Forever Now (The Barrington Billionaires Book 6)

by Ruth Cardello

  “Of course you don’t want to go.” Guilt washed over her. I am horrible, foolish, and still imagining something that is clearly not there. She looked at their linked hands then back to meet his gaze. Get your shit together, Annie. Just friends. And he needs you. “That’s normal. You love the mother who raised you. You don’t even know this Sophie, and it feels disloyal to meet her, doesn’t it?”

  Kade nodded. “What if they see my mother as a criminal? God, she won’t even kill flies—she herds them out of the house instead. She’s trying to find homes for puppies from a pregnant stray dog she took in.”

  “Pamela is amazing.”

  “She looked scared when I left the house this morning, Annie. I told her everything would be okay, but I don’t know that. The Barringtons are rich. She’s worried they’ll want to prosecute her for kidnapping me.” He slammed his hand onto the steering wheel again. “I won’t let that happen.”

  “Maybe it won’t be like that.” A memory from the night of his graduation party came back to her. “Kade, when you left Bright, you told me it was because you felt there was something out there that was calling to you. What if a part of you knew there was a family out there looking for you? This might be what you’ve been seeking.”

  He frowned. “How do you remember everything I’ve said?”

  “It’s a gift,” she said lightly. Or a curse. “Listen, I don’t believe the Barringtons would come all this way—bringing their children—planning a wedding—to cause trouble. I bet they’re going to hug you too long, cry more than you’re comfortable with, and hate to go back to Boston without you. They’re here to meet you and put their sadness over losing you behind them.” The same way I have to. “Give them a chance. I bet you end up glad they came into your life.” Just like I am determined to be.

  He brought her hand to his cheek and closed his eyes briefly. “That’s a version of this I can handle. Annie, what would I do without you?” With that, he dropped her hand and pulled the car back onto the road. You’d do what you’ve done for years without me.

  “You’d survive.” She laughed, because if she didn’t she’d cry. Part of her wanted to tell him this was too hard for her. She wasn’t strong enough to be this close and not be more to him.

  He glanced her way and smiled. “Thankfully I have no plans of testing that theory. No matter how today turns out, I want you to know I won’t be a stranger anymore. I’ve missed you, Annie, and I’m going to make sure it doesn’t take something like this to get us together again.”

  Annie swallowed hard and looked out the window without answering him. He wasn’t the problem, never had been. It has always been me.

  And this stupid heart of mine that doesn’t understand when to give up.

  Kade flexed his hands on the steering wheel as he pulled onto a long dirt road that led to Lavender Farm and the lodge the Barringtons were gathered in. He glanced at Annie again and love for her swept through him. She could easily have told him the bond they’d once had was gone and she wished him well but didn’t want to be pulled into what was sure to be an emotional scene. Another woman might have been nervously preening and making the situation even more stressful. Not Annie. She was a rock of strength and support.

  “Kade, look out,” Annie said urgently, pointing ahead of them.

  Kade’s attention whipped back to the road where two jean-clad men were walking toward them. He slammed on his brakes, coming to a sliding stop a few feet before them. Neither looked bothered. As they approached the car, Kade tried to match their faces with the photos he’d seen of his brothers. If they were relatives of his, they didn’t fit his expectation. They were built like Nordic woodsmen, tanned as if they spent their time outdoors, and rough like they knew their way around a bar fight. One knocked on his car window. Kade opened the window.

  “You Kent?” one asked.

  The second man punched the first in the arm. “Idiot, we’re supposed to call him Kade. His birth name might make him go wacko or something. Remember what Viviana said? Think.”

  “You think.” The first man rubbed his arm, then shoved the second man back. “You don’t tell a man who might go wacko that you think he will. What the fuck is wrong with you?”

  “I think I know these two,” Kade said to Annie before he pushed his door open. “Any chance you’re Connor and Dylan, Grant’s future brothers-in-law?”

  They both beamed smiles at him. One held out a beefy hand. “I’m Dylan. And this jackass is my brother, Connor. Viviana’s brothers. Holy shit, you look like a Barrington . . . but normal.”

  “Thank you?” While Kade shook their hands he heard the passenger door open and close. Annie was beside him, introducing herself to them as well.

  When she shook Dylan’s hand he held on a moment too long and asked, “Can you say something again? I might just be in love.”

  Connor shook his head and socked his brother in the arm, an act that instantly released Annie’s hand from Dylan’s. “Sorry, Annie. We don’t let him out much. Not getting laid on a regular basis has affected his brain.”

  “I’m going to affect your brain,” Dylan growled at Connor then he turned to Annie. “I get laid plenty.”

  Kade’s eyes flew to Annie’s to check her reaction. If they were upsetting her, he’d set the two clowns straight—even if he got his ass kicked doing it. What God had slighted them on tact and intelligence, he’d made up for with sheer muscle. Annie was laughing, though, reminding him that she’d always been one who could take care of herself.

  Still, it wouldn’t hurt to clarify things for these two. Kade put his arm around Annie’s waist. “We’re heading to the lodge. Would the two of you like a ride?”

  Dylan shuddered. “No thanks. When Viviana asked us if we wanted to come to Australia we didn’t picture a lavender farm with tea rooms and people trying to put napkins on my lap. If I don’t know you, keep your damn hands off my crotch.”

  Connor laughed. “That attitude is why you don’t get much action.”

  Dylan leaned in aggressively.

  Connor stepped back and put his hands up. “Dylan’s tense. He’ll relax once he has a beer and talks to people a little less uptight than your family—no offense.”

  “Is there a bar anywhere around here?” Dylan asked Kade.

  Annie thumbed over her shoulder toward the way they’d come. “The best beer is at my family’s pub in Bright. If you tell Harrison I sent you, you’ll get a round for free—maybe two if you laugh at his jokes.” She gave them the address of the bar.

  Dylan’s hands went to his heart and he turned to his brother. “Her family owns a brewery. I’ve met my perfect match.”

  Connor tapped his own forehead. “He’s not the brightest. Dylan, Annie is with Kade.”

  Dylan wiggled his eyebrows at Annie. “People break up. Just keep me in mind.”

  “I’ll do that,” Annie said with a laugh and a wink.

  “We need to get to the lodge,” Kade said with more irritation in his voice than he’d meant. Even though the idea of Annie with either of those men was ludicrous, he held her a little tighter to his side. He’d never imagined Annie with another man and now that he had, he realized he didn’t like it one bit.

  “It was nice to meet you both,” Annie said, still looking more amused than Kade felt. He guided her to the passenger side of the car and opened the door for her. Once she was back inside he turned back toward Connor and Dylan.

  They flanked him as he walked to the driver side. Kade looked back and forth between them. “I’m sure we’ll see each other again.”

  Connor’s expression turned serious. “Hey, Kade . . . Kent . . . do you really care what we call you?”

  Dylan interjected, “Do you have a nickname like—Buddy?”

  “No. No, I don’t. Call me Kade,” Kade said.

  “Kade,” Connor leaned in and lowered his tone. When he spoke he sounded earnest. “If Viviana asks, tell her we were on our best behavior. This is her wedding trip, and we promis
ed.”

  Dylan rocked back on his heels. “She’ll kick our asses if she thinks I was coming on to your girlfriend. I was just having fun. I would never make a move on Annie. Nope. Not unless you were way, way broken up. I mean, like totally over.”

  There was no way he was about to tell either of them that he and Annie were just friends. “No problem. But, just so we’re clear”—Kade slugged Dylan in the arm as hard as he could. Fuck, it was like punching a wall, and the bastard smiled—“Annie’s mine.”

  Dylan turned to his brother. “I like this guy. He might be my favorite Barrington.” Kade almost denied that he was one but let it drop.

  Connor nodded in approval. “Can we walk to that bar?”

  Kade shook his head. “You’ll need a car. Do you want a ride?”

  “Nah.” Connor motioned toward himself and then toward Dylan. “With our good looks and personality? Don’t worry about us. We’ll hitch a ride there and be back before you two are done with your tea and scones. What the fuck is a scone anyway? Is it a biscuit? Is it a cookie? Call it what it is.”

  “Well, good luck.” Kade shook his head and climbed back into his car. Only once Dylan and Connor had walked off did Kade shake his hand and inspect his reddened knuckles.

  Annie touched his arm. “What was that about?” she asked while nodding toward his knuckles.

  Mine. That’s what he’d called her and it had felt right too. Pain forgotten, Kade looked into Annie’s eyes and fought a primal impulse to pull her to him and lay his claim to her with a kiss. He shook his head and blamed the craziness of the day for the confusing feelings surging within him. Was she seeing anyone? Who was he? Did he make her happy? Did she cry out his name when they fucked?

  Kade’s cock twitched to attention even as he fought against imagining Annie naked and shuddering beneath him as she climaxed and he pounded into her. He’d never let himself imagine her that way, and it bothered him that he hated every man who had ever touched her.

  Who had been her first?

  Her last?

  His mood took a downward turn as he wondered if the day would end with her going home to another man. Fuck. He started the car, writing off those feelings as too dangerous to introduce to an already crazy day. He pulled back onto the road and said, “It’s a guy thing.”

  Annie rolled her eyes. “I realize you haven’t asked my opinion, but for what it’s worth I think today will go better if you keep the number of people you punch to a minimum.”

  “You think?” Kade asked then chuckled and relaxed. She’d always been able to make him laugh. He was still fighting a stronger than normal attraction to her, and it frustrated him. When the dust settled, all that mattered was keeping the people he loved safe—Annie included. “I’ll try.”

  His mood switched gears again as the road opened to the lodge’s large driveway. Grant was on the porch with an older woman with white hair dressed in a beautiful flower-print dress. At the sound of their car approaching, the two turned and waved. Every muscle in Kade’s body clenched painfully. He tried to breathe but couldn’t. He wasn’t used to fear. Hell, he was the first to jump out of a plane, the one who led the way for others down unknown paths. He had faced wild animals without ever experiencing this rush of adrenaline.

  This was an entirely different adversary—this meeting. These people held the very fabric of his life in their hands. How would he feel toward them after today? Toward himself?

  He parked the Ranger and sat there for a moment. Nothing would ever be the same. There was no turning back the clock. No matter what he wanted the truth to be, the man on the porch was his brother and the stranger beside him was likely his biological mother. Just as he had faced his father’s health issues—he would face this.

  Annie pried one of his hands from the steering wheel and held it between both of hers. “You’ve got this, Kade.”

  He brought her hands to his lips, kissed one on the knuckles, then met her gaze. “Holy fuck, Annie, I didn’t think this would be so hard.”

  Her eyes teared up. “Me, either, but everything is going to be okay. I’ll be right there with you.”

  He gave her hands a final squeeze then unbuckled his seat belt and went around to open her door. Her hand slid into his and stayed there as if they were the couple Connor thought they were. Kade didn’t ask himself why, he was just grateful as hell to have her beside him as he walked toward the lodge.

  The older woman said something to Grant then rushed down the steps, meeting Kade and Annie at the bottom of them. With tears filling her eyes and her hands clasped in front of her, she said, “Look at you. My baby.” She wiped a tear away from one of her cheeks. “It really is you.”

  She put out her arms. Kade gripped Annie’s hand tight and stood there, frozen. The woman’s expression fell and she swayed. Grant was at her side in a flash. He studied their mother’s face then Kade’s.

  In a calm, even tone, Grant said, “Kade, we’re so glad you came. I can imagine this isn’t easy for you. It isn’t for us either, but we’ll muddle through somehow.” He turned his attention to Annie. “And this is?”

  Without looking away from his mother’s face, he said, “My friend Annie.”

  “Welcome, Annie. My name is Grant. It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Grant said smoothly.

  “Thank you,” Annie said. “It’s so nice to meet you too. And you, Mrs. Barrington.”

  “Call me Sophie,” the woman said, looking as if she was fighting off a fresh bout of tears while bringing a shaking hand to her mouth. “I’m sorry, I told myself I would do this so much better.”

  “You’re doing fine,” Kade said in a strangled voice.

  Sophie stepped closer and raised a hand to Kade’s face. He forced himself to stand and accept the touch. “You have Asher’s chin and Andrew’s hair. Those ears are definitely your father’s. Grant, you found him. I still can’t believe you found Kent.”

  Kade turned his face away and stepped back.

  Grant placed a hand on his mother’s shoulder. “Believe it, Mom. It’s really him.”

  Sophie looked from Grant to Kade then said, “Grant, go in and tell everyone he’s here, but please give me a moment alone with him.”

  Although Grant didn’t look like he wanted to agree, he nodded. “I’ll be right back—”

  Sophie patted Grant’s arm. “I’m fine, Grant. There are just a few things I want to say to Kent before he meets everyone.”

  “Would you like to come with me, Annie?” Grant asked.

  Annie looked at Kade and cocked her head in question. He didn’t want her to leave, but he didn’t want to say it in front of Sophie. Things were already uncomfortable enough.

  There was such compassion and understanding in Annie’s eyes, he knew he would never forget this moment. No one ever had or ever would understand him the way she did. She turned and smiled at Grant. “If it’s okay, I’ll stay here.”

  Sophie gave Annie a warm, approving look. “That’s fine.”

  Grant turned and walked up the steps, disappearing into the lodge.

  Kade held Sophie’s emotionally charged gaze. Part of him wished he knew how to comfort her. Another part wanted to retreat from her and the upheaval she had brought with her. He held his breath and waited for her to speak.

  Chapter Six

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  Watching Kade with his mother was heartbreaking. Annie had never seen Kade so unsure of how to handle a situation. His grip on her hand was painfully tight, but she wasn’t about to complain. Although she’d thought he looked like his brothers, she also saw some of Sophie in Kade as well. He had her eyes.

  “I’m sorry if I’m making this more awkward,” Sophie said softly. “I just have to get something out before you meet everyone.”

  “Okay,” Kade said slowly.

  Sophie let out a shaky breath. “Finding you is a miracle I’d almost given up hope on, and we are all so happy, but it has also been hard on some of the family. Especially your father.”

&
nbsp; My father? Oh, she means Dale.

  Annie asked, “Is he okay?”

  “Yes and no,” Sophie said. “I don’t know how much I should say, but I thought I should prepare you.”

  “Prepare me?” Kade asked.

  Sophie hugged her arms around herself. “He might be fine.”

  Kade’s face tightened with emotion. “I don’t understand.”

  Tears returned to Sophie’s eyes. “Just remember no matter what else you hear, what happened was my fault.”

  Annie’s own eyes teared up. Sophie’s pain was palpable.

  Kade had never looked so lost for what to say.

  His mother continued, “It was my sister who tried to have you killed—out of sheer jealousy. I knew she was dangerous, but I didn’t want to acknowledge it. I wanted to leave my heart open to her, and you paid the price for that. I should have protected my family from her and I didn’t.” Tears began to pour down her cheeks again. “I am so sorry, Kent. You will never know how sorry I am.”

  It was a difficult scene to watch. Both of them were hurting. And confused. Annie wanted to gently correct Sophie each time she called Kade by a name he’d never known, but the woman wasn’t being malicious. Annie wanted to nudge Kade to say something—but she had no idea what she would say if she were him.

  Watching his mother’s reaction, Kade shuddered and said, “Don’t cry, Sophie. Please don’t cry.”

  Annie blinked back tears of her own.

  “Was your life here good?” Sophie wiped her face, looking at her son with wide, tormented eyes.