Michael had returned to the kitchen, holding out his arms.
Devon dropped a hand to his head. “Tell you what, sweet pea, let’s use the paper plates from Vinnie’s. That will be more fun…and less work.”
Michael tugged on Devon’s arm and she bent over. He put his lips to her ear and cupped his hand against her face, which flushed with color.
“Kieran’s my friend, sweet pea. This is his house.” She handed him the forks. “Now go put these on the napkins next to the bowls.”
As he scooted out of the kitchen, Kieran turned to Devon. “Is he afraid of me?”
She looked down, her long lashes shielding her eyes. “Just a little confused. I—I didn’t, don’t date much.”
“Maybe it’s too much for him, Devon. He’s a very troubled boy.”
“No.” She smacked her fist on the counter. “He’s not a troubled boy. He’s happy and curious and friendly, he’s just…he’s just…”
Instinct took over. He gathered Devon into his arms, stroking her silky hair, his fingers remembering the path down each strand. She trembled against his chest and he rested his cheek against her head. He’d been wanting to hold her ever since he’d spotted her walking down Coral Cove’s Main Street. He curled one hand around her neck.
“Stop!” Small fists pummeled his legs.
“Michael!” Devon broke away from his embrace and grabbed Michael’s shoulder. “Michael, stop.”
The boy wrapped both arms around Devon’s thighs, nearly knocking her over with the force of his small body.
“Apologize to Kieran.”
Kieran took two steps back from Devon and his son clinging to her. His gut wrenched. “It’s okay. I wasn’t hurting your mom, Michael, but you’re a good protector.”
Devon peeled Michael from her legs and tilted his head with her finger beneath his chin. “Is that what you thought? That Kieran was hurting me?”
Michael nodded, his hands still curled into white-knuckled fists.
“Oh, no.” She pulled Michael back into her arms for a hug. “Kieran would never, ever hurt me…or you. Not ever.”
Kieran closed his good eye, welcoming the darkness. How could Devon be so sure of that? How could he?
* * *
DEVON BRUSHED HER fingers together and flipped the empty pizza box closed. Another half pizza remained but they’d done a fair amount of damage to that one, too. Michael had eaten more than he had in weeks. Maybe it was the sea air. Maybe it was his burst of violence against Kieran.
Her son had never before hit anyone or anything in his life. And he had to start with his own father.
And what a moment he’d picked.
Kieran had finally taken her in his arms, held her close, shown some emotion. She’d wanted to melt into him, somehow bring him back to his former self with her energy. But the wary stranger with the closed-off face remained.
Kieran tossed a piece of crust onto his paper plate. “That was the best pizza I’ve had since the last time I had Vinnie’s. Do you want another piece, Michael, or are you as stuffed as I am?”
Michael picked up a crust from his plate and ripped it in half. Then he scrambled to his feet and scampered toward the bathroom.
Devon sighed. “Believe it or not, he seems to be getting a little better.”
“I was blunt in the kitchen, Devon, but Michael needs help.”
“I know. Like I said, he has his first appointment with Dr. Estrada tomorrow. The offer still stands if you want to come along.”
Her cell phone buzzed and she held up one finger. “Hello?”
“Devon, it’s Gary from the garage. I got your tires on, but I didn’t have a window. I covered it with a piece of cardboard and I put in an order online tonight. You going to be here for a few weeks?”
Her gaze trailed to Kieran, picking up the pizza boxes and paper plates. “Yes, I’ll be here for a few more weeks.”
“Good. I can install it for you then. If I drive over in your car, can you give me a ride back to the shop and my car?”
“Sure. I’m at the Roarkes’ house on Coral Cove Drive. You know it?”
“Yeah, across from Columbella House, right?”
“That’s it. We’ll be waiting for you.”
Kieran strolled out of the kitchen, hands in pockets. “Is your car ready?”
“Yeah, he’s bringing it over. You’re going to stay here, right?”
“I need to pick up a few things I left at Columbella.”
She shivered and glanced at the closed bathroom door. “Stay out of that burned room. A man died there.”
“I was reading about that when you got back from talking to the cops. Apparently, Colin saved Michelle Girard from a maniac.”
“Mr. Brunswick. Didn’t you have him for algebra?”
He lifted a shoulder and the corner of his mouth twisted. Is that the closest he could get to a smile?
“Leave it to my brother to save the day.”
“He wanted to save you, too, Kieran. He can’t quite forgive himself for leaving you.”
“He needs to get over it.”
“Can you?”
“I don’t blame Colin. I don’t remember when he and the others escaped, but when the army told me about it, I never faulted the other guys.”
“I didn’t mean…”
Michael burst back into the room, and Devon sealed her lips. She didn’t want to talk about Kieran’s ordeal in front of Michael. She needed alone time with Kieran. She needed to know where he stood. Was he ready to be a father? Did he even want the job?
“Is your place close?”
“It’s my mom’s place. Nothing’s too far apart in Coral Cove, but it’s on the east side of town, past downtown.”
“And the auto shop is on the way?”
“Yeah.” She tilted her head. “I’m sure we’ll be fine. At least I have two new tires. I’ll take care of getting a new license tomorrow.”
He dug a cell phone from his pocket. “I have one of those prepaid phones. Put my number in your phone and give me a call when you get home.”
Her
