Page 11 of Breaking Conviction
“Mommy, I can read it! I can! She showed me how!”
Naomi squinched her face and attempted to widen her blood-filled eyes before sighing in defeat.
“Thought so.” Nora tucked the extra brochure back in its holder on the counter. “Okay, here’s how it’s gonna go. I gotta take Momma Babs home. We can’t in good conscience let you drive your daughter’s sweet precious baby angel face around. You can’t even see a foot in front of your beautiful face. My car’s so full of junk that I can’t fit a booster seat back there. So my deal is… either we leave your car here and coordinate an Uber for you, or Superman drives your car and we have another one of the BlackStone Security men come pick him up.”
Thea wrinkled her nose. “Superman?” She glanced at Wes and he winked at her before she turned back to Nora and shook her head. “Wes isn’t Superman. He’s the king and Mommy’s the queen and I’m their Princess T.”
Wes’s smile returned fully while his heart tripled a beat. But the naïve organ slowed to a halt at Naomi’s gasp. Her mouth opened in horror before bending to Thea’s level.
“Theresa Jane Ward, never,eversay that again, do you hear me? Especially not when we get home.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Thea’s lip puckered out and Wes crossed his arms to prevent himself from reaching out to comfort the little girl. Naomi probably didn’t want Thea to accidentally say something in front of the asshole at home. She had to be terrified of the guy. Wes could almost make out where each blow was struck. The thought threatened to short-circuit his brain and unleash the control he always held so close to his chest. The reason behind reprimanding Thea made sense, but it still made him grind his teeth to keep from arguing and making the woman even more annoyed at him.
Naomi stood back up, and thanks to her short stature, her hands rested comfortably on Thea’s shoulders.
“I hear what you’re sayin’, Nora, about gettin’ a ride. I-I can’t get an Uber though because I can’t leave my car here. That… that just won’t work out.”
Wes cleared his throat. “I’m fine driving your car, Naomi.”
“And I’ve already texted Hawk to come pick Snake up,” Nora admitted with a smile.
Wes tilted his head and narrowed his eyes at her just as she schooled her face. “You have?”
“Yep. I had a feeling she’d need it.”
“Mommy, it’s okay. I like him.” Thea turned in her mother’s grip and used that stage whisper only children could pull off. “Wes was real nice and he even played with me.”
Naomi’s hand drifted to her temple, only to make a detour through her dark auburn hair, like she was resisting a habit because of her bruises. Finally, she sighed with a slight nod. “Okay, fine, I guess I don’t really have another choice.”
“Yay!” Thea jumped from her mom’s grip and went to the cash register, placing the crown and green high heels onto the counter. “Mommy, we’re gettin’ these first though, ‘kay?”
“Oh, it’s on the hou—”
“No, it’s not.” Naomi waved her hand at Nora, cutting her off. “I’m payin’ for the dang things.”
Nora threw up her hands and backed away. “Alrighty, it’s all you, boo.”
The volunteer took Naomi’s cash and gave her a paper bag with the crown and heels inside, which Naomi promptly turned to give to Thea.
“Here ya go, T. You know the rules. You wanted it, you carry it.”
Thea squealed and ripped the heels out of the bag and held them up. “Mommy, I got a surprise.”
“Oh, you did, did you?”
“Yup, I got these for you!”
“Is that right?” Naomi chuckled out a strained huff before propping her hands on her hips. “But I thought Mommy paid for them?”
Thea scoffed. “Yeah, butItold you to buy ‘em. Try ‘em on.” She shoved the items into her mother’s stomach and Naomi’s body sank against the counter with a measured breath, as if she was trying to be nice even though her nerves were shot. Seeing her try to hold everything in was too much for him to bear.
“Princess T, let’s go, your mom can try those on when you get home.”
A swollen scowl formed on Naomi’s face as she spoke through gritted teeth. “I’ve got this. I don’t need your help, thank you.”
Shit, why can’t I just shut the fuck up?
But he knew why. That inherent need to step into a situation and help, sometimes even overstepping, was a learned behavior. Or at least that’s what the therapist said.
