Page 198 of Papa's Bébé
“You’re sure this Hayes doesn’t mind us using his cabin?” she asked again, shifting nervously around on the seat.
“No, he said to go for it.” Matthieu glanced over at her. “Why are you so nervous?”
They had a van filled with animals, clothes for them both, and a huge amount of food that he’d picked up at their last stop.
Matthieu wasn’t sure where Ink had found a vehicle that could fit all of them, but somehow he’d managed it. They’d decided that taking her car wasn’t a smart idea, just in case Vince had a way of tracking it or he was somehow watching.
It was just a precaution, really. But better safe than sorry. And his car was too small to transport everyone.
Livvy had brought some clothes around for Maya while Ink had grabbed some for him. She’d told them that she and some of the other girls would clean all of Maya’s salvageable clothes from the fire once the fire inspector let them into the house.
Maya had woken up this morning and just stared at her toy before turning toward him with the biggest smile on her face.
Christ, it didn’t take much to make her happy.
And the urge to see that smile on her face every day had almost taken his breath away.
“And he knows about the animals?” she questioned.
“Maya, what are you worried about?” he asked gently.
“I don’t know. I’m just not used to letting other people make all these decisions. What if Tank doesn’t like it there? What if Princess Priss manages to get out? What if something goes wrong with the chickens? You know that Chew Bok-Bok has got a bit of an attitude.”
“I think Millie can handle Chew Bok-Bok’s attitude. We’ll be careful not to let Princess Priss out. And Tank will be fine if he has you and Big Berry.”
“Right, you’re right. I’m just feeling . . .”
Nervous. He knew that.
“You don’t have to worry about anything when you’re with me,” he reassured her.
“Uh-huh. Right.”
She didn’t sound very reassured. But he understood. This was a lot of change for her and she didn’t really have control of any of it.
But learning to give up a bit of control might be just what she needed.
“Hayes let Reyes and Emme stay in his cabin before when they needed a safe spot. It’s isolated, secure, and he never comes here.”
“Oh no. Oh no.”
“What is it?” he asked.
“I forgot to call David. I didn’t even think about it!”
Everything had been a bit of a whirlwind this morning as they’d gotten prepared to travel and her focus had been the animals. They’d ended up leaving Marshmallow with Ink for Millie to collect. The trip would be a bit stressful for him.
“Where’s my phone?” She looked around her. “Did I get it back after Brody took it?
“I’ve got it. It’s turned off. Brody added some extra security so you can use it, but I turned it off to give you a bit of a break.”
“Oh, yeah. Thanks. I do feel a bit . . . overwhelmed. But I should call David. Even if he is a dick.”
“Actually, I called David this morning.”
“Oh God, what did he say?” she asked, wincing.
“I don’t think you want to know.” That guy was a fucking asshole. And something had to be done about him. Once the danger to Maya was past, he’d work on that.
