“Yes, they are.” I glanced at Roan to find him frowning. “What?”
“I don’t want that girl to hurt her.”
My heart gave a painful squeeze. The depth of care he had for Cady reached a spot inside me I didn’t know existed.
“Heather might hurt her. But Cady’s strong. She’s surrounded by people who love her.” It wasn’t just me anymore. It was Roan, his siblings, their partners, and his parents. Through them, I’d found the thing I’d always been missing: family.
Panic filled Roan’s expression. “Why do you look like you’re about to cry?”
A laugh slipped from my lips. “Because I’m happy.”
The tension in Roan’s face eased. He reached up to cup my face. “I’m glad.”
“Thanks for making me that way.”
“Tender Heart,” he whispered gruffly. “Don’t have time to fuck you this morning.”
I snorted, pushing to my feet to clear our now-empty plates. “So romantic.”
He smacked my butt on the way to the sink. “And don’t you forget it.”
“I’m ready,” Cady called as she pulled on her coat.
We piled into Roan’s truck and headed for school. It didn’t take us long to drop Cady off. I caught a brief glimpse of Katelyn, but she mostly avoided glancing in our direction. And Heather did look a little sad.
“I feel bad for Heather,” I mumbled as we headed for The Brew.
Roan flicked his gaze to me in question.
“She’s a kid. She learned to be mean from her mom. It’s not even her fault.”
Roan grunted.
“She needs someone to show her the way.”
He pulled to a stop near The Brew. “You’ve got eighty-two animals and a daughter. The last thing you need is to take on another kid.”
“I didn’t say anything about taking her on.”
Roan twisted in his seat. “Know you, Tender Heart. You really gonna tell me you aren’t thinkin’ about bringing that little girl into the fold?”
I shrugged. “Would that really be so bad?”
“If I have to deal with her mom, it would be.”
I winced. “You have a point there. I’ll come up with a plan.”
Roan just shook his head, and then his eyes narrowed on something in the distance. “That fucker.”
He was out of the truck in a flash, and I hurried to follow after him.
Roan strode down the sidewalk and past The Brew to a narrow alley between the buildings. “Get the hell out of there before I decide someone’s trying to break in and shoot.”
A curse sounded, and Oren stepped out of the shadows. “I haven’t gone into that godforsaken café. You can’t touch me.”
“That’s where you’re wrong.” Roan took one giant step forward, and Oren stumbled back.
“Get the hell away from me.”
Roan’s eyes narrowed. “You’re the one who keeps showing up in our lives. Think it might be time for you to get one of your own.”
“People have the right to know the truth!” Oren shouted.
“Except you’re not giving them the truth. It’s why your paper fired you, isn’t it?” Roan snapped.
I sucked in a breath. Roan hadn’t shared that tidbit of information.
Oren’s face heated. “I’m freelance. My narrative can’t be controlled.”
“Have fun publishing that on conspiracy theory websites,” Roan snarled.
Oren struggled to keep his breathing under control. “People are going to see that all of this is lies from a bitter woman. Someone who couldn’t handle her sister’s happiness. Just you wait.”
He stormed off, and I gaped.
“What is wrong with him?”
Roan sighed, moving into my space and wrapping me in his arms. “I didn’t want to ruin our night, but remember when Holt called?”
I nodded. We’d been mid-game of Sorry! with Cady, and Roan had stepped out onto the front porch to talk to his brother.
“He’s had his security team at Anchor doing some digging on Oren, Steven, and Tyson.”
“He didn’t have to do that,” I mumbled.
Roan just shook his head. “He wants to help.”
“You two already have my house rigged like Fort Knox.”
“We do not,” he argued.
“Whatever,” I grumbled.
Roan squeezed the back of my neck. “Holt’s team hasn’t found a lot on Tyson and Steven yet, but Oren is a different story. His wife had an affair, and he found out not long before your case broke. From everything we can tell, he’s turned into a hell of a misogynist. And he’s active on some pretty messed-up forums.”