Worth Fighting For (Bayside Bachelors #3)

by Judy Duarte

  And as long as Caitlin loved him, the future didn’t scare him a bit.

  Of course, there was a lot they had to leave up to Kelly and Zack.

  Chapter Thirteen

  A week later, just days before the small, intimate wedding Brett and Caitlin planned to have in the Logans’ backyard, Zack Henderson was released from prison. And one of his first calls from the outside was to Brett.

  Caitlin might have been more stressed about what his release and freedom might bring had she not known the comfort and strength of Brett’s love. His optimism helped her maintain an emotional balance and nurture a hope that the man wouldn’t upset their lives too much.

  But as they got ready to meet with Zack for the first time, she was still nervous. And still worried about the motives of the man who wanted to be a part of Emily’s life.

  “Are you ready?” Brett asked from a chair in the living room.

  “Just about.” Caitlin plaited a small strand of Emily’s hair into a braid with stiff, uncooperative fingers, then held the ends together with a red kitty-cat barrette.

  “Do you think my daddy is going to like me?” Emily asked.

  “Of course, sweetheart,” Caitlin said, not wanting her daughter to experience any of the stress she was going through. “He’s going to love you.”

  “But how come he never came to my house before?”

  Caitlin tried hard to wrestle her own concerns and hide them from her expression. “He would have, honey. But he wasn’t able to.”

  “Why not?”

  Caitlin hated to tell her he’d been in prison. So she searched for a vague answer. “He lived far away from town and wasn’t able to travel.”

  She glanced in the mirror and spotted Emily’s furrowed brow. Obviously, her daughter wasn’t content with the explanation.

  “Come on, sweetie. Brett’s waiting for us.” Caitlin put the hairbrush and comb in the drawer, then checked her own appearance one more time.

  Emily tugged at the hem of Caitlin’s green cotton blouse. “But I thought Brett was going to be my daddy.”

  This was so confusing for the child.

  “You’re lucky. You get to have two daddies.”

  “Am I s’posed to call them both Daddy?”

  In spite of Brett’s positive outlook, Caitlin was afraid the whole meeting would blow up in their faces. “You can call them by their names, if it makes it easy for you today.”

  “You mean call them Brett and Zack?” Emily seemed to think about that for a while, as Caitlin led her into the living room, where Brett waited.

  As far as she was concerned, she wanted Brett to be Emily’s only daddy. Her real daddy. But that wasn’t possible.

  “You girls look pretty.” Brett smiled broadly and walked them to the door. He stopped at the threshold, long enough to give Caitlin a hug and whisper softly, “Everything is going to work out fine.”

  She nodded, appreciating his words, even if they didn’t ease her apprehension.

  The ride to the Logans’ was uneventful and quiet, other than Emily’s chatter about how much the cats liked the new cat house, with its built-in, carpeted climbing structure that practically took up the entire patio.

  “I think we’d better call it a cattery,” Caitlin reminded them both again.

  Before long, they pulled in front of the Logans’ two-story, Cape Cod-style house on Bayside Drive. Brett parked the Expedition, then helped Emily from the back seat.

  “Is my daddy here yet?” Emily asked.

  “I’m not sure.” Brett studied the vintage Camaro parked at the curb. “This could be his car.”

  The color was a combination of age-faded black and primer gray. But it was clean, and the tires looked new.

  As they made their way to the door, a floral welcome mat awaited them on the porch.

  Brett slid Caitlin a smile, then rang the bell.

  Moments later, Kay answered. She gave them each a hug, then invited them into her living room, where a big man sat upon the sofa. A dimpled smile softened a dark and dangerous edge.

  He was a handsome man, Caitlin decided.

  His black hair nearly reached his shoulders, but it was clean and neat. He stood when they entered, and Brett extended a hand in greeting.

  Brett was six feet tall, but he was almost dwarfed by Zack. Wow. Emily’s father was enormous. And buff. He must have worked out a lot in the prison gym.

  “You’re as big as the Jack in the Beanstalk giant,” Emily told him, clearly in awe of her father, although not appearing frightened.

  The man squatted to be on a more equal level with the child. He smiled, pretty sky-blue eyes, just like Emily’s, glimmering. “Nah. That guy was a lot bigger than me. And kind of mean, wasn’t he?”

  She nodded. “But you’re not mean, huh, Daddy.”

  Zack looked as though she could have blown him over with an eyelash flutter. “No, I’m not mean. Especially not to little girls.”

  Her eyes widened, and she crossed her arms, as though inspecting him. “Who are you mean to?”

  Zack looked up at Brett, then at Caitlin, as if trying to get some help with his response, but he was on his own. And the fact that he looked a bit sheepish with Emily made Caitlin feel a lot better.

  “I’m not mean to anyone.”

  “Then you’re a good giant.” She placed a hand on his knee, and he merely looked at it, as though marveling at the contrast of the soft little hand on rugged black denim.

  “I’m not used to little girls, so you’ll have to tell me all about the things they like to do. Like what kind of TV shows they like to watch and the food they like to eat.”

  Emily smiled. “That’s easy. Little girls like Hello Kitty cartoons and pizza and Barbies and pink ice cream and party shoes that are shiny and new.” She glanced at the floor and lifted her foot, showing him the shoes Caitlin had purchased last week. “See? Like these.”

  “They’re very pretty,” Zack said, with a grin. “It sounds like I’ve got a lot to learn.”

  “That’s okay. I can help you, Daddy.”

  When he glanced up, Caitlin could have sworn she saw a tear glisten in his eye.

  “Daddy,” Emily said, drawing the man’s rapt attention. “Can I ask you a question?”

  “Sure.”

  “How come you never came to see me before? Mommy said you lived far away. But you didn’t even call me on the telephone, and Mommy does that even when she’s busy at work.”

  Zack looked as though he’d been roped and left hogtied, but he placed his hand softly on hers. “I was in jail.”

  “With the bad guys?” she asked. “Were you the policeman who had to catch them all?”

  Caitlin was as anxious as Emily was for a response. Sometimes, it was difficult giving her precocious daughter a truthful, yet age-appropriate answer to her questions.

  Zack paused momentarily, as if trying to come up with a response that might satisfy her. “I’m going to make you a promise, Emily. I’m always going to tell you the truth.” Then he began his explanation. “Right before you were born, I made a mistake and rode in a bad guy’s car. He used to be a friend of mine, but I learned the hard way that he wasn’t the kind of friend I should trust. And when he did something wrong, I had to go to jail, too.”

  She placed her free hand on his cheek. “I’m sorry, Daddy. That’s too bad. Are you all done at jail?”

  “Yes. And that’s another promise I’ll make you. I won’t ever go back there again.”

  The fact that Zack had answered his daughter honestly touched Caitlin’s heart, and she couldn’t help believing his story. And his promise.

  Because he’d leveled with Emily, and she’d accepted it so well, Caitlin realized she’d have to be honest, too. She’d have to tell Emily the truth about being a foster child.

  Hopefully, as long as Caitlin reaffirmed her love, and because of the bond they had, her daughter would handle that news just as well as she had Zack’s.

  “Well, now that you’
ve all met and had a chance to chat,” Kay said, “can I offer anyone a slice of birthday cake and a scoop of ice cream?”

  “Whose birthday is it?” Emily asked.

  “Since you and your daddy have missed so many birthdays, I thought it might be nice if we celebrated all of them this afternoon.”

  Until that moment, Caitlin hadn’t realized how special Harry and his wife were, how thoughtful and supportive. And she decided, then and there, that she was happy to be a part of the Logans’ extended family.

  “Emily, why don’t you come help me put the candles on the cake,” the older woman said, as she took the little girl by the hand, leaving the adults a moment to speak among themselves.

  Zack stood, then brushed his hands against his black denim-clad thighs. “I can’t get over what a sweet little girl she is. You’ve obviously done a great job raising her.”

  “Thanks,” Caitlin said. “She’s been an absolute joy and a pleasure to have.”

  Then she kicked herself for leaving an opening for him to thank her and say he’d be taking over from now on. But just as his honesty with Emily had taken her by surprise, so did his response.

  “I want to do right by her and to be a dad she can be proud of. But to tell you the truth, it’s a bit scary and overwhelming for a guy who had a lousy upbringing. So I hope you’ll bear with me.”

  “Caitlin is a whiz at being a mother and with all the family stuff,” Brett said. “I’m in kind of the same boat you’re in. Being a father is pretty new. And I don’t want to screw up, either.”

  “From what I understand,” Caitlin said, her gaze lighting on the retired detective, “you both have a perfectly good role model in Harry.”

  The older man smiled, clearly pleased with the compliment. “Both of you guys will do a great job fathering that little girl.”

  Before anyone could comment, Kay and Emily carried in the birthday cake with four flickering candles.

  “We don’t have presents,” Emily explained, “’cause being a family is the best gift of all.”

  Caitlin, with her heart swelling to the point of overflowing, agreed. “You’ve got that right, Em. We’ve all been blessed.”

  And God willing, Brett’s son, Justin, would join them soon.

  On Saturday morning, the day of the wedding, Brett and Caitlin were just getting ready to head out the door when the telephone rang.

  “I’ll get it,” Emily said, as she dashed through the house, her party shoes tapping on the hardwood floor.

  She picked up the receiver and answered the phone. “Hello?”

  Brett chuckled. Girls and telephones. It started early, he supposed.

  “Yes. Here he is.” She handed him the phone. “It’s a lady. And she wants to talk to you.”

  “Hello,” he answered, eager to hang up and be on their way.

  “It’s me. Kelly.”

  His heart nearly dropped to the floor. “Is everything all right?”

  “Yes, it’s fine. I just wanted to let you know that we spoke to Justin. We told him that David loved him more than anything in the world, but that he had another dad. A dad who wanted to visit him.”

  Brett gripped the phone so tight, his knuckles ached. “Is he all right with it?”

  “I think so. He was hurt that we hadn’t told him sooner. But other than that, I think he’s handling it okay. He’d like to see you.”

  Brett closed his eyes, relishing the sound of her words.

  His son wanted to meet him, too.

  Caitlin stepped out of the bathroom and into the living room. She probably wondered what he was doing, chatting on the phone, when he’d been eagerly prodding her and Emily to get dressed so they could leave.

  He’d have to explain later. “How’s David doing?”

  “David?” Kelly paused, as though the question had taken her aback. “He’s doing all right. But I think sharing Justin will be hard for him.”

  “I’ll do my best not to step on his toes, Kelly. I meant what I said about putting Justin’s best interests first.” Brett glanced at Caitlin. Her smile told him she understood the importance of the call.

  “I appreciate your attitude,” Kelly said. “Maybe Justin will come out the better because of this.”

  “That’s my intention. And I’ll do everything in my power to make sure this is a positive experience for all of us.” Again, his gaze sought Caitlin, and his heart soared, as the pieces of his life began to fall in place. “I’m getting married today—to a wonderful woman I’m sure you’ll like. And in a few days, when things get settled, I’ll give you a call. Maybe we can have you, Justin and David over for dinner.”

  “I…uh…sure. That would be nice.”

  “And Kelly?”

  “Yes.”

  “Thank you for being such a great mother to my son. I doubt he could have handpicked someone better.”

  “You’re…welcome.”

  “I’ll give you a call in a couple of days.”

  When the line disconnected, Brett turned to Caitlin.

  She gave him a hug. “It’s amazing what love and compromise can do.”

  “That’s what Harry told me. And he was right.” He brushed a kiss upon her hair. “Come on. I’m in a hurry to start the happy ever after part of this thing.”

  “Me, too!” Emily said. “Just like in my Fairytale Princess book.”

  “Yeah,” Brett said, taking his daughter by the hand. “I don’t want your mommy kissing any more toads.”

  Then they drove off into what promised to be a beautiful sunset.

  The wedding was small, by most people’s standards, with only the Logans, the Blackstones, a couple of neighbors, two nurses from Oceana General and three of Brett’s Navy buddies in attendance. Greg, whose flight was due in anytime, was going to try and take a cab from Lindberg field, even if he came late.

  Caitlin had asked Luke Wynters to come, too, but he had to work. He did mention that Kelsey, the three-year-old accident victim, was doing much better than anyone had expected, and that the neurosurgeon expected a full recovery. Then he wished her and Brett all the best, saying he couldn’t imagine a better or more special setting for a wedding than Harry’s parklike backyard.

  And she had to agree.

  The yard wasn’t large, but it was lush and green, with palms and ferns and flowering plants that lined a wrought iron fence that provided a view of the bay.

  Tiki lights and candles lit the lawn, where a rented flower-adorned gazebo awaited the bride and groom.

  Earlier, they’d been introduced to Reverend Morton, the pastor of Kay’s church. The man was pretty down to earth, as far as ministers went. Several times before the ceremony, he’d revealed a sense of humor and a pleasant laugh.

  A knock sounded at the guest room door.

  “It’s me,” Kay said, as she peered into the room. “Are you ladies ready?”

  “Yes, we are. Please come in.”

  Kay stepped inside, her eyes sweeping over both Emily and Caitlin, who’d dressed in a simple but elegant white gown. “You’re both absolutely beautiful.”

  “Thank you.”

  “If you’re ready, it’s time to walk down the aisle.”

  Caitlin glanced at her daughter, who looked like a princess in a long, pink satin dress with a matching bow in her hair, and smiled. “We certainly are ready. Aren’t we, Em?”

  The little girl nodded, her eyes glistening with excitement.

  “Then it’s time that we get started.” Kay led the way through the house and to the side door, where they would travel along the walk to the backyard.

  There, they met Harry, who would walk the bride down the aisle.

  A harpist, someone Kay knew from her church, was playing a lovely melody. When the silver-haired woman spotted Caitlin, she masterfully altered the chords to begin the wedding march.

  Kay handed Emily the basket of rose petals, then prompted the little girl to start down the white cloth-covered aisle to the gazebo where her daddy Brett wai
ted.

  As Caitlin drew near, her eyes never left those of her lover, her soon-to-be husband and friend. The man who’d made her life complete.

  As Reverend Morton joined them in holy matrimony, making them one, a family that had only begun, Caitlin’s heart beat strong and clear. And as the minister introduced Lieutenant and Mrs. Brett Tanner and their daughter, Emily, the beautiful flower girl tugged on his vestment robe.

  Her sweet whisper could be heard across the yard, as she told Reverend Morton, “I have two daddies, now. And that makes me the luckiest girl in the world.”

  And she was right.

  Brett picked her up in his arms, then placed a lingering kiss on Caitlin’s lips. “We’re all pretty darn lucky.”

  When the kiss ended, and as the crowd broke into applause, Emily clapped her hands. “And we all get to live happily ever after.”

  “That’s the plan, sweetheart.”

  Then Lieutenant and Mrs. Tanner, along with their bright-eyed daughter, joined hands and walked down the aisle, eager to begin their life together.

  Epilogue

  In late summer, Brett and Caitlin sat on an old bedspread on the sand and watched the sun set over the Pacific, while Justin helped Emily build a castle that would reach the sky.

  It was both a sad and happy occasion. They’d just learned that Caitlin was going to have a baby. And that Brett would be shipping out at the beginning of September.

  “Here comes another wave,” Justin yelled, as he scurried to strengthen the wall he’d built to protect the sand tower.

  It did Brett’s heart good to see the kids play so well together. They squabbled sometimes, too, like other siblings, he supposed. But it was clear that they cared about each other.

  Still, things remained a bit awkward between him and his son. In part, because Brett tried so damn hard not to push himself on the boy and not to step on David’s toes. But he had to admit their relationship was getting a little better as time went on, so he couldn’t ask for more than that.

  “Think I ought to start the fire?” he asked Caitlin.