Cheat [MxM] (Carter Brothers Book 1)

Chapter 26

JAE ▪︎ POV

"Jae-Jae!"

I heard the enthusiastic squeal first and the pitter patter of little feet next, causing a huge grin to spread across my face. I'd only been home for around an hour after my shift at the club ended and it was currently half six in the morning. I hadn't even had time to fall into bed beside Ezra before realising that Ollie was awake.

He rounded the corner into the living room with determination, his curly blonde hair mused from sweat and tossing against his pillows. Those bright green eyes were still puffy with sleep, his cheeks pink. Matching lavender couloured pyjamas ascue on his little body, diaper full.

I crouched, exhausted, but equally delighted to greet the adorable baby. I mean, how could anyone deny the gorgeous little munchkin, even if he was up at the butt crack of dawn and I was a walking zombie. Kids, gotta love 'em.

"Hey bubba!" I caught him when he reached me, scooping him up into my arms. He clung like a monkey and buried his face against my neck as I squeezed him. I'd already showered the sweat and smell of the club off so I wasn't worried about him inhaling alcoholic fumes off my shirt. Pretty sure that was like a parenting crime or something.

I sank back into the couch and closed my eyes as I cuddled him and he seemed more than content to chill, which I was grateful for as I yawned like a bear. Jesus fuck I was tired. I stroked Ollie's curls as I thought through my sleepiness. I could've used a good few days to regain energy and become a content couch potato, but I had a family now and responsibilities I couldn't ignore, especially not now.

Court was tomorrow. The big day had finally reared it's head like a nightmare and time was not forgiving of our stressful situation. This last month had been filled with new, terrifying changes and life seemed to be moving one million miles a minute. If I was being truthfully honest with myself, I was struggling to keep up.

For the first time after returning to work, I'd realised that after the... incident in the back alley, I no longer enjoyed the atmosphere of the club I'd once thrived in. The thumping music and the rush of people gave me anxiety I'd never experienced before. It was like someone was squeezing my lungs, making it harder to breathe. The excitement I'd once felt had turned to dread... and well... fear.

Fear that any one of the men or women smiling flirtatiously at me across the counter or knocking back drinks and dancing, could be a predator - a rapist. It was being overly paranoid to think that every single person crammed into the club was a lurking demon out to get me, but the rawness of being found in that alley with my pants down, high on drugs meant for a horse, made me terrified of being back there.

I knew in my heart that I didn't have to go back to working at the club if I didn't want to. I could always find another job and Ezra had been hinting at having me home more often with Ollie. He had enough money to buy the freaking club I worked in like a thousand times over. I had no reason to work when he had enough wealth to support me. But for some reason, I was clinging to the independence, terrified of letting it go.

I liked being able to pay my own rent and stand on my own two feet. Those were my responsibilities. I was my own responsibility and my parents taught me never to rely on others. Ezra was the love of my life as ridiculously sweet and sappy as that sounded. I knew I could trust him, but letting go was hard.

For now, to relieve some of the anxiety I'd discretely been battling, I tried to match my shifts with Jeremiah's as much as possible and in the early hours of the morning when the club closed and the sky was still dark, we'd call taxies to get us home safely. I didn't walk alone at night anymore and although it felt cowardly, the comfort was welcome.