Page 86 of Meant for Two

“If you don't think we should wait for your dad, I’ll serve lunch shortly,” Zane said.

Despite the random bursts of pain when Jeff moved in the wrong direction, the coziness of the situation wasn’t lost on him. Being with Zane and Blair was like being home.

They’d just finished the meal, when he sensed his father coming up the stairs. As he started to get up, Blair stood. “You rest. I can answer the door.”

She opened up and his father drew her into a hug. “How are you doing, Blair? The men treating you okay?”

“Dad, she doesn’t know she’s our mate yet,”Jeff quickly telepathed.

“Sorry. I’ll keep quiet, but I am anxious to welcome her into our family.”

“So am I,”Jeff shot back.

“They are both gentlemen,” she told his dad.

His father laughed. “I’m sure that's not the whole truth. If it’s not, I need to have a talk with these boys.”

Blair blushed. His father was her boss after all.

“Jeez, Dad. You shouldn’t even be aware we’ve had sex with her,”Jeff telepathed.

He held up a hand. “Let’s have a seat. I have a lot to tell you.”

Zane came over and sat down. “What did you learn?”

“Nothing I say can be used in a courtroom as it would be hearsay, but it explains a lot. Mason is very talented at getting information out of someone—and I don’t mean by using physical means.”

His father had a tendency to draw out a story. “Bottom line, Dad.”

“As we surmised, when Blair’s father fought with Mike Dragman and blinded him in one eye, he asked his brother, Daryl, to retaliate.”

“We figured that, Dad, but why hurt Blair? Why not gang up on her dad?”

“If we can believe Daryl, Blair is the apple of her dad’s eye,” his father said.

Jeff couldn’t describe the sound that came out of her mouth, but it indicated she thought that was a pile of crap.

“He hates me,” she countered.

His father smiled at her. “No matter what a child does, a father will always love them. They might not like the kid at times, but they will love them.”

She shook her head. “My dad was a murderer.”

“That may be true, but the fight he had with Mike Dragman was about you—according to Daryl.”

“Me? Why?”

“Mike was pissed at your dad for sitting at his lunch table—or some kind of juvenile crime. So Mike started to bad mouth you in the yard in front of the others. Dissing you is your father’s hot button. He loves you. When Mike wouldn’t stop talking crap, your father stopped him the best way he knew how.”

“By blinding the guy in one eye? Sheesh.” Blair shook her head. “If he loves me so much, how come he never wrote? Or asked me to visit him?”

Jeff reached out and clasped her hand. “You may never know the answer to that, but we can figure it out later.”

She nodded. “Sorry.”

“Dad, let’s suppose it’s true that Blair’s father didn’t like having anyone talk bad about Blair. How did that lead to her being run off the road?”

“Mike said the only way to get back at Blair’s dad was to harm her,” his father said. “So he contracted his brother and asked him to take care of it. According to Daryl, Mike didn’t give any specific instructions.”

---