Page 85 of Rescued by the Single Dad

Rocco lobbed a weary sigh and nodded. “She trusts you, that’s what she told me on the phone. That she trusts you, so I should, too. And as I’m sure you can guess now, trust doesn’t exactly come easy to either of us.”

“I can imagine it doesn’t. And I won’t take that trust for granted.”

Rocco glanced at Clint’s phone where it sat in the cupholder on the center console. “Do you mind if I call her and tell her that I told you? It needs to come from me.”

Nausea filled Clint’s belly, but he nodded, grabbed his phone and unlocked it, then hit the speed-dial for his landline and handed the phone to Rocco.

Clint backed the cube truck out of the stall in the police station parking lot and headed out onto the busy Seattle street.

Rocco gulped and put the phone to his ear.

Clint held his breath.

“Hey, yeah, it’s me,” Rocco started. “I uh … I need to tell you something.”

Every muscle in Clint’s body tightened—including his asshole.

“I told the cop a lot about our past. About dad and stuff. Clint was right there, too.”

Clint couldn’t hear Brooke’s response. He strained to listen, but she either wasn’t speaking, or was speaking quiet enough that only Rocco could hear.

“I know … I know,” Rocco said with another big sigh. “I’m sorry. It’s my past, too, though. And I know for a fact that your shrink is telling you not to run from it just like mine is telling me. We did nothing wrong … You told me to trust Clint. Was I wrong to think that we could trust him with this?” He glanced at Clint. “I didn’t think so. Okay … yes, I know. Okay … We’ll see you in a bit. I love you.” Then he hung up and stowed Clint’s phone back in the center console, his features contorting into a hangdog expression as he dragged his hand over his face and exhaled. “Well, she wasn’t happy, but I don’t think she’s going to kill me either.” He glanced sideways at Clint. “Or you.”

Clint dramatically swept his wrist over his forehead. “Phew.”

He was being playful, but on the inside was seriously relieved.

After what Rocco just told Clint and the sergeant about Brooke’s past, the woman deserved nothing but green lights, sunny days and a permanently cold pillow for the rest of her life.

Rocco watched Clint. “Why does she trust you? You haven’t known each other for very long. I mean, yeah, you rescued her from hypothermia and nursed her back to health, but still. What is it about you that has my sister letting down her guard?”

Clint merely shrugged. “I dunno. I guess with me, what you see is what you get. I’m not hiding anything. I’m not pretending to be someone I’m not, and my way of life is simple and honest.”

Rocco frowned like he was thinking it over, but eventually he nodded and shrugged then glanced out the window. “I trust my sister’s judgment.” Then he paused. “Well, mostly. She fucked up with Flynn, but otherwise, I trust her judgment and if she trusts you, then that’s good enough for me.”

Clint nodded in thanks, but focused his attention on the road.

It wasn’t his place to tell Rocco that he and Brooke were sleeping together. Sure, they barely knew each other and had just met, but traumatic experiences tended to expedite relationships. She was seeking comfort and reassurance. Looking for a bleak beam of light in an abyss of unknown darkness. He wasn’t sure what the future held for them, but he hoped that when Brooke found out he knew her secret, she felt relief rather than anger.

Because he only carried astonishment and pride for her after uncovering her secret.

Although he'd carried those feelings for her already, but now knowing what she’d been through just amplified those feelings.

He was in awe of her strength and bravery, and it only made him fall harder for her. She’d endured so much. There was no pity in his heart for her, only ... well, it was too soon to say love. But there were warm tendrils of something akin to love beginning to grow in his chest. He hated being away from her, thought of her constantly and knew she was a good person before she even woke up on his couch. He could just feel her goodness deep in his bones, and when she did finally wake up, she confirmed everything he already knew. Brooke Barker might be Hollywood’s sweetheart, but it was because she was a sweetheart. Pure of heart, brave and bold and quite possibly everything that had been missing in Clint’s life until she washed up on his beach.

“Can we stop and grab something to eat?” Rocco asked, breaking through the fog of Clint’s thoughts.

“Huh?” Clint grunted.

Rocco gave him a weird look. “Can we get something to eat before we head to the ferry? I’m starving. You okay?”

Clint grunted again. “Yeah, I’m fine. Sorry. Just in my head.”

Rocco eyed him suspiciously. “Brain going to explode from everything you just learned?”

“Hard to not think about something like that,” Clint took a right on a green light. “Did she actually see your dad kill your mom? That would fuck a kid up for sure. And all things considered, she seems so ... normal, for lack of a better word.”

“Therapy,” Rocco said without hesitation. “We’ve both been through a shit ton of it.”

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