She dipped her head in a nod. “Of course.”

Aspen had fallen silent, moving back as I began to move toward what would be my room.

I had cleared the doorway and moved past her when Emily spoke up. “Quincey?”

I paused, looking back.

“No matter anything, this was the right thing to do.”

My eyes burned, but I gave her another smile. “Thank you.”

She blinked back some tears.

It hit me like a tsunami then.

He did this to her. He did this to me.

He had done this to so many.

It wasn’t right that my father could affect someone hired by us. It wasn’t healthy. It was toxic.

The lump in my throat lessened by a little bit.

“I’m sorry.” Aspen followed me, wringing her hands. “I assumed she was staying here.”

“Where are you and Mr. Kade staying?”

“I’m in the pool house, and Logan’s upstairs. He said he wanted to be in the house for Nate.”

Right. Because they were only here for the moment.

I would be the one staying.

Me. Nate. Nova.

Like how a family should be.

But that was the thing…we weren’t a family.

18

Nate

We were finishing up the bags when Logan said, “Heads-up.” He nodded to the street.

A line of cop cars had turned on the road leading to the house.

“Three.” Logan whistled. “Damn, he must be poker buddies with the chief.”

“Or the chief likes to go to his casino and gets the VIP treatment.”

Logan grunted. “I forgot about that place. That could be a connection we’ll have to get creative about.”

I didn’t want to ask what Logan meant by that. At this point, what I didn’t know might do better for me down the road.

I shot him a look. “Nothing illegal.”

He snorted, grinning. “It’s like you don’t know me at all.”

“Or that I really do know you.”

He gave me a veiled grin as the first squad car parked right behind Quincey and her friend’s vehicles.

I didn’t like that at all.

Judging by Logan’s growl, neither did he.

“Fuck,” he said, pulling out his phone and hitting a couple of buttons. A second later, he said, “Aspen. Come out here.”

“Why are you getting my sister involved?”

The first two officers had gotten out and were rounding the vehicle, starting over the lawn.

“You kidding me? Seattle loves her.”

Aspen came out, but if I’d been nervous about my sister, I didn’t have to be. Her jaw was firm. Her eyes were blazing, and she had her phone up.

“You’re going live?” Logan asked. The amusement in his tone was mixed with awe.

“No, but I’m recording, and if they make one wrong move, this is going to be uploaded to one of Blaise’s social media accounts.”

My brother-in-law had followers in the millions.

Also, considering how he didn’t give a damn what people thought of him, a video like this would be on-brand for him. His PR team wouldn’t have a problem with it.

“Officers.” I nodded to the first one.

Officer Gravers and Officer Diaz.

The first nodded at me. “You’re the owner of this home?”

“I’m in the process of buying it, yes. There’s a legal agreement between myself and the current owners.”

They didn’t say anything at first, their eyes scanning behind us, trying to see inside the home.

The speaking one motioned to the two vehicles they had blocked off. “You know the owners of these two vehicles?”

“I do, yes.”

“May we please speak to them?”

“Concerning?” Logan stepped forward, his lawyer voice on. It was no-nonsense, and he was just looking for them to fuck up.

The second officer seemed to sense this and took a step back.

“I’m his lawyer.” Logan gestured toward me, his tone sounding considerably more hostile. “What’s the basis of this visit? You’re required to inform us of the reason.”

The two cops shared a look, one stepping back and his hand moving to his radio.

He didn’t need to call for backup. Two other cars idled in front of my house, both with two officers and all watching this event.

Gravers nodded to the house. “We got a concerned call about a possible kidnapping. Is there a Miss Royas inside?”

“There is, but she’s playing with Nova.”

The two cops shared a sharp look at the mention of Nova.

I’d had enough. “If you were called by Quincey’s father, he wasted your time and effort. Quincey and my daughter have decided to live with me.”

Both their eyebrows went up at the mention of “my daughter.”

Gravers’ mouth flattened, and his eyes went hard. “This is a child custody dispute?”

“No.”

“No?”

“No.” Logan’s tone was harsh. “As of three days ago, Miss Royas signed a legal and binding agreement between herself and my client concerning the custody of Nova Nathaniel Robertson. You can call your supervisor up and make a request to my office and also to Miss Royas’ attorney’s office to obtain what legal documentation you need. Just know that any further errand you might be sent on on behalf of Mr. Duke Royas has no legal standing. And once this has been retained, any further action could be viewed and will be documented as harassment. I’ll be making the appropriate legal claims for that to happen.”