𝐕𝐈𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐂 ❶

𝟐𝟏. ✭ 𝐃𝐀𝐍𝐈 ✭

Torey looks Brooks over in deliberation. "And I'm supposed to tell her that in front of you? You work for her father. You could very well be communicating with him right now for all I know."

"If I were communicating with him in that capacity do you think you'd still be alive?"

"Like you could kill me." Torey's arrogance will never cease to astound me because it would seem that Brooks was very much capable of killing Torey. Torey being Torey would never admit that though. "Anyway, I've been in contact with Dedaj and it would seem like nothing is amiss."

"You've been in contact with my father?"

"Don't glare at me with death daggers, Dani. I work for the man, remember?" I feel my jaw clench at his words as I rock the baby in my arms, the one I'd had to give up because of said man.

"Back to the point." Brooks interjects. "How long will it be until we are all free of him."

"Well, the fact that we have a Turkish diplomat involved makes things a bit trickier. But before the massive attack it was only a matter of months. How many exactly I'm not entirely sure but I know they were getting ready to pull the trigger." He uncrosses his arms and walks over to me. He reaches out and caresses the side of our son's face. "Soon enough we'll be able to be his parents, Dani."

"But we have missed so much. I don't want to miss out on any more." The anger and the sadness begins to build in me as I start to register what he means. We will have to leave him here, all the way across the country, and go back to New York. I will have to live under my father's tyrannical rule again without Brooks and without Torey. "I can't go back." I shake my head at Torey. "Please, I can't go back. I can stay here. We can." I look at Brooks who gives me a half-hearted smile. "Brooks, please. I can't go back. I won't be able to be with either of you. My father will put me under lock and key. If you and I stay here—"

"First of all," Torey cuts me off, "I am not letting you stay anywhere without me. Second of all, I am not letting you stay anywhere alone with him ever again. You're not going to live with him and stay here to play house with my goddamn child. That is not fucking happening." There is rage burning in those bright blues that tells me he can't believe I'd even suggest such a thing.

I cover the baby's ears and pin him with a glare. "Watch your language, Torey. Learn how to behave yourself for once. If not for me then for the sake of our child."

"That's exactly why he should stay here, Dani." Brooks steps up along the other side of me. "He will not be safe anywhere near us. Not right now. You know that." He looks down at the baby with, "he's beautiful, Dani, and it would appear he is living a beautiful life here. Like Torey said, if there were any people that could care for Wolf properly it's his parents."

"But you said they were dangerous."

"We are." A feminine voice said from behind me which has me turning around to see Torey's mother leaning against the doorframe casually. "The three of us are extremely dangerous. We have all been trained in the ways of deadly force and are not afraid to use it." She pushes off the frame and comes to stand in front of me which has Torey and Brooks backing away. "In other words, if anyone wants to hurt our dear Wolf here they will have to go through us." She looks down at him and then back to me. "And no one gets through us." The smug look is one I've seen on Torey's face countless times. "Come on, why don't we bring him down stairs for something to eat. Denver is starting up some appetizers before he makes dinner."

✩✩✩

I played with and held Wolf on and off with Torey for the duration of the evening while Brooks helped Denver in the kitchen. At dinner Luke had fed Wolf from his own plate, from his own lap which Malyssa had scolded him for but he paid her no mind. He just continued feeding my son happily, wiping his face of sauce every now and again. I could see the genuine affection and love the man had for his grandson. He treated him like he were his very own child and you could tell he loved him in such a way. It was a hard pill to swallow but in those moments, watching Luke interact with him in such an adoring fashion, I saw that Brooks and Torey were right— the safest place for him is here, with them. Nonetheless, I envy them for being the ones to care for him.

Currently, I'm watching a movie by myself in Torey's parents' guest house. It's a romantic comedy which has me feeling happy and melancholy all at the same time. I wish loving someone were as easy and carefree for me as it is for the people on the screen. I let out a sigh and down another fistful of popcorn.

Torey and Brooks had left to get our belongings and bring them back here before we leave in the morning. I thought Torey would insist on dragging me along with him but he surprisingly didn't. I suppose he knew his parents and the security team that scoured the grounds would get a handle on me before I took five steps away from the door.

There's a knock on the door which has me eyeing it warily. With a sigh I get up to answer it, revealing Torey's mother on the other side. "Good evening, Dani." She eyes the television off in the distance. "Am I interrupting anything?"

"No, I was just watching a movie." And shoving copious amounts of popcorn in my mouth but that's neither here nor there.

"Can I come in and have a chat with you?"

I deliberate but only for a moment. "Yeah, of course." I open the door wider and let the woman inside.

A/N:
Happy Monday!
I hope you all had a great weekend. What do you think Mal and Dani are talking about?