“Remy, quit.” The animal quieted as the guy glared at Loyal. “What the hell are you even talking about?”
“We know this is all a setup to derail our father’s campaign so he loses the election.”
“I don’t give a shit about your father.”
“Interesting.” Loyal shot Asher a cynical glance. “He’s not even trying to back up the story. What happened, did your mom cut you out of the deal? Is that what’s got you so pissed off?”
“There is no deal. I’m pissed off because this whole shit-show has been a nightmare since last night. My phone won’t stop ringing, and I had an army of reporters knocking on my door last night and this morning. I had to call the cops to get rid of them.”
“You should’ve known they’d want follow up interviews.”
“And how the fuck would I have known that?”
“Common fucking sense,” Loyal snapped. “When you chum the waters to ruin the reputation of a respected governor running for Senate, you’re gonna attract the sharks.”
“You’re talking like a fucking idiot,” Grayson accused.
Asher almost laughed at that comment. He even sounded like Loyal. “Surely, you had to know once the story broke the press would want to hear directly from you.”
“You assume I knew what the hell was coming, but that fucking news report last night came out of nowhere. At least in Afghanistan I expected there would be I.E.D.s to blow everything to kingdom come,” he grumbled.
Asher’s frown now matched his brother’s—and his half-brother’s. “Your mother didn’t tell you before she sold the story?”
Grayson’s jaw clenched. “My mom didn’t sell any damn story.”
“You’re saying you didn’t know the governor was your father before last night?”
“My father is dead.” Deep creases lined the guy’s forehead. “I’ve known that from the time I was old enough to ask.”
And yet, he didn’t sound like he was stating a long known fact. It was more like he was repeating the words to convince himself what he’d been told all his life was still true.
Hearing the confusion mixed with frustration, Asher was inclined to believe he hadn’t known the shit-storm—as he aptly described it—was coming. Last night, before he’d talked to Honor, he’d resented the hell out of this guy. And then on the drive, Loyal had him doubting the few facts they did know.
But now, he realized maybe Grayson was going through the same emotional grinder they all were.
Loyal crossed his arms, clearly unconvinced. “That’s an interesting way to play it.”
“I’m not playing anything.”
“Plausible deniability. I think now that the story is actually out there, you’re scared. Because the truth is going to come out about the lies you and your mother told to ruin our dad’s reputation.” He leaned forward to jab a finger in Grayson’s direction. “And believe me, we’re going to make sure you’re all exposed.”
The dog rose up with a sharp bark, and Loyal jerked back.
“Here’s a truth for you,” Grayson growled. “I don’t want anything to do with a single one of you fucking entitled, pretentious pricks. I don’t want your money. I don’t want to know you. I don’t even want to know about you. Now get the fuck off my property.”
Loyal took a breath to speak, but Asher turned to face him while stepping between the two. “Let’s go,” he said quietly. “This isn’t helping.”
He looked like he was going to argue, and when Asher put his hand on his chest to back him up, he knocked it away. He started to back up, but leaned to the side for one last warning. “The truth will come out. You can take that to the bank.”
A stop at their parents’ house on the way home left a cold knot in Asher’s stomach. Mom had packed a bag and left without a word to anyone where she was going or when she’d be back. Dad was out doing damage control on the damn campaign, and Celia was rattled enough that she and Robert were discussing postponing the wedding.
He and Loyal had discussed telling everyone about their visit with Grayson, decided not to, but then Asher spilled when guilt got the better of him. After the past twenty-four hours, the idea of keeping a secret from any of his siblings didn’t sit right.
Not only were Celia, Shelby, and Merit now pissed off at the both of them, but Loyal wasn’t happy with him, either. His brother had gone for a long run when they got back to Asher’s place and was currently in the shower, while Asher was doing his best to distract himself with work.
To no avail. He set his laptop on the coffee table and paced from his living room to the kitchen. On the ride back, Loyal had voiced the possibility of their parents following through on the divorce they’d averted all those years ago. Asher shut him up. It was way too soon to even be thinking they might go that route, and yet since the thought had been planted, it niggled annoying little wormholes in the back of his mind. He couldn’t imagine their parents calling it quits after thirty-five years.
Restless energy had him pulling a fork from the silverware drawer. He lifted the cover on the chocolate cake, but after two bites, he tossed the fork in the sink and headed back to the living room. It was still the best cake he’d ever had, but it was no substitute for what he really wanted.
Maybe he should go for a bike ride. Exercise it out like Loyal. Standing in front of the window, he raked a hand through his hair and gripped the back of his neck. Screw the bike ride.
What he really wanted to do was go across the street and be with Honor. Despite the earlier teasing about cake, he’d settle for simply being in the same room as her. Even when sexual awareness had his entire body humming, something about her presence calmed his spirit in a way he craved more than her actual cake right now.
Problem was, it had dawned on him earlier that she hadn’t actually answered if it was okay for him to stop by. He didn’t want to push too hard and drive her away. Grimacing, he returned to the couch and picked up his computer again.
Done with his shower, Loyal tapped the back cushion on his way to the kitchen. “Beer?”
“Sure.”
He came back with two bottles, then sat on the opposite end of the couch and pulled out his own laptop. Silence reigned as they drank and worked—or Asher pretended to work in between morose stares over the top edge of his screen.
“Are you lusting after the girl or her frosting?”
Loyal’s question jerked his gaze sideways.
His brother’s mouth quirked at the corners as he pointed his beer at him. “I’m guessing the girl since you already have her frosting on that cake you’re selfishly hoarding.”
“Can you blame me?”
“No. The one bite I had was fucking awesome.”
His choice of words sparked a reluctant smile. “I was talking about the girl, though I do agree on the cake.” He met his brother’s gaze as he finished off his beer. “She could be the one.”
What’s with the could? She is the one.
Loyal’s expression remained impassive as he stared at him for a long moment. “Did you learn nothing from Brianna?”
“Yeah,” he snapped. “That she wasn’t the one.”
“And some chick who doesn’t believe in love is?”
He arched an eyebrow. “Thought you didn’t believe a word Roxanna says?”
“You know what? Forget it.” He slammed his computer shut and surged to his feet to swipe up Asher’s empty bottle. “Be an idiot,” he muttered on his way to the kitchen. “But don’t say I didn’t warn you. Just look at Mom and Dad.”
Jaw clenched, Asher locked his gaze on his laptop screen. “They’ll work things out.”
“You don’t know that. None of us know that, and clearly, thirty-five years is no guarantee.”
Because of his brother’s sore past, nothing he said would change the direction of the discussion, so he dropped the subject. When Loyal offered a second beer, he declined and reached for his phone instead.
A few minutes later, his brother groused, “Yo
u’ve got nothing to eat around here besides that damn cake.”
“There’s a bar not far from here that has good burgers. We can order take out.”
“Or just eat there.”
He didn’t feel like going out, but sitting here wasn’t any more appealing. “Yeah. Fine. Let’s go.”
Down at Nick’s Pub, they squeezed in at the corner of the bar where Loyal ordered a beer and Asher requested a soda while they waited to order their food. His brother scoped out the place while he took out his phone to send Honor a text asking if she’d eaten dinner yet. Her reply came less than a minute later.
Honor: Not yet. I’ll break for a bowl of cereal in a bit. How has your day been?
Asher: Crazy. Do you like burgers?
Honor: Sorry on the crazy. And who doesn’t like burgers?
Asher: Loyal and I are at Nick’s. Want me to bring you one on our way home?
Honor: Nick won’t mind you stealing one of his burgers?
He’d forgotten she was still new to the neighborhood.
Asher: He’d call the cops if I stole one, but since I’ll pay for it, we’ll be good. Nick’s is a pub, Butter Cream.
Honor: Ah. Got it, Ace. You don’t have to do that…but on the other hand I’m starving, and I do love a good burger. Medium. Extra pickles and tomatoes, mayo and BBQ sauce. Please and thank you.
The positive response prompted a grin. She didn’t mind if he stopped by. He responded he’d be there in about a half-hour, then tucked his phone in his back pocket and asked Loyal, “You mind if we take our food to go after all?”
“Let me guess, the baker is offering more frosting?”
“Her name is Honor,” he said pointedly. “And, I’m going to bring her a burger for dinner. She’s been working since she left this morning.”
Loyal fished the rental keys out of his pocket to drop them on the bar. “I’ll call a cab to get back.”
Damn. Now he felt like he was being a shitty brother, ditching family for a woman. “You’re welcome to eat with us, if you want.” The support Honor had expressed about his family so far left him pretty sure she wouldn’t mind. And since she’d already stressed her breaks had to be short, they wouldn’t stay long.
“Oh, God, no. You bit my head off when I tried to eat some of that cake. I’m afraid of what you might go after if I talk to her and she falls for me instead of you.”
Asher snorted and socked him on the arm as the waitress approached. “Never gonna happen, bro.”
The unexpected teasing broke the uneasy tension between them since their trip to meet Grayson. They put in their order, then talked easily until their food arrived. Asher fisted his to-go bag in his hand and stood.
“You’re sure?” he asked one last time as he stole a fry from Loyal’s basket.
“I’m sure, you romantic sap. Go get your damn heart broken.”
Chapter 27
As Honor chewed her last bite, she noticed Asher was only just starting the second half of his burger. He’d been busy recounting the trip to meet Grayson Cole and the stop at his parents’ house after. Conflicting emotions deepened his voice as he spoke, and her chest had tightened for him when he said the guy didn’t want anything to do with them. Seemed Loyal and Merit agreed with Grayson wholeheartedly on that one point, while Asher and his sisters weren’t sure how they felt.
“Loyal still isn’t convinced he’s your half-brother after meeting him?” she asked.
“Not so much. I think he’s just in denial.”
She reached for a French fry from the cardboard basket between them. “Sounds like you’re not.”
His shoulders lifted. “I don’t doubt that the right amount of money could buy a fake DNA test, but the problem with that is they have to know if we did our own, that lie would be exposed. And they have to know we’d demand to do our own.”
“And, your dad did admit to sleeping with his mother.”
“Yeah. That, too.”
In a moment of silence, Honor returned to the one thing that blew her mind. “I can’t believe she lied to him that his father was dead. What a shitty thing to do to your kid.”
“Right?” He rested his forearm against the edge of the table and grabbed a fry. “I don’t get how that’s better than him knowing about my dad and our family. We’ve missed knowing him for thirty-one years.”
She crumpled her empty burger wrapper and stood. Her leg was warm where his had rested against it, and when she passed behind him on her way to the garbage, she gave in to the urge to rub her palm across his hunched shoulders. What she really wanted to do was wrap her arms around him in a tight, comforting hug. But then she wouldn’t want to let go.
Before she could get one step away, he reached back and caught her hand. His strong fingers gave hers a light squeeze. She understood the silent thanks, and yet that one touch sparked the banked desire simmering between them from the moment she’d opened the door.
If he tugged her back to his side, she’d forget all about taking a short break and peel that soft cotton T-shirt over his head right here in her kitchen.
When her second reluctant step toward the island put pressure on his grip, his fingers tightened for a second, but then he released her. She bit back a sigh of disappointment.
Suck it up and get your ass back to work.
She tossed her garbage and turned on the faucet to wash her hands. “The PI your brother hired said Grayson and his mom didn’t have money, right? So, is all this about making money off the story, or sabotaging your dad’s campaign?”
“Both most likely. Loyal texted me just before I got here and said it appears Grayson’s mother’s ex-husband sold the story to the opposition.”
“The ex-husband? Was it a recent divorce?”
“Yeah. They were only married a couple of years.”
“Maybe that’s why it’s coming out now.”
“Could be.”
“What a jerk. Though, his mother kind of is, too, for lying and keeping that secret all those years.”
“I still can’t wrap my head around why. They didn’t have money back then or now. From what the PI has said, they both live in small houses and drive older vehicles, she’s a waitress at a tourist restaurant, and he joined the military right out of high school instead of going to college. He’s been self-employed doing odd jobs since he got out a couple years ago.”
She leaned her hip against the island counter as she grabbed a towel to dry her hands. “What does any of that matter? Not everyone can afford college, or, he might not have even wanted to go. I went straight into designing cakes out of high school.”
“I guess I’m coming from the angle parents are supposed to want better for their kids, so why would his mother struggle all those years when she could have received child support from my dad? He would’ve supported them both if he’d known.”
Honor rested the towel on the counter. “Maybe she was afraid.”
“Of my dad?” he asked with disbelief.
“Of losing her baby. If your family was as well known then as it is now, she knew your dad had a lot more money than she did. He would’ve been able to afford a whole team of lawyers to gain custody and take him away.”
Asher’s brow furrowed as he swiped a napkin across his lips and met her gaze. “My dad wouldn’t have done that.”
“You don’t know that any more than Grayson’s mother did.”
“I don’t believe this.” He swiveled in the chair to face her. “Are you seriously taking her side?”
“No.” Her voice rose in response to his. “What she did was completely wrong. All I’m doing is offering a possible reason why. You’ve never had to worry about money, Asher. Never had to worry about what it can and can’t buy.”
He stared at her for a long moment, as if taken aback by her words. For the first time since they met, she saw him as the rich guy born with a silver spoon in his mouth and realized they’d been raised worlds apart. Yet, she’d never felt that from him. Not once, until she
had to be a jerk and point it out.
“I’m sorry,” she said quietly. “I didn’t mean—”
“No. It’s fine,” he said. “You’re absolutely right.” After a long beat of silence, he added, in a low voice, “But I guarantee you, my dad would not have taken the baby away.”
“Okay.” She held up her hands, then reached for her sealed bag of fondant. “I understand that you do know your dad better than her, but you’ve spent almost thirty years with him. She was with him for one night—and you know they didn’t spend that time learning about each other’s character.”
He made a sound of disgruntled dismay as he turned back to the table. “I really don’t want to think about that.”
“Sorry.”
He shook his head and picked at his food. Not quite knowing what to say, she focused her gaze down, kneading a chunk of the fondant with the heels of her hands, softening the icing so she could roll it out.
“What would you do?”
Honor glanced up in surprise to see Asher had once again turned in his chair to face her. His intense gaze made her pulse skip a few beats, and she lowered her lashes. “About what?”
“Would you tell me if you got pregnant, or would you be too afraid?”
Wow. This was not the direction she would’ve expected this conversation to take. Then she realized her heart had given a little thump of…giddiness…at the thought of having his baby. Not just a baby, but his baby.
What the hell?
Now her heart was racing like a runaway freight train. She drew in a calming breath before answering honestly. “Yeah, I’d be afraid, but I would tell you.”
“Do you really think I’d try to take the baby away from you?”
She shook her head at his wounded tone while working her roller back and forth. “No, not that. I don’t think you would do that any more than you think your dad would. I guess it’s more that I’d be scared because a baby is a huge thing. It changes your entire life.”
She’d witnessed that reality when Mae had Ian, and even experienced it a bit herself on the fringes. There’s nothing she wouldn’t do for her godson.
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