Irrevocably Mine (Imagine Ink Book 3) (16 page)

“I’m going to call that hunky man and get his ass over here—right now. He needs to…tell me how much I love him.” Her attempt to punch numbers was impaired. Before she could successfully scroll her contacts, John removed the phone and dropped it into his shirt pocket.

“Sorry, sis, but you are not drunk-dialing anyone. You may be pissed now, but you’ll thank me for it in the morning. You’ve had alcohol-induced revelations and soul-comforting butter pecan ice cream, let’s get you to bed and sleep it off now, shall we?”

Her brother shuffled her down the hall and tucked her in bed. John sat on the foot of the bed for a few minutes, just to make sure she wasn’t so drunk she would roll off. As sleep was closing in on her, she mumbled, “I need to come clean about seeing Hank. If I don’t, I’ll lose him.”

John was just rising to leave, and he froze. “When? When did you see Hank?”

Uh-oh.
Stacy’s tequila-soaked brain registered her mistake. Shit, now she’d have to tell John before she told Dax. She didn’t want to tell John at all. He was the typical overprotective big brother and she didn’t want him or Dax going after Hank.

But, lying wasn’t an option—to John or Dax. With a sigh, she sat up and answered, “I thought I saw him across the street at the courthouse the other day. I wrote it off as nerves because I got notified of his release, but then…”

“Notified of what? Why didn’t you tell me? What did Dax say?” It had been a long time since she’d see John this pissed. But then again, she knew it would be that way when he found out, she’d just hoped to casually drop the news to her brother one evening, and move on. Seeing Hank killed that possibility. Yep, now she had to face the firing squad.
Of course, John will be a cakewalk compared to Dax.

Her buzz became way less buzzy. Stacy leaned over and unlocked the drawer of her bedside table and moved her Ruger to retrieve the envelope that held news she should’ve already shared. She snapped the envelope in his direction. “They gave the asshole parole. And of course, because he’s such a fucking genius, he’s in town creeping around. At first, I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me, but it became apparent when it happened more than once. Last time, he smirked at me and when I did a double-take, he waved.”

John didn’t take the notice, instead he stalked in front of her, grasped her by her biceps and brought her to her feet with a shake. “Shit, Stacy, did you tell the cops? I’m sure that is a violation of his parole.” Stacy gave a small shake of her head, enough for her brother to understand. “Don’t you remember the threats he made? I’ll kill him if he touches a single hair on your head.”

“No, John, you won’t. I won’t have you getting yourself in a jam over a harmless asshole like Hank.”

“Harmless? Harmless? How can you say that after…”

“Easy. It was DJ that was the scary one. Hank doesn’t have the balls to do his own dirty work; he was a pawn being led around by his dick. DJ is still locked away, and without him, Hank is all bark and no bite.”

It was obvious John didn’t believe it, hell, neither did she anymore. What she said was true, but the eyes watching her from a distance were harder than she remembered. That was not something she would share.

John dropped to a seated position on the bed. “How is it Dax hasn’t slit his throat yet?” His eyes cut her way, and she dropped hers, and pushed her hair back. “Damn it, you not only didn’t tell him about seeing the bastard lurking around, but the look on your face tells me he doesn’t know he’s not locked away anymore, either. He can’t protect you if he doesn’t know there’s danger.”

That does it
. Stacy donned her indignation like armor and leapt from the bed. All the buzzy feeling was completely gone now. “First, I did tell Dax he was paroled, thank you very much. Secondly, I don’t need a man to protect me. I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself.”

“Dial it back a notch, Killer.” John rose, folded his arms across his chest, and took a superior stance momentarily. That earned him nothing but a raised eyebrow.

His voice softened. “I know that, Stacy, just like you know that’s not how I meant it. I know you can kick ass and not even bother to take names, physically. It’s your heart I’m worried about and you know it. That bastard damaged a part of you that has never been the same since. I worry about you, it’s what I do.”

She mumbled her response, “I know, and I love you for it.” She stepped over to him and embraced him. Those were the only words spoken for a while. They just stood there, wrapped in each other’s comfort. She voiced what she’d been thinking for a while. “Sorry I kept you all night when you have a trip.”

“No worries, it’s just Michael, he’ll understand why I’m in the same clothes. But seriously, sis, your heart won’t recover if you lose Dax. And you will, if you aren’t honest with him. Even if you won’t let him protect you physically, you have to trust him to protect your heart. With a man like him, that’s not optional.”

She didn’t want to admit John was right, but she knew, deep down, that he was. She climbed back into bed to consider her options. The sounds of John locking up and leaving her house barely registered as the tequila lulled her to sleep.

G
uilt assaulted Dax
—as he boarded the private plane, during the flight, as he disembarked, and as he knocked on the door of Addy’s house—guilt over not telling Stacy face to face he had to leave to bring his daughter home. Guilt and fear. How would she react when she got his babbling voicemails and he was nowhere to be found? Fear she wouldn’t be okay with him just taking off only to return with a kid ate away at him. A pain exploded in his chest when he remembered how Stacy had held back…something. Something he feared she kept to herself because she was unsure about him—
them
. If Stacy decided it wasn’t what she wanted after all, it would devastate him.

All those thoughts and feelings fled instantly. No guilt, no fear, no pain, only stunned awe existed. Dax lost his footing for a moment. Chuck steadied him from behind when the door opened to reveal the most beautiful sight in the world.

She sure as hell wasn’t eight anymore, but damned if he didn’t see his little Macy Bug standing there in a teenager’s body. A sound of pain and disbelief cut through the mid-day air. It wasn’t until Macy spoke the sweetest sound in the world and launched herself at him that he realized the sound had come from him.

Her long, straight hair was almost the same as Sam’s had been in tenth grade—warm brown but with lighter strands that reflected the sun. He’d recognize her cute button nose anywhere. It looked the same as when she was five; she got that from Sam’s mom. Her wide mouth, dimples, and eyes, especially the eyes, caused his heart to skip a beat. They were one hundred percent Dax—the same dark color, with amber flecks and long lashes.

“Dad!” his little girl squealed. Well,
not so little
girl. “Mom said you’d come one day. She always promised you would.”

Good ole Chuck caught him, yet again, holding him upright while he stood in stunned silence with Macy,
his
Macy, clinging to him. Once he was able to shake off his emotion-induced paralysis, he lifted her off the ground and hugged her to his chest just as he did when she was little.

“Macy Bug,” Dax cried in a choppy voice. The grip of emotions were so strong, they threatened to choke him.

Time stood still as he held his daughter for the first time in years. Dax’s heart was so full, he was positive it would burst at any moment. He was so wrapped up in having his daughter in his arms, he almost missed the broad picture that was painted by their few exchanged words. “Your mother told you about me?”

Dax had accepted years ago that his daughter likely didn’t know anything about him, even believed he didn’t want her, had abandoned her. It didn’t sound like that was the case, and if so, he had severely misjudged Sam.

“Of course, she did, but I remembered, too,” Macy answered as she disengaged enough to stand on her own and look him in the eye. Dax didn’t miss the fact that she could almost do just that at fifteen. She came to his chin, making it obvious where her height came from. For a moment, his mind drifted from Macy, and he chuckled when he thought how Stacy would react to his daughter towering over her.

A scenario played out in his head and he had to control his laughter.
“Holy Wilt Chamberlain, Batman, are you fucking kidding me. How’s the weather up there, Zena? Is everyone in this entire world taller than me? Well, on the plus side, at least I don’t have to share my heels with you.”
That’s probably how Stacy would try to cut the tension when he introduced them. He wasn’t sure about the last part, that indicated a relationship, and he wasn’t sure where her head was at.

“Dad?” Macy snapped her fingers in his face. “Earth to Dad.” She peered around him to Chuck. “Is he always so easily distracted, Mr. PI, or is that beard sucking away the blood supply from his brain?”

Her laughter
. Dax couldn’t help but join her, especially when the sound transported him back in time. His little girl may have changed in many ways, but her laugh was the same one he heard years ago—the same one he’d always treasure.

“I’m sorry, Macy. I’m just so…heck, I don’t know what I am. I’m mostly grateful that you don’t hate me.”

“Why would I hate you, you’re my father?”

Every time she spoke, it blew Dax away. Not only was her voice a salve for his heart, her words were beautiful music to his soul. “I just thought maybe, um, you thought that I left you or didn’t love you…” Dax let his words trail off. He couldn’t voice those horrible thoughts.

“At first, I didn’t understand why we weren’t together, but Mom always told me it wasn’t your fault and that you loved me very much. Said it was circumstances beyond your control.” She air quoted. “She gave me new pictures of you every year, letters, birthday cards.”

“But I never…”

“I know that now, but at first, Mom had Aunt Vi forging them and snapping pictures of you, until you moved. I was old enough at that point that Mom finally told me the truth of what happened. I was really pissed at her for a while. I didn’t think I would ever be able to forgive her, but I saw what it was doing to her,
had
done to her. Dad, she’s paid tenfold for her choices, please don’t make her pay any more. I’ve forgiven her and I hope you can, too. She was saving up to find you and send me home when she relapsed.” Macy paused, chewing her bottom lip while looking down at her shuffling feet, much the way he noticed Stacy did at times.

“She wants to see you before we leave. I think she wants to apologize, and not just make amends because of her recovery, either. She’s wanted to for a long time.” Macy shifted her eyes to him—eyes that were identical to his, but with a bit more amber. They were filled with such hope, he wouldn’t dare say no. “Will you go, Dad, for me?”

Dax placed a horizontal knuckle under her chin to keep her gaze locked with his. Letting that hand drift to her cheek, he brought the other up and brushed her hair from her face. Dax allowed that hand to cup her neck after tucking the wayward strand behind her ear. His daughter was wise beyond her years—smart and obviously empathetic. “Of course, I will, Bug. Not just for you, either, but for your mom. I owe her at least that for raising you to be such a beautiful and intelligent young woman.” She blushed. Dropping a kiss on her forehead, he lingered, inhaling her scent. It wasn’t the baby soft smell he remembered, but it soothed his dad genes all the same.

When Dax pulled away, he was blinded by the brilliance of her smile. She was beaming as she threw herself at him again. “Thank you, Dad. It means the world to me that you aren’t angry with her.” Then, she whispered the words that would resonate in his heart for eternity. “I’m happy to have you back. I love you so much.”

That was it. Daxton Magnus Askrrson was done. His life was complete in a way he never dreamed possible. Stacy
dinfasted
him and his daughter loved him all in the span of twenty-four hours.
It doesn’t get much better than this.

The front door opened again, interrupting their reunion. A bitter-looking woman stood there with her hands full. Dax assumed she was Addy’s daughter. She relieved herself of her burden, depositing a duffle bag on the porch and thrusting a stack of papers at Dax. “She’s all yours now. You’ve got what you came for, so you can leave.”

This lady caught Dax off guard, but not Macy. His daughter reacted with grace while dressed like Debbie Harry. She bent and retrieved the bag the woman had abandoned. When Macy rose to her full height, she plastered a smile on her face, and spoke saccharin-laced words, “Goodbye, dearest Marietta. I hope you have an amazing life, but might I suggest you hire a professional arborist to remove that sapling from your posterior before it takes root and you begin shitting pinecones.” Macy then brought her other hand within inches of the woman’s face and flipped her off.

“Macy!” Dax said at the same time the woman, Marietta, gasped in shock. Inside, Dax was proud of how she stood up to the cranky witch, but he couldn’t very well have his daughter running around acting like…
Spiderman’s sticky, webbed nut sac, she’s going to love Stacy.
They are two of a kind. Boy, am I in trouble.
Macy shrugged, turned, and headed toward the rental car.

“I’ll not apologize, because she deserved it.”
Yep, two of a kind
, Dax thought, and he couldn’t wait for them to meet.

The ride to the hotel was eye-opening, to say the least. Dax simply stared at his daughter the entire time, as if she’d disappear into the wind if he looked away, hell, even if he blinked. That wasn’t the only reason; Macy was absolutely beautiful. Of course, he could see her mother in her, but it was the him part that stole his breath away—her eyes, her smile. They were the same ones he saw in the mirror and that fascinated him.

The more she spoke, the more obvious it became that Macy knew, and understood, more than most people his age ever did, and people her age should ever have to. But the realization she was a well-adjusted, intelligent, and trusting young lady made the years he missed just a touch easier to swallow. Sam did a good job raising her without him, and that was the double-edged sword that was currently slicing away at his heart.

“
F
uck
, where’d that cat go,” Stacy mumbled to the empty room as she slowly entered the land of the living.

“What cat?” A serene but inquisitive voice cut through the room.

“Oh, shit!” Stacy screamed and reached for the key to her drawer and the protection of her nine. Luckily, she couldn’t find the key. Realization that it was Gus’ voice hit her when the pixie lady gasped and sloshed water over the sides of a glass. “Jesus, lady, you scared the shit out of me. What are you doing here?” Scanning the area, she noticed the key hanging on the closet door now.
John
. Typical John—worried about her hurting herself or someone else under the influence, but also not wanting to leave her wholly defenseless.

“You? I’m the pregnant one here, I almost wet my pants.” Gus approached the bed, extending her hands, offering up the water in one, and two white tablets hidden in the other. Stacy gratefully accepted both. “Seriously, what cat?”

Of course, Gus the Crazy Cat Lady would care about that. “The one that shit in my mouth, that cat.” Stacy watched the confusion turn to amusement as her joke sank in. After tossing back the pills and gulping water, Stacy asked again, “Not that I’m not grateful, but what are you doing here?”

“John called me from somewhere past Mobile before he hit cell Hell and asked me to come by and take care of you. Coffee was on a timer when I got here, it’ll be ready in a minute. Aspirin and water on the counter, key under the mat, something about Dax, and John accidentally has your phone. That was all I could make out because the reception was spotty.”

Leave it to John to think of everything. Even running on no sleep
,
he never lets me down
. Shit, her phone. It was like living without a limb for her, plus, she really needed to talk to Dax. She should think about a landline, just for occasions like this. It may be a first world problem, but it still sucked donkey balls.

“Thanks, lady, but you didn’t have to come and take care of me. I’ve had enough experience at hangovers.” Stacy made a dash for the bathroom. Actually, dash was an overstatement; it was more of a waddle power walk—a bladder full of tequila and a mouth full of cotton, oh yeah, drinking rocks.

While she was in the bathroom, Stacy decided it was time she had fewer secrets. Gus was a good enough friend to come over and care for her drunk ass, afterall. She moved out to the bedroom where Gus waited and sucked in a deep breath.

“I love Dax,” Stacy semi-shouted it. She wanted to test how it felt to say it aloud. Nothing like a blurted statement to say the L word about someone the first time.
Way to go, Killer, real smooth
. She prayed she would have a bit more finesse when it came time to say it Dax.

Oh God, here come the waterworks
. Gus’ eyes started to glisten, and her delicate hands flew to her mouth.
Oh no, no, no no. She’s moving in. Gus is going to…Yep, too late, she’s hugging me and bawling and mumbling about the beauty of love.
“Just shoot me now,” Stacy protested as she wrapped her arms around the other woman and held her tight.