Again.

What the hell?

She did not want to speak with him. No, she was way too busy. Plus, she just didn’t want to hear his voice. Tucking her phone in her pocket, she looked around the room, confused as to what to do next. Her dad calling was messing with her brain.

“Hey, babe. Am I taking the boxes in the back of my truck to your office or to the warehouse?”

She looked up from where she was staring at the floor to see Benji standing in the doorway, looking back at her.

“Sorry, what?”

He smiled and, God, he was so sexy. He was wearing a ripped up, dirty, white shirt with some loose jeans that hugged his massive thighs. Wearing a purple Assassins beanie, he was sweating from all the heavy lifting he was doing. She wanted to ask him to stop, that River and Shea could help, but he insisted.

And she was so damn thankful.

“Boxes in the back of my truck. Where are they going?”

“The office. Thank you. Wait, shit. What time is it?”

She looked around frantically, feeling like she was losing it. The day before, with the help of her family and Benji, they had packed up her whole apartment, taking most of it to the warehouse and the rest to Jayden’s. They hadn’t finished, though, and had been finishing up while getting the office done today. She tried to tell Jayden and Benji not to worry about helping since they had a game that night, but they wouldn’t listen and had even brought Shea to help. By the grace of God, they were almost done, but she was going to lose it. She was sure.

“Baby, your phone is in your hand.”

“Sweet Lord in heaven,” she complained, looking down and then throwing her hands in the air. “I gotta go get Angie. Shit, I gotta help Shea and River. And then what time do you have to be at the arena?”

Closing the distance between them, he took her in his arms, cupping her face in his hands before kissing her nose. He had been just perfect the last two days. She was convinced he would run the other way after the shit with Rick or her vomiting her issues all over him, but he hadn’t. He stood beside her, reassuring her everything would be fine, and she clung to him like a koala. It was crazy, and she sure as hell didn’t like leaning on people, but she was leaning.

On Benji.

Especially with the move. It was hard getting everything together, and her emotions were all over the place. It was her first apartment after Rick, and she’d lost it. Yeah, it wasn’t her fault and Benji stressed that, but she felt like a failure. Particularly since she was living with her brother at the moment. She should just dip into her savings and get Angie and herself a place. But everything that was by Angie’s school was crazy-ass expensive and she just didn’t feel right about it. She needed that money for a lawyer in case shit did get nasty with Rick. No, she had to figure something else out.

And having Benji there to bounce ideas off and to just talk to, she was finding was really freaking nice.

“Okay, you go to the house with Shea. Take my truck. I’ll take your car, go get Angie, and then meet you at the house, take my truck back, and head to the arena. I have time.”

She bit into her lip. It was a good idea, but was it okay for her to send him to get her child? Angie would probably eat it up, but should he do that? “Are you sure? That’s kinda over and beyond the duties of a boyfriend, isn’t it?”

Shit, she admitted the boyfriend thing, but he must have missed that because he rolled his eyes. “Angie is an extension of you, remember? I don’t mind. If it’s going to help you out, I want to do it.”

She held his gaze and then nodded. “Thank you so much, and I promise sexual favors later,” she said quickly and he waggled his brows.

“Shit, I’ll be Angie’s chauffeur full time for those,” he said, kissing her lips quickly before taking her keys out of her pocket. He handed her his, and then kissed her once more. “Meet ya there.”

“Okay,” she said breathlessly as he rushed out, leaving her as her phone started to ring once more. Ignoring it, she rolled her eyes but then jumped when someone started squealing.

Her mother.

Shit.

“I knew it! He’s just perfect. How long have you two been together? I just knew when he said that at lunch he was talking about you. Ah! Why haven’t you told me?” she said, throwing question after question as Lucy moaned loudly.

“Mom, not now,” she complained as her phone sounded with a text. “Why the hell is Dad trying to get ahold of me?”

That made her mom pause, her smile dropping. “Your father?”

“Yeah,” she said, shaking her head and hitting the text.

Dad: Call me. It’s about a contract that just came in for your new office. And then Rick’s punk ass.

Her stomach dropped.

“Fuck,” she muttered and her mother’s eyes widened.

“What is it? And goodness, Lucy, your mouth. I’m sure Benji doesn’t like that foulness.”

But Lucy ignored her, hitting her dad’s name. “He doesn’t care. Hold on,” she said, walking out of the building into the brisk, cold air. Winter was coming and she couldn’t say she was ready. She hated the cold. As she cuddled into her coat, her father’s deep voice came across the line.

“Lucy, how are you? How’s Angie?” he asked happily, making her skin crawl.

“What contract? What about Rick?”

“Right to business, I see.” When she didn’t say anything, he cleared his throat. “Well, then. I got a contract from Paul Nixon, representation for Benjamin Paxton?”