Page 19 of Don't Leave Me

“Hey, princess.” A big man who looks like he could break me in half answers almost immediately. “How are you?”

“Daddy, I need you to install a lock on my door and make sure Jax can’t get in my room.”

“I’m on it. What is the little shit doing this time?”

He gets up immediately and goes into the garage. He starts rifling through a bin and within thirty seconds he has everything he needs to change out her doorknob.

He doesn’t seem upset or surprised by the call. He’s not even annoyed. He’s happily dropping whatever he was doing to help her and he didn’t even want to know why first.

“Well, this is Brad Pecker. I made friends with him and we were talking. I found out he’s a Pythons’ fan and has Cody’s jersey.”

“So, you called Jax to rub it in his face and he’s planning on messing with you.” He nods his head like it’s completely expected. “It’s nice to meet you, Brad. I hope you’re taking care of my little girl.”

“I am, sir.”

“You’re an officer with Colt, right?”

“That’s right.” I frown, unsure of how he knows this, but I don’t really care. Anything that keeps me in his good graces sounds great to me.

“Good. Do you carry at all times?”

“Yes, sir.”

“That’s great. If that fucker, Jimmy, comes near them, don’t hesitate to shoot him. The world would be a better place without men like him in it. Alright, princess. Your bedroom is secure, but I can’t promise he won’t pick the lock.”

He puts his tools away, then settles onto the couch. A beautiful woman lays her head on his chest and smiles at the screen. She could be Sophia’s twin.

“Hey, Mom.”

“Hi, sweetie. How’s your trip?”

“Great. This is Pecker. He brought me to the cutest bakery.”

“You know the way to my daughter’s heart, Pecker.” She grins.

“I'm trying, ma’am.”

“Aw, look at how cute and respectful he is,” she gushes. “That’s a first. Normally I get called bro or dude.” She rolls her eyes. “I heard you were messing with Jax.”

“How’d you hear that?” Sophia frowns.

“Because he called me and asked me to convince Dad not to put a lock on your door.” She laughs. “He knew you’d call and knew Dad would do whatever his princess asked without hesitation.”

“What’d you say?”

“I told him I wouldn’t be able to stop him. Jax encouraged me to get naked to distract him.” She laughs even harder.

“Well, that would’ve worked. We have an empty house and a few more hours before we need to go to bed.” Sophia’s dad smirks and wiggles his eyebrows.

When he smiles, he doesn’t look nearly as terrifying as he did before. He almost looks approachable.

“On that note, I'm hanging up. I don’t need to see you making out or moaning when he kisses your neck.” She fake gags.

“Love you, princess.”

“Love you both!”

“Be safe. It was nice to meet you, Pecker.”

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