Page 55 of Mountain Daddy

Yesterday?

He fucked me like vengeance. Bent me over and ruined me with his hands, his mouth, his name in my throat.

But now?

Now he’s crouched beside Mrs. Chen’s busted Honda.

Explaining engine trouble. She laughs. He looks up and smiles.

And I stand here, heart melting for a man I should fear.

How can someone be so gentle and so dangerous at the same time?

The question haunts me as the day continues. Nikolai doesn't leave.

He just... stays. Helps. Charms every person who walks through that door.

“You're going to spoil me,” I tell him during a brief lull.

“Good,” he says, and there's something in his voice that makes my stomach flip.

That's when Chleo comes running in from school, backpack bouncing, cheeks flushed from the cold.

“Muama! Guess what? Tommy's mom brought cupcakes for his birthday and—” He stops short when he sees Nikolai. “Oh. Hi.”

“Hey there,” Nikolai says softly.

I hold my breath.

“You fixed the wobbly chair.” Chleo observes his toolkit, the chair in the corner, always noticing everything.

“I did. Does it meet with your approval?”

Chleo tests it out, sitting down and rocking slightly. The chair holds steady. “It's good. Mama's been saying she'd fix it for weeks.”

“Sometimes it helps to have the right tools.”

“Can I see them?”

Nikolai glances at me. I nod, not trusting my voice.

He opens the toolbox, explains what each tool does in simple terms that don't talk down to a five-year-old. Chleo listens.

Then, he looks up at Nikolai: “Want to see what I built at school?”

“Absolutely.”

And just like that, my son is showing this dangerous stranger his Lego creation. Explaining how the wheels turn and where the secret compartment hides treasure.

Nikolai listens like it's the most fascinating thing he's ever heard.

Before I can protest, Nikolai is lifting Chleo onto his shoulders. My son squeals with delight, hands gripping that dark hair I used to run my fingers through.

“I'm so tall! Mama, look how tall I am!”

I look. And my heart breaks a little more.

Because Chleo looks so happy up there. So secure. Like he belongs.

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