Fade to Red

Dion nodded. “For now I’d like to fine-tune it, if that’s okay. If all of you can just continue to be patient. Roxie and Beckham, so you know, no one leaves this house or calls anyone. There’s an emergency phone here, but I want it only used for emergencies.” He motioned to Howie and Will. “They’ll be able to reach me or let someone on my team know if we need to re-stock any supplies.”

He looked around. “Any questions?” No one spoke. “Okay, Beckham and Ian? Word with you upstairs?”

Roxie tucked Leo in and sat on the edge of his bed.

“Are you going to sleep too?” he asked.

“Soon. That bed over there is looking really good, but I want to stay right here until you fall asleep.”

He smiled and nestled deeper into the covers.

The place was huge. They were in a room with two twin beds. Everyone had their own bedroom and there were still more rooms left. It was like their very own commune.

“I don’t want you to be away anymore, Mama,” he said quietly.

Her eyes filled. “I won’t be away from you anymore, baby,” she whispered. She wiped her tears before they fell on him.

“But what about Beckham?” His mouth trembled.

She wiped her nose. “I don’t know what will happen next, but I do know you and I will be together.”

He touched her cheek. “That girl is a very bad girl what did this to you.”

She couldn’t help but smile. Now and then he still mixed up a few words and she didn’t correct him. She wanted to hang onto those childish phrases just a little longer.

“Very bad,” she agreed. “But Ian gave her a few bruises like this too.”

“Good! I wish I could!” He sat up. “I’d make her ribs hurt too, since she hurt yours.”

“I don’t want to be anything like that girl, and I don’t want you to be either,” Roxie said. “But I do hope she goes to jail and never gets out.”

“Me too! I hope that too!” he said, his brows furrowed.

She kissed his cheeks. “Okay, lay back, little man. Time to stop our thoughts and start our dreams.”

He smiled and lay back. “I like that.”

“I like you.”

Chloe stuck her head in and smiled at the two of them. “Love you both. This place is awesome!” She came in and pushed Leo’s hair back, kissing him.

Roxie leaned into Chloe’s side. “Auntie makes everything fun, doesn’t she?”

“Yeah.” Leo smiled sleepily at both of them. “I want to live here. Grammie and Gramps and Beckham and Soph and Journey and Sierra and Sparrow and Ian and Will and Howie…” He took a breath. “If Uncle Joey was here it’d be perfect.”

Roxie was overwhelmed with gratitude for her people who kept her little boy so protected that he was excited about hiding from a kidnapper.

“Does this place have board games and cards?” Roxie asked him.

He inhaled an excited breath. “I don’t know! Tomorrow let’s play all day if they do!”

“We can pretend like we’re snowed in and make hot chocolate with huge marshmallows.” She leaned down and kissed him.

“Yeah,” he whispered. His eyes shut for a second then he opened them quickly. “Just seeing if you’re still here,” he said.

Her heart clinched. He’d been so worried about her.

“I’m not going anywhere, love,” she said. “Sleep now, Mama’s right here.”

She woke up the next morning and Leo was still in bed, stretching. She saw the clock on the nightstand and yelped.

“It’s after ten o’clock! I can’t believe you slept so late!”

Leo hopped out of bed and stared at the clock, eyes wide.

“Can we play games now?” he asked.

The others were in the main area of the house, except Beckham, Ian, and the guards. Her mom and dad were eating breakfast. Chloe and Sparrow were reading and Sierra and Sophia were chatting nearby.

Roxie greeted everyone and got a cup of coffee. “Where are the guys?”

“I’m right here,” her dad said.

Roxie smiled. “Sorry, Dad. Where are the other not-as-great-as-you guys?”

“Oh them. They’re talking with Dion upstairs.”

She hadn’t seen them upstairs, but didn’t argue the point. She looked for hot chocolate after she poured cream in her coffee. No marshmallows, but the can of whipped cream would be a treat. She started making it for Leo and told him to hunt for games.

“You’ll both wear bulletproof vests and no one will even be able to tell,” Dion told Beckham and Ian.

He held the vests up and handed one to both of them. Ian and Beckham started talking at the same time.

“Why would she shoot me if she wants to be with me?”

“What happens if she tries to shoot somewhere other than the vest?”

“What makes you think she’ll even come to the show?”

Dion lifted an eyebrow. “I think she’s desperate. I have no idea if she’ll try to hurt anyone, but I do think she’ll show up and possibly try … who knows what? It’s worth a try to draw her out. We’ll make sure the news covers that you are still performing tomorrow night in L.A., a special acoustic show, despite having to cancel the last several dates. Just hear me out, and hopefully she’ll come.”

Everything was still on hold with the tour. Dion and Ian knew what Beckham wanted, but they were the only ones.

Dion tossed beanie hats in their direction. “The outside of these have the same material as bulletproof glass, and the inside is like a wet suit. Wear it low enough on your forehead for more coverage. Oh, and don’t get shot anywhere else. That’s all I got.”

Beckham put his hat on first.

Ian sighed. “I’m not go

“Oh please, you’re the Sexiest Man Alive. You look good in anything.”

Ian put his hat on and stared at Beckham, both eyebrows raised. Beckham choked and then laughed hard.

“How is that possible?” he asked, wiping his eyes.

“Told you.” Ian shrugged.

“Are you guys done playing dress-up?” Dion asked.

“Geez,” Ian mouthed to Beckham over Dion’s head.

“Saw that,” Dion muttered.

Ian and Beckham laughed. Dion shook his head, but his mouth twitched.

“Shall we walk through it again?”

They nodded, the gravity of the situation pulling them back to the moment, and he went through the plan from the top.

Once Dion had gone through everything and grilled Beckham and Ian backwards and forwards, they joined everyone else. The rest of the day felt like a vacation. Sophia and Rachel stayed busy in the kitchen, making tons of food: hoagies, queso and chips, brownies, lasagna, salad, garlic bread, and cheesecake.

Roxie and Leo kept the board games going. They were a good team. Beckham got a kick watching the two of them interact. They were both competitive and talked a fair amount of smack … with everyone but each other. They were both so partial with each other that several times they were called out for not being fair.

Leo shrugged. “If I can’t win, I want her to win.”

Roxie laughed. “And if he can’t win, I want to win.”

“Maybe Beckham could win sometime though, once or something,” Leo said a few beats later.

If life were always as sweet as this…

Beckham loved the way the little guy looked at him—like he was eleven feet tall.

Roxie noticed Beckham smiling at her and Leo and her eyes warmed. It might take time to prove to her how much he loved her but when he remembered how she’d responded during their night together, he knew it was worth it. He hoped he was right and that she loved him too. It’d make what he pla

That night after di

“Do you feel well enough to stay up a little longer? I won’t keep you up late,” he said quietly.

“Sure. I’ll come out after Leo falls asleep.”