“Liam, you want me to call my brother?” Jack asked firmly.

Liam looked up at Jack and winced at the fierce expression on his face.

“Sorry?”

“My brother. He’s a lawyer.”

“I—I—don’t know what you mean?” Liam frowned.

“An hour ago I had a call from someone I’ve done business with in the past. You’ll know him; you worked with him for a long while, Hank Castille.”

Liam blanched and fought the instinct to run.

“I know him,” Liam said. What else could he say?

“You worked at the Bar Five, reporting to Hank. Seems like you left without giving proper notice, stole money, and that I should be wary of hiring you because you slept with him to get your own way or some shit. He tells me he had a PI tracking you, and that he’d found out you’d left the center to work with me.” Jack leaned forward in his chair and his piercing blue eyes bored into Liam. “He also said if others were to find out the Double D was hiring on thieves and whores that it wouldn’t go well for me.”

Liam swallowed. He didn’t give notice, he had stolen money. He’d run. “Okay.” He sounded so freaking defeated even to his own ears. He’d been expecting this all along, knew that working at the D was too good to be true. “I can get my stuff and go.”

Jack sighed heavily and sat back in his chair. “That’s it? That’s all you’re gonna say?”

“What do you…? I don’t understand…do you want me to say something?”

“Did you just up and leave the Bar Five?”

“Yes.” He couldn’t lie. There was no point in lying about any of it. Then defiance slipped into his voice. “I didn’t even pack a bag, I’m not a whore, I’ve only ever been with one guy, I stole what money I could from the cash box in the staff accommodation, and I ran.”

“How much money?” Jack closed his eyes briefly.

“I’m sorry,” Liam blurted out. This was worse than being shouted at or fired. This was Liam disappointing Jack and Robbie, who simply stared at him. “I didn’t mean to lie or not tell you, but please don’t…please…” What was he asking for? He didn’t realize he’d stood until Jack was indicating he should sit down.

“How much money, Liam?” Jack repeated.

“About a hundred dollars, enough to get a bus out and up north.”

“Okay.” Jack relaxed his hands to the tabletop. “I’ll write him a check.”

Liam couldn’t believe what he was hearing? What did Jack mean that he’d write a check? “I don’t understand.”

“He said you weren’t to be trusted, that you lied, stole, and basically I should be running you off the property. I don’t believe a word he says. I’ve watched you with my horses, and I see you more than you think. I don’t know what happened to you at the Bar Five, but I need to know.” He coughed to clear his throat. “I realize you may not want to tell me, but maybe you could talk to Robbie. I trust that if he says you are safe and happy that this is true.”

“I am…” Liam interjected. “I’m happy. I try to work hard.”

Jack paused before continuing what he was saying. “Otherwise, my brother, like I said, is a lawyer and he can represent you or I can call in Riley or my mom.” He paused again. “I don’t know what is best, Liam, I don’t need to know about your sex life or what happened at the Bar Five. I just want you to know I have your back. But I have my kids here, Hayley, the twins, and Max starting this weekend, and if anything that happened on the border gets Hank up here, and my kids are involved…”

Liam decided he was going into some weird kind of shock. He didn’t understand what Jack had just said, but it seemed Jack wasn’t chucking him off the D, in fact quite the opposite. He just couldn’t find the words to say anything.

“Do you want to talk to us?” Robbie asked carefully.

Liam nodded. He did. He just wished he could make sense of what was in his head.

Jack stood. “I’ll get a drink,” he said. In minutes he returned with three crystal glasses and a bottle of whisky. Pouring generous amounts into each, he passed a glass to Liam who swallowed a mouthful immediately. He didn’t really drink, and the burn was enough to make his eyes water. Then suddenly it wasn’t the whisky, but the pain inside him that forced its way out in tears. Before he knew it, he was telling Jack and Robbie everything.

When he finished he realized the whisky was gone, and he’d told these two men things he never thought he’d ever say. He was humiliated, exhausted, his eyes hurt, but he felt lighter somehow. Robbie curled a hand over his and squeezed gently. He hadn’t touched his whisky.

“Okay,” Robbie said simply. “Everything’s okay now.”

“You’re safe here,” Jack added. Then he pushed his chair away from the table. “Wait here. I need to talk to Riley.”

The door shut behind him, and Liam was abruptly alone with Robbie. He couldn’t believe what he’d done.

“You want to press charges?” Robbie asked softly. He still had a hand curled over Liam’s and utter compassion in his expression.

“What good would that do?” Liam answered. “Whatever I say is nothing compared to what Hank could say. Everyone believed him except Darren.”

“Okay, I get why you’d just want to leave this. You made it out okay, but what about the next boy who is taken on by the Bar Five? What if the next one is hurt so bad that even his own strength isn’t enough to stop him from killing himself? Robbie turned over Liam’s wrist, and Liam didn’t even try to hide the marks from his elbow to his wrist. He’d tried to get away the only way he knew how. From his parents, from the hate, from Hank, from the hopelessness, and he’d failed because Darren found him and stopped him before he did real damage. “How old were you?”

“The first time? Sixteen.”

“The first time?” Robbie sounded horrified. “Fuck, Liam.”

The door opened and Jack and Riley came in. This time Jack had a twin as well, and his face was stony in concentration.

“Riley’s father will help you get everything in writing. What you do with it next is entirely up to you.” The twin fussed and Jack rubbed slow circles against its back. Liam suspected it was Connor as he was wearing the tiniest blue sleep suit, but couldn’t be sure. “When it’s in writing, it’s finished—or not. Whatever you decide, I want you to know that Robbie and I met yesterday and we want to make you fulltime.”

Liam didn’t want charity. “You don’t have to—”

“In case you get it into your head this is a pity thing, don’t. We decided yesterday; hell, we decided after about day two of you being here, and I didn’t get that call until an hour ago.”

“Are you staying?” Riley asked gently. He didn’t seem to be judging Liam, but then he didn’t know the full story.

“I want to,” Liam heard himself say. Talk about instinct. He wanted to be here with these men and the horses.

“I’m really pleased.” Riley sat at the table and rocked his twin softly. What Liam wanted to say seemed evil compared to the innocence of the tiny baby.

“I know you and Jack decide things together, so you can see…so…you understand and can judge what you want to do.”

Riley paused for a second and tilted his head in thought. “I don’t need to know a thing. Jack’s word is good enough for me.”

All Liam could think was that one day he wanted what Riley and Jack had.

He wanted it so freaking bad.

Chapter 7

With the twins bathed and in bed and Hayley working on a project for art at the kitchen table, Riley finally had time to pin his husband down. He’d seen the panic in Liam’s expression and the temper in Jack, and both things scared him. He decided he was turning into an overprotective daddy here, but he kind of needed to know Jack had everything in hand. He found him in the small office off their bedroom staring at a computer screen and frowning.

“Hey,” Riley said before leaning and hugging Jack from behind. Jack pressed back into the hold.

“Hey, yourself.”

“Whatcha working on?”