Page 158 of His Boys to Protect

A car pulled up. Skylar dove into it and rattled off an address that he'd never be able to forget if he tried. He sat back, clutching his bag. Skylar idly watched the meter, hoping he'd have enough to cover the fare. Just his luck, he might have to stop and walk the rest of the way.

But they reached the building, and Skylar still had a few dollars left in his wallet after he paid. A part of him regretted leaving the money on Ward's counter, but he knew he wouldn't have been able to live with himself otherwise. Ward had done so much for him. For him and for Charlie. They'd been living off the man for months.

Skylar owed him so much.

But he couldn't think about that now. He'd have to make some more money first, but that meant walking through the door that stood before him.

Skylar sucked in a breath and stepped inside.

He got onto the elevator and held out a shaky hand. With another deep breath, Skylar pressed the button for the fifteenth floor.

When the elevator came to a stop, Skylar got out of the car in a daze. His feet moved on autopilot, taking him down a hallway that seemed to both stretch and shrink simultaneously. Far too soon, Skylar found himself standing in front of a familiar door.

Fucking hell. He couldn't do this. This was the very last place he wanted to be.

But he had no choice. This was his life. Had been for more than ten long years. It was all he really knew. All he deserved.

The dream was over. It was time to wake up and face reality.

Skylar knocked on the door.

He waited, bracing himself. A long moment passed with no response. He knew it wasn't like in the movies, where people seemed to be waiting there to answer the door at the drop of a hat. Still, Skylar knocked again, unable to resist. He needed this to be over with.

“I'm coming! I'm coming!”

Skylar winced. He'd thought he was never going to hear that voice again.

The door opened. Uncle Zeke stood there in his boxers and bathrobe, his hair a mess, like he'd just woken up. In all likelihood, he probably had.

But the sleepy, grumpy look on his face slowly vanished. A grin appeared instead. He straightened up and gave Skylar a slow, thorough once-over. “I knew you'd be back.”

Skylar barely managed a smile.

Uncle Zeke took a step back and held the door open. “Come on in. You know the drill.”

Skylar hesitated, his skin crawling with panic as he stepped over the threshold. He couldn't do it. Not yet. He knew he'd have to eventually, but he needed more time to get used to the idea.There was no way he'd survive it now. Not after what he'd shared with Ward and Charlie just last night.

Fuck. Last night?It felt like a lifetime ago.

“I can't,” Skylar blurted out.

“Why not?”

“I…um…” Skylar put a hand on his belly, sure that he was going to be sick, then realized he had a perfect excuse to use. “Uh…doctor's orders,” he said. “I just had my surgery.”

“Oh.” Uncle Zeke's eyes went wide. “Fuck. Are you okay? Should you be on your feet? Shit. Come inside. Come lie down.”

The man bustled Skylar into a guest room and fussed over him, offering him food or drink or a bath, anything he wanted. Skylar lied and said all he needed was to lie down, so Uncle Zeke brought out extra blankets, turned up the heat another couple degrees, put a glass of water on the nightstand, and left him to rest.

Skylar waited until the door clicked shut before he sank onto the edge of the bed.

Then he burrowed under the blankets and cried himself to sleep.

Chapter 56

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CHARLIE

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