Chapter 11

Lucas was on edge.

Tense as hell.

He stood back as Maddie and Violet ran up the steps to the small ranch house that her dad lived in. The neighborhood had modest houses, but they were all neatly kept, almost military neat.

Twenty minutes ago, Lucas had been lying under the moonlight, sandwiched between Violet and Maddie, kissing this incredible woman, feeling things he hadn"t allowed himself to feel in a very long time.

And now he was dealing with a pissed-off dad.

The last pissed-off dad he"d met had gotten him sent to prison for eight months.

This was why he didn"t date. Because women came with family, friends, colleagues, a life before him. A life that he didn"t trust.

Maddie flung open the door and raced inside, calling for her dad.

Lucas sat on a wicker chair on the porch and faced the street. He braced his elbows on his thighs and scanned his surroundings, watching for any threats.

He heard Maddie talking in a low voice, and he heard a man"s voice talking back. The man"s voice was elevated with tension, but there was no hint of violence or anger in it. Maddie was safe, which meant Lucas didn"t have to go in.

After a moment, Lucas heard footsteps coming toward him. He clasped his hands between his knees and focused on the street.

He felt the moment Maddie"s dad stepped onto the porch. His energy was elevated and tense, and Lucas had to look over just to make sure that he wasn"t about to be attacked.

Huck Vale was mid-fifties, his gray hair cut short and precise. He was wearing old sweatpants, and a Vale"s Flowers tee shirt. His feet were bare, and he was favoring one leg. He looked older than his years, especially if Lucas looked into his face. But there was an energy to Huck that made it clear that he had a history of competence, control, and power. He held himself like the FBI agent he would always be, and Lucas instantly became wary.

Then Lucas noticed all the emotional weight in Huck"s eyes, enough that Lucas rose to his feet and faced him. "Mr. Vale," he said quietly. "My name is Lucas Hart."

"I know."

Maddie came out onto the porch, standing between them, not picking sides. Violet sat next to her, clearly picking her side with Maddie being the winner.

Lucas appreciated that dog. He liked that Maddie always had a champion, no matter what.

"What"s the boy"s name?" Huck asked without preamble.

"Jacob" Lucas knew what boy he was referencing. "Jacob Hart."

"Jacob." Huck suddenly sank to his knees and pressed his face to his hands. "Jacob."

"Dad!" Maddie knelt beside him and put her arm around his shoulders. Violet whined and rested her chin on Maddie"s thigh.

Huck looked up, his face stricken. "Can I talk to him?"

Lucas blinked in surprise, unsettled by the intensity of Huck"s reaction, by his request. "On the phone?"

"Yeah. Now."

Maddie frowned, and Violet wiggled closer to Maddie.

"Jacob doesn"t usually answer the phone, but I"ll try. I have to ask him first if he wants to talk to you. He doesn"t like to talk to people." Lucas stepped away and pulled out his phone. He wasn"t sure about this, but he called Jacob anyway.

To his surprise, Jacob answered. "Maddie okay?"

Wow. Jacob was keeping his phone nearby in case there was an issue with Maddie. Lucas felt like he was standing in the middle of a situation that was about so many people other than him. Was he an intruder? Maybe. "So, I"m here with Maddie"s dad?—"

"Is he a decent guy? Did he take good care of her? Is she all right with him?"

"I haven"t talked to him yet. He wants to talk to you."

There was silence for a moment. "Me?"

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"I don"t know."

"Ask him."

Of course Jacob wouldn"t be willing to walk blindly into a situation that involved other people, even if it was only a long-distance phone call. He looked at Huck. "Jacob wants to know why you want to talk to him."

Huck shook his head. "Only for him."

Lucas grimaced. "That"s not going to fly with Jacob."

Huck shook his head and held out his hand. "Phone." His voice was thick with emotion.

Lucas turned away, needing to break the grip of the emotions pouring off Maddie"s dad. "He won"t tell me," he said to Jacob. "He says he has to talk to you."

Jacob didn"t hesitate. "No."

Of course that would be Jacob"s response. "Give me one sec." He turned to Maddie. "Jacob will not speak without context…" His words faded when he saw the stricken look on Maddie"s face. She had backed up toward the door, and she was gripping the door handle. Violet was pressed against her legs, staring up at her.

Jacob wasn"t simply about her dad.

Jacob was about Maddie as well, and Lucas could tell that Maddie wasn"t ready.

"I gotta go," he said to Jacob. "Talk later."

"Yep."

Lucas hung up the phone and shoved it in his pocket. "Jacob"s not available at this time," he said to both of them.

Maddie nodded once, relief in her eyes, but tension still gripped her body, while her dad bent his head and braced his hands on the porch flooring. He looked up at Lucas. "Is he all right? What happened to him? I went back for him, but he was gone. Never found him."

Was that guilt in Huck"s eyes? Loss? Something more? Lucas wasn"t sure, but it was an emotion that he felt uncomfortable with. It was intense to have a stranger feeling such strong emotions about a member of Lucas"s family. "Jacob found us when he left," he said, being intentionally vague. The Harts protected each other from strangers, and he didn"t like the way Huck was probing for Jacob"s details. "He found his family. Us."

Huck searched his face. "And he"s all right?"

Jacob carried the weight of a billion burdens in his soul, and it showed. But he had the Harts, and he had Phoebe and Annie, and his rescue horses. "He"s good."

"Tell him I"m sorry," Huck whispered. "I wanted to tell him myself, but tell him I"m sorry."

Lucas stiffened. "What did you do to him?" Hell. Had this man abused his brother somehow? If so, he was taking Maddie away from him right then, and never letting her go back, no matter how much of an asshole, controlling move that was.

"I left him," Huck whispered. "I was so scared for Maddie. I had to get her out fast. She was so little. Ivan was willing to sell her, but he wouldn"t part with the boy. I tried, but then I realized I had to get Maddie out before I blew the deal. Once I got her out, I went back for him, but he was gone. I was so scared he was dead. Or worse. I…just…" He covered his face with his hands and broke into sobs. "He"s all right," he whispered. "He made it."

Lucas"s throat tightened with unexpected emotion as Maddie knelt beside her dad and wrapped her arms around him. Violet sat next to Maddie, leaning against her, giving her comfort and strength as only a dog could do.

Lucas felt the authenticity of Huck"s emotions. Huck had spent his life worrying about Jacob in the same way Jacob had spent his life worrying about Maddie.

He didn"t understand how Huck could feel so strongly about a boy he"d barely met, but the feelings were gritty and real, and more than he wanted to handle.

But at the same time, Lucas had experienced Jacob"s stress over it. He knew the guilt was real, and he knew it would eat away at Huck.

Lucas wanted away from this situation and this emotion, but the man in front of him was too much like Jacob, suffering the same way. And this man was suffering for Lucas"s brother. He had to honor that.

Summoning strength he wanted no part of, Lucas walked over and crouched in front of Maddie and Huck. "If you had taken my brother, he never would have found us, the family he was meant to have. Me. My siblings. The Harts."

Huck looked up, his eyes red-rimmed. He said nothing, but his gaze searched Lucas"s, desperate for comfort, for words that would fill the gaping wound that had been festering for so long.

Lucas knew from experience that he couldn"t heal Huck"s wound, but he offered the words he would have given Jacob if he"d been able to, if he"d known what had happened to Maddie. "Jacob left the day after you took Maddie. He"d stayed only for her, to protect her, and when he lost her, it broke him, and he bolted. He"s been worrying about Maddie all this time in the same way you"ve been worrying about him."

Huck kept looking at him, waiting for more.

Lucas knew he was waiting for the words that would set him free from all the pain, but he knew from his own experience that no words could do that. It was so much bigger than a few words.

But maybe he could help.

"Jacob"s engaged to an amazing woman who gets him. She has a daughter and a maniac dog. They make the perfect family. I"m grateful every day he found her."

Tears broke free and trickled down Huck"s cheeks. "Tell him I"m sorry."

"No. Nothing to be sorry about. You took care of Maddie for him. He"s grateful for that." Lucas looked over at her. "We all are."

Her eyes were glistening with tears as well, and her arm was tight around her dad"s shoulders.

So much emotion. It was so overwhelming that it was difficult for Lucas to breathe. But he had one more thing to say, one more thing that might help. "Jacob would not have gone with you," he said. "He didn"t trust anyone. He was fifteen. He didn"t want a dad. He wanted to be free, to be safe, to control his own life. He needed us, not you. But the day he found out that Maddie was alive and safe, a part of him that had been bleeding his whole life finally stopped bleeding. It"s starting to heal, and now you can, too."

It was all Lucas had to say. All he had to give.

He needed to step away now. To get away. To breathe.

"You guys need some time. I"ll stay out here." He looked at Maddie. "Get your dad inside. He needs to be away from me." He wasn"t sure if it was because Huck needed space or Lucas needed distance, but he could feel the need to step away burning in him.

Maddie"s cheeks were wet with tears, and Lucas suddenly found himself reaching out. She met his gaze as he brushed his finger across the tears, brushing them away. She closed her eyes and leaned into his touch for a brief moment that connected them both, and something inside him settled.

He took a breath and nodded once as he pulled his hand away.

Jacob had found his anchor with Phoebe and Annie, and it seemed like Maddie did that for Lucas…whether that was good or not, he didn"t yet know.

Maddie took her dad"s arm. "Let"s go inside, Dad."

She helped the older man to his feet, and both father and daughter looked back at Lucas as they went into the house, a thousand emotions and stories in their eyes. They took that intensity with them as they went inside with Violet and shut the door.

Leaving him alone.

Lucas sank down on the top step and leaned his forearms on his knees, forcing himself to breathe.

He reserved his energy for his family, not for strangers.

He hadn"t allowed someone outside his family to get under his skin for a very long time, but the emotions of Maddie and her dad were like a pulsating ache in his chest.

It wasn"t what he was looking for, this complicated family dynamic.

He didn"t want it.

He didn"t want it.

But he"d made a commitment to protect Maddie, so he wasn"t going anywhere.

Because that"s what Harts did.