Whispers of a Broken Halo by Abbi Glines

The look in her eyes was wary, and I knew she didn’t trust easily, if at all. She must still think they were in some danger.

She dropped her gaze to the floor and visibly sighed. “He isn’t used to having a man around,” she finally said as she lifted her head and looked at me. “He likes you. I can’t let him get attached, but I guess one evening won’t hurt.”

Why the hell was I relieved? I wasn’t going to get laid now, and I had a date to break. I should be upset that she wasn’t letting me out of this.

“Don’t confuse Cullen. He needs to understand you’re not going to be coming around again,” she added.

I understood what she meant, and I agreed. I didn’t want the kid to get hurt or attached. I was not the man for him to get attached to.

“Just this one time,” I agreed.

She nodded. “Yeah.”

It looked like she was going to say more when Cullen walked back into the room. He had changed into a Spider-Man T-shirt and put on a pair of tennis shoes with Velcro straps. The sides lit up as he walked.

Bryn glanced back at me after looking at him. “You going with us to the store?” she asked.

Somehow, it felt more like a challenge. I could see in her eyes that she expected me to say no. She knew if I was seen with them at the grocery store, that people would talk. She also had no clue how little I cared about that shit.

“You ever ridden in a Jeep?” I asked Cullen.

His eyes went wide. “No,” he replied.

“Well then, I guess I have to go. I’m driving,” I replied, then winked at him before turning to look back at Bryn.

She looked as if she might argue, but one glance at Cullen stopped her. “Okay, but I need to get his booster seat out of the car.”

“I’m really gonna ride in a Jeep?” Cullen asked excitedly and hurried for the door.

“The top’s off too,” I told him.

“This is the best day ever,” he exclaimed as he reached the door.

I followed him, checking to make sure Bryn was coming. She was frowning as she studied the back of his head and shifted her gaze to mine.

“Don’t make him like you too much,” she added.

I didn’t have a response for that. I wasn’t sure what the proper reaction to that request should be. Cullen walked outside and then stopped and turned to look for Bryn. When he found her walking behind us, he went to her and reached up to grab her hand.

It was just one more night. He wasn’t going to get attached to me that quickly.

“Let’s go,” he said, grinning up at her.

She returned the smile, but I could see the uncertainty in her eyes. Trusting someone else with Cullen—even just with a Jeep ride, pizza, and a movie—worried her. That led me to wonder about her personal life.

Had she not dated anyone since Cullen’s birth? Had they always lived together? Had her life recently changed by moving here with Tory and Cullen?

As I walked to the Jeep, more questions began to pile up in my head, and I fought to push them aside. This wasn’t my business, and I wasn’t going to make it my business. But it was impossible to believe Bryn hadn’t dated or brought a guy around since Cullen’s birth.

“I need to get the booster seat,” Bryn said.

I stopped as she unlocked her car, and then I moved to take the seat before she could.

“I got it,” I told her.

Again, the flash of worry was in her eyes.

“It’s one evening. Stop looking so damn scared,” I whispered for her ears only.





Chapter Twenty-Two

Rio

nine years ago

All we did was move. I was so sick of it. This place was even worse than the last. My mother couldn’t stay anywhere for too long. Rent would come due, and she couldn’t pay it, so we’d have to leave in the middle of the night. Or her current boyfriend would disappear, and we would move because of that. Always the same shit.

The trailer park she had moved us to this time was worse than the last apartment we had left. I honestly hadn’t believed a place could be worse, but it was.

I took the last box of our things from the car and closed the door with more force than necessary. The car was ancient, but it was sturdy. Mom had said it was the car her father had given her when she turned sixteen. I didn’t know the man all that well, but he had chosen a good car for her. I was convinced nothing could stop the thing from running. Mom’s neglect and abuse to the car should have put us on the side of the road a million times. Yet it just kept going.

“Get the box inside and unpack things. I’ll be back later,” Mom said as the door to the trailer slammed behind her when she came outside.

She had put on some of the red lipstick she only wore when she was heading out to a bar. We didn’t have enough money for her to go to a bar.

“You going to find a job?” I asked her hopefully.

She shot me a glare. “Ain’t yer business what I’m doin’. Now, go on in and unpack. I’ll get some groceries tomorrow.” Then, she flashed me a smile to soften her words.

I didn’t say anything more. There was no reason to. She was done talking to me. I watched as she backed up and drove away in the faded blue Ford too fast, considering kids were out playing in front of their trailers. She was a mom, and you’d think she would think about that. Not my mom though.