by Natalie Ann
“Your secret is safe.”
“I know. If you’re worried that there’s baggage and I’m carrying a torch for her, you can rest assured that’s not the case. I feel nothing for her at all. Not even the hatred I did back then. She just ceased to exist to me. I’d like to keep it that way.”
That at least answered one question for her. She had so many more she wanted to ask. So many things she wanted to know.
During the night, her mind was filled with what she could only assume was jealousy. That Finn lived in this house with Trey’s mother. That they were happy at one point, that they talked of the life they’d have together.
Now she knew all those dreams that she had or wished for herself weren’t something that Finn had shared with another woman.
With a peaceful sigh, Olivia laid her lips on Finn’s. “It’s probably for the best.” She’d keep reminding herself that when the curiosity got the better of her.
Forever
Finn was going stir crazy. The last two weeks he hadn’t done much more than sit around the house and do some light chores. Even then, everyone was on his case about how much he was doing.
He wasn’t stupid, he was taking it easy, even if it was killing him to do so.
Thankfully, he convinced his doctor to release him back to the firehouse on light duty starting in a week. Sitting behind a desk or going on code inspections for a month was still better than staying home.
Even Harper’s wasn’t letting him back on site for another week. And they said he could only supervise Olivia’s rehab, pretty much making him the foreman he never wanted to be. But he’d take it right now too, just to do something.
Trey was currently at preschool. Olivia had stayed all day on Sunday after his accident, and all night again, until he convinced her he was fine on his own. Trey didn’t want to go to school on Monday. He wanted to stay with Finn.
In the end, it worked out, since Trey enjoyed helping Finn out around the house. But that quickly wore and Trey decided it was more fun to be with his friends at school.
So that left Finn home alone during the days for the last ten days, with Olivia coming to check on him at lunch when she could break away, if not one of his parents.
Right now, though, everyone was giving him space. He’d finally convinced them he could handle being alone. He promised not to lift anything or do anything more strenuous than making dinner or doing a load of laundry, no matter how much he wanted to go out to his work shed.
Daytime TV sucked. Soap operas and talk shows. He didn’t know what was worse. If he had to hear one more woman complain that her spouse wouldn’t take the garbage out without being asked, he’d scream. He didn’t know any man that was that lazy. At least not personally. It had to be all for ratings. No one would put up with that.
He picked up the remote and started to channel surf. Why, he had no clue, he knew there wasn’t anything on. He was just wasting his time even looking.
The scene with a sexy blonde in a bikini reaching up to kiss a man made him pause. How come they didn’t have things like that on during the day when he was a kid? Now, all it was doing was reminding him how long it’d been since he’d done more than kiss Olivia.
And she still hadn’t showed him her sexy bikini. He’d have to remind her of that. Maybe this weekend they could go swimming. Floating in the water shouldn’t aggravate his ribs too much.
He clicked the TV off and tossed the remote on the couch. His sketchpad was lying there so he picked it up. He didn’t often draw for fun, but he had nothing better to do.
Olivia had been talking about all the furniture she needed to buy, and he’d had an idea of a table and chairs in his mind for years. What better time than now to draw it up and see what she thought?
Normally being interrupted by knocking would annoy him, but today it was a welcome distraction. He was getting sick of his own company.
He laid the pad on the coffee table and stood up, walked to the door, and opened it wide to the last person he ever expected to see again. He should be surprised, but part of him wasn’t.
“Hi, Finn.”
“What do you want?”
Becca still looked as beautiful as always. Everyone said Trey looked like him, but the truth of it was, there was plenty of Becca in him too. He was glad it only appeared to be her looks and nothing of her personality.
“Can I come in to talk?”
“Nope. Anything you have to say should take less than one minute.” He looked at his watch. “You’re on the clock. Start.”
“You always were an asshole.”
He snorted. “Forty-five seconds now.”
“I want to see Trey.”
“No. Thirty seconds.”
“I know about your accident.”
“It wasn’t a secret. Down to fifteen seconds.”
She grabbed his hand and shoved it down, forcing him to look at her. To look into her light hazel eyes—the same as Trey’s—the makeup on her face more than it used to be, but not distracting from her beauty.
She was still slim and put together in all the right places, but she lacked the class that Olivia had.
She still looked like she was trying too hard to be someone she wasn’t. He knew the real her now. He guessed he’d always known, but had hoped he was wrong.
“Stop it and talk to me,” she demanded.
He shoved the door open with more force than necessary and heard it bang off the wall. He shouldn’t be giving her the satisfaction of his anger, but he couldn’t help it.
“Your time is still limited, so it better be important.”
He followed her into the living room. She knew her way, of course she did. “You’ve changed things.”
Yep, he did. In the last four years, he’d redone every room in the house, exactly the way he thought the house should look, not like some dollhouse she had dreams of.
“That’s not important. Don’t test me.”
She flung her hair over her shoulder and started to walk around the room, stopping at framed photos on the mantle. He wanted to grab all the photos of Trey and push them face down. She didn’t deserve to see their son. She didn’t deserve to even speak his name.
“He’s gotten so big.”
“You’d have known that if you hadn’t walked out without a word.”
“I was a kid and I was scared.”
“A kid! You haven’t been a kid for years and we both know it. Cut the shit, Becca. You’ve had four years to come to terms with things. Why now?”
She squared her shoulders and put a pout on her face. One that worked on him…when he was too stupid to see the real her. When he thought it was cute that he had this high-maintenance younger woman that clung to him, made him feel like a man. She knew what she was doing; she’d had years of practice. She played her game well. He was the one too stupid to see it.
“I wanted to know if you were okay.”
“You can see that. If that is all you want, then you know where the door is.”
Gone was the pout and in its place was the snarl she used when she didn’t get her way. When the childish pouting, the flirting, and the sexy talk didn’t work.
“Fine. We’ll do it your way. I’m Trey’s mother and I want to see him.”
“No.”
“You can’t tell me no. I’ve got rights.”
“You lost those rights when you left one morning without a word. A note on the pillow isn’t enough. A few text messages or threatening notes a year doesn’t count. He doesn’t need you in his life. He doesn’t even know you. And I won’t let you waltz in here and disrupt everything I’ve worked so hard to give him.”
“Not that you’ve ever replied to my messages with more than a swear word. I’m entitled to at least see him.”
“I don’t know where you think you’ve gotten your information from, but I’ve got full custody of Trey. You’ve got nothing.”
“That’s not possible. You can’t do that. I’m his mother,” she said again, her
voice losing some of its composure.
He crossed his arms in front of his chest. She was still a silly girl who thought her beauty would get her what she wanted. Who thought that pouting or putting out would get her way. She still hadn’t grown up.
“It is possible. I’ve got all the legal documents to prove it along with one hell of a legal bill. We’re done with this conversation. I don’t know what you think you can gain by coming here today.”
“You could have died in that fire. And then what would have happened to Trey? Where would he end up? He’ll end up with me if it happens again. He has to.”
“He doesn’t. And don’t worry your pretty little head over it. Part of those legal documents. It’s all taken care of. Trey is of no concern to you.”
She stared at him hard, looking like she wasn’t going to budge. He knew the wheels were turning in her head. She was fast to switch gears, anything to get her way.
“Where’s your car?”
“What car?”
“That black sports car you were driving. The Porsche.”
“So that’s what this is about. You think I’ve come into money and now you want a piece of it. Now you want to come back and see your son, and find a way back into his life. For what? To get to me? To see if I’d take you back?”
“You loved me before.”
Never. Lust, sure. Love, never. He knew that now. “Think what you want. And don’t worry, the car’s not mine.”
“The blonde’s that you were with, then?”
He didn’t need to find out where she got her information. He knew it was the hostess from the restaurant he went to months ago with Olivia. The friend of Becca’s. One that obviously couldn’t wait to go back and tell her what she’d seen.
“We’re done here.” He grabbed her arm and pulled her to the door. “If you’ve got anything to say, you can do it through a lawyer. If I see you anywhere near my property, I’ll have you arrested for trespassing. If I find out you’ve been anywhere near Trey, I’ll file a restraining order.”
“You can’t do that. I’ve done nothing wrong but leave your sorry ass. That’s not against the law. I’ll get my damn lawyer, and I’ll get to see Trey.” She stopped in the doorway, turned and looked him square in the eye, cold as steel, just the ice running through her veins. “Unless of course you want me to disappear again. There are other options.”
“Get the hell off my property before I toss you out on your ass!”
“I’d like to see you try,” she said lifting her chin up high. She was scheming, he remembered the signs.
“Don’t push me, you’ll regret it.”
She laughed that silly little laugh of hers, the one he’d always hated before. “Finn, do you really want me to push back? You’re leaving me no choice in the matter,” she said smugly.
“Really? Why don’t you enlighten me?”
“Trey might not be your son. You weren’t the only person I was sleeping with back then; you were just the only one that stepped up when I said was pregnant.”
He slammed the door in her face. He was forever going to be paying for that mistake. A stupid mistake he’d made one night in a bar, striking up a conversation with a sexy bartender.
She was wrong though. She finally pushed the wrong person. He wasn’t as stupid as she thought he was.
Money Isn’t Everything
Finn heard his front door open hours later and just assumed it was one of his parents. Instead, it was Olivia.
“Hey, how are you feeling?”
“Fine,” he said and looked away.
It was almost two, well past when she normally came for lunch, so he’d assumed she wasn’t able to get away from the store today. That was fine with him. He hadn’t been in the mood for company anyway.
“You don’t look fine. You look really pale. You aren’t running a fever, are you?” she asked, walking toward him and sitting next to him on the couch, her hand coming up to his forehead.
He leaned back away from her. “No.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
“Finn, I’m not stupid. If I’ve done something, then tell me. Otherwise I’ll just assume you’re having a grouchy day and I’ll get out of your hair and save us both the frustration.”
He looked at her. More beautiful than Becca ever was. More class, more feeling, and more sincerity. She knew him better than anyone ever before. She never pushed him, she gave him space, but she never let him run over her either.
“No. I’m sorry, it’s not been a good day.”
Her eyes searched his face, her hand coming up to caress his cheek. “Going a little crazy home alone?”
“Yeah.”
A big part of him wanted to keep Becca’s visit a secret, but the other part of him said Olivia didn’t deserve to be kept out of the loop.
She didn’t need to be shielded and if he had his guess, it would be better if she knew everything that was going on. Because in the last few hours, if he knew anything, he knew Becca wasn’t going to just walk away. She’d been making idle threats for years, but she’d never shown up at his door until now.
“But there’s more than that, isn’t there.” She moved closer, her lips gliding over his. “Do you have an itch that needs to be scratched? I’ve been waiting for you to build up your strength.”
Yeah, she was one of a kind. “There’s that too. But we need to talk first, before I get Trey.”
She frowned, then leaned back. “I don’t think I like the look on your face right now.”
“You might not like what I’m going to say either. Probably no more than I want to say it.”
***
Olivia held Finn’s stare and tried to control her racing heart. She didn’t know what was going on and she was trying not to jump to conclusions. She was trying to figure out what she might have done, or if he was pulling away.
She wasn’t going to beg or grovel to anyone. Not again, not ever again. She could be a mature adult, and whatever it was he had to tell her, she would figure it out.
“Go on. Just lay it on me.”
“I had a visitor today.”
“Okay.” That shouldn’t have been anything out of the ordinary.
“Becca showed up.”
“Oh.” Not at all who she thought he’d say. Rather than start blurting out all sorts of random questions, she just asked simply, “What did she want?”
“To see Trey.”
She looked around the house…didn’t hear anything. “Since he’s not here, I’m assuming you said no.”
“Damn right. She’s not getting one step near him.”
“Did she say why she wanted to see him after all this time?” She was trying to stay calm, pulling within herself to remain composed.
“Not really. I can guess. She said she had a right to him. I told her what she could do with that right. Then she started talking about what would happen to Trey if I died. She’d heard about the accident. I told her it was none of her concern. Next thing I know she wants to know where my fancy sports car is.”
“Ah. Small towns. Someone has been reporting back to her on me.”
That shouldn’t have surprised her. That part of life she was familiar with. The jealous ex-girlfriend wanting to make trouble.
Only there were never any children in the middle before. Just thinking about Trey getting pulled into the center of this was enough to make her lose the control she’d been barely hanging on to.
“Something like that. I told her to get a lawyer if she wanted to see Trey.”
“I’m sure she didn’t appreciate hearing that.”
She didn’t know much about Becca, but she was starting to get an idea of her type.
“Nope. Then she told me that she’d be willing to disappear again.”
“If you paid her, right?”
Her blood was boiling at this point. It never ended. She could escape the nasty part of wealth as much as she wanted, but it always followed her wherever she went
.
“That’s my guess.”
“Did she specifically say money?” Not that it mattered to Olivia, but she wanted to know as much as she could.
“I didn’t ask. She isn’t getting a dime from me.”
“I don’t think it’s you she wants the money from.”
“She doesn’t even know you. No, it’s me she’s coming after.”
Silly man, he didn’t know how it worked. This much she did know.
“Finn, trust me on this. She had an agenda. She heard about me and she wanted to see how serious it was. What did you do when she said there were other options?”
“I told her to get the hell off my property. Then she informed me that she’d been sleeping around when we were together and Trey might not be mine. I was the only fool to step up and take care of her.”
Olivia put her hand to her mouth, unsure of what to say or do. She knew how much Finn loved Trey and hearing that had to have been devastating. “I’m so sorry, Finn.”
“Don’t be. Trey’s mine. Even if he wasn’t mine biologically, I’d fight for him, but he is my son. I had a paternity test done after I received her first message.”
“Did you know she was cheating on you?”
“I don’t know that we were together enough that I would call it cheating. But no, I didn’t know she was sleeping around, either. It never crossed my mind that Trey couldn’t be my son, even though she’d always been a schemer. She was always out to get something from someone. And she loved all the attention she got while doing it.”
“What made you take the test?”
“She sent me a text around Trey’s first birthday. Just out of the blue, saying she missed him. I didn’t respond. She sent a few more and said she was down on her luck, and hinted she needed money. I had a few choice words for her and that was the end of it. Something didn’t sit right with me and I just figured it wouldn’t hurt to take the test. That it might be best if I knew for sure, just in case.”
“That had to be hard.”
“It was. At that point, I didn’t want to know the truth, but knew in the long run it’d be better. If he wasn’t mine, I was going to find a way to legally adopt him, but it didn’t come to that. Mac is the only one that knows. I went to him to find out what I needed to do and he helped me.”