Back when he was in school, there was a time Ss had to live abroad. The food just didn''t sit right with him and, with money being tight, he quickly learned how to cook for himself.


    Thinking back, Ss let out a soft chuckle. "Anyway, enough about the old days. Let''s eat."


    "Yeah." Calliope nodded, understanding more than she let on. She knew that Ss had spent his childhood with Eamon Baker. Eamon always looked out for him, but the rest of the Baker family had their reservations.


    Ss hadn''t always been the intimidating force he was now someone the whole family secretly feared and respected. Back then, he''d been a lonely kid, always left to fend for himself. He wasn''t born strong; he''d had to fight for every inch. The more Eamon protected him, the more the others picked on him. Ss never wanted Eamon to worry, so he just bit his tongue and dealt with it alone.


    That''s how he got to where he was today: powerful, unshakable, and not afraid of a single thing. But even so, Eamon had warned him. His birth father was no good, and might show up one day to cause trouble.


    Calliope watched him quietly. She''d thought about it before: if that deadbeat dad ever came back and tried to mess with Ss, she''d stand by him. She wouldn''t let anyone hurt him, not now, not ever. If Ss was her man, then she''d be the one to protect him, no questions asked.


    They ate together, chatting about thetest drama with the Jewell family and Horatio''s uing surgery.


    "When you have your operation, I''ll get Damien and the guys to stick with you," Ss said. "I might have to head out of town for a bit, so I can''t promise I''ll be around."


    "You''re worried the Jewell family will try something with me while you''re gone?" Calliope guessed.


    "Better safe than sorry," Ss replied. "Those people never y fair, and Lisette''s unpredictable. If Damien and the boys are with you, anyone thinking of causing trouble will have to think twice. It''ll put my mind at ease."


    "Fine by me." Calliope agreed. Lisette was always up to something, you could never be too careful.


    ...


    Two dayster, Ss was away on business.


    Calliope, nked by Damien and his crew, headed to the hospital.


    "Ma''am, don''t worry. We''ve got your back," Damien assured her. "Nobody''s going to pull anything under our watch."


    "Thanks, guys. I appreciate it." Calliope nodded.


    When the Jewell family arrived, they were greeted by Damien''s men, standing on both sides of the corridor like bodyguards from an old mafia movie. The Jewells froze, visibly thrown off.


    "What the hell are they doing here?" Monty muttered, approaching Calliope.


    Zelda marched up, her brow furrowed. "Calliope, what''s the meaning of this? You''re not nning to mess around with Horatio''s


    treatment, are you? If you canine


    handle it, just say so. Don''t make things worse!"


    "Yeah, Callie, can you really guarantee Horatio''s leg will be fixed?" Lisette chimed in, her voice sickly sweet but loaded with suspicion. "After the surgery, will he definitely walk again? You better not mess this up."


    "Callie, have you even done this kind of operation before?" Lisette added, I


    pretending to care but really just trying to trip Calliope up.


    Calliope''s face remained calm, almost bored. She shot Lisette a nce and said coolly, "If you don''t trust me, if you think I''m not good enough, then don''t bothering to me at all."


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    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!