Dark Sexy Knight (A Modern Fairytale)(55)

“You got some dry clothes in your locker?”

“Yeah. Dry clothes. Okay.” He sniffled and reached up to backhand his nose.

“Well, you go change, and I’m going to talk to Joe. It’s going to be all right, Ryan. Just stay away from éclair for now, okay? And let’s, uh, let’s not worry your sister about this for now. I’ll talk to Joe. I’ll take care of it, okay?”

Ryan turned to go, then looked back, offering Colt a lopsided smile. “Colton takes care of us. Colton is our friend.”

And damn if Colt’s lips didn’t twitch in the barest semblance of a smile. It wouldn’t be long before a third name was added to the list of people who made him smile . . . and two of them were Gwynns.

He didn’t mention the incident to Verity. They worked different shifts, so he hadn’t really had an opportunity. Part of him didn’t want to tell her. He didn’t want to worry her. Joe had been completely understanding and agreed that Ryan should stay away from éclair for a while, and it made Colt feel good to handle things for her, to bear some of her burden so she wouldn’t have to.

So on Tuesday morning, as she flitted around the kitchen making breakfast and packing a picnic for the zoo, Colt made the decision not to tell her what had happened. And Ryan, who was beside himself with excitement to go to the zoo, seemed to have forgotten all about it.

Colt had advised Lamont, today’s morning CM, that he’d be picking up Melody at ten o’clock, and Lamont had told Publix that Melody wouldn’t be in to bag groceries today. Because of Colt’s irregular schedule, he made such a request once or twice a month, and so far Publix had been really decent about giving Mel time off to spend time with Colt when he was available.

He found Aunt Jane’s old picnic basket in the garage, helped Verity pack it, and, once they were all dressed and ready, they got in the car to pick up Mel at Bonnie’s Place.

“How long does it take to get there?” asked Verity, buckling her seat belt.

“Twenty minutes,” answered Colt, feeling nervous. He was grateful she hadn’t asked any questions about Mel’s living situation since he’d asked for her trust on Sunday night. He just hoped that she would have an open mind about Bonnie’s Place, despite her preconceived notions about group homes.

“She knows we’re coming?”

He shook his head. “No. She thinks it’s just me.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to prepare her?”

Colt gave Verity a quick glance, his lips tilting up. “You don’t know Mel. She loves meeting new people. She wouldn’t have been able to sleep last night if I’d told her that you and Ryan were coming too. She’d have been too excited.”

Verity beamed at him. “I think I’m going to love your cousin.”

His heart swelled. “I hope so, sunshine.”

“I’m gonna be friends with Melody,” said Ryan definitively from the backseat. “She might be my second-best friend, after Joe.”

Colt nodded at Ryan in the rearview mirror. “I think she’d like that, Ryan.”

But the closer they got to Bonnie’s Place, the more Colt worried. What if Verity thought he was a terrible person for keeping Mel in a “home”? What if it changed her opinion of him since she cared for her brother in such a personal way and Melody lived somewhere else? Would she see that Bonnie’s Place was good for Mel? It allowed her independence but still kept her safe. Verity would see that, right?

He turned into the driveway, rolled down his window, and slipped his card into the reader, taking a quick moment to look at Verity’s profile as the gate slid open.

She turned to him, her eyebrows deeply furrowed. “What is this place?”

“Bonnie’s Place,” he said. “It’s a, um, a community for ment—developmentally disabled adults.”

“A community?” she said, her lips tightening. “You mean ‘a home.’ Behind gates.”

She didn’t say “like a jail,” but he heard her implication loud and clear.

“No,” he said softly but firmly. “I mean ‘a community.’ It’s a hybrid concept of independent living with some group home features.” She looked away from him, out the windshield. “Can you try to keep an open mind? For me?”

She whipped her head to face him, her eyes wide and churning. “I can try.”

“Thank you,” he said, resisting the urge to take her hand. He sensed that she needed a little space to make up her mind about Bonnie’s Place, and he wanted her to have it.

Sitting up straighter in her seat, she angled herself away from him, looking out the window at the manicured lawns and cheerful gardens, the tennis courts, sundries store, pool, and community center. Was it his imagination, or did her posture relax a little as he drove toward Mel’s complex? She didn’t seem as upset as he turned into the parking area at F.

After cutting the engine, he turned to her. “I’d really like for you to come upstairs and see Mel’s place, but if you’re not comfortable, I understand. I’ll just go get her and . . .”

Verity reached down and unbuckled her seat belt, then exited the car without looking at Colt.

Umm. Okay.

Colt grabbed the bag of Goldfish he kept in the glove compartment and handed it to Ryan in the backseat. “Ryan, uh, wait here a sec? We’ll be right down.”