Chase's demeanor changed the moment he watched me grab that piece of shit by the throat. On the ride back home, he tried to relax in the passenger seat. I know there were a lot of questions on his mind. I knew he was worried about what would happen. This is what happened with Bo when I found out about Warren. Once the story got out, she was afraid he would retaliate after I beat him up. All I have to do is prove to this kid nothing is going to happen.

The moment I pulled in front of the house, his eyes were wide as he stared in awe. When I slid out of the truck, I grabbed his bag. He was too busy staring to grab his things. Staying at a stranger's house probably scared the shit out of him, but he wasn't showing it. He almost looked excited.

Bo threw the front door open and rushed toward me. Her arms wrapped her arms around me. It was as if I came back from war, and this is the first time we have saw one another in years. She was worried about what happened, even though I am sure she had a good idea.

Chase followed us toward the dining-room table. My curly-haired girl didn't mind the kid walking around the house. She was more worried about what happened. The smell filling the house made my stomach rumble. I realized she made dinner while I was gone.

"Are you hungry?" She looked at him. "I made dinner."

"You made dinner?" He looked at her with confusion.

She smiled before nodding. "Do you want me to make you a plate?"

"Uh - sure."

I told him to wait at the table before I joined Bo in the kitchen. We stared at the kid who only stared at his lap. I wasn't sure what the fuck I did, but I knew this kid wasn't going back home. Bo forked a piece of steak before placing it on a plate.

"Are you okay with this?"

"With what?"

"He can't go back to that house."

"Okay," she looked up at me with a smile. "Then he doesn't go back."

"Are you okay with that?"

"I will talk to Marcus," she placed her hands on my chest. "I will see what I can do legally."

"His mom is too fucked up to show up to court."

"Then we will have no problem winning this," she placed a kiss on my body. "Is he okay with this?"

"I haven't asked."

"Maybe you should."

"Together?"

"Together," she nodded as she poured gravy over his potatoes.

We walked out with our plates in our hands. He stared at the food she sat down in front of him. I watched the kid from the other side of the table, wondering when he was going to touch it. The steam was starting to disappear, and I wanted him to eat it before it got cold. Bo reached out, placing her hand over his.

"Are you okay?"

He looked up. "Yeah. My mom never made me dinner."

"What did you eat then?"

He shrugged. "Whatever I could make myself."

"Chase, do you want to stay here?" Kinnick looked at him. "I know we just met, but I know you don't want to go back to that house."

"Stay here? What do you mean?"

"Do you want to live here?" Bo smiled. "We have a bedroom -"

"A bedroom?" He let out a large breath. "Really?"

"Do you want to see it?"

"Can I?"

She stepped out of her chair. "It has its own bathroom. After eating, you can take a shower, and we can get your bedroom set up."

"Does it have a bed?"

"Of course," she looked up at him. "Why wouldn't it?"

"My bedroom didn't have a bed."

The moment I felt a twinge in my heart, I knew Bo was going to start crying because it hurt me. My back fell against the chair because I didn't know this is how the day was going to end. I didn't start my day thinking I was going to bring home a kid. I thought Bo would be worried I brought a complete stranger into our home. I should be worried, but I wasn't.

When I heard water rumbling through the pipes, not even five minutes later, Bo was coming down the stairs. Tears were streaming down her face as she approached me with his bag in her hands. I stood from my chair as she came closer. She fell apart in my chest as I wrapped her up.

The sobs ripping through her throat were taking over her breathing. I ran my fingers along her back as she was shaking against me. It made me wonder what else happened. She mumbled incoherent words into my chest.

"He said he had to sleep on a couch," she sucked in deep breaths as she tried to gain composure. "The water back at home has been shut off for months. If he wanted to take a shower, he had to do it at school in the locker rooms."

"Baby -"

"All of the clothes he has are in this bag," she looked up at me. "I told him we are going shopping tomorrow. I am going to buy him everything. I mean absolutely anything he needs."

"Okay," I ran my fingers through her hair. "We can go when we wake up."

"I don't even know if he has all of the school supplies he needs," she sighs. "And he needs a phone. I can't let him leave and not have a phone. Who would he call if something happened?"

I pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "Everything is going to be okay."

"I am going to the school tomorrow and handling everything."

"What about shopping?"

"That can wait until I am done."

"You can just walk into the office and tell them you are his legal guardian now."

She wiped her face with her t-shirt. "Let me do my thing, okay? If anyone knows their way around the legal system, it's me."

I cupped her cheeks. "I love you."

"I love you most," she sniffles. "I need to start his laundry."

When she walked off to the laundry room, I slid back into the dining-room table chair. Chase came back down the stairs with a pair of my sweatpants and t-shirt on. I smiled at him as he walked toward where I sat. He slid back into the seat across from me.

"How are you feeling?"

He looked at me with a smile. "I feel good."

"Good," I fork a piece of steak into my mouth. "Are you going to eat?"

He nodded before slowly poking a piece of his food. The moment it hit his mouth, he continued to fastly shovel it into his mouth. If Bo was out here, she would fall into another crying fit. It broke my heart, but the only difference is, I can hide my emotions better. By the time he was done, the plate was completely cleared.

"She is a good cook."

I grinned. "Yeah, she is."

"She is also having a baby."

"Yeah," I nodded. "A little boy."

"Are you excited?"

I nodded, again, waiting for him to talk. "Do you guys want me here?"

My brows furrowed. "I wouldn't have brought you here if we didn't."

"What about your girl? Is she okay with it?"

"She is super excited about taking you shopping tomorrow."

"Shopping?"

"You told her that bag of clothes is all you have."

He sighed. "It's not that big of a deal."

"You are fifteen," I sucked in a deep breath. "You should have more clothes than that."

"I stole them from the locker room."

"Why didn't you tell anybody?"

"I don't need to talk about my problems. They are mine. Not anybody else's."

"Then why are you telling me?"

"I trust you."

"Why didn't you trust John?"

"I just met John."

"You just met me," I lean back into my chair. "What is any different?"

"We have similar stories."

"Very similar," I agree. "I won't let you go back to that house."

"Promise?"

My heart snapped. "I promise."

"Thank you."

I nodded, standing up as tears welled in my eyes. "Uh - maybe you should go to bed."

"I am really tired," he admits. "Can you wake me up for school? I have to be there by eight."

"You are not going tomorrow," I tell him. "Bo will handle it."

"What am I supposed to do? I never missed a day of school before."

"It's going to be okay," I promised. "If you need anything, let us know."

"Goodnight, Kinnick."

"Goodnight," I turned away before my tears could fall.

"Will you tell Bo for me?"

"Yeah," I sucked in a deep breath. "I will."

When he walked up the stairs, I let the tears fall from my eyes. I leaned against the kitchen counter as they fell freely without slowing down. A hand on my back startled me as I cried against the marble. Bo's small hold pulled me into her chest.

She rubbed my back. "Are you okay?"

"I didn't know this is how my day was going to end."

"Neither did I," she chuckled. "But I am glad it turned out this way."

"Me too."

She looked up at me. "You are a great person. You know that, right?"

"I am being a decent human being."

"You say that every time you go over the top," she cupped my cheeks. "You are being more than a decent human being. You are changing this kid's life."

"I love you," I leaned down, connecting our lips. "I love you so fucking much."

She wrapped her arms around my neck. "I love you more."

"Are you ready for bed?"

She nodded as she gripped my hand and followed near my side as we walked toward the stairs. Her grip tightened as I pulled her down the hallway. When we got to the top of the stairs, I assumed there would be a light coming from his television. There was nothing, though. Not a single sound.

When we peeked around the corner, the kid was already sleeping. He was snoring into the darkness of his new room. Bo walked toward him, slowly creeping toward him to pull the comforter over his shoulders. He snuggled deeper into his pillow as she smiled down at him.

I kissed the side of her head as we walked back to the room. "He reminds me a lot of you."

I watched as she crawled into the bed. "Oh, really?"

She smiles. "Really."

I slid in next to her. "I had to save him from the things I went through."

"You already did by inviting him into our home," she laid down. "Now we have to prove to him, nothing is ever going to hurt him again."

"B.K," she laughs. "Doing it our way."