Dark Guardian (Black Hoods MC #3) - Avelyn Paige Page 0,30
all the baggage with him. He’s a dangerous man with dangerous friends, but his care of Natalie and Kevin is out of left field from what little I know about him. His eyes never strayed from mine as Aaron attempted to grill him about the kids and their missing uncle. Aaron was so focused on his club affiliation, he never noticed the softness in his eyes when he talked about the kids. He loves them, I’m sure of that, but their father is out there.
Legally, the father has the stronger case. Though, if it weren’t my case, I don’t think I’d agree with the courts after seeing his background check. He’s been to jail. I’d have made the case that he had been rehabilitated, but the pending assault charge at the bottom of the report tells me otherwise. Putting those kids into his custody would only ensure they would spend the rest of their lives in a broken, unsettled home. I can’t let that happen. But how can I stand in front of a judge and demand that someone with no blood ties is the better match than a blood relative?
What am I going to do?
My head falls onto my hand when a knock sounds at the door. Shifting off of my couch, I grab my wallet from the kitchen bar top when I pass before opening the door.
“Must be a slow night. I didn’t expect you so soon,” I mumble, shuffling through my wallet for a couple of tens. When I look up, a pair of dark eyes stare down at me. My jaw drops in shock. Eugene Grant is here. At my house.
“We need to talk.”
“How did you find out where I live?” My voice shakes, but somehow, I don’t think it’s from fear. He smirks when he notices.
“I know a guy. Can I come in?”
“You’re here alone?”
“My club doesn’t follow me like lost sheep, Grace.” The way he says my name sends a shiver down my spine. Half excitement, half confusion. “I want to talk to you about Kevin and Natalie. In private.”
“Do you know where they are?”
“We’ll get to that.” If he’s here, he has to know where they are. If they were still missing, there’s not a doubt in my mind he’d be out there looking for them.
I step back and wave him inside. His boots thump heavily on the floor while I close the door behind us. Alone. In my house. Please, don’t let this be a mistake.
He turns in a circle. “Nice place. Suits you.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“The style of the place. It’s a little rough around the edges, but a classic beauty.” I blink. Is he hitting on me? He steps closer, nearly pinning me between the door and his body, the smell of his woodsy cologne filling the surrounding air. “I like your hair when it’s down.”
“You said you wanted to talk about Kevin and Natalie.” I force down the lump in my throat. His closeness sets me on edge. His compliments even more so. In a good way, I think. Too good.
“I do.”
I try to deflect. “Why don’t we sit down, then?” Sliding out from between the door and his body, I walk over to the couch. Eugene follows me closely, and when he sits down, the springs creak under his frame. He shifts a few times before finally settling.
“Sorry. My furniture isn’t really built for a big guy like you.”
He laughs. “Most aren’t.”
I reach for a notebook on the coffee table, but his large hand reaches out to stop me, the roughness of his skin caressing mine.
“This has to be off the record.”
“Okay,” I respond, pulling away from his touch.
He takes a deep breath. “My club saved Kevin and Natalie from a sex trafficking ring a few months ago.”
The world around me stills as his words sink in.
“One of my guys found out a local trafficking ring had taken his daughter, and we traced her kidnapping back to Kevin.”
“Kevin… he did that?” How could a boy his age be involved in such a thing? He’s barely a teenager. It can’t be true.
“He didn’t have a choice. It was the uncle, the one reported missing. The one your little cop friend grilled me about yesterday? He took in the kids when their mom died. Turns out, he was a sex trafficker, and saw a prime new candidate in Natalie. Randall made Kevin a deal, that if he brought him new girls, he wouldn’t sell her.”
My hand flies to my