Page 108 of Protect

He takes it and gives me a measly shake, then tries to stand up straighter, like a rooster puffing his chest.

“Dr. Troy Stafford, I’m Violette’s husband, Hollie’s dad.”

A silent rage seeps through my blood, hearing him call himself Violette’s husband. I know they’ve been officially divorced for weeks and apart for over a year.

“Violette has mentioned you,” I say. Violette, and not Hollie, because realistically, in all the time I’ve spent with them I haven’t actually heard Hollie mention Troy on her own, not even once.

“Huh, and yet she only just mentioned you yesterday,” he says back with a sort of smug glint in his eye.Prick.

“Maybe if you’d been around more since she’s been back in Sky Ridge, you would’ve heard more,” I retort, doing my best to stay calm while wondering what the hell Vi ever saw in this guy. In the two minutes I’ve known him, I can tell he’s pompous and cares way more about appearances than anything else.

“Well, that’s true I guess, isn’t it? Well, I’ve been around a little more lately, had some more time to talk to Violette, spend time with Hollie while you’ve been off in the woods.”

My blood boils but I remind myself this is Hollie’s father and I’m outside her house. Punching him in the face in the middle of the front lawn is probably a bad idea.

“That’s nice for Hollie,” I lie.

“Oh, hey, thanks for taking them toSuperPets,that was real kind of you, man,” he says, but it doesn’t sound like he’s grateful. It sounds like an afterthought. “I was working toward becoming Department Head for Orthopaedics at my hospital. Now that I’ve secured that position, I’ll be making some more time to get up this way, spend extra time with Hollie and Violette.”

I grit my molars and flex my fists.

“I guess that will be up to Violette,” I say, doing my best to keep calm.

He shrugs. “She seemed pretty open to it when I asked her last night. I guess time will tell.” He brushes past me on the concrete walkway and miraculously, somehow, someway, I don’t actually hit him. “Lots of history, you know they always say a little girl needs her motherandher father.”

This fucking chump.

“I think a little girl needs people who constantly show up for her,” I grit out. “Put her first,” I add, not able to help myself. I move closer to him and speak low.

“I’m gonna fucking level with you, Troy. There’s only one reason I’m not beating your ass right now for bringing Hols back early—like the complete douchebag you are—and for calling Vi your wife. That reason is inside those four walls.” I point toward Vi’s house. I grit my jaw and continue. “But I swear to Christ, if you let Hollie down one more time or you take it upon yourself to call Violette your wife…”

He gives me a smug smile, he knows I won’t hit him with Hollie inside, and it takes everything in me not to knock him right the fuck out.

“I’ll put you through the fucking ground. I may not be perfect, but I know that little girl in there deserves a fuck of a lot better than you.”

“You don’t know the first thing about being a dad,” Troy says, backing away from me.

I fold my arms across my chest and shrug. “Maybe not but trying is a good start. You just remember what I said, Troy. Unlike you, I’m a man of my word,” I call to him as he backs away, then scurries into a Mercedes SUV parked in front of the neighbor’s house. It’s flashy and black and doesn’t belong here.

Once to the safety of his SUV he calls over to me.

“Don’t bother knocking, hero,” he calls back. “Mae was going to get Hollie’s overnight bag packed and then take her back to their place right away. Poor kid’s exhausted after our fun day together. Guess you’ll have to give her those trinkets another day,” he says before he starts the car and takes off down Violette’s street, leaving me standing in the middle of her front yard wishing I had hit him.

I make a beeline back to my truck, needing a minute to just think. I take a deep breath and talk some logic into myself.There’s no way I’ve been gone less than two weeks and Vi has let this guy back into their lives after he’d let them down so much. Not a chance, he’s definitely full of shit. She would let him see Hollie, but her?

No fucking way. I white knuckle the steering wheel for a few minutes and blow out a deep breath. I start my truck. Even though I know he’s full of shit, I need to vent this out as I wait for Violette to finish her shift. One thing is certain. When I find out this guy was lying to me, I’ll be having more than words with him the first chance I get.

I check the time, it’s not even seven.

Me:Does meeting for a beer count as vegging? I could use some company.

Sup:Sure thing. Twenty?

I reply with a yes and start to head to Shifty’s, grateful my sup is always there when I need him.

“From what Jack says the guy is real showy and shiny, he never really understood why Violette married him, aside from he was the furthest thing from us… from here. He offered her a steady, predictable future…and most importantly, he had no connection to Sky Ridge or Jacob.” Xander sips his beer. “Or you.”

I nod. “Does the entire squad know we had something between us when we were kids?” I ask, stuffing a fry into my mouth.

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