“Ready?” Lucy asked Harris before Jesse could even open his mouth.

“You got your phone, Lu?” Jesse demanded, giving my kid the stink eye. “Linc’s gonna meet you downtown, right?”

“Yes, Daddy.” Lucy turned to hug her father. “I’ll be fine. Harris won’t let anything happen to me. And yes, Linc and Natalie will be with us all afternoon. And Mr. Cutter as well.”

“I’ll keep my eyes open, man,” I promised my friend. Ever since Lucy’s real father had kidnapped her and put Emmie in the hospital a year and half ago, Jesse had become a very protective father. I knew that there were still nights that Lucy couldn’t sleep, because those were the nights that I found Harris still up at four in the morning with his phone beside his pillow while he talked to the girl.

Jesse gave me a curt nod, kissed Lucy on top of her curly dark head and left the three of us standing in the lobby. When he was out of sight, I rubbed my hands together. “Okay you two. Let’s get this show on the road before the freaks… Oh wait. They’re already here.” I ruffled Lucy’s curls and pushed Harris in the direction of the door.

“Funny.” Lucy rolled her big brown eyes at me and stuck out her tongue. “Love you too, Mr. Cutter.”

“How many times do I have to tell you to call me Devlin, Lucy? Huh?” I wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close, giving her a tight one-armed hug. “Stop making me feel like I’m sixty.”

“You mean you aren’t?” Lucy’s eyes widened in mock surprise. “Oh gods, Mr. Cutter. I’m sorry. I was so certain you were gonna be in a nursing home soon.”

Harris had hailed a cab and he opened the door for Lucy to get in first. I glared from one kid to the other. “You two have been spending way too much time together. I don’t like you brats teaming up on me.”

“Sure, granddaddy.” Lucy giggled as she scooted across the seat.

I actually shuddered. “Don’t ever say that again, kid. Don’t ever make it an actuality either.”

It was Harris’s turn to glare at me from the middle of the bench seat as I climbed in, but he didn’t say a word as the cab driver pulled out into traffic. My brows rose at him. Harris shrugged and put in his Beats earbuds, effortlessly blocking me out.

Did I mention I wanted to punch my kid in the face?

Yeah, I so fucking did. But I didn’t.

Lucy and I made small talk over Harris’s head on the twenty or so minute drive downtown. Apparently Lucy and her parents along with her twin little brothers had flown out instead of riding on the bus that had been redesigned for them for the summer tour. Luca and Lyric hated flying because it bothered their ears, but Lucy loved it and was telling me about all the interesting things she’d seen while she’d looked out the window during the long flight. To say Lucy was imaginative would have been a serious understatement. The girl held the potential to go far in a writing profession, whether it happened to be as a journalist or an author.

When the driver pulled over it was in front of some little boutique and I groaned as soon as I saw it. Did Harris even know that we were going to some artsy place like this? Considering it was Jenna that we were meeting up with then he probably did. Jenna was a talented artist, could paint a picture after only seeing something once, adding her own quirky personality to it. Sometimes it was dark and moody, other times it was kind of goofy, and then there was her soft and pensive side. All of them produced some amazing work that I had actually bought off the girl and had hung throughout my house back in California.

I was the first one out, my eyes searching the surrounding area for any sign of Natalie, reminding myself that I had to look for a short-haired chick instead of the long glossy hair I was used to. She wasn’t the first one I saw, however. Rhett Fucking Tomlinson was. I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from letting loose the curses that instantly bubbled up. I held the door of the cab open so that Lucy could get out, gripping it so hard that my fingers ached.

Rhett was standing inside the little boutique that I saw was actually a small art gallery as well. He had a big shit-eating grin on his face and Natalie was standing right beside him, laughing right along with him. White-hot jealousy burned through me and I slammed the door of the cab so hard that the car shook a little.

“Easy there, Hercules,” Lucy teased as she stepped up onto the sidewalk with Harris. “Don’t hurt yourself.”

Despite my tension, a smile teased at my lips. Lucy was a good kid and I was so glad she was in my son’s life. With her around I wasn’t as worried about him going down a wrong path that would fuck up his future. “Cute, kid. Anyone ever tell you that you’re beautiful?”

Pink filled her cheeks. “Just you and my dad. And Drake, Shane, Nik, and Axton. Linc a few times.” She gave me a little wink and I ruffled her curls again. Lucy swatted at my hand. “Stop it. I’ll bite you the next time you touch my hair, devil.”

Harris choked on his laughter when he heard Lucy call me devil. “I like that, Lu. Keep calling him that.”

“Oh great. Now I can’t.” She sighed. “Sorry, Mr. Cutter. My therapist thinks I’m too much of a people pleaser. He’s suggested that anything I do that makes my friends happy I should do the opposite of.”

“For real?” I laughed.

“No, but it keeps Harris on his toes.” She squealed when Harris grabbed her around the waist and tossed her over his shoulder. “Stop, stop. Don’t you dare..!” The squeal turned into hysterical giggles when he started tickling her. “I’m sorry… Stop… Harris!”

Harris stopped tickling her but didn’t set her down as we entered the little boutique/art gallery. Small fists hit my kid in the back as she struggled to get free. “You are such a pig,” Lucy muttered, finally giving up and propping her head up on her hand. “Payback is going to be so much fun. And I have three solid months of sharing a bus with you, too.”

Lucy was promptly set on her feet and Harris laughed as he ran off, his best friend chasing after him. “Pig.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at them as I followed. My laughter died in my throat when we reached the group of four standing at the back of the shop studying a piece of artwork on the wall. I stood back while Lucy and Harris embraced Jenna, my eyes locked on Natalie as she stood between the two other men. The more I looked at her, the easier it was to accept her new haircut. I still mourned those long silky locks, but this new style made her look older. I had to admit that I liked that. It made me feel a little less like a cradle-robber when she looked older than her twenty-two years.