Always His (Crazed Devotion #1) by C.A. Harms Page A

back to Tori, who was watching us closely. “But I just love your momma.”
    She smiled and looked between Nicole and me a few times before settling back on me. “Do you love me too?”
    I stared at Tori with a knot lodged in my throat. I took the spatula from her and placed it in the sink to her left, then lifted her from her mother’s arms and held her close, making sure she was looking directly at me when I spoke.
    “Yes, Victoria,” I began. “I love you too. But how could I not? I had no hope when I met you, because you, little lady, are easy to love.”
    Her little features lit up as she smiled wide and wrapped her arms around my neck, squeezing tight. I looked over at Nicole and found her eyes filled with unshed tears as she watched the exchange between me and Tori. Without hesitation I hooked my arm around her shoulders and pulled her in close, and we all shared a hug.
    These two girls had stolen my heart, and there was no way I ever wanted it back.

I sat at the kitchen table folding socks as Ryker and my dad talked about the game on television. Their voices carried from the living room, and every so often I heard Tori giggle and knew that between my dad and Ryker, she was more than entertained.
    When Ryker told Tori he loved her, my heart ached with such joy I could barely breathe. My little girl was blessed with not only my daddy who adored her but now Ryker too. She had those two men wrapped around her little finger, and that thought made all the shit from Tyler seem minor. If he couldn’t love the special little girl we created, the two men in the next room showered her with enough love to make up for him abandoning her.
    My phone rang in my purse only a few feet away, and I reached out to answer it before it went to voice mail. The words unknown number flashed across the screen, so I hit Answer quickly. “Hello?”
    “Hey, Nic.” I cringed at the sound of Tyler’s voice. “Where’s my daughter?”
    “Why do you care?” I asked as I pinned the phone between my shoulder and my ear and went back to folding socks. Tyler always made these random phone calls in order to attempt to get beneath my skin, and I knew this was just another pointless game. He played them often and since Ryker was now back in town, they’d become more frequent.
    “Because I wanna see her. I got something for her,” he slurred, and I rolled my eyes. It would have been a damn miracle if he was able to stay sober for one day. Hell, he was the one who got me drunk that night we were together anyway. I was too young to buy alcohol, and he willingly offered. Now I know it was a just a ploy to get me inebriated, which led to me letting my guard down.
    “You’ve been drinking,” I replied with annoyance.
    “Just a few beers with my brother earlier,” he explained.
    “Tyler, it’s only two in the afternoon. What did y’all do, shots for breakfast?” I had stopped folding laundry and closed my eyes, pinching the bridge of my nose. His shit was so exhausting.
    “I wanna see her,” he said, straining to keep his voice as steady as possible. “And I wanna see you. I think we should work things out for our daughter.”
    I didn’t mean to laugh, but honestly I felt like this had to be some kind of joke. “Work what out?” I asked. “Tyler, there is nothing to work on. We were never a couple, and we never will be. If you want to know Tori, then that’s a different story, but you and I will never be more than just two people who share a child.”
    “This has to do with him, don’t it?” he asked, anger lacing his tone.
    “Are you kidding me right now?” I hung my head in frustration. I knew his so-called attempt to be there for Tori had everything to do with Ryker and nothing to do with love for his daughter. “When you sober up and decide you want a relationship with Tori, then call me. Other than that, just stay the hell away.”
    I ended the call and tossed the phone back in my purse. Almost instantly it began