“You can,” Penny said. “How sick is that? I wouldn’t mind listening to you defend him.”
“Typical,” Naomi murmured. “I forgive you.”
“Thanks.” She drew in a deep breath and did her best to absorb the support from her friends. “I thought he was different. I thought he would be willing to take a chance on us. I was so stupid.”
“Loving someone is never stupid,” Naomi said. “It can hurt like hell, but it’s never stupid.”
“I agree,” Dani said. “I say that even as I feel like the world’s biggest idiot. I mean, my soon-to-be ex-husband is currently sleeping with one of his students. So I’m not just stupid, I’m a bad cliché. But there’s hope. I can still laugh at things and I have you guys.”
“I’m glad we’re together,” Penny said, putting her arms around both of them. “You’re right. This will get better. I have so much in my life. The restaurant, the baby. My family. And the good news is with Cal leaving, I don’t have to worry about running into him anywhere. I would really hate that.”
More tears filled her eyes. “I seem to be leaking again.”
“That’s okay. Things could be worse,” Naomi told her. “I’m not sure how, but they could.”
Penny laughed. “You are always a ray of sunshine.”
“That’s me.”
Penny looked at her friend. “I’m going to miss you so much.”
Naomi straightened. “What are you talking about? I’m not going anywhere.”
“Of course you are. I’ve known you a long time and I know you’re not the type of person who runs away from things. You’ve always lived on your own terms.”
Naomi snorted. “I’m the queen of running away. I’ve been on the run nearly eight years.”
“It’s time to go back.”
Naomi shook her head. “I haven’t decided.”
“Of course you have. You wouldn’t have told me about your son if you weren’t already halfway out the door.” She glanced at Dani. “Do you know what we’re talking about?”
Dani nodded. “We’ve been talking.”
Penny glanced between them. “About what?”
“About nothing,” Naomi said firmly. “I’m not going to leave. You need me.”
Penny did. She couldn’t imagine having to go through all this without her friend, but it was wrong to expect Naomi to put her life on hold because she, Penny, had been stupid enough to get her heart broken twice by the same man.
“Of course you’re going,” Penny said briskly. “Like you said, you’ve been the queen of running away for eight years. It’s time to go connect with your family. To find out what you still have there in the way of a life.”
“You might still be married,” Dani said. “Given what you’ve been doing, wouldn’t that be interesting?”
Naomi shook her head. “Sam wouldn’t have waited. Not his style. I’m sure he’s divorced me by now,” she said, but her tone was wistful, as if she wanted to believe in the possibilities.
“See? You have to go,” Penny said quietly.
“I can’t leave you now. Not with everything going on and the baby coming. What about the restaurant? You need me.”
Dani looked at Penny. “I could do that.”
Penny stared at her. “But it’s The Waterfront. Why would you go work for your grandmother again?”
“I wouldn’t be. Your contract allows you to bring in your own crew, doesn’t it?”
“Hello,” Naomi said. “Still in the room. There’s no need to have this conversation right now.”
Penny ignored her. “Three people. I only brought in Naomi and Edouard because the rest of the crew is so great. So adding you wouldn’t be a problem.”
It could work, she thought. She and Dani hadn’t worked together, but they knew each other and she knew Dani put in long hours. She’d survived Burger Heaven nearly five years. She was tough and smart.
“The job is yours if you want it,” Penny told Dani.
Naomi stood. “You’re giving away my job? Just like that? What about the baby? You’re going to need help as you get closer to your due date.”
“I’ll be here,” Dani said. “I can help.”
“There,” Penny said. “You don’t have any more excuses.”
Maybe it wasn’t fair to push her friend, but thinking about Naomi’s life kept her from dwelling on the disaster hers had become. A disaster that would get a whole lot more lonely once Naomi left.
Penny stood and hugged Naomi. “I’ll miss you so much.”
Naomi squeezed her. “I won’t be gone that long. Just a few weeks.”
Or forever, Penny thought. Maybe Naomi would be lucky enough to find there was still a whole life waiting for her back in Ohio.
“Is this a chick thing or can anyone join in?”
Penny turned at the sound of Reid’s voice. “What are you doing here?”
“Hell of a way to greet me,” he said as he walked over and pulled her close. “Dani called me.”
“I thought you’d want him here,” Dani said. “Is that okay?”
Penny was too busy crying to do much more than nod.
Reid wrapped his arms around her. He was tall and strong and she felt as if she could lean on him forever.
“Go ahead and cry,” he said, smoothing her hair and rocking her gently. “My brother is a lying bastard and his days are numbered.”
“You can’t kill him,” Dani said. “Not even for Penny.”
Penny raised her head and sniffed. “I don’t want him dead.”
“Fine. I’ll just teach him a lesson. How’s that?”
Penny shook her head. “No fighting.”
Reid grunted. “I’m sorry,” he said.
That was enough to set her off again. She pressed her face into his chest. “It hurts so much. He doesn’t love me. He’s moving away and so’s Naomi and Dani’s going to help me but nothing is ever going to be the same.”
“I’m here and I love you,” Reid said.
“I know. That’s good.”
She raised her head again and looked at him. “Why couldn’t I fall in love with you?”
He smiled, then kissed her cheek. “Not a good idea, kid. I’m not one of the good guys. You’re better off with Cal or Walker.”
Penny didn’t think so but it didn’t matter. She and Reid could only ever be friends. The heart, ever a contrary organ, had apparently decided she could only love one man. Even if that man was destined to forever be breaking her heart.
CAL DROVE AROUND until sunset, then returned to his house. He wanted to go see Penny, but first he had to figure out what he wanted to say to her. Until then, he had a feeling showing up there would only make things worse.
She was right about him, he thought as he turned onto his street. She always had been. In the past, he’d been okay with that but this time he wanted things to be different. He wanted to be different.
He headed into his driveway and saw two other cars there. As he glanced toward the front door. He saw Reid and Walker on the porch, having what looked like a heated conversation.
“What’s up?” he asked as he climbed out of his car and walked toward them.
Reid glared at him. “You made Penny cry,” he said, his voice a low growl. “Nobody makes Penny cry.”
“So what does that mean?” Cal asked. “You’re here to make me pay?”
“You got that right.”
Cal shrugged, not the least bit worried about taking Reid on in a fight. His brother might be the same size and in great shape, but Cal had some repressed anger on his side.
He turned to Walker. “You gonna help him?”
Walker shrugged. “No. I’m here to make sure you don’t both kill yourselves.”
Cal knew fighting wouldn’t change anything one way or the other, but in that moment, he didn’t care. He wanted to lash out at someone and if his brother was willing to be a target, then that was good enough for Cal.
He stepped onto the lawn and beckoned Re
id. “Bring it on, little brother.”
For a second he thought Reid wouldn’t react. Then his brother came flying at him.
Their bodies collided with a force that rattled every bone in his body. They both went down. Cal got to his feet first and was ready to defend himself when Reid came out swinging.
Cal ducked, got in a good punch to the gut that reverberated back to his elbow. Reid clipped his jaw, which made Cal stagger back a step. A couple more hits by each of them and he was rethinking his plan. He hadn’t been in a fight since he was thirteen years old and he’d forgotten how much they hurt.
Still, he liked the raw emotion pouring through him, the need to destroy that blocked out every other thought. He got in a one-two punch before Reid nailed him with a shot that reminded him his brother had a thunderbolt for a right arm.
Lazily, Walker strolled over and stepped between them.
“That’s enough,” he said calmly. “You’re both going to be regretting this in the morning.”
Cal touched his mouth and winced as he felt blood and rapidly swelling flesh.
The anger had drained out of him until he was left only with pain and a sense of loss so strong, it nearly drove him to his knees.
Penny. He’d screwed things up so badly with her, he didn’t know how to recover.
“I’ve lost her,” he said as he sank onto the damp lawn. “Haven’t I?”
Reid sprawled next to him. “You screwed up on a massive scale,” he said. “Naomi wants your balls.”
The part of him in question tightened into his body.
“What does Penny want?” he asked hoarsely.
“To not love you anymore.”
Reid couldn’t have hurt him more if he’d shot him. “She has to love me,” Cal whispered. She was all he had.
Walker crouched in front of him and touched a sore spot just above his eyebrow. “You’re going to need stitches for that.” He looked at Reid. “Your knuckles are pretty bad, too. Let’s go inside and I’ll patch up the two of you.”
Cal looked at Reid. “I’m sorry.”
His brother grimaced. “I’m not the one you should apologize to.”
“I know. But I’m still sorry.”
Reid shrugged, then stood. But instead of turning to the house, he held out his hand to Cal.
“You might be an asshole,” he said as he pulled Cal to his feet. “But you’re still my brother.”
They looked at each other and Cal knew that things were right between them. If only the situation with Penny were so easily resolved.
He took a step and had to hold in a groan. Blood dripped down from the cut beside his eyes and from his lip. His body ached and he felt about a hundred and fifty years old.
But before he could make it to the porch, a car pulled up. Cal glanced over to see if by some miracle, Penny had come to see him. Right now he would be happy if she were simply willing to yell at him some more.
But she wasn’t the one who stepped out of the vehicle. Instead Lindsey opened the passenger’s door and got out.
She was too thin and wearing a scarf over her head, but he’d never seen anything so beautiful in his life.
“Lindsey,” he called. “What are you doing here?”
She glanced from him to Reid and Walker. “Um, is this a bad time?”
“No.”
“But you’re…” She squinted. “Have you been fighting?”
He groaned. Talk about perfect timing. “Yeah, well, my brother and I had something we had to work out.”
Lindsey’s eyes lit up. “Brothers. Both of them?”
He nodded. “This is Reid and this is Walker.”
“Wow,” she breathed. “Uncles.”
His heart stood still. “What did you say?”
She looked at him and her smile quivered a little at the corners. “Um, I said uncles. That’s why I’m here. I just found out you’re my dad.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
LINDSEY WATCHED as Walker set out first aid supplies on the dining room table. Cal wanted to reassure her, but he was busy trying to stop the blood from dripping down the side of his face.
“We’re, ah, not usually like this,” he said, wishing he sounded less lame and slightly more smooth. “Reid and I haven’t had a fight in ten or fifteen years.”
Lindsey’s blue eyes widened slightly. “So why were you fighting now?”
Reid glanced at Cal, then at Cal’s daughter. “Long story.”
She sighed. “That’s what adults always say when they don’t want to tell you the truth.”
“Bummer, huh?” Reid said.
Lindsey smiled, then turned her attention to Walker. “Are you a doctor or something?”
“I used to be a marine and I know basic first aid.”
She looked him up and down. “That’s cool. Were you overseas?”
He nodded without looking up.
There was an awkward silence which Cal broke by saying, “You have an aunt, too. Our youngest sister. Dani—short for Danielle.”
“Big family,” Lindsey said. “It’s just my mom and dad and me. We’re—” She paused and pressed her lips together. “Can I still call them that? Are you going to get mad?”
“What? Of course not. Lindsey, Tracy and Tom are your parents.”
“Yeah,” Reid said. “He’s just some guy who donated—What?” he asked as Walker cuffed him on the arm. “What’d I say?”
“We have a young lady present,” Walker reminded him. “Not one of your women.”
Lindsey looked instantly intrigued. “You have women? A lot of them? Like more than one girlfriend at a time? Are you—” Her mouth dropped open. “Ohmygod! You’re Reid Buchanan. You’re a baseball pitcher.”
“Used to be,” Reid said curtly. “Now I run a bar.”
“Okay, but you’re famous.” She turned to Cal. “He’s your brother?”
“Uh-huh. And your uncle.”
“My uncle is Reid Buchanan? My friends are going to die when I tell them.”
Reid looked more uncomfortable than excited. Cal changed the subject by asking, “How did you find out about me?”
“What? Oh, my mom told me. We were talking about the transplant and how well it went and I was really surprised because there can be problems with blood from an unrelated donor. And when I said that she got this really weird look on her face.”
Walker motioned for Cal to take a seat by the dining room table. Cal settled down, then removed the washcloth from his temple. Instantly blood began to trickle down his face.
“Are you sure you’re not going to need stitches?” Lindsey asked.
“That’s what I’m thinking,” Walker said.
“I’ll be fine. Try the bandage,” Cal told him. “Go on, Lindsey.”
“Oh. Okay. Well, she, um, got this weird look on her face and then she just blurted it all out. She told me who you were and that you’d always wanted to be a part of my life, but you didn’t want to push and that you were my biological dad and stuff. So I wanted to come see you.”
Cal groaned. “Did we just walk in the house and leave your mom parked out there?”
Lindsey laughed. “No. She went to get coffee. I’m going to call her when it’s time to come get me.”
Walker tugged on his skin. Cal did his best not to react to the pain. The bandages were put in place, but Walker didn’t look pleased. “These aren’t going to hold.”
Lindsey moved close and wrinkled her nose. “He’s right. You really need to go to the hospital.”
“In a minute.” He smiled at her. “I’m glad you’re here.”
“Me, too. I thought, you know, maybe we could be friends.”
“I’d like that.”
She glanced at Reid and Walker. “It’s nice to have more family. I’ve always wanted that. Are any of you guys married?”
Walker snorted. “Reid settle down with one woman? Not likely. I’ve been out of the country and Cal…You’re going to have to talk to him about that.”
> Lindsey glanced at him expectantly.
Cal shook his head. “Another long story,” he said, knowing there was no way he could explain about Penny.
“That’s too bad. I’d like some cousins or even half brothers and sisters. I wouldn’t even mind babysitting. Well, at least until I go to college. Then I’ll be really busy.”
Impulsively, Cal grabbed Lindsey’s hand. “Thanks for coming to see me. I know you’re all grown up and have a life, but maybe we could get together for lunch sometime.”
She ducked her head, but squeezed his fingers. “That would be nice. I can give you my cell number. We can talk and stuff. And e-mail, too.” She grinned. “I love e-mail.”
“Me, too.”
Reid pulled the towel away from the cut on his jaw and showed it to Walker. Just then a fresh gush of blood dripped down the front of his shirt.
“That’s it,” Lindsey said forcefully. “I can see I’m going to have to take charge here. You’re both going to the emergency room. You need stitches. There’s no discussion about this. I just went through chemo and a bone marrow transplant. I think you tough guys can survive a couple of stitches.”
“WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?” Dani asked as she sat next to Cal in the emergency room. “You’re too old to be fighting each other.”
“We weren’t thinking,” Cal told her. “That’s how fights usually start. No one plans them. Well, Reid kind of planned this one.”
“But you’re mature adults. At least you were. And on the front lawn.”
He winced. “How’d you hear that?”
“I had a fascinating talk with your daughter before she had to leave. This was while you were being stitched up.” Her stern expression softened. “She’s great.”
“I know.” He still couldn’t believe she knew about him and wanted them to be friends.
“And her first impression of her father is he and his brother fighting. I should slap you myself.”
“Please don’t.”
“Are you in pain?” Dani asked.
“Yes.”
“Good. I hope Reid is suffering. Maybe that will teach you two.” She studied the bandages on his face. “What were you fighting about?”
“I made Penny cry.”
Susan Mallery Bundle: The Buchanans Page 51