22. Riley

Chapter 22

Riley

I listened in awe as Danny managed to somehow convey that I'd been in a serious accident while at the same time downplaying it. His silver tongue had got him out of hot water almost as much as it had landed him in it.

"And you're definitely not hurt?"

I reached over the table to pat her hand. "No, Mum. Like Danny said, it's just shaken me up mentally. The doctor said that with a few weeks off work resting and relaxing, I should be right as rain."

"You will actually relax, yes?" She didn't wait for me to answer, turning instead to Danny. "You know what he's like, Danny. My boy's never been known to take a break. Even as a teenager he was always running from one job to another."

Because the money I brought home kept our heads above water, I wanted to scream. Because I didn't have any other choice.

Danny hooked his ankle around mine as he answered her with a pleasant smile. "That's because Riley's always putting everyone else above himself. Don't worry, he's got me looking out for his best interests now."

"That's good." She sipped her tea, Danny's pointed barb going straight over her head. "You've always taken good care of my Riley. I've noticed that from the start, and I appreciate it."

Danny turned his smile on me. "He's worth it."

"Course he is," she said simply. "He's my everything."

Just like that, my ire towards her softened. It was hard to be mad at Mum for too long, because any ill treatment was never intentional. She truly loved me—that was never in question. Her behaviour towards me was never intentional, just thoughtless. There was a big difference between the two, and that difference was what kept her in my life.

"Thanks, Mum." I kissed her cheek. "Shall I put the kettle on?"

"Yes, please." She drained her cup and held it out, Danny doing the same. While I pottered around with the tea, Danny filled her in on our Scotland plan. He made it sound like we were simply holidaying in a rural location. Somewhere I could relax and fully recover.

Thank fuck I had my back to them; my face would've totally given the game away. Scotland was bound to be a lot of things, but I suspected ‘relaxing' wouldn't be on the list.

"What about your work? Do they mind you taking so much time off?"

"Not at all," Danny lied easily. "We have a rolling holiday programme in work, and because I haven't taken any time off in so long, it's added up."

I put the cups on the table, and was about to sit down when Danny's head whipped towards the front door. A low growl filled the air a second before a key turned in the lock. Danny was out of his seat in a flash to see who it was.

I turned my confused gaze on Mum. "Mum? Who on earth has a key to your house?"

She opened her mouth to answer, blushing furiously, but before she could respond, there was a loud call. "Jo? I'm back, sweetheart—oh! Hello. You must be Danny. Does that mean young Riley's here too?"

Jo? I mouthed at Mum. She groaned and buried her head in her hands.

Danny's face was a mixture of amusement and confusion as he led the stranger into the kitchen. Or rather, not a stranger, given he knew both mine and Danny's names.

And had a key to the house.

The stout man stood at about five foot eleven and had slightly thinning dark hair. He was casually dressed in a pair of shorts and a loose Hawaiian-style button down. A pair of sunglasses were perched on his hair, and he had warm blue eyes that shone with kindness.

"Hullo there," he said, the crinkles at the corners of his eyes deepening as he extended a hand towards me. "You must be Riley. I'm thrilled to meet you."

"Thanks," I said in a daze, looking between him and Mum, who still had yet to look up. "And you are?"

He laughed, the sound rich and deep. "Aye, a name would probably be good given I've let myself in and all. I'm Richard, your mum's boyfriend."

Danny and I exchanged a concerned glance. Mum hadn't been in a relationship since I was nine years old. That disastrous end seemed to have been her wake up call to focus on other areas of her life. Not once in the intervening years had she given any hints that she was considering another relationship.

Richard put the bag he'd been holding on the floor before going behind Mum and squeezing her shoulders. "You can stop hiding, sweetheart. Cat's out of the bag now."

She finally looked up. "You just had to be quick at Tesco for the first time in your life, didn't you?"

He chuckled fondly before kissing her forehead. "Well you're always nagging me to go faster. Can't get mad at me for actually doing it."

Then my mum, my very serious fifty-year-old mother, stuck her tongue out at him. "That's what I think about that."

"What's happening right now?" I whispered in a daze.

Mum ran her hand through her hair sheepishly. "Umm…"

"Richard, why don't I help you put the shopping away?" Danny said smoothly, stepping up and leaning on my shoulders. "These two can take their tea into the living room and have a proper catch up."

"Excellent plan." Richard pointed at Danny. "Knew I'd like you."

I got to my feet on autopilot. I'd barely taken a step before Danny stopped me. He nuzzled his face against my neck for a second before whispering in my ear, "Go easy on her, princess. It's going to be okay."

Easy for him to say.

His breath was hot on my ear as he chuckled. "I know you don't believe me, but I can feel it in my bones. Richard's a good one. And if he's not, I'll remove his spleen."

He lifted his head and I immediately cupped his cheek with my hand. "You say the sweetest things."

Danny twisted his head to press a kiss to my palm before darting off to help Richard. My gaze lingered on him for a moment, before my mum's voice snapped me out of my reverie. "Living room?"

"Yup." I hustled after her, taking my usual spot on the sofa. Little had changed since I was a child. The same carpet. The same TV that only played sound out of one speaker. The same sofa.

But as I looked around the room again, I saw signs of change. Things I hadn't noticed earlier because I hadn't been paying attention. A man's coat hung on the back of the door. A pair of work boots against the wall. Glasses that certainly weren't my mum's on the mantelpiece. A vase filled with tulips.

"So…I think we've both got some things to discuss."

I raised my brows at Mum. "Yeah, quite a few things by the looks of it."

Mum sighed, fidgeting with the sleeves of her cardigan. "Richard and I have been dating for a while."

"How long's a while?"

She bit her lip. "Eighteen months."

I stiffened. "What? Why the fuck haven't you told me?"

"Language," she said mildly. "I didn't want you to worry. I wanted to make sure things were serious with him before I told you."

"And they are? Serious, I mean?"

"Yes." Her lips curled upwards with a soft smile. "I really wasn't expecting it, you know? After everything that happened when you were a child…"

Her voice drifted off and, when she blinked, silver lined her eyes. Putting my cup on the side table, I scooted closer and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Don't get upset, Mum. I don't blame you."

"You should," she whispered tremulously, a tear slipping free. "I was a terrible mother."

"You were not," I said fiercely. "You were mentally ill. That's something you have literally no control over, so don't you dare blame yourself."

She sniffled, taking the tissue I grabbed from the box with a grateful smile. "I am still sorry though. I just wanted you to know that."

"I know," I said, rubbing her arm.

We sat huddled like that while she dabbed at her eyes and blew her nose. When the tears stopped, I said, "So—Richard. Tell me everything."

It turned out Richard was actually a neighbour. His garden backed onto ours. He and Mum had chatted over the fence a few times. Then, one day, a storm had blown a tree over, flattening the fence.

"You should've called me," I interjected. "Danny and I would've come and helped."

"I didn't need to," she said simply. "Richard took care of everything. As a thank you, I offered to cook him dinner."

"And that's how the two of you started?"

"No." She smiled again, looking younger than she'd seemed in years. "We were friends for several months before anything more happened. Richard made his intentions and feelings clear early on, but I was scared. I knew what it was like to have your heart trampled on, and I was terrified he'd do the same."

My own heart was hammering in my chest now. "How did you get over it?"

"Time. Richard kept showing up for me, day after day. He waited out my fears until I was ready." She paused, her lips twisting with a wistful smile. "I'm so glad he did. He makes me happy, Riley. Happier than I ever thought possible. With him, I can just be myself, and he loves me for it."

"Then I'm happy too," I said thickly. "Happiness is all I want for you."

"And I for you. I should've told you before now, but the longer it went on, the bigger it became. But I'm glad you know now. Richard's wonderful. He's been dying to meet you and Danny for months, but he's never pushed it."

From the kitchen, I could hear Danny and Richard chatting and laughing. "Sounds like it's going well, at least."

Mum sipped her tea. "Doesn't surprise me. Has Danny ever met a person he didn't get along with?"

I laughed, thinking of Sebastian. "I'm sure there's one or two."

"It's a good thing though—both the men in our life getting on." She gave me a pointed look.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

She tutted. "I'm not blind, Riley. I can see there's something going on between you two. I know you've always insisted you're just friends, and I've believed you, but today…" Her gaze drifted to the wall, like she could see Danny through it. "There's something different about you both. You've always orbited each other, but now it's like there's a tether there."

"You're imagining things," I said weakly.

"Hmm." She sipped her tea. "Looks like I'm not the only one lying. You seem to be lying to yourself too."

"We're just friends."

"You're right, just friends spend all their spare time together. They take weeks off work to help their friend relax in Scotland. They lend each other their clothes. Total friendship stuff that is."

I folded my arms over my chest, like that would somehow hide the fact I was, indeed, wearing one of Danny's shirts. "So? Friends can do that."

"Don't be an idiot, Riley." She pinched my cheek. "I might've messed up in several areas, but I didn't raise you to not see what's right in front of you."

Richard and Danny's entrance saved me from having to defend myself further. Richard carried a Victoria sponge cake, while Danny held a knife and several plates. He shot me a questioning look, his concern radiating through the bond.

I nodded, letting him know I was okay. That didn't stop him from wedging his too-big frame onto Mum's too-small sofa. He usually took the chair, but that was where Richard was sitting. Somehow, I doubted it would've made much difference even if Richard hadn't been there though.

He huffed when he realised he wasn't going to fit, lifting me with one arm and plonking me unceremoniously on his lap. My face turned scarlet as my mum fought not to laugh.

Just friends, she mouthed to Richard, like we weren't sat right here.

Richard winked at her conspiratorially before clapping his hands. "Right, who fancies a slice of cake?"

T wo hours later, we were back in the car and deep into a breakdown of everything that had happened. It was one of my favourite times—the gossip we shared on our way back from any event. Who'd fallen out with who. Who'd tricked their mate into yet another impossible deal. Who in the club was going to hook up with who.

This was no different.

"I just can't believe she kept it from us for so long," I said for the hundredth time. "I mean, there's waiting until you're sure, and then there's this ."

"I'm not surprised," Danny mused. "If anything, I'm glad she did."

"Why?"

"Because it shows she's changed. When you were a kid, she'd move the bloke in within a week without giving a thought to how it might impact you. This time she's waited until it's serious before telling you. She's put your feelings before hers. She's grown."

"Technically, she didn't tell us at all. Well, she did, but only because she didn't have a choice in the matter."

"She would've told you eventually," Danny said, indicating to turn onto my road. "And Richard's a decent bloke. I shouldn't have to kill him."

"Please tell me you're joking."

He winked at me. "I'm joking."

"That doesn't make me feel any better." I perked up as a thought occurred to me. "Wait, we're mates now."

Danny side-eyed me. "We are…"

"So let's make a deal." I clapped my hands together. "You can't murder anyone who's upset me or anyone connected to me."

Danny paused for a moment before laughing loudly. "Princess, you need to brush up on your supe lore. I'm a wolf, not a demon. You can make any fucking deal with me that you like, doesn't mean I have to do it."

"Damnit." I scowled, folding my arms over my chest. "I vaguely remember something about that now."

"Anyway, a deal is supposed to go both ways. What would you have offered me in return?"

"What would you have asked for?"

Danny's eyes flicked down my body to my crotch, heating as they returned to my face. "I think you know, princess."

I cleared my throat, shifting in my seat. It's Danny's arousal you're feeling. Not yours.

That was it. If only I could pretend that was what was making my cock hard then I'd be golden.

"Good thing deals don't mean anything to you," I said eventually, staring out of the window. "That'd only complicate things."

Danny pulled up outside my house and turned off the engine. We were going to start packing up what I'd need in Scotland before heading to The Closet. Aside from visiting with my mum, the other thing I'd wanted to do was have a night out with our friends.

I could feel Danny's stare burning into me, but I refused to look at him. "Things are already pretty complicated, Ry. I'm not sure how adding sex into the mix will make it worse."

I shook my head adamantly. "It will. I just know it."

Danny stroked the back of my neck with a chuckle. "Okay, keep telling yourself that. Want me to stop flirting?"

I twisted to see him sprawled in his seat, amusement dancing across his handsome features. He hadn't shaved in a few days, the stubble unfortunately making him even more attractive.

It was just fucking rude, honestly.

"Do you even know how to?"

He ran his thumb across his bottom lip, smirking when he saw my eyes track the movement. "I mean, I can try. If it's upsetting you, that is."

"It's not." I sighed. "Nothing you do upsets me, Danny. I'm just…Oh I don't even fucking know anymore. There's just so much in my brain, you know? Everything seems to have changed in the past few days and I'm just trying to play catch up."

Danny cringed. "I know, Ry. The last thing you need is me hitting on you too. I'll try to stop."

"It's fine." I pushed my glasses up to rub at my eyes. "Maybe what we need is a bit of normality. When we go out tonight, maybe you should try hooking up with someone else."

Danny's face was impassive, but the force of his shock and horror through the bond had me recoiling. "You want me to hook up with someone else?"

Everything in me was screaming no, but to my alarm, that wasn't what came out of my mouth. "Yes. I think it's for the best. It'll remind both of us that we're friends."

"But you know I want more than friendship."

Now I was the one cringing. "You think that now, but I'm sure your feelings will change once the bond has settled. This is a good thing. It'll uncomplicate things between us and prove that we can be platonic mates."

"Platonic mates," Danny echoed flatly. "Sure this is what you want?"

My head bobbed as I gave him the fakest smile going. Why the fuck was my stomach churning? "Absolutely. It's what's best."

"If you say so." He blew out a long breath. "I think you're a fucking idiot."

He got out of the car without looking back, storming up to the house.

I dropped my head into my hands with a groan.

Danny was right. I was a fucking idiot.

But it was because I was scared.

And I didn't know how to change that.