It Had to Be Fate (An It Had to Be Novel Book 3)

by Tamra Baumann

  “Fine, dammit! I’ll stop making reservations without talking to you. Okay? Will that make you happy?”

  Make her happy? Her father hadn’t heard her meaning at all. She wasn’t asking for anything more than she and her brothers and sister deserved. He was going to have to dig deeper than that. “It would have been a good start.” She stood to leave. “But not enough. And whoever replaces me won’t stand for it either. It’s you who needs to change. Consider this my thirty days’ notice.”

  “You’ll be sorry if you walk out that door, Casey. I’ll not be threatened. I will accept your resignation.”

  “It’s not a threat. I’ll e-mail the letter to you when I get back to my office to make it official.” She slowly stood and walked out of his office. After the front door shut behind her, she closed her eyes. She’d done it. So now what?

  Panic set in at the thought of not being able to find another job. But she had so much hotel experience, she’d find something else. She’d done the right thing. Yet in the process had she just made the biggest mistake of her life?

  If she had, it was about time, because finally standing up to her father, and Tomas, filled her with a new kind power she’d never known before. She’d find an even better job, and she and the boys would be just fine.

  Later that day, after Casey sent the letter to her dad, she and Ty laid out a blanket on the grass in front of the bandstand at the park while they and half the town waited for Caleb to sing. She was determined to stay positive about her decision, but wouldn’t tell the boys or her siblings until she knew where they’d move. She forced a smile when she wanted to cry because she’d miss her family so much, and settled in next to Ty. It was Caleb’s big moment and she’d not let her father ruin that too.

  After a few minutes, Ben showed up with his own blanket and set up next to them. Then Ryan and Tara appeared with Grandma and Dad and Sue Ann, all carrying lawn chairs. Meg and Josh joined them with their kids. All accounted for. She couldn’t even look at her dad she was so hurt by the ease with which he’d accepted her resignation earlier.

  Needing comfort, she scooped up Haley and placed her in her lap. “I was saving this seat for you, your highness.”

  Haley giggled as she ate her sticky cotton candy. “Want some?”

  “No thanks, sweetheart.” What she needed was to wrap her arms around her niece and hug her tight. She’d miss Haley so much. She laid a kiss on top of her baby shampoo–scented head.

  It was almost time. Casey had butterflies for Caleb. She hoped he would have fun and do well.

  Caleb showed up with Zane’s old guitar and sat down next to her. “I wonder if Zane ever gets nervous before he sings?”

  Ben pulled out his cell phone from his pocket. “Why don’t I ask him?”

  Casey whipped her head in her brother’s direction and whispered, “The restraining order was revoked on Friday, but I still can’t have any contact with Zane because of my case.”

  Ben shrugged. “I get that. But there’s no reason I can’t talk to him.”

  That was true. “Why don’t you FaceTime him?” That way she could get a glimpse of him too. She was just torturing herself, but she’d missed him so badly in the last few days since he’d been gone.

  “Good idea.” Ben tapped Zane’s contact information.

  Zane answered after the first ring. “Hey, Ben! I’d thought you’d forgotten.”

  Hearing Zane’s voice made her heart bleed. Seeing him made her want to cry even worse. What she wouldn’t give for one of his hugs right now, but . . . Ben and Zane had been talking?

  And what had Ben forgotten?

  Her brother glanced at her and smiled. “No, as promised, front row seats to the show today. But I have a question for you. Do you ever get nerves before you go onstage?”

  “Every time! I always find a few friendly faces in the crowd. Then I just sing to them and try to forget the rest of the people. Like maybe pick a goofy little brother and a pretty mom, for example.”

  That made Casey and Caleb both smile. Had Dax been right about believing Zane would be different from the other men in her life? Zane had just made the effort to be present, even when he couldn’t talk to her. He had made sure he’d see Caleb sing.

  Maybe they could’ve found a way to stay in touch while he toured and she and the boys stayed home. Was he trying to prove that to her now? He said they could make it work. Her heart broke a little more that she’d probably never know.

  She pulled Haley closer and let her silent tears fall.

  Zane leaned closer to his phone as Ben panned the camera in a circle so Zane could see everyone. The square was filled with families, kids licking ice cream cones, and dogs on leashes, all waiting to hear Caleb sing. Casey’s whole family was there.

  When Casey leaned down and kissed Haley on the head it made his chest ache for her.

  The camera quickly panned back to Caleb, sitting on a stool on the whitewashed bandstand. He adjusted the mic and swallowed hard before he strummed his guitar and the crowd went silent.

  Zane was nervous for Caleb. But he’d be fine. Once Caleb understood the basics, he’d learned the songs Zane had shown him faster than any of the other kids he’d ever taught. That, and Ben had mentioned Caleb had been practicing nonstop for six days straight since Zane had left.

  He’d made the chords basic, but still, it had turned out well. They were both excited for Casey to hear it. Interesting that Caleb didn’t mention wanting Tomas to hear it, just his mom.

  Zane smiled, recalling his conversation with Caleb when he’d asked for help. The smart kid he was, Caleb wanted to know which songs of his had sold the best. He’d told Caleb the love songs aimed at women always sold well. Caleb shook his head to that, so Zane suggested they write a song about being loved by someone. He told Caleb it could even be about being loved by a dog, if he wanted. Caleb laughed and hadn’t been certain about that, but once they got going he’d gotten into it.

  Zane just wouldn’t tell Casey that the love he thought of when he sang the song was about her, while Caleb thought about his last dog. In songwriting, it was all about motivation.

  Caleb’s voice cracked with nerves a bit at first, and it was still high because of his age, but that only made the song even better.

  Caleb was crushing it!

  The phone tilted toward Casey, and Zane’s heart clenched. Tears ran down her cheeks but she had a huge grin on her face as she listened. When the song was over, she looked directly into the camera and mouthed, “Thank you.”

  He nodded, and then the camera focused on Ben again and he said, “So I’ll get you that information as soon as I can. You did good, Zane. All the women are teary-eyed and waxing poetic about how that was the most beautiful song, blah, blah.”

  “The blah, blah is what makes a song good. Thanks, Ben. Talk soon.” He hit the “End” button. The last six days he’d spent writing another song that he’d only sing to Casey.

  He hoped to God his plan to fix things would work so she’d hear it.

  Tuesday was one of Casey’s official days off from the hotel, but she rarely took them. She’d needed a day to herself worse than ever, so that morning she’d put on her happy face, gotten the boys off to school, and then went right back to bed. Her workdays had been so busy the last two weeks since she’d turned in her resignation that it had been easier to keep her thoughts off Zane. But when she’d least expect it, all the pain rushed back and smacked her straight in the heart. Not to mention how sad she was because she’d accepted the new job she’d been offered in Denver. She still hadn’t told anyone she was leaving yet and neither had her dad, oddly. She planned to wait until after Meg’s wedding.

  Nights, after the boys went to bed and the house was quiet, were the worst. She’d lie staring at the ceiling as silent tears dripped uncontrollably down her cheeks. Just when she thought she couldn’t possibly have another tear left, another round would come along.

  Looking back, her tears after Tomas had left were
more for the humiliation, for the desertion of their family, for the boys losing a full-time father, and for her anger. With Zane, it was a physical ache, like a fist around her heart painfully squeezing. Amazing how love for people felt so different.

  She closed her eyes, determined to sleep most of the day away to make up for her restless nights the past few weeks. She’d set her alarm to go off before the boys got home.

  Just as she’d drifted back to sleep, her front door opened. Who now? A number of people had a key to her house.

  Meg called out, “Casey? Ready to go?”

  Damn. She’d forgotten that she and Meg were supposed to go shopping for wedding decorations in Denver. “In here.”

  Meg walked into the bedroom and pulled up short. “You sick?”

  She shook her head.

  “Ah.” Meg took off her shoes and crawled into bed. “You’re sad. So I guess it’s my turn to be the supportive sister and cheer you up, huh?”

  Because of the lump forming in her throat again, Casey just nodded. Memories filled her from the time after she’d moved out of her father’s house. Meg used to let herself in and crawl into bed with Casey whenever she’d had a fight with Sue Ann or their dad. Meg had spent more nights in Casey’s bed than her own until she went off to college.

  Meg wrapped her arms around Casey and gave her a squeeze. “Life is full of hurt, but none as bad as a shattered heart.”

  “Are you quoting me, to me, now?” Meg had come home very pregnant, alone, and hurt after Josh had left. It had broken Casey’s heart to see her like that. Now it was her turn to wallow a bit, it seemed.

  “Yep. You always gave the best advice.”

  “Did any of it help?”

  Meg shook her head. “Not for my broken heart over Josh—that stuff just takes time. But it helped to know you loved me.”

  “Lucky for you I still do, even if I want to kill you sometimes over some of these wedding details.”

  “Thank you.” Meg snuggled closer. “And then this is the part where you’d try to cheer me up. You’d pull out the latest movie you’d saved for the next time I showed up all upset.”

  “Now I can get any movie I want on demand.”

  Meg was quiet for a few moments before a mischievous grin formed. She whispered, “Want to watch a romantic comedy?”

  “That is the last—” Casey sat up, grabbed her pillow, and smacked her sister. “You are such a brat! Give me a half hour and we’ll go.”

  Meg laughed. “Take your time. I don’t really care about decorations anyway.”

  “Yes, I know.” Casey headed for the bathroom. “It’ll be my pleasure to make you share the pain with me in picking them out.”

  She turned on the shower, then stepped into the warm water. Meg’s cheering up technique had been effective. She’d actually enjoy shopping for wedding things. It’d take her mind off Zane. Maybe they’d make a day out of it and eat lunch at their favorite Mexican restaurant too.

  After she was ready, Casey came out of the bathroom to find Meg sitting on the foot of the made-up bed, enthralled in some reality show. “Since it’s your day to cheer me up, Megan, we’re going to pick out your going-away dress and lingerie for the honeymoon too.”

  Meg pointed her finger and thumb at her temple and pretended to pull the trigger. Then she flopped backward on the bed. “This being a supportive sister gig sucks!”

  Casey genuinely smiled for the first time in days.

  Zane glanced out his jet’s window at the French countryside. Beautiful. But hard to enjoy because he needed to focus on the task ahead. Thankfully, Ben had provided some of the details it’d take to pull off what Zane and his lawyers had been kicking around for weeks.

  When Ben had relayed what Ty said about their father in his office, and then added what Casey mentioned about Tomas’s motives for using the boys to get Marie’s money, the plan had slid firmly into place. Surely Tomas knew what Marie’s net worth was, and now Zane did too.

  Tomas thought he’d be meeting with two new lawyers assigned by his legal team, so there was still a chance he’d shut things down when he saw them. But maybe Tomas’s ego and disdain for Zane would keep him there long enough to present the deal.

  He turned to his lawyer seated across the aisle. “Can I read the final version of the contract, please?”

  Jack pulled it out of his briefcase. “I kept it as simple as I could. We have to hope his greed will have him signing it on the spot, because no decent lawyer would ever let a client agree to this.”

  “Yeah. A lot of things could go wrong. But I can’t just stand by and let that that guy ruin my and Casey’s lives without at least trying.” Zane read through the list one last time, memorizing each of the items on it. After he was sure he had it down, he handed the pages back. “If I get a verbal yes, then whip this out and hand the man a pen.”

  Jack smiled and slipped the pages back into his briefcase. “You got it.”

  Once they were on the ground and in the hired car, they headed north of Paris.

  When they approached the gates to Marie’s estate, the driver pressed the intercom button and announced them.

  The large gates slowly swung open, and their driver pulled ahead on the intricate patterned-brick driveway. After a short, tree-lined drive, Marie’s opulent home appeared. The meticulous grounds surrounding it had to require a legion of gardeners to care for it.

  After they’d stopped under a large portico, their driver opened Zane’s door. “Shall I wait here, sir?”

  “Yes, please. Hopefully we won’t be too long.” Or Tomas could throw them out and they’d have wasted a trip. But best to think positive.

  Jack joined him and together they walked to the gold-etched front doors. Jack whispered, “Holy crap.”

  A male servant dressed in black escorted them down a long hall and out onto a terrace that overlooked fountains and a large reflecting pool. The butler said, “Monsieur will join you presently. Can I offer some refreshment?”

  Zane said, “No, thank you. We’re fine.”

  The man tilted his head and then silently disappeared.

  After they were alone again, Zane said, “Pretty nice place.”

  Jack nodded. “Tough to compete with this.”

  “Yeah. But it’s Marie’s, not his.”

  Tomas appeared through a set of wooden doors dressed in trousers and a silk shirt. His gaze swept over Jack, then stopped on Zane. “Steele? You dare to step foot on my property?”

  Time to see if anything from his high school acting days had stuck. He stood and held out a hand. “Hello, Tomas. I apologize for the intrusion, but I was desperate to see you.”

  “Desperate?” Tomas ignored Zane’s hand and sat down at their table.

  “Yes. This is my lawyer, Jack Westbrook.”

  Tomas leaned over and shook Jack’s hand. “What can I do for you, Steele? I don’t have all day.”

  “I came to tell you that you’ve won. You beat me. Casey can’t have anything to do with me, my foundation is wary of me, and no one wants to book me for concerts until the murder charge is cleared up. I’ve lost everything. I’m at my wit’s end.”

  “How very sad.” Tomas’s lips slowly spread into a sneer. “But go on. Get to the point.”

  Zane took a moment and glanced at their surroundings. “Now that I see your setup here, I’m not sure what I have to offer you will compare.”

  “Offer?” Tomas leaned forward slightly.

  “I want Casey back, Tomas. So I’m prepared to offer you my ten-thousand-square-foot home in Paris, and my home in Malibu on the beach, along with twenty million dollars paid out over a ten-year period.” It was a lot. But was it enough of a bribe to get Tomas’s attention?

  Tomas’s eyes widened.

  He was hooked.

  Now to reel him in.

  Zane pulled two sets of house keys from his pocket and laid them on the table. “And if you will agree to a few conditions regarding Casey and the boys, I’ll throw in an
other five million bonus at the end of the payout period.”

  Tomas frowned. “What things regarding Casey and the boys?”

  “Simple things, really. Agree to show up and keep your assigned visits with the boys, make weekly calls to them, visit or call on their birthdays, and agree to drop the suit against Casey and give her full custody.”

  “What’s the catch, Steele?” Tomas tilted his head.

  “No catch. I want Casey and she wants the boys full time. Easy as that.”

  “You’ll get my wife and kids? No deal.”

  “Okay.” Zane shrugged. “Sorry to waste your time.” He started to stand, but Tomas held up a hand.

  “In what increments would the money come?”

  Zane held his hand out to Jack. His lawyer pulled out a stack of bills and passed it to Zane. “If you sign the contract today, I’ll hand you one million American dollars. As soon as I have the documents stating that Casey gets the custody agreement she wants, Jack will wire you another million. Then after that, Jack’s office will dole out the money periodically according to the terms of the contract until Ty is eighteen. Of course, if you fail to comply with any of the terms over the next ten years, and Jack will be watching, the money will stop. You can keep the properties in return for no more lawsuits or restraining orders in the future.”

  “That’s it. That’s all the terms?”

  “Yes.”

  “And you have this in writing?”

  “Along with all the documents you need to file in the US.”

  Jack pulled out the contract and slipped it in front of Tomas, then laid a pen on top.

  Tomas narrowed his eyes and read through the two-page agreement. “I’ll have to have my lawyer look this over, naturally.”

  “This is humiliating enough as it is. I’m not going to draw this out for days. It’s a simple offer. And it’s off the table in five minutes.”

  Tomas’s eyes darted back and forth between the keys and contract.

  “You could be a rich man, in your own right, in under an hour, Tomas. But maybe you actually like living off of demanding rich women?”