Khan (Bowen Boys, #2)(2)

Caitlynne snorted, and Walker laughed. “It looks to me like your list didn’t include cleaning at all. Why didn’t you hire someone to come in and clean? You know that there was enough money to do that, you moron.”

That made him remember his bank statement. “You put money in my account and I want you to take it out. And my bills too. I want you to tell whoever is getting them and paying them to stop that too. I pay my own way.”

“Of course you do.” He decided that it was the pat on his head like he was ten years old that made him grind his teeth at her. “Unless you want me to kick your ass, I would take it down a notch. I’m a little hormonal right now and you’ve not said one word about the baby. Are you so pigheaded that you can’t even be happy for us?”

Then Caitlynne Bowen did something he would never have thought of seeing her do. She burst into tears. Walker didn’t even bat an eye, but picked her up, dirty dishrag and all, and held her. Khan was glad he’d been sitting down or he might have fallen.

“She’s been having a hard time with her emotions. I told her it would pass, but it’s difficult for her.”

Khan nodded at his brother’s explanation.

“She isn’t as bad as she was a week ago, but we’re still having issues.”

“I am not. I’m perfectly fine until some * makes me upset.” She stood up and began where she’d left off cleaning. “As for your money. You can do whatever you want with it. It’s yours, but know this; I will not stop doing what I’m doing. I’m enjoying myself. And you would too if you got out of this house.”

She went to answer the door and he didn’t move. Khan knew it was the cleaning service and wondered how much money she promised them to get here in an hour. He stood up when he heard them coming toward where they were. “I want to go on a run. Now, I want to go now.” He moved to the door and out it before he realized that Walker was coming with him. Good, he’d have someone to help him look for women…strangers.

They had been in the woods for nearly an hour when he finally lay down. Walker and he had run for most of that time without saying much more than, “go this way,” or, “okay.” He hadn’t realized how much he needed this until the panic of someone being in his house made him run.

“She feels bad because she ran you from your house. I told her it was because you felt embarrassed at the mess more than anything.” They had shifted and were near the lake that ran along all their houses. “She said to tell you that if you wait another couple of hours, the house will be spotless and she’ll be gone.”

Khan didn’t look at Walker, but he did feel the need to explain. He picked up a handful of small stones and began skipping them across the still water. He had to talk to someone. “I’ve been out of my mind with worry that my mate will show up at the door and she’ll be human.” He skipped two more stones waiting for his brother to say something.

“I don’t know what to tell you, Khan, but you staying in the house all the time and living like that won’t keep you from meeting her. I think there are bigger forces at work here than you hiding in your house.” He watched as Walker’s rock skipped seventeen times. “Mom called me before we left France.”

He figured she would call him sooner or later. “What did she tell you? That I need to be committed? That I’ve gone over the deep end? I assure you that I haven’t.”

Walker didn’t comment, for which Khan was grateful. They started back toward the house an hour later. Khan knew that he’d hurt Caitlynne and was sorry for that, but she’d frightened him with her predictions.

“If I meet my mate and she’s just what Caitlynne said she’d be, I’m never going to live it down, am I?” Khan looked at Walker when he laughed.

“Nope. And like she told you months ago, she’ll gloat until you tell her that she was right.” They were near the house now and he could see the five vans and two cars in the driveway. It looked like she’d called in the entire company.

“I should probably just tell her she was right all along if that happens.” Walker agreed, and they both watched as people, mostly women dressed in jeans and t-shirts, poured from his house. “Walker?”

“I know, Khan. I know you’re afraid of getting hurt again, and I don’t blame you, but if you just give the girl, any girl, a chance, you’ll see it’s pretty f*cking wonderful.”

~~~

George couldn’t stop smiling. A grandchild. Walker and Caitlynne were going to give him a grandchild. He grinned at his mate and held her hand. They were going to spoil it rotten.

He looked over at Khan and realized how much weight his son had lost. He would say right around thirty pounds if he had to guess. Weight that he didn’t need to lose. Caitlynne sat down next to him and handed him a brightly wrapped gift. She’d been handing them out since they got up from the table. This was his third or fourth one.

“You have to stop this. You’ve given us so much.” He tore into the paper like a little kid. He loved getting presents.

“I know, you hate all this hoopla. But we had fun shopping, and even though I’ve been there a lot with business and all, this was the first time I was actually there to have fun.” She handed a similarly wrapped package to Corrine. “Did you know that they love cats in Japan? That’s where we got this one.”