“He looks at me, and the way Abel looks at me, it’s like I’m the only person in the universe. He’s breathing because I’m there for him.” She swallowed past the lump forming in her throat. “How can a woman not love that?”
“That’s our curse. I wouldn’t give Jacob the time of day. He knew. We don’t, do we? They just have this ability to know who they want to spend the rest of their lives with. It’s quite heady stuff.”
“Almost like a drug,” Harper said. She sighed. “Sorry, I’m not usually this … depressing.”
Lou laughed. “You’re not depressing me. I find you refreshing. It’s nice to be around a woman who isn’t looking up to the Dentons, or thinking how great and amazing they are. You’re down to earth, and I like that.”
“What was Abel like before me?”
“He was a total ass. Honestly, he thought he was this amazing guy with women. He just had to snap his fingers and they would come running. They probably did go running for him.” Lou smiled. “All of the Denton men, they have something about them, and we have to either accept it, or we have to walk away.” She patted her hand. “You’ll find everything out soon enough. Abel’s just scared of losing you.”
“Why?”
“He’s only just found you. The biggest fear for a Denton is losing the woman they lov
e.”
****
Landon entered the casino and made his way up toward his father’s office. In just a few weeks he was going to be eighteen, and soon be on his way to earning a name for himself. He was having to keep his head down, and out of trouble. His mom was pissed at him. She was talking to him, but he knew he had hurt her by fighting.
Knocking on the door to his father’s office, he waited.
There was a time when Charlotte would pick Tamsin up, then come for him. They would go for ice cream before heading home. He’d do his homework while watching his mom cook. Since the fighting had started, that hadn’t happened. He just got into more and more trouble.
“Come in.”
Entering his father’s office, he watched Maddox remove his glasses, and stand up. “How did you do on your history paper?”
“I got a B.”
“That it?” Maddox asked.
Landon was the youngest son, and as such, he hadn’t gotten as much stick as his brothers. Jacob and Abel teased him constantly about being a pussy. He had to prove himself. If his own brothers didn’t respect him, who else would?
“I studied hard.”
“When your brothers studied hard, they got As. Why didn’t you?” Maddox moved to the front of the desk, leaning against it. His arms were folded, and he wore a glare. Landon hadn’t expected this hardness to last so long.
“I-I—”
“Stuttering is not good enough. Do you think I want a boy working for me who can’t get his words out?”
“Karl works for you!”
“Karl earned his place. His stutter is something he can’t control!” Maddox stopped, and snorted. “You just don’t get it, Landon. You think you have a right to this because you’re a Denton.”
“I am a Denton. I should be here, working for you.”
“No.” He leaned across the desk and picked up a piece of paper. “Do you know what this is?”
Landon shook his head. “No.”
“Your mother is at her last nerve. She wants you to have a good education. I love my wife. I love her more than anything. I love her more than any of you. That hurts for me to say it, but it’s the truth. I love you all. You’re my kids, but you’ll go, have your own families. I didn’t understand what my father meant until he said that, and I met Charlotte. You’ll love your kids, but your wife is for life.” Maddox smiled. “With you, Landon, you’re entitled, and that’s a problem. I have two brothers, three sisters. You see Stuart, regularly. This life, it’s like a calling. My other brother, Rick, this wasn’t a life for him. He’s a doctor, in England.”
He’d met Rick, but only every couple of years. His work kept him out of the country. He was the only Denton to drop his name, and take on his wife’s.
“I am giving him guardianship for the next seven months,” Maddox said.