood and Wood Attorneys at Law Cope, South Carolina.
A pit formed in my stomach. I tried not to think of Cope and all it symbolized very often. Only when I needed a reminder of how far I fell and how far I’d come.
My hands trembled as I stared at the envelope. I hadn’t done anything illegal. Why would a lawyer send me this? How did anyone from Cope find me?
“Are you gonna open that? Unless they’ve invented something I don’t know about, I don’t think it’s going to do it itself.”
Finally, the first trace of normalcy from Miss Adeline in . . . I couldn’t remember when.
“It’s not an early edition of the fireman’s calendar,” I shot back, relaxing a bit.
“Hmph. Since you have an in, I figured I’d be the first to have one in my hot little hands.” She did jazz hands, and I laughed.
“And with your in, I thought you’d be directing the photo shoot.”
She pointed at me. “That’s not a bad idea.” She pushed out of the chair. Millie stood along with her.
“It’s from South Carolina.”
She tilted her head. “No wonder you didn’t tear it open.”
There were two people who knew I’d been homeless, but only one who knew the reason why. And the sympathy in her eyes nearly broke me.
“I’m ready to call it a night.” I tucked the envelope under my arm and nudged Sadie.
She stirred, gave me a dirty look, and stretched before following us up the stairs.
When Miss Adeline reached her door, she paused. “Whatever’s in that envelope changes nothing.”
“I know,” I said quietly. And it wouldn’t as far as my life with her and the dogs.
But I had no idea if it would change my past life.
I tossed the package on the dresser.
Whatever was in there had been thirteen years coming.
It could wait.
Chapter Sixteen
Teague
Twenty-seven hours.
That was how long I’d been up.
If it weren’t for Beau and Lincoln, I’d have never made it through my first shift as a Hollingsworth Properties employee. They’d hung in with me the entire night, and there weren’t words to express how grateful I was to have them.
The lack of a relationship with my father didn’t matter when I had such a special one with them.
“Want a ride home?” Lincoln flicked his chin toward the car idling at the curb.
Beau yawned and climbed into the back.
“Nah.”
I had somewhere else I wanted to go first.
And judging by the smug upturn of his lips, he knew exactly what I had planned. “Give Pepper my best.”
“Don’t come home,” Beau called.
I nodded at my brother and ignored my sister.
As I strode to my truck, I realized what Beau had said.
Home.
Was she beginning to think of New York as home again? It had been cathartic to have them around. Even when they weren’t at Lincoln’s apartment, it still didn’t feel as lonely being in my own empty place. Hell, I’d barely spent a few nights there.
Everything was changing, and so quickly. While it seemed as if most of it were for the worst, maybe it wasn’t.
Lincoln and I had always been close, but we got busy. We’d go through periods where we didn’t take the time we should to grab dinner or watch a ball game.
In a strange way, our father and his antics had brought me closer than ever to my siblings. We were a united front.
I hadn’t realized how much I needed that reminder.
And maybe if I stayed in the family business, Beau might come back where she belonged. I was her big brother. I couldn’t dictate her life. It was more likely she’d dictate mine. But she should be back on this continent. In this city. With us.
A streak burst out the back door of Grey Paws. There were two dogs with a beautiful brunette in tow, headed straight down the alley toward me.
I eased to a stop and rolled down the window.
Pepper didn’t seem surprised to see me.
If anything, she looked pleased.
I propped my arm on the door. “Got room for one more?”
“I know a certain four-legged creature who would be more than happy to make room for you.” She spoke fondly of the dog who was quickly capturing my heart. Except it wasn’t just one dog . . . or person.
“What about a two-legged one?” I grinned. Muffy jumped up and put his paws next to my arm. “I’m not interested in your wheel-wash special this morning.”
Pepper snickered. “Meet me at the back door?”
“Absolutely.”
I parked behind their van and hustled toward her. She’d nearly made it to the rescue. Muffy lifted his leg on a weed, and Sadie appeared annoyed.
I held the door open as Pepper ushered the dogs inside. Muffy pawed at her leg.
“Give me two seconds, okay?” she asked patiently.
“When’s the calendar shoot?” Miss Adeline asked in lieu of a greeting.
Pepper’s face turned scarlet.
“I haven’t heard yet, but when I do, you’ll be the first to know.” I hated doing that calendar, but I would give anything to still be part of it now that I couldn’t. Just because I wasn’t part of FDNY anymore didn’t mean I’d lost my brothers who could keep me in the loop.
“You do that.” She wasn’t messing around.
Ash dug at her kennel door and barked.