Page 66 of A Package Deal

His truck bounced out of the lot and he shot me one last scowl. I shook my head and let out a long breath as his truck disappeared around the corner. My hands were shaking, but I somehow felt more empowered than I ever had. When everything went down with him back home, I just kind of slunk away, too hurt and lost and pregnant to put up a fight. Facing him today felt almost cathartic.

I sat there a few minutes longer, just breathing and letting the adrenaline fade away. When I finally turned the truck toward Roger’s, I had another thought, one that didn’t feel empowering.

Watchdog.

I could only assume Cayden meant Warrick. What other watchdog would I have here in Blueball? Had Warrick met with Cayden and not told me? Had there been news from the lawyers that he’d conveniently forgotten to share with me? I knew he was taking care of things on that front, but to talk to my ex and not even mention it to me? That was taking things too far. This was my daughter. My life. I should have been consulted.

At the last second, I took a left instead of a right, heading back to Gigi’s to confront Warrick. I had to know what was going on. Roger and his complaints could wait.

But when I pulled up to the hobby farm, the Timberwolfe Farms sign swinging in the breeze, his truck wasn’t in the driveway. I hit my steering wheel with my palm and headed back out to Roger’s. The confrontation would have to wait, which was not good news for Warrick, because the longer I stewed on it, the angrier I got. The more his actions seemed heavy-handed and almost like he’d gone behind my back. Even Roger steered clear of me when I snapped at him after he asked his first question of the day. If Warrick had just shared with me what was going on, I wouldn’t have been blindsided by running into my ex and his new fiancée in my own damn town. A little warning would have been nice.

I left work early, wanting to get home and talk with Warrick before Gigi and Georgia came back from their excursion. I got there first, pacing the porch until his truck pulled up the long driveway. He slid out of the truck and shot me a smile. When I didn’t return it, his expression turned into a careful neutral mask. He walked over, leaning down to kiss my cheek, despite the anger crackling off me.

“What’d I do this time?” he asked, like we were discussing his inability to put dirty dishes into the dishwasher.

I folded my arms across my chest and tempered myself. I wanted to scream and shout, but that wouldn’t solve anything.

“Did you talk to Cayden?”

Warrick straightened. “Yes.”

I closed my eyes for a brief second, disappointment washing over me. I’d been holding a sliver of hope that I was wrong. “When?”

“This morning.”

“Is that why you left so early?”

Warrick looked confused. “No. I ran into him outside Crazy Beans. Knew who he was because of the pictures my detective emailed me yesterday. Figured it was a good opportunity to settle things.”

I mulled that over. Okay, so he hadn’t intentionally sought out Cayden. “Good idea to settle things when I wasn’t even part of the conversation?”

Warrick tipped his head to the side, looking like he was choosing his words carefully. “We agreed that I could insert myself into things that pertain to this family, but not in your business. I was only following what we both agreed to, Em.”

Just a day ago, I would have melted when he referenced “this family” but not today. Not when he’d once again taken things too far.

“You don’t think including me in the lawsuit over my daughter would have been better?”

Warrick frowned, throwing his hands up, his voice finally rising. “You and Georgia are mine to protect, Slaywright! I will not apologize for doing what was necessary.”

“Are we though?” I asked, my own volume matching his. “Are you named on that court order? No, you’re not. I am. And I can take care of my own child. Have been ever since that little stick had two lines on it. I would appreciate if you would actually have some faith in my ability to handle my life.”

Warrick screwed up his face. “I do! But you also have a thousand things on your plate. If I can take one thing off so you’re not so stressed, why are you upset about that?”

I huffed and began to pace, my hands flying through the air as I tried to explain. “Because! Cayden took away my power. Left me at my most vulnerable. And yet I survived. I have already proven I can take care of myself! You jumping into my personal business shows that you don’t trust me.” He opened his mouth to disagree, but I cut him off, not yet finished. “And furthermore, you doing these things without telling me feels like you’re trying to control things. Control me. Not that much different from Cayden, honestly.”

He drew his head back, the fire in his eyes banking. His jaw locked tight and I felt a pang of guilt. I opened my mouth to apologize for that last part, but he took a step back.

“If that’s what you think of me, why are you still here? You’re free to go anytime you want, Em. I don’t want any control over you. I just want to take care of you. You just can’t see the difference between the two. You refuse to see the difference, just clinging to your hurt, defending your wounds so hard they’ll never heal.”

Tears stung my eyes. His words hurt, probably as much as my words hurt him. “I think we should end this conversation for now.”

He nodded sharply. “Agreed.”

I licked my lips, wondering how this day had gone to such shit. “I’ll pack a suitcase and take Georgia to a hotel for the night.”

Warrick stepped back again. “Whatever you want. I wouldn’t want to offer a suggestion and be accused of controlling you.”

I couldn’t look at him. Couldn’t stand to see the hurt radiating off of him. I’d done that. I’d taken a kind, noble man and made him feel bad for helping. Maybe he was right. Maybe I couldn’t see him accurately, not when Cayden’s damage was still front and center in my mind.

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