Page 78 of Tuned To Break
“Yeah?”
“Do you think I should talk to him? Actually, talk to Doc, I mean. Not just scream at him.”
He doesn’t answer straight away. His thumb brushes back and forth along my hipbone, thoughtful.
“I think... you’ve got nothing to prove. Not to him. Not to anyone. But if there’s a part of you that wants answers—wants to understand—maybe it’s worth listening. Doesn’t mean forgiving. Doesn’t mean forgetting. Just means you’re not running from it anymore.”
“I don’t want him to think he’s entitled to a relationship just because he’s sorry now.”
“He’s not,” Jake says, firmer. “But you are entitled to peace. To clarity. And if hearing him out gives you that, even a little, then maybe it’s worth it.”
I sigh, eyes tracing the faint patterns on my ceiling. “The thing is... I’m not that scared eighteen-year-old anymore. I’m not lost. I’m not waiting for someone to show up and save me. I have a family now. A life. A workshop full of lunatics and friends who’ve somehow turned into my ride-or-dies.”
“You’ve got me,” Jake says quietly. “Every part of me. Batman’s Kinky Cousin and all.”
That makes me laugh. “God, I can’t believe that nickname is going to stick.”
“Oh, it’s tattooed on my soul now. Kinky Batman, at your service.”
I turn to face him, curling into his chest. “I don’t think I would’ve survived seeing Doc again if you hadn’t been there.”
He cups my cheek, brushing his thumb along my skin. “You would’ve—because you’re tough as hell, Stella. But I’m glad I was.”
I rest my forehead against his, letting the quiet stretch.
“Maybe I can afford to hear Doc out,” I whisper. “Not because I owe him anything. But because I’m finally strong enough to hear it without it breaking me.”
Jake presses a kiss to my temple. “Whatever you decide, I’ve got your back. You’re not alone in this. Not anymore.”
“I know.”
We lie there, wrapped in each other, the weight of the day softened by warmth and connection and a man who, for all his dirty jokes and mechanical know-how, has become my safe place.
Because this—this quiet stillness—feels more like home than anything I’ve ever known.
Doc might share my blood, but Jake shares my heart.
And if Doc wants a place in my life now, he’s going to have to earn it. Because I’m not just the niece he abandoned.
I’m Stella Lloyd. Operations Manager. Girlfriend to Batman’s kinky cousin.
Part of the best bloody found family a girl could ask for.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
JAKE
Saturday arvo at Arden’s place is exactly what we all need after the drama with Doc earlier this week. The sun’s shining, the beer’s cold, and Stella seems more relaxed than she’s been in days. She’s wearing a sundress that shows off her legs and makes me want to find excuses to touch her all afternoon.
“Jake, stop staring at your girlfriend’s arse and help me with the prawns,” José calls from the outdoor kitchen, playing sous-chef to Arden’s head-chef routine.
“I wasn’t staring at her arse,” I protest—though I absolutely was.
“You were definitely staring,” Parker confirms from his spot by the pool. “Like a starving man looking at a steak dinner.”
“Can you blame me? Have you seen that dress?”
“We’ve all seen the dress,” Chase laughs. “And we’ve all seen you mentally undressing her for the past hour.”
