Page 16 of Daniel Watson

Daniel finished his drink. Looking around for a place where Luke could talk to his sister privately, he heard him talking. Apparently, she wasn’t all that upset with him, and no, Lester wasn’t beating up on her.

“You’d leave him if he did, right? You don’t have to go in the same footsteps as Mom did, are you?” She must have assured him that he was right because he leaned his head on the table, and he could hear him sniffling. “Sen, I don’t have all that much in the world, but you, my sisters, are the best. You’d tell me, wouldn’t you? Or someone? Right?”

A few minutes later, Luke closed the connection, but he didn’t move off the table. Daniel asked him if he was all right. Luke, instead of telling him that everything was fine, he told him that he didn’t believe Sen.

“All right. You know her better than most people. What makes you think that she’s lying to you? You have to have a better answer than just staying that you think she is.” He said that he didn’t know. “Has she lied to you before? I mean, on something important?” Luke sat up, and Daniel could see his tears.

“I don’t know, but I’m worried. If she will lie to me about this. Do you think that I’m wrong?” Daniel again said that he didn’t know, but he could ask Cassie to look into things for them. “I’d like that. But she’d have to be careful. Sen really does like Cassie, and I would hate to ruin their friendship because I’m being a dope.”

“I’ll talk to Cassie as soon as we meet up again. She’s been with her a lot and might be able to point out things that you wouldn’t see.” He asked because he was so close to his sister. “Yes, that’s part of it. The rest is that you’ve known her all your life, and she might be perfectly fine, and so is this Lester person. If it…no, we don’t want to go down that road.”

“You mean asking one of the others to look into his background? Yeah, I thought of that too. That would really have Sen blowing a gasket. And that sucker would rain down on me. Nah, not going to go down that road like you said.” The two of them got up to do some more walking. He didn’t want to tie up the seats anymore than he had already. As they were entering the next shop on his list, a big building that said that it had something for everyone, it seemed that Luke wasn’t thinking about it. At least not as hard as he’d been earlier. Daniel was going to have to watch what he said to Luke. He was a very protective brother and it didn’t matter how old or big he was either.

By the time they made it to the restaurant, he really did need a nap. Everyone else looked like they did as well. However, when the rest of the clan showed up, it was a while before they were seated. Lucky for them, Tabby had called ahead and told them that they needed a lot of tables and they even gave them a room of their own to enjoy.

“I’m going to have fried chicken until I cluck.” Everyone laughed at Luke, and it embarrassed the kid a little. “That’s all we heard about when we were walking around. Like how good the fried chicken is and the mashed potatoes. I hope they don’t run out.”

“I’m going to have some of that silk pie they were giving away samples of in one of the shops.” Cassie winked at him. “And I’m going to have it before I get too full to enjoy it. Anyone game for having dessert first?”

As much as he wanted to have his dessert first, Daniel knew that he couldn’t eat one more bite of sweet treats. He thought right then that he had made a huge error in having gone into the place before dinner. But, he also told himself he was going to be clucking too if it came to what he was going to have. Caleb told him that he’d not eaten lunch to save up room for this meal.

He didn’t have the heart to tell him that it didn’t work that way. Instead, when the staff came by to take their drink order, he ordered unsweet tea for both him and Cassie. He was going to cut calories everywhere that he could. At least where the drinks were concerned.

It took him ten minutes of simply walking around the buffet table to figure out what he wanted to start on. Watching his brothers, he could see that they were going for the chicken. There was plenty of that in the bin so he wanted to try something that he’d been wanting in some time. French fries and mac and cheese.

“Oh yeah, you’re watching what you put in your mouth.” He grinned at Martin and told him that at least his stuff wasn’t fried. After that, it was like a challenge had been laid out. Just to see who could eat the most and not explode before going home. He didn’t care if he won or not but thoroughly enjoyed the play between the lot of them.

Chapter 7

Cassie was going to make sure that the next time they wanted to spend the day walking around shops, she had a scooter of some kind. Smiling to herself, she helped Daniel put some of the things that they’d gotten into the large pantry. It was one of the deciding factors in them using her brother’s house over the one that she’d had.

“I’m going to go up and run you a bath. Then I’m going to join you because my body has this idea that it’s been run over by several women trying to get to the sale items.” He looked pointily at her. “Know anyone’s footprints that might match the ones on my back?”

“I told you a dozen times that I was sorry. And I didn’t run up your back like I heard you tell Harlin. I simply shoved you out of the way when I heard what they were having on the special. You’ll thank me in the morning when someone makes you French toast on that cinnamon swirl bread.” He told her that he’d gladly be her leapboard whenever and wherever she needed him to be. “Thank you, I think. Now, tell me what you’ve been wanting to talk to me about all day?”

“Okay. Luke is afraid that Sen is being abused by her big-muscled boyfriend.” She said yes. “Yes, what? He is? If so, you’ll have to visit me in prison.”

“He only hit her the one time—” He started to cut her off, and she put up her hand. “I know that once is enough but it had been an accident. He’d been trying to open one of those tabby kind of soups for her, and the lid came off faster than he thought and since she was standing there at the time, he socked her in the face. I believe her if that is what you’re going to ask me. He took her to the emergency room and had her fill out a report on what happened. He even called the police in so that they could hear what had happened to Sen and begged them not to tell anyone of the men in this family. That’s why she’s been using makeup. That’s why he bought her about three dozen roses since it happened and the reason that she didn’t tell Luke the truth. It wasn’t really a lie but a form of protection for Lester. I guess he was so terrified that one of you might jump to conclusions that he had Sen meet his mom, and apparently, she is part of an abusive relationship that one of her own brothers had to step in and make right.”

“You’re sure that’s all it is?” She told him that she was. And that she told Sen that she’d make sure that everyone, even her brother, now that it’s out, that she knows better than to stay in a relationship that you have to hide from. I swear, I believe every word that she said. “Thank you for that. I also wanted to talk to you about Luke. I’d like for him to stay here or with one of the other men a few more times a week. The kid is seriously lacking in male companionship.”

“I can get on board with that. By the way, I’m seriously lacking in male companionship as well. How about we go upstairs, and I undress you? We can have a night of debauchery if you want.” He nearly knocked her down, pulling her out of the pantry they were in to drag her upstairs. Laughing, she told him that there was plenty of time.

“No, there’s not, I’m afraid. As soon as I hit my pillow, I’m going to be out. I know this, so if we don’t start now, I’ll be out before I can get you naked.” Cassie told him that she was going to get him naked first. “I love that idea. I love you, Cassie Watson. With all my heart.”

They went up the stairs slower. Cassie did wonder at some point if Daniel was up for this but he assured her that he was. To prove his point to her, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her. The man was devasting when he wanted to be, she thought with a grin. Christ, she might have bitten off more than she could chew.

Once they were in the bedroom, she told him to stand still. Pulling his shirt out from his pants, she unbuttoned it, careful not to touch him too hard, but she did flutter her fingers over his hot skin as much as she could. Getting to his belt, something that she hadn’t noticed until then that he wore one with jeans, she did the buckle, and then watching his face, she pulled the leather strap one loop at a time, pausing at each one to breathe on his nipples.

“You’re beautiful to me.” Daniel seemed to struggle with words when she spoke to him. He said that he loved her. “Oh, Daniel, I love you so much. I struggle with the words to tell you.”

Dropping the belt to the floor, she put her hands on the buttons on his pants. She knew that the button-fly jeans were coming back in style, but right then, she wished that they weren’t. Undaunted by the five silver snaps, she pulled the first one free. When she had an idea, she looked up at Daniel and asked him if he trusted her.

“With all that I am and then some.” He grinned at her then. “Don’t hurt me, Cassie. I don’t want to die before I see my firstborn.” She looked up at him.

“How did you know?” He asked her if she knew what he did for a living. “Yes. I guess I didn’t figure you’d be…I’m going to have your baby, Daniel. I nearly called you right then at the doctor’s office to tell you. But I thought you’d pamper me too much, and I’d not get to have fun today.”

“I’d never…well, I would love to pamper you, but I like my balls right where they are. But you don’t want to—Holy good god, Cassie.”

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