18. Puppy

Riggs

They tried to be quiet.

They failed.

Still, his sleep had been such shit, he let them have at it the next morning, Nadia making breakfast for his kid, his kid eating it, until, from where he was stretched out on his couch in the living room, his gun on the coffee table, he heard Nadia say quietly, "Go brush your teeth, sweetheart. We'll let your dad sleep. I'll run you to school."

Riggs heard his son's sneakers clambering up the stairs and sat up.

He looked over the back of the couch at her and caught her staring murder at him.

Seemed she hadn't had cup two of coffee.

He pushed up, the throw falling off his body, and he let it remain where it fell, still in his jeans and Springsteen tee from last night, socks on his feet.

He went direct to the coffee pot, managing to do that without being mortally wounded by the daggers she was shooting out her eyes, and he made himself a mug.

He turned, leaned his hips against the counter, and before he took a sip, he took his life in his hands and asked, "Is it the caffeine level or did I somehow do something in my sleep to piss you off?"

She stopped rinsing plates in the sink, turned off the faucet, and got dead in his face.

Fuck, it killed him not being able to kiss her, even as pissed as she was right then, and he could see she was seriously fucking pissed.

Her eyes slid up to the ceiling, as if trying to sense where Ledger was in getting his shit sorted, then back to him.

She launched in. "First, a nine-year-old and a gun on the coffee table do not mix, Andrew Doc Riggs."

"My gun is always locked, except last night. Even if it wasn't, he knows I'll lose my mind if he even touched it. And I was right there, and I've been awake since you two came downstairs."

Nadia didn't miss a beat.

"This brings me to my second, which has two parts, since obviously you didn't sleep great last night if you had to fake sleep for the last half an hour instead of getting up and joining us for breakfast, and I'm guessing that doesn't have to do with the fact you slept on the couch."

It'd be good if sometimes, like this time, she wasn't as sharp.

"So that leads me to part two," she went on, "you on the couch at all. Were you keeping something from me last night when you told me all was good with what was going on and the bad guys got what they wanted when they got that wine?"

"I haven't even had a sip of coffee yet," he growled back. "So I don't know how many parts my comeback has, but I love my boy, I give more than a passing shit about you, and someone wrecked your door, not to mention, wrecked Bubbles's skull. So I didn't lie. As far as we can tell, it's about the wine. But that doesn't mean I'm taking any chances."

"So you're not keeping anything from me to protect me like you protected me from ghost stories?"

"I am."

Her eyes got huge.

"But it's not a lot, and I'm doing it because this county's sheriff, and my good friend, told me in confidence, and in no uncertain terms I couldn't share it, even with you. But if I was worried, or hell, Harry was, we'd be moving more than a few nights' worth from your closet to the one in my guest room."

She backed off.

But since they were on this subject.

"I know you're worth a lot of money, Nadia," he stated. "And that's not difficult intel to come by. So I'm gonna say straight out, it worries me, you alone in that cabin."

"How do you suggest I live my life, Riggs?" she asked. "Have a security guard follow me around. Get dogs? Build a twenty-foot wall around me?"

An idea sprang to mind.

"I'm getting you a dog."

She blinked.

"Are you two done fighting?" Ledger called, the echo of it telling him it was from the stairs.

She started it, so Riggs cocked his head before he righted it and took a sip of his coffee.

She'd lost the attitude (and it was around the time he'd said he gave more than a passing shit about her, but he wasn't going there—he had to think on it, but he'd do it later, when she wasn't right in front of him after cooking his kid breakfast).

Now that attitude came back.

"We're fine!" she yelled.

Ledger showed.

She looked to him. "And we weren't fighting. We were discussing."

"Guns are stupid, and they're used to kill kids in schools. Dad has one because we live in the middle of nowhere and there are bears. But he doesn't like them either. Harry made him get it. Because crazy stuff happens in MP a lot."

"You can say that again," she muttered under her breath.

At that, Riggs hid his smile behind another sip of coffee.

"And you were fighting," Ledger contradicted. "You shouldn't lie to kids. It teaches us to lie."

"I'm understanding now why Jenny fell in love with Forrest," Nadia griped.

Riggs choked on his coffee.

"What does that mean?" Ledger asked.

"Nothing," she said. "Got everything?"

He went to get his book bag.

She turned to Riggs. "You. Call the school and add me to the drop-off, pick-up list." She turned to Ledger. "You. Out into the Range Rover."

Ledger saluted. "Aye, aye, captain."

"Someone kill me," she mumbled, snatching her purse off the kitchen bar.

Ledger was out the door, and she was nearly the same, when Riggs called, "Honey?"

Hand on the door, she looked his way.

He had a lot of things to say.

The one he picked was maybe not on top of the list, still, it was important.

"Thanks for taking my kid to school."

"Stop being sweet after you've annoyed me."

"I gotta swing however I swing," he replied.

"Ugh," she grumbled.

Then she was out the door.

Half an hour later,after a quick shower and change, he called Nadia from his truck on the way to the hospital.

Harry had phoned, and Bubbles was awake.

"If you're going to be sweet, I'm not listening," she said as greeting.

Which meant he was grinning at his windshield.

"Bear down, this might be considered sweet."

"What?" she asked, not sounding annoyed, or curious, just normal.

"The cruiser was gone when I left. Probably took off when you and Ledger did. I'm headed to the hospital. Bubbles is awake. I told Harry I wanted a deputy to return, and he's gonna see what he can do. But if you don't see a cruiser in the drive when you get home, head back to town and grab a coffee then find me some placemats."

"Fine."

"And figure out what else you're gonna need to bring over. You're spending an extra night at mine."

"Why?" that sounded suspicious.

"Because I called the school and put you on the list. And when I get back, I'm not gonna work on your house. We're headed into the mountains. I called a friend and found our luck has changed. He's got an adolescent cane corso ready to place that hasn't already been claimed. Though, he says you'll need to go out every day for the next week to work with him, and he'll need to come out to the cabin every day for another week to keep that training going."

"I…sorry, I'm not following."

"He breeds and trains Malinois and cane corsos for police and guard work. He doesn't have a Malinois ready to be placed. But I'm down with that. I'd prefer a cane corso. The Malinois can be vicious as fuck, and they don't like any strangers. The cane corso is more loving and accepting, but they're huge, more visually intimidating, and its bite force can fuck someone up."

"Riggs—"

"You get a dog, Nadia, or we talk to Dave about an extensive security system being put in, including perimeter sensors and motion detectors. And we also talk about buying you a gun, and getting you trained in using it."

"I'm not buying a gun."

"Then you're getting a dog."

"Maybe we can have a chat?—"

He cut her off. "Don't make me do it."

"Do what?"

"Ask you what your grandfather would say about you alone in that cabin."

Silence.

He gave her some time.

Then he stopped doing that.

"Nadia?"

"I'll get a dog," she said softly.

"You pissed at me?"

"It wasn't low, though I want to think it was. You're right. My dedulya would not be happy, nor would he think it's smart, me at that cabin with only you close, and not that close. Especially with all that's happening. Mom would be pretty ticked too."

"You got security at your place in Chicago?"

"I live in a high rise, and yes, it has very good security because Dedulya bought it for me."

"Right."

"So I guess I'm getting a puppy," she mumbled.

"Honey, this is no puppy."

"It'll be a puppy to me."

He'd give her that.

"Letting you go. No girlie placemats," he warned.

"As if," she replied.

He was grinning at his windshield again.

"Later," he said.

"Bye, Riggs," she replied.

He disconnected and drove the rest of the way to the hospital.