Dark Guardian (Black Hoods MC #3) - Avelyn Paige Page 0,34

with a giant stick up her ass, I feel relief. She gets it. She finally gets it.

Grace

Dinner. Why did I agree to dinner at his place? I rub my hand over my face in frustration. I shouldn’t be doing this, seeing him again. Seeing the kids who are still classified as runaways. Yet here I am, on my way to his house to see what life is like under his roof. What is it about this man that seems to draw me into his life when it only complicates mine? He makes me question everything. My sanity. My job. My morality. Nothing is safe when it comes to Eugene Grant.

A horn blasts from behind me. Shit. How long has the light been green? With a polite wave to the person behind me, I press my foot on the gas pedal and drive until his house comes into view. It’s a small home nestled up on a small street with a few older homes on either side. His Harley is parked in the driveway near a large pickup truck. The white siding stands out against the more historic homes surrounding it.

An older man stares at me as I pull into the drive and exit my car.

“Evening,” I greet him with a wave, and he waves back politely.

I knock on the door a few times, but no one responds. Odd. I try the doorbell, and that’s when I hear running footsteps barreling toward the door. When the door opens, I find Natalie’s face beaming up at me.

“Miss Grace. You’re here!” she chirps excitedly.

“Hi, Natalie.”

“Come on in. Dinner’s almost ready.”

Stepping through the door, my eyes grow wide. His home is neat, with little decoration outside of the essentials. A large, black leather couch takes up most of the front room, facing a flat screen television on the opposite wall. A few books lie stacked on the end table next to it. Kevin sits on the couch with a game controller in his hand.

“Kevin, looks who’s here.”

“I know who she is, Natalie,” he retorts, his attention on the game.

Grabbing my hand, she leads me through the room and into a mid-size kitchen. Eugene’s back is to me as he stirs something on the stove.

“She’s here, Mr. Judge,” Natalie announces once more. He turns, and my mouth falls open. Around his waist is a bright pink apron with cats all over it. A slow smile spreads across my lips as I look him up and down.

“Nice apron,” I giggle, making him laugh.

“It came with the house,” he jokes. “Hope you’re not hungry.”

“I’m starving.”

“I apologize in advance, then. I’m not the best cook.”

Smiling, I offer, “I’m sure it will be fine.”

Natalie tugs at my hand and pulls me to a table near the back of the kitchen. After I take a seat, she settles into the one next to me. Eugene, clutching a pan of food with matching bright pink pot holders, sets it down in the middle of the table. The smell is intoxicating. He’s obviously better in the kitchen than he lets on.

“Kevin!” he yells out. “Food!”

Kevin comes in from the front room and plops down into the seat at the farthest end of the table. Training his eyes on me, he watches my every move as Natalie yaps away next to me. Joining us, Eugene reaches out for my plate, fills it with servings from each dish, then hands it back to me. When I look at the food, it takes everything I have not to drool on it. Mashed potatoes, country gravy, green beans, and a steak that takes up over half the plate. I have a good appetite, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen this much food outside of the buffet line.

“Thank you. It looks great.”

I try to focus on the meal and the conversations at hand, but my gaze continues to shift over to Kevin. He’s not eating, just pushing the food around on his plate as if something’s on his mind.

“You okay, bud?” Eugene asks when he notices.

“Yeah,” Kevin replies. “I’m not hungry. Can I be excused?”

“Sure.”

Taking his plate to the refrigerator, he places it inside before leaving the room. I hear footsteps as he ascends to the second floor.

“He’s mad at you,” Natalie mutters. “He thinks you’re going to take us away from Mr. Judge. I tried to tell him you wouldn’t, but he doesn’t believe me.”

My heart sinks. Kevin’s been in the system so long, he understands what my job entails, and knows what I do