Hard Brake (Wilkins Brothers Book 2)

Chapter 14

GRUFF

“Are you sure you don’t want to just stay here for the night? We have the room.” 

I could tell my mom was scared for all of us, but the last thing I wanted was to be here with everybody any longer than I had to. Besides Jasper, Tate had made his way to the house as well. Maverick and Bellamy wanted to come, but my mom convinced her that it was a bad idea because of being so pregnant. I told Maverick I’d shoot him in the knee if he dared leave his pregnant fiance alone for even a second.

Hattie was entertaining the kids after we had all been fed. I knew my mom’s intentions were good, but I also knew that I needed to get them back to where there was more of a sense of peace and something that felt a bit more like home to Nico and Anna. Jet and Tate walked the parameter and gave us the all-clear. We quickly loaded the kids into my truck and then Jasper drove with us to the shop.

“We’re going to park in the shop, just in case so don’t get out of the truck until I open the doors,” I said to Nico and Anna and they both responded in the affirmative. I hated seeing that fear back in their eyes. Neither of them should have to deal with the evil that was their father.

When the back door was shut and locked, I hopped out of the truck and opened the door behind me, Nico and Anna both jumped out and at the same time, Jasper was helping Camila out of the passenger side. With maybe a little more urgency than needed, we rushed them through the office and upstairs into the apartment.

“I’m going to get them ready for bed, okay?” Camila gave my hand a little squeeze and they headed down the hallway with the two kids. I went to the fridge and grabbed two beers, handing Jasper one.

“Want to talk about it?” He asks, taking a seat at the kitchen table. 

I join him, looking up from the bottle, “You want to finally talk about why you and Landry can’t stand to be in the same room with each other?”

He gulps the beer, “Low blow, man.”

“Well one of you two needs to come clean eventually, it is making things really fucking awkward.”

“It isn’t like we’re all together often anymore, I mean she’s got a boyfriend now and he pretty much takes up all her time.”

“I’d ask if that is what’s going on between the two of you, but this shit started before they met.”

“I really don’t want to talk about this,” he groans.

“I’d much prefer to dig into your personal life than think about mine, though.” Jasper flips his middle finger up at me and I chuckle. “That’s not very nice.”

His eyes wander down to the hallway where the shower is starting, “You like her, don’t you?”

“It’s a fucking mess, man. If she wasn’t still married and wasn’t in the middle of dealing with all of this shit, I would be so quick to ask her out on a date and probably fucking wine and dine her. Which is nuts, because I’m NOT a wine and dine guy.”

“If she wasn’t dealing with all this shit, you wouldn’t have met her,” Jasper reminds me. “I’m not the type of person that believes in stars aligning and heavens opening and all that fucking shit, but you have to admit that without these events, she wouldn’t be here. Maybe that means something, I don’t know.”

“You are not seriously giving me the fate speech right now.”

“Maybe I am, just a little.” Jasper finishes his beer and tosses it into the recycle and I follow suit soon after. “Are you good? I can stay if you want.”