“Or to love." He was despondent.
“That’s not true. Through all of this, I have always loved you.”
“Like your own son?”
“You are my son, Leo. Nothing can change that.”
“But I’m such a screwup.”
“You don’t think I was perfect growing up, do you?”
“I guess not.”
“That’s why we need parents, Leo. To guide us through our mistakes and help us grow. You’ve made a lot of positive changes, but this is going to take everything you have to overcome it. What you do now will make a difference.”
He sat up and put his arms around my waist, leaning his head on my shoulder. “What do I do now, Dad?”
“You have to talk to Jonas and Eddie.”
“I can’t. I’m so ashamed.”
“I understand, but that’s how men deal with their problems. We own them, apologize and move on.”
“Do you think it will work?”
I shrugged. “We can’t know until we try.”
“All right,” he said, sitting up and wiping his face again. “I’m ready.”
Good thing he’s ready, I thought. Because I sure wasn’t.
Jonas
I pulled into the driveway just as the sun was dipping low on the horizon, averting my eyes when they landed on the welcome mat by the kitchen door, the memory of that man kissing Arthur still so fresh in my mind.
“Can’t we just tell Arthur we know Leo did it?” Eddie asked.
“I’m sure Arthur knows that I know that. But this isn’t about Arthur.”
“It’s about Leo.”
“No. This is about our family. We’re not going to grow as a family if we place all the blame on Leo’s shoulders.”
Eddie looked shocked. “He’s the one who pretended to be Arthur and started an online affair with some random dude.”
“I know that, but that’s just a symptom of the issues. Something made Leo think that was his only option. If we deal with the root of the problem, we’ll find a better resolution.”
“Like his panic attacks?”
“I’m sure they’re all rooted in a deep fear of being abandoned.”
“He’s so broken.”
“You know what they say about broken things, right?" He shook his head and I smiled. “The cracks are where the light gets in.”
“Whoa. That’s deep, Dad.”
“Leo needs our love, but he also needs to know that he can’t do stuff like that again. I want you to watch and listen. Because this moment is going to be when we find out whether we make a good team.”
“Does Arthur know that you’re not freaking out about last night?”
“I’m not sure. We talked earlier, but I’m still feeling a lot of conflicting emotions that I’m trying to work out myself.”
He wrinkled his forehead. “Why? You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Actually, I think I did. I just have to find a way to set it right.”
We walked up to the door and knocked, waiting to be invited in for the first time in weeks. Arthur met us at the door, his face pinched and strained. He was hurting for Leo, and I couldn’t imagine loving him more.
We all sat down around the dining room table and waited for Leo to speak.
He looked so small, looking to his dad for assurance, and obviously feeling about an inch tall after what he’d done. “My dad didn’t make a date with that man,” he said. I noted he was using Arthur’s title instead of his name, but I bit back the smile that threatened. “I was angry, and I made an online profile and started talking to guys. Oliver was the only one who took the bait.”
“Why did you look surprised when he showed up?” I asked.
“To be honest, I kinda forgot about it. I mean, I just—” he sighed. “I told him to come, but I never checked my email to see if he agreed. Then I got busy, and I just forgot.”
“That was an incredibly dangerous thing to do. You don’t know who you’re talking to online. That man was a creep, and your dad could’ve been in danger if he’d been alone." I leveled a stern gaze at him, and he squirmed, but didn’t look away. “If he’d come when you were alone, it could’ve really gone bad.”
“I know. And I’m sorry. I hope you won’t dump my dad because I’m a crappy son. I really am trying, I just don’t know why I’m so scared.”
I nodded and looked at Arthur. “I think I do." All eyes were on me when I went to stand next to Leo, squatting down so we were at eye level.
“Arthur and I took a big step without talking to you or Eddie about it. Even if you think that’s what you wanted all along, you’re still losing the life you knew. Does that sound about right?”
He nodded.
I pressed on. “Leo, your whole life has been out of your control, so it makes sense that something that big would send you looking for a way to regain control. I get it. What you did was wrong, but we’ve all made mistakes, and I’m sorry for jumping the gun without considering how you and Eddie would feel about things.”
He looked up at me, and I prepared myself for him to flip things so he wasn’t responsible. What I wasn’t ready for was Leo flying into my arms and clinging to me like a lost child while he cried. “Thank you,” he said between sobs.
I hugged him tight. “Leo, you’re not a bad kid. You’ve been through hell, and we’re here to help you find your way out of that darkness.
“If you’ll let me, I’ll take that journey with you. Eddie will, too. Your dad’s been doing this alone for a long time. It’s time we dealt with things head on, like a family. Would you like that?”
He nodded. I turned to Eddie. “What about you? You ready to give this family thing a try?”
“I am,” he said.
I looked at Arthur, who was fiddling with his ring, as Leo pulled away and sat next to Eddie. When he handed me the ring, I held it in my hand and felt the warmth left by his skin.
He smiled at me. “I want that back,” he said. “But not right now.”
“You’re right,” I said, handing my necklace back to him. “Next time we do this, we’re going to do it right.”
25
Arthur
We waited more than a month, letting Leo and Eddie settle into a routine without talk of blending families, growth, and finding our place as a unit. Jonas and I still dated, and two boxes took up space in the back of a drawer, nearly forgotten while we waited for the perfect time.
That time came on a sunny day six weeks after a bold stranger had kissed me in front of the man I loved, the memory fading a little bit more with each day. But it wasn’t my relationship with Jonas, or the fading of painful memories, that made my heart sing every day.
It was the changes I saw in Leo.
Since he’d admitted his fears and his pain, he’d been like new. The pain was still there, but for the first time since he’d started going to therapy, he was making headway, and everyone around us was taking notice.
Jonas tugged my hand as we walked up the steep hill in the park after Eddie and Leo, who were chasing their drone through a huge field, laughing and carrying on as if they’d been siblings their entire life.
We set our picnic up on the top of the gentle slope and settled in to watch them play.
“That sound is good for the soul,” Jonas said, when the boys ran into each other and laughed. “I was worried that getting one drone would cause fights.”
“It was a great idea.”
“Are you nervous?” he asked, pulling me up against him and kissing my cheek.
“No." It was the truth. “This feels right.”
“I know what you mean.”
They played for almost an hour, but despite my excitement at what we had planned, the time passed quickly. They were carrying the heavy drone between them as they ran toward us, both faces in identical grins.
We handed them their water bottles; they drained them quickly, then stood there, waiting for us to hand out lunch while they caught their breath.
/>
“Before we eat lunch, we have something we want to talk to you about,” Jonas said.
The boys looked up, suddenly suspicious. The new toy, the pretty day, and their dads united in their plan could only mean trouble, right?
I chuckled. “Don’t look so terrified,” I teased.
Jonas went to stand in front of Leo, and I moved to where Eddie stood. Together, we held out identical blue-and-silver boxes.
Jonas went first. “Leo, I want to ask you a very important question. We’ve been together as a family through thick and thin, and we’ve all learned a lot. We’ve grown as individuals and as a unit, and Arthur and I have made a decision." He opened the box. “I want to ask you to be my son, and ask your permission to make an official, long-term commitment to your dad.”
“Are you asking me if you can get engaged to my dad?”
Jonas nodded. “I wouldn’t dream of asking him without your permission.”
Leo looked at the ring and smiled, then looked up at Eddie to see if his friend and nearly brother approved. Eddie was smiling. “Is this for me?”
“It is.”
“It looks like Dad’s, but it’s different.”
“It has your birthstone in it." He paused, then said, “And my birthstone. It’s a symbol of my commitment to you, to be the best second dad I can be.”
Leo looked at it long and hard, then he nodded solemnly. “Yes,” he said.
A smile of relief spread across Jonas’s face as Leo took the ring, but I was already turning to Eddie. I asked him the same question, giving him a matching ring with his birthstone and mine in it. Eddie said yes much quicker than Leo, then crossed his arms and glared at both of us.
“I hope you’re not planning on giving rings to each other,” he said, tapping his foot.
I stopped, looking at Jonas, not sure of what to say. But Jonas was unbothered. “What did you have in mind?” he asked Eddie.
The two boys put their hands out at the same time, and I couldn’t help but laugh. I handed the ring I’d bought for Jonas to my son, and he gave my ring to his. Then I stood there, fighting back tears, as Eddie asked me to be his second father.
Then it was Leo’s turn, and I realized that I wasn’t worried he would act out or do something crazy for attention. Leo had turned a corner, and that angry, wild teen was long gone.
He looked at Jonas, his face solemn as he opened the box and looked at the ring. “It has all four of our stones,” he said.
“It does.”
“Do you accept this ring, and my promise that I will do my best to be a good and loving son?”
Jonas raised an eyebrow in surprise. “Did you two know?” he asked suddenly.
Eddie and Leo looked at each other, then they both laughed. “We can’t always be perfect,” Eddie said.
Jonas chortled, shaking his head. “How long have you two known?”
“Only since this morning,” Leo admitted. “But we didn’t know know, you know?”
My head spun, but then Jonas cleared his throat and held out his hand. My heart soared as I watched my son welcome this man into his life. A man who had challenged me to be a better parent, and had challenged himself to be the man we all needed him to be.
I was looking at the rest of my life, all wrapped up in three perfect souls who sang my heart song.
The future looked brighter than I could have hoped for, and I was ready to take on the world with Jonas by my side.
Book 3
Out To Get You
J.P. Oliver
© 2019
Disclaimer
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters, and events are all fictitious for the reader’s pleasure. Any similarities to real people, places, events, living or dead are all coincidental.
This book contains sexually explicit content that is intended for ADULTS ONLY (+18).
1
Whitt
I stared around the small, cool cubicle of Maysburg Memorial Hospital already feeling the itch to get my phone out and check my emails and messages. Never mind the warnings on the bulletin board in the emergency treatment room instructing patients to turn off their cell phones. Those weren’t meant for me. I had business to get done.
With a swish, the curtain blocking the open door into the ER hallway whisked back and Jack Thomas, my regular doctor, strode in with a roll of his eyes and hands on hips.
“Seriously, Whitt? You text me that you think you’re having a heart attack? Was that before or after the 9-1-1 call?”
“I wanted you here. Don’t I pay you enough to make that happen?” I sounded like an arrogant prick, but I didn’t care. If the press got wind of the fact billionaire banker Whitt Dailey was taken by ambulance to the hospital, it could tank the entire deal I was trying to close. Who wanted an investment banker with heart problems handling their money?
“You pay me plenty. I’ve already taken a look at the tests they’ve run and compared the data to the baselines we have on you from your last physical.”
“And?”
“You’re not dying today.” Jack stepped closer. “But if you don’t get a life outside of working non-stop, that could change pretty damn quick.”
I leaned back on the propped-up hospital bed. “So exactly what were the chest pains all about?”
“Right off the bat, I would say stress. You need a way to decompress. You do know investment bankers are ranked as one of the most stressful careers in the entire universe? I think you might be right in there with air traffic controllers.”
Jack automatically reached for my wrist and began checking my pulse.
“I have a life,” I protested.
He arched a brow. “Really. What do you do other than work?”
I cleared my throat. “I work out in my gym. I go to fundraisers. I’m on a couple of boards. I think this hospital is one of them.”
“Fundraisers and board meetings don’t count. Neither does working out in your gym. I’ll bet you’re reading emails or making calls while you run on your treadmill.”
I felt a blush heat my cheeks. I couldn’t deny that, so I fired back from another angle. “Well if a hobby is so important, what the hell do you suggest?”
Jack grinned. “You’ve got a big, fancy empty stable on that ridiculously huge estate you hide on. What about horseback riding?”
“Like cowboys and John Wayne?”
Now my doctor laughed at me. “Not in this part of Virginia, Boy Wonder. You’re smack dab in the middle of Hunt Country.”
I sat forward, narrowing my gaze on him. “You’re talking shiny boots, tight britches—”
“Breeches.”
“Breeches—whatever—and red coats? Are you fucking kidding me?”
Jack crossed his arms over his chest. “No. I’m not—and red coats are by invitation only, by the way. I started riding with my wife about ten years ago. Wouldn’t change it for the world. There’s something peaceful about it—caring for the horse as well as riding it. Besides, at the risk of turning this into yet another business outlet for you—one of your clients' rides. But you already knew that, right?”
I frowned. I had seen something in Maitland’s bio that mentioned him being a horseman but hadn’t paid much attention to it. He’d never brought it up in any of our conversations.
Jack tossed me the bag with my clothes in it. “Get dressed. You can go, but I want to see you in a week. Sooner if you’re still having any pain. Don’t blow off the idea of finding a hobby. Get plenty of sleep and eat right. For god’s sake, you’re rich. Hire more servants.”
“I like Maggie. She’s efficient and doesn’t bot
her me.”
“Hobby. Rest. Eat right. That’s my advice. I’ll send you a bill.”
I laughed. “Who didn’t know that?”
Before Jack could get out the door, I already had my phone out, dialing the limo service. Since I had arrived via ambulance, I needed a way home. Maysburg was just hoity-toity enough to have a local limo company. I used them a lot, especially if I had a client I needed to talk business with while we were on the road, which happened more often than not. I had thought a couple times about putting my own limo driver on staff, but I didn’t want a houseful of servants underfoot.
I liked my privacy.
I did.
By the time I restored my suit and tie to perfection, put my paperwork inside my briefcase, and reached the ER entrance, the limo was waiting. I smiled when I realized it was Fred, the driver who handled the majority of my business.
“Afternoon, Mr. Dailey.” He opened the rear passenger door, closed it, and went around to the driver’s side. As he put the car into gear, I turned my head to gaze at the passing scenery. I had picked Maysburg deliberately when I decided I needed more privacy than living inside the beltway afforded. That had been too close to the capital, too close to a never-ending press of humanity. I liked having a big house and a lot of land. I could work at home and only had to hire someone to take care of maintenance.
Besides, that Maysburg address represented stability and gentility—exactly the message I needed to project to prospective clients who tended toward the conservative. Those were the people I wanted to attract so I could cut down on the constant travel. There had to be some perks to being a billionaire.
Fred turned down a narrow, tree-lined country road. Moss-speckled stone walls ran along either side alternately with dark, wood-paneled fencing. Virginia horse country. I lived right in the middle of it but had never given it much thought. Now Jack had planted the seed, and I noticed nothing else.
Dr. Perfect: A Contemporary Romance Bundle Page 37