Page 35 of Even if It Hurts

“Necessary,” Asher said, repeating his earlier claim. At the woman’s huff, he sighed. “Since you suddenly have an opinion, why don’t you tell me what I should’ve done?”

“Not gotten custody,” the woman said in a way that clearly stated they’d had this argument...more than once. “You can’t take care of a baby, Ash.”

“You sure about that?” he shot back, the words sounding like a warning and a reminder.

I risked a glance at where the two of them seemed to be having some sort of silent standoff before the woman mumbled, “That was different,” and turned to leave, her curious stare catching on me as she did.

Once she’d slipped out of the kitchen and my line of sight, I focused on gathering Kaia’s breakfast—all while she babbled happily from her highchair, oblivious to the tension filling the kitchen—because Asher was still in there. Watching me.

Even if he hadn’t avoided me the day before, I wouldn’t know how to act or what to say when just his presence was so big and commanding and had me struggling to form a coherent thought.

“You’ve been crying,” he said once I settled in a chair in front of Kaia.

I stilled for a moment before pulling the mashed fruit closer to me and dipping a tiny spoon inside. “If that’s why you haven’t left yet, don’t worry about me,” I said as I offered the spoonful to Kaia, smiling at her as I did. “I’m great.”

A grunt sounded from somewhere behind me, but closer than where he’d been before. “I told you I appreciate honesty, Lainey, so don’t lie to me. Even about this.”

My next breath came out sharp and shaky as I stared too intently at the food I was scooping. “Everyone lies about how they’re doing,” I finally admitted, my voice light and airy to match the expression I was giving Kaia.

“Not everyone.”

“Then tell me howyou’redoing,” I challenged just as a distinctivedingcame from the front of the apartment.

At the sound of multiple voices trying to be heard over the other, my attention drifted to the side to find Asher leaning against the island, staring intently at me as if debating trying one last time to find out why I’d been crying. With a harsh exhale, he pushed from the counter just as most of the people I’d briefly encountered my first day all entered my line of sight.

“See?” the overly tattooed one said exasperatedly. “Why do the rest of us have to be uncomfortable when Briggs looks like he just rolled out of bed?”

“Enough,” another said, smacking the tattooed guy across the back of the head before looking pointedly at Asher. “You going like that?”

Asher started responding just as Tattoos sauntered up to me. “Well, hello again...” Grabbing the chair next to mine, he flipped it around to sit backwards in it. “I’m Adam, but you can call me Thatch.”

He’d barely gotten the last word out before Asher was hauling him out of the chair. They were nearly the same build and height, but Asher had thrown him back as if Tattoos—Thatch—weighed nothing at all.

With a hard look at me, Asher said, “You don’t call him anything. Don’t talk to him unless it’s absolutely necessary.” Pointing at a guy standing off to the side who had disturbingly similar eyes to Jackson, he added, “Same goes for Gray.”

Gray held out his arms and scoffed. “I haven’t said anything.”

“Yet,” the woman beside him chimed in, her exaggerated eyeroll letting me know it was inevitable.

As though to prove her point, Gray focused his attention on me, a roguish smile easily slipping across his face that I was sure had women falling all over themselves to get to him. With a subtle wink, he muttered, “Ma’am,” like he knew that was all he needed to say to win me over.

I fed Kaia another spoonful as Asher growled, “Out. Everyone out. Wait for us downstairs.”

The green-eyed one—Gray—held a hand up even higher in defense. “I said ‘ma’am.’”

“You know what you did,” the woman beside him snapped. “That’s the third time this morning. Are you incapable of letting just one woman pass by you without trying to take her home?”

“I let you pass me all the time,” he countered as their voices drifted farther away, a sharp laugh leaving him a second later.

“What are they doing here, and who’s on watch?” Asher’s unexpected question forced my attention to where he stood nearby. But I quickly dropped my stare back to the bowl I’d been scooping another bite out of when I realized he was talking with one of the guys—the Viking-looking one who’d asked if Asher wasgoing like that.

Giving Kaia an overly excited look as I fed her the bite, I tried ignoring the conversation that clearly wasn’t meant for me, but it was difficult when they were standing only a few feet away.

“Evans,” the man answered in a way that shouted it should’ve been obvious. “And you really thought we wouldn’t be there for you today?”

“You,” Asher said before the guy finished speaking. “I expectedyouto be here.”

“Weare a team, Briggs,” the giant said softly, almost gently. “Now, go get—Peyton?”

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