31. Haylee

A feeling of unease sat in the pit of her stomach as she sat on a pile of pillows on the floor of Ally's nursery. Under normal circumstances, she would have been in complete awe of her best friend's beautiful Little room. But knowing her Daddy was downstairs, getting ready to go into a dangerous situation to protect her, made her feel too anxious to take a look around. One part of her loved the man even more for being so protective, but another part felt guilty for sending him and so many other men into the line of fire for her.

Ally lay next to her in the pile of pillows, hugging her stuffed toy. They hadn't said much since coming upstairs, mostly because they were trying to hear what was being said downstairs between the men. Not that they were able to hear anything because it seemed that the men lowered their voices.

"I'm sorry your Daddy is a part of this. Are you upset with me?" Haylee whispered.

Ally's eyes went big, and she shook her head before throwing her arms around Haylee in a tight hug.

"Not at all. I'm just worried. But none of this is your fault, you know."

Everyone kept saying it wasn't her fault, but sometimes, it felt hard to believe. But if she hadn't come home to Pinebrook, she wouldn't have met Kane. And he'd become her hero and the love of her life, so maybe that was something to feel positive about.

Luke walked into the room, followed by Kane and then a third man who Haylee knew was one of Damian's guys. The man was tall and broad like Kane but not quite as intimidating. He also didn't seem to bat an eye at the nursery and the fact that both of them were lying in a pile of pillows on the floor.

"Girls, this is Keith. He is staying with you while we go. You are to behave and mind him while we're gone," Luke said.

Haylee sat up and looked up at Kane worriedly. She felt her lip begin to tremble as tears filled her eyes. He came and knelt in front of her.

"Baby girl, don't cry. Everything is going to be okay. I need you to be the strong, badass baby girl that I know you are."

"I don't want you to go," she whispered, only loud enough for him to hear.

"I know. But I need to go take care of this so you and I can start our long life together. I need you to be good and obey Keith. Understand?"

She reached her arms up for him to pick her up, and she saw the sympathetic look on his face as he shook his head, kissing the back of each one of her hands before placing them back in her lap.

"Take me with you. I'll stay in the car, but at least I would be able to see you."

"There is no way in hell I am taking you. It's too dangerous, and I need to focus on the job. I wouldn't be able to do that if you were in the car. With you here, being a good girl, I will know you're safe, and I can do what I need to do."

She realized she wasn't going to get anywhere with him, so she nodded sadly as a tear slipped down her cheek. He reached out and brushed it away.

"I love you, baby girl. Daddy will be back soon. Listen to Keith. If I find out you disobeyed him or caused any kind of trouble, sitting will be very uncomfortable for several days. Okay?"

"Okay, Daddy. I love you too."

Kane kissed her and stood, waiting near the door as Luke finished talking quietly to Ally, who was sitting in his lap in the large rocking chair. She nodded, and he kissed her before setting her to her feet.

"Keith is in charge. If you girls don't behave, he has our permission to put you in time-out or assign you to write lines, and if either of those things happens, your bottoms will be very sore for days to come when we get back," Luke said sternly.

When had Luke become the stern one between the two men? Normally, Kane took the cake on that.

Both girls nodded in agreement and, in unison, said, "Yes, Sir."

The men disappeared, leaving the girls alone.

"I hate this. I feel so responsible for all of this," Haylee said, throwing herself back on the pillows.

Ally lay down next to her. "You aren't responsible for this. Tim is, and you know if it had happened to one of your friends, you wouldn't think they were responsible for it either."

Turning her head to face Ally, she smiled. "I love you, Ally. Thank you for always being my friend."

"I love you too."

Ally held up her pinky, and Haylee grinned, locking her pinky with her friend.

"Best friends forever," they said in unison.

"Now, let's try to distract ourselves by playing Barbies!" Ally said.

They played Barbies for what felt like five minutes, dressing and undressing them for a fashion show. When Keith came up to check on them and tell them to come down and eat some breakfast, they realized they had been playing for over an hour. Both girls protested being interrupted during their playtime until Keith lowered his eyebrows and narrowed his eyes. Haylee realized that maybe he was just as intimidating as Kane.

They sat at the kitchen counter, eating eggs, bacon, and toast that Keith had made.

"When will they be back?" Haylee asked.

"Are they going to kill him?" Ally asked.

"How do we know if they got him yet?" Haylee chimed in again.

"If they have to kill him, will they have to hide the body, or will it be considered a fair kill?" Ally followed up with.

Keith stood on the other side of the counter, looking back and forth at each of them like they were insane. When they finally stopped asking questions, he pointed to their plates and said, "Eat," without providing any answers.

Both girls slumped their shoulders and started nibbling on their meals.

"Both of your Daddies will be just fine. You two just need to play and behave yourselves and not ask so many questions. You are already making me tired."

They giggled and gave each other a high five.

"Hey, you better be nice to your babysitter. I can tell them that you were naughty, and I'm sure both of your butts would be toast."

Keith chuckled when they quickly schooled their faces and went back to eating.