My heart soaring, Siren grabbed the back of my neck and pulled me to her. The second her lips met mine, heat seared through my veins, my tongue sunk inside her mouth and I forgot about everything except the feel of this woman.
“Mama!”
We pulled apart and burst out laughing.
“That’s it, baby girl.” I brushed her hair from her face. “That’s your Mama.”
AFTER DINNER, I SENT SIREN and Maddie to the couch to watch TV while I put the crib together. By the time I went to join them, Maddie was asleep in Siren’s arms. I kissed Siren’s forehead then sunk down on the couch next to her.
“That’s a beautiful sight, Siren.”
She looked up at me but she didn’t smile. “She’s so thin and she’s not eating much.”
I stroked Maddie’s leg. “She will.” Her stomach had probably shrunk from not being fed properly. “But we’ll get her checked out by a pediatrician.” I wrapped my arm around Siren.
“I know you said not to think about it, about where they had her. But I can’t help it. She was filthy and underfed. Was she…” Siren swallowed. “Was she being abused?” Tears filled her eyes.
I cupped the back of Siren’s neck and pulled her head to my shoulder. “She’s gonna be fine. She’s not cut or bruised up, she was just a little dirty.” I was taking what I saw in that house to my grave. I would die before I let Siren find out about that cage. “We got her cleaned up. We’ll get some weight back on her and love will fix the rest. Everythin’s gonna be all right, I promise.”
She nestled into me. “What happened to the woman who had her?”
“You don’t have to worry ’bout her ever again.”
“Because?”
Shit. I ran a hand over my face. “Siren, I don’t wanna have to lie to you but I will if it means keepin’ you safe. Some things you’re better off not knowin’. Some things, I don’t even know. The truth is, when I saw Maddie, I took her and got out of there. I left Neil and André to clean up and I didn’t ask questions because I trust them to have my back. You hear what I’m sayin’?”
She swiped at an escaped tear but her voice came out strong. “Yes.”
The Stone thing was weighing on me. “And I want you to trust me. I want you to know I’ll always have your back.”
“I do and I know you will.”
I exhaled. “Stone caught up with me today.”
She sat up and alarm spread across her face. “Where?”
“At the store when I was buyin’ a crib.”
She clutched at Maddie.
“Siren,” I warned. “I don’t want you gettin’ worked up. I’m tellin’ you because I want you to know that I’m not gonna keep shit from you. Everythin’s okay. You’re here and you’re both safe.”
Her posture relaxed, marginally. “What did he want?”
“He got hit hard last night in his compound by the cartel he was trying to undercut. He and the few LCs still alive didn’t come out as winners. He was lookin’ to save face by throwing his weight around and trying to intimidate me but Neil and I have leverage over him. Bottom line, he’s not going to be a problem for us anymore.” I wasn’t going to scare her by telling her everything.
“What do you mean, leverage?”
I studied her. “Here’s where the trust part comes in.”
Her shoulders still rigid, her face set, she waited.
“I’m not gonna tell you. All you need to know is that I’m not gonna let him hurt you or Maddie ever again.”
She stared at me for three heartbeats then exhaled. “Okay.”
“Okay?” Her quick answer was too easy.
“Yes. But I don’t know how to turn off six months of fear. I’ll try but I can’t promise you that I’m not going to feel afraid or look over my shoulder or even want to take Maddie anywhere without you by my side.”
“For now, I don’t want you goin’ anywhere on your own anyway. We’ve got André’s men covering us and I want to be with you and Maddie if you go anywhere. Stone’s not gonna try anythin’ but we’re still gonna take this slow. Understand?”
She nodded.
I ran the back of my fingers along her cheek. “For the record, what would take your fear away?”
She stroked Maddie’s hair. “Short of Stone dying, I don’t know. Moving?”
“Relocate?” The thought of giving up my house and my business ran through my head but I didn’t know how I felt about that. Shit. If it made Siren feel secure, did I care?