Until Tia by K.L. Humphreys
Christopher
"Hey, bud, dinner’s ready," I yell, as I put the plates onto the dining room table. It's something that I've done since I got him when he was four years old. Layla was so high on drugs she'd forget about him. He was dehydrated, malnourished, and he had bruises all over him. I fucking hate her for doing that to our son.
I never thought my life would end up here. A single dad and hating my son's mother. Yet, here we are. It took everything I had not to put my hands on Layla when I saw the state my son was in. I've never been a violent man, I rarely get angry, instead I cut people out of my life and be done with it. But Layla, fuck, that woman pushed me to the very limit. I can just about get over everything, but hurting my son is something I'll never get over and never forgive.
Thankfully, the money I make, and the connections that I have, made getting full custody of him easy. Layla tried to put up a fight, hell she has another child that I had no idea about, her mom is the other boy's legal guardian. Had I known that from the start, I'd have done things a hell of a lot differently.
Today has been the day from hell, Tia was ruffled this morning; she wasn’t her usual smiling self and whenever I tried to pry she’d shut me down. Then I get home and the babysitter quits on me. I’m not sure what I’m going to do with Marcus, any new sitter I get for him he has them run off within a month. It’s the screaming that they can’t handle. Marcus screams until his voice is hoarse whenever they get too close to him. I honestly thought this new one would work out, but no, she’d had enough.
"Daddy, is Mommy going to take me?"
His words stop me dead. He's not spoken about Layla in a long time.
"What makes you ask that, bud?"
"I saw her today, she was outside my school." He sits up on the chair and begins to eat. "I don't want to go with her, can I stay here?" His voice is small and filled with fear, he's unable to meet my gaze.
"This is your home, Marcus. No one is going to take you from me." I'd fucking tear them apart if they tried.
I need to find out what the hell Layla's doing in town. Having that bitch this close to him makes me antsy. She's up to something and I have to figure out what, before it's too late. She had better think twice before pissing me off any more than she already has.
"You promise?" He glances up at me, his eyelashes are wet and his bottom lip trembles.
Fuck. I fucking hate Layla.
I move around the table and crouch down beside him. "I promise." I open my arms and he doesn't even hesitate in jumping into them and wrapping his tiny arms around my neck. "You're my son, and I love you. No one is going to take you from me," I vow and it’s one that I’m going to keep. I won’t let him be hurt again.
He sobs against me and all I can do is hold him tight and pray that Layla doesn't get to him. Once I have him calmed down, we have our dinner, but he’s silent and withdrawn and I realize he’s been this way all day and I was so busy that I missed it. Fuck. I’m an asshole.
"Night, Daddy, love you," he says sleepily as I tuck him into bed a few hours later. He’s stayed close to me all night, just as he did when I first took him away from her.
I press a kiss against his forehead and soak in his words. "Love you too, bud. Sleep tight."
He's out before I even close the door. God, kids are so resilient, I know he's scared but he has so much faith in me that it's humbling.
I still can't get over the fact that Layla's in town. If it were anyone else that had told me they'd seen Layla, I'd have said they were mistaken, but not Marcus. The fear he has is real, she's in town. Fuck. I'm going to have to call in reinforcements. Sully, Derek, and Jameson will help me figure out what the hell I should do.
I get a beer and call Sully. I quickly relay what Marcus told me. He flew to London with me when I went to get Marcus. He saw the aftermath of what Layla wrought on my son, he saw how scared he was to be around women, it took him a long time to be able to trust them. When he met Cleo he took to her instantly, the same with Wendy, I should have realized when he hated being around my mom.
"Fuck. That fucking bitch," he snarls. "What the hell is she doing here?"
"I've no idea, but the fact she showed her face outside of Marcus' school tells me that she wants him."
It's never going to happen, she's never having him again. I don't give a fuck if she's cleaned up her act. Hell, I know she hasn't. I've been keeping tabs on her since I brought Marcus home, I knew that a day would come where she'd claim she's sober and better and I wanted proof of that. I've been getting monthly updates from my investigator. I've had Marcus with me for over two years now and Layla's not managed to go a fucking week without being off her face on some sort of drug.
"You think she may try and take him from the school?" he asks, his voice filled with anger.
"She wouldn't be able to, once I inform them that she's been seen hanging around outside, they'll up their security. It's one of the reasons I chose that school, they have the best security that money can buy." It's not cheap, but Marcus' safety is paramount.
"Good, I'll get Nathan on it, see what he can uncover. She's not going to get him, fuck no. That bitch has caused that boy enough hurt, she's not going to inflict anymore."
"You sure Nathan will have the time?" I ask, his friend Nathan Slade works with Smithy International, they're a huge security intelligence agency. Nathan used to own a PI firm before he married Sophia and joined her business with her teammates from the Army.
"He'll find it," he assures me. "He's still pissed that he didn't uncover the shit with Colby." Colby's the guy that was stalking Cleo, he was an employee of Sully's. "Let me call Nathan, and I'll swing by your office tomorrow, I'll bring Derek with me too, he'll be pissed if he's the last to know that bitch is in town."
Derek, Sully, and I have been friends forever. I owe them both more than I'll ever be able to repay for everything they've done for me and Marcus.
"I'll call Jameson and let him know."
Sul chuckles, "Fuck, if Cleo and Wendy find out that Layla's in town they'll want to track her down."
That puts a smile on my face, Wendy and Cleo despise Layla and they've never met her; they just know some of what she did to Marcus.
"I'd better tell my assistant to cancel some of my appointments for tomorrow." There's no way I'll be able to focus on anything other than sorting this fucking mess out.
"How is she getting on? It's Tia, right?"
My gut tightens as it does whenever she's mentioned or I think of her. She's been working with me for three weeks now and I know without a shadow of a doubt that I want her. Whenever I'm in her personal space, which I happen to like doing, she gets that scared look in her eyes and her body trembles. It pisses me off but I know she can't help it. I want to pull her into my arms and protect her, as well as strip her down and make love to her.
"Fine, it's been three weeks and she's still here. She's not yet had to deal with either my mother or Layla..."
"That should have been a red flag. Have you stopped giving them money?"
I sigh, I hate fucking talking about this. "Yes, I stopped the money last week. I'm surprised that neither have said anything."
"That'll explain why she's here, she wants money." I hear Cleo's voice in the background. "Tomorrow, we'll make sure that she'll not be able to get to Marcus. You need to talk to Tia, and see if she can clear your schedule tomorrow."
"Right, I'll see you tomorrow, and thanks."
He scoffs, "Don't mention it. Later." He ends the call and some of the tension I had starts to ebb away.
I take a sip of beer and search my cell for Tia's number.
It takes a couple of rings but she finally answers. "Hello?"
I smile when I hear her voice. It's weird to think that she can do that, make me smile with just the sound of her voice. I'm so fucking gone over this woman it's not even funny and yet she doesn't even react to anything I say to her.
"Hey, Tia. I'm sorry for calling so late, but I need your help."
I hear sheets rustling and then her moving. "Of course, what do you need?"
"You're not busy are you?" I don't want to interrupt her if she's busy.
"No, I was just lying in bed feeling sorry for myself," she responds softly. "What do you need?"
"Are you okay?" The words tumble out of my mouth as I remember how pale and scared she was this morning when she came into the office. She was a few minutes late which isn't like her. She's always early and has a cup of coffee waiting for me. This morning however when she arrived she looked frightened.
"Um, sure..."
"Tia, are you okay?" I ask again. "You seemed out of sorts this morning."
She sighs, "Yeah, just bumped into someone I wish I hadn't." The sadness in her voice makes my gut tighten. "It's fine, it's something I should be use to by now."
I'm fighting the urge to go to her apartment and demand to know what actually happened. The thought of someone upsetting her pisses me off. I want to ask so many questions but I know she'll blow me off as she does anytime I try and pry into her personal life.
"Tia, are you safe?" I need to know that she's okay.
"As I'll ever be," she whispers and fuck that breaks my fucking heart.
"What can I do to help?"
"I wish there was something that could be done, but my ex doesn't agree with the term, ex. I'll be okay," she assures me, her voice a little stronger than it has been. "What is it that you need help with?"
"I have a problem; Marcus' mom is in town and was seen at his school and now I have to find another sitter for him. The other one quit today."
"Take a deep breath, Christopher," she instructs me. "Let's deal with one thing first. What about Marcus' mom? What's happening?"
She doesn't know what Layla's done or the reason that I have him. It's not something I talk about.
"She showed up outside his school. She's not allowed to be near him. I have full custody. I need my schedule cleared for tomorrow."
I hear her suck in a sharp breath, "Okay, but that means putting off Mr. Layman."
Fuck, I forgot I had another meeting with him. We're supposed to be going through the specs for our new model we're working on.
"Damn."
"Okay, what if we reschedule your appointment for next week but have him meet with Research and Development, you already know the specs that you want. Why don't you send him an email and have him talk to R and D so that he's sure? Otherwise the meeting isn't going to be helpful."
She's right. Damn. She's fucking magnificent - smart and organized. She can think on her feet and come up with the best plan of action for my business.
"Damn, Tia, I think I may just love you, that's brilliant." The words are out of my mouth before I even think about what I'm saying. I feel something for her but it's not love, I don't want to scare her off.
Thankfully, she laughs. "Okay, send me the details of the specs that you want and I'll email Mr. Layman and get him set up with a meeting with R and D. I'll also clear your schedule for tomorrow."
I sigh with relief, thank fuck. I'm not sure what I'd do without her.
"Now, as for Marcus, why don't you bring him to the office after Kindergarten? I don't mind having him with me while you try to get a few things done. My desk is huge and covers half the lobby, we can make some room behind my desk, maybe give him a small one where he can draw and color while you're working?"
I blink. Fuck. I'm unable to speak. Is she for real?
She must take my silence as me not wanting him around her or something. "You don't need to, I was just thinking that while you're looking for someone permanent to watch him, that he can stay here in the office, it'll be no trouble at all for me to watch him."
I want them to get along. I want him to be comfortable around her. "What about your work?"
She sighs, "I'll be able to focus on both."
Jesus, she's fucking phenomenal. Kind, caring, intelligent, and beyond beautiful. "I'll introduce the two of you tomorrow morning before I drop him off at Kindergarten."
"I'm looking forward to it, shall I be at the office around eight?"
Fuck me, can she get any more perfect?
I swallow past the lump in my throat. "Yeah, Tia, that would be great."
"Okay, Christopher, I'll see you tomorrow. I'll let you know when I have your schedule clear and Mr. Layman sorted out. Have a good night."
I close my eyes and let her voice wash over me. "Goodnight, Tia, thank you." I end the call before I do something stupid and ask her out on a date.
Tomorrow will let me know if Tia's the one for me or not. I'm a package deal and if she can't deal with Marcus or he doesn't like her, then that'll be that. But if they get along, I'm going all in with her, I'll take my time, but I won't be giving up on her.
Tomorrow can't come fast enough.