Foolish Expectations

by Alison Bliss

“I want you to persuade my son to talk to me, to hear me out. And I’m willing to make it worth your while.” Nash’s father pulled a check from his pocket and slid it across the table toward her.

  She didn’t even bother to look at it. “No.”

  “If it’s not enough of an incentive, I’m happy to make you a better offer.”

  “I said no.”

  Determination darkened his eyes with a controlled intensity. Like Nash, Aaron Sutherland didn’t like to be told no. But that was just too damn bad. She was on her husband’s side, and if his dad didn’t understand that, then the selfish bastard didn’t know the first meaning of love.

  “I don’t think I’m making myself clear. I’m willing to pay you a considerable sum for your cooperation. But you only have ten seconds before I withdraw my proposal.”

  “I don’t think I’m making myself clear,” she said, glaring at him. “I said no.”

  “Maybe I should explain it a different way.” Nash’s father adjusted his sleeve and then pointed with the gold cuff link at his wrist, monogrammed with the letters A and S. “Do you know what I pay for these alone?”

  “Apparently more than you should have.” Bailey leaned forward and shoved the check back to him. “But you don’t have enough money in the bank to buy me off. If you want Nash to listen to you, then maybe you should learn to do the same.” She stood up to leave, but stopped long enough to glance back at his custom-made cuff link. “By the way, you’re missing a letter. After meeting you in person, I am certain there should be another S at the end.” Then she marched away.

  Bailey stayed in the back room until she was sure he’d left. Then she clocked out and headed home. She couldn’t believe Nash’s father would stoop so low. The nerve! No wonder her husband wanted nothing to do with him. Aaron Sutherland was an egotistical prick who thought his money and power could buy him anything he wanted…including his own son.

  He hadn’t said he missed Nash, or even loved him. Only that he wanted his son to take his position in the family business. In fact, he didn’t seem to care at all about what Nash wanted. Because as long as Aaron got his way, that was all that mattered.

  Bailey sighed.

  She felt terrible that she and Nash weren’t on speaking terms because all she wanted to do right now was wrap her arms around his waist and tell him how much she loved him. Screw their argument. Forget waiting for him to get past the hurt of losing a child that was never meant to be. It was time he knew how she felt. And she planned to tell him tonight, the moment he walked through the front door.

  Fifteen minutes later, Bailey pulled into the driveway of her home and got a pleasant surprise. Nash’s truck was already parked out front in his usual spot. She smiled. Maybe he was here to fix things with her as well. God, she hoped so.

  She hurried inside and spotted him almost immediately. He stood in the kitchen doorway, staring silently at her, as if he were waiting for her to get home. “I’m glad you’re here,” she told him. “We need to talk.”

  “Yes, we do,” he agreed, though his voice sounded a little off. “How was work?”

  Bailey shrugged. “It was okay.”

  “Just okay?” His eyebrow rose slightly. “Why? Did something happen?”

  “No, nothing.” Guilt punched her in the gut, and she cringed internally. She didn’t like lying to her husband, but there was no point in hurting him by confirming something he already knew: his father was a pompous asshole.

  He regarded her with wary eyes. “Are you sure? You look like something is bothering you.”

  “I’m fine. I just don’t like it when we fight.” She reached for him, wanting to coil her arms around his waist, but he grasped her arms to stop her. The potent smell of alcohol assaulted her nostrils, and one glance at the half empty bottle on the table confirmed her suspicions. He reeked of whiskey. “Have you been drinking?”

  “Yeah.” He released her arms and stepped back from her.

  He must still be mad. “Look, I’m sorry. I just wanted—” He looked away from her, fists clenching at his sides, but didn’t say anything. “Nash…? What’s wrong?”

  A moment passed before he spoke. “I’m trying to figure out what you’re apologizing for.” The way he regarded her with a hard gaze concerned her, but it was the remoteness in his gruff voice that alarmed her the most. “Are you sorry about the fight…or that you lied to me again?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “I’m talking about your inability to tell me the fucking truth,” he snapped, making her eyes widen. He pursed his lips briefly. “Then again, I guess you’ve done nothing but lie to me from the beginning, anyway.”

  “Nash, I don’t know what it is you think I lied to you about—”

  “Bailey. Stop it!” His dark eyes wielded an anger she’d never seen from him before. He paced back and forth like an aggravated panther in an unreliable cage. “I know, all right? Earlier, I went by the restaurant to put an end to our argument, and I saw you meeting with my dad.”

  Shit. “I can explain—”

  He scowled at her. “Right. Because I can believe anything that comes out of your mouth?”

  “Nash, just listen to me.”

  “Oh, I did. When you asked me to give my father another chance or fed me the bullshit guilt trip about how I’d regret not talking to him if something ever happened to him.” He shook his head. “No, thanks. I’m done listening to you.”

  “Nash, that meeting with your dad wasn’t what it looked like.”

  “Oh, yeah? Then explain this.” He swiped a folded newspaper off the counter and thrust it at her. “Look familiar?”

  “It’s…my newspaper. So what?”

  Nash groaned. “Don’t act stupid, Bailey.”

  “Me? You’re the one playing guessing games. Why don’t you just tell me what this newspaper has to do with anything?”

  He snatched the paper from her hand, flipped it over, and tapped his finger on the article on the other side that read NEW HEAD OF LEGAL DEPARTMENT FOR SUTHERLAND INDUSTRIES. “This. You’ve been in cahoots with my father from the beginning, haven’t you?”

  “What? Why would you even think that? Damn it, Nash. The only reason I held onto this newspaper was because, when I was on bedrest, I didn’t finish the crossword puzzle on the back. Today was the first time I’ve ever met your dad. He showed up at my work and asked me to help him by getting you to talk to him. I refused.”

  “Bullshit,” Nash yelled, throwing the newspaper on the floor. “I watched him push a check across the table to you, but what I didn’t see was you bothering to rip it in half. So what was I worth to you, Bailey? How much money did my dad pay you to marry me and fuck me over?”

  Tears stung her eyes, and she shook her head. She’d never seen him so angry, but it all boiled down to one thing. “You really don’t trust me at all, do you?”

  “Why should I? Since the first day I met you, everything that has come out of your mouth has been a lie. Hell, I’d be shocked if your mother was actually dead.”

  Speechless, Bailey reeled back, and her hand flew to her chest. How could he say something so cruel? The gut-wrenching pain of his callous words infuriated her, but she managed to restrain the urge to slap him. Barely.

  Instead, she turned on her heel, stormed into the bedroom, and began packing her things. He’d given her no choice. Her own husband couldn’t give her the very thing he’d asked of her on their wedding night—trust—so there wasn’t much of a point in trying to save a marriage that had been doomed from the beginning.

  As she placed her belongings in her suitcase, a constant drip of tears leaked down her face, but she was powerless to stop them. With each item of clothing she packed, her stomach twisted more and a stabbing pain invaded her heart, ripping it to shreds. When she couldn’t stand it anymore, she gave up and zipped her suitcase closed. She couldn’t bear to stay in that house for another second knowing she’d lost the only man she ever truly loved. He could sell the rest of
her things like he’d done once before.

  As she wheeled her suitcase toward the front door, she caught a glimpse of Nash standing in the kitchen, pouring himself another drink. He didn’t even bother to look up. Why did things have to turn out this way? Why did loving someone hurt so much?

  She put her hand on the knob, but heard his footsteps approach from behind her. “Where the hell do you think you’re going?”

  “I’m leaving.”

  Nash shook his head angrily. “Bullshit. We’re married. You can’t just walk out on me.”

  “Watch me. I can’t be with someone who doesn’t trust me.” Then she looked directly at him to make sure he didn’t miss the conviction of her words. “It’s over.”

  Fire flashed in his eyes. “Bailey, I’m warning you. If you walk out that door, I won’t come after you.”

  She lifted her chin. “Good. I don’t want you to.”

  Then she left.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Nash woke up miserable, hungover, and even more pissed off than when he’d passed out. He couldn’t believe Bailey had walked out on him last night. Or that he’d resorted to sleeping in the guest room because it was the only bed where her scent still lingered on the fucking sheets.

  Damn it.

  His head pounded, but it had nothing on the way his heart battered the hell out of his rib cage. He rubbed at the unshaven stubble on his face. He looked and felt like hell, but the last thing he planned to do was sit around wallowing in self-pity. He hadn’t been capable of driving anywhere last night, but he had someone he needed to pay a visit to.

  And it wasn’t the wife who’d left him.

  He headed into the kitchen to make a pot of coffee, but stopped when he saw the newspaper laying in the middle of the floor. He snatched it up and started to toss it on the counter when he saw the half-completed crossword puzzle on the back. He glared at it for a second and then threw it down.

  Didn’t mean a fucking thing. Not after what he’d witnessed yesterday.

  He’d gone to the bar and grill to make up with her, but through the front windows of the restaurant, Nash had caught a glimpse of his father sitting at one of the tables…with Bailey. He couldn’t hear what they were saying, but his father was grinning relentlessly as he pulled a check from his suit pocket and placed it in front of her.

  But even then, Nash had given her the benefit of doubt. Breath held, he’d waited for her to balk at the monetary gesture, rip the check to pieces, or simply get up and leave. But she hadn’t. Instead, she’d appeared calm and unfazed as she kept her ass planted in the chair across from his dad. Hell, she never even glanced down at the check before her…as if she knew exactly how much that bastard had paid her.

  That’s when Nash had high-tailed it out of there in a full-on bout of rage. He would have confronted them both right then, but he’d been afraid of what he might do to his father if he stepped into the same room with the man.

  And then there was Bailey.

  While he’d waited for her to get home from work, he’d talked himself into giving her one last chance to tell him the truth. For a brief moment, he’d let himself hope she would do so. But now he regretted that decision. She’d looked him square in the eyes and lied to his face…again. Without so much as flinching. Damn her.

  Yesterday, he’d made the decision to walk away without confronting his father in hopes of saving his marriage. But the moment Bailey walked out that door, Nash had nothing else to lose. He shook his head. “Fuck it.”

  By the time he changed his clothes and flung himself into his truck, he was fully worked up and ready to face the one person who deserved the lashing he was about to dish out.

  His father.

  Nash drove into Houston and headed straight to Sutherland Industries. When he arrived, he didn’t bother to slow down long enough for the secretary to announce him. He barged right into his dad’s office to find his father sitting at his pristine cherry oak desk with his right ankle kicked up over his left knee. His fingers were linked behind his head and the man looked entirely too comfortable in his fancy office.

  But Nash was about to put an end to that.

  He marched over to stand in front of the man who spent his life bullying his only child. “You’re a lousy, self-righteous prick!”

  “Now, son, is that any way to talk to your old man?”

  “How much was I worth, huh? What’s the going price for my wife to get me to have a conversation with you? Twenty thousand? Fifty thousand?”

  “Oh, please. Give me more credit than that. I never would have offered her less than six figures.”

  Nash’s jaw tightened. “Well, no wonder she left me so quickly.” His mind rewound to the hurt look on Bailey’s face when she’d walked out the door. “You must’ve given her a bonus for that stellar performance.”

  “Son, I hate to tell you this, but I don’t have a clue as to what you’re talking about. She left you?”

  “Wasn’t that part of your deal? You’ve been secretly meeting with her behind my back. I’m sure the subject of our marriage status came up.”

  “Nash, I didn’t meet your wife until yesterday when I paid her a visit at that dingy restaurant. And we never had a deal. She didn’t take the money I offered her. Actually, she turned me down flat and then called me an ass.” His father couldn’t contain his grin. “I like her.”

  “Don’t bullshit me. You paid her off, and she hauled ass.”

  His father leaned farther back in his chair. “What the hell would I get out of asking her to leave you? I was trying to get her to talk to you on my behalf. She can’t very well do that if she isn’t with you, now can she?”

  He stared at the man in front of him, measuring him with his eyes and gauging his sincerity. “Christ.” His father wasn’t lying. He might be a pretentious bastard who tried to force his son into doing what he wanted, but he’d never been much of a liar. “Shit. I need to borrow your phone.”

  “Why?”

  “Because after the things I said to her, Bailey probably won’t answer her phone if she thinks I’m the one calling.”

  His father leaned over the desk and pushed the phone toward Nash, who yanked up the receiver and quickly dialed Bailey’s cell phone number. It rang three times before she finally answered. “Hello?”

  “Bailey, don’t hang up.” There was a dead pause on the other end of the line. “I need to talk to you.”

  “No.”

  He rubbed at his face as his dad looked on. “Come on, Bailey. Let me explain.”

  “Definitely not.” Her voice was curt.

  “Look, I know you didn’t take the money my dad offered you. My father said—”

  “I don’t give a damn what your father said.” She breathed out, then sniffled into the line, making Nash cringe with regret. “You should have trusted me. But you didn’t. So there’s nothing left to talk about.”

  “You’re right. I should have trusted you. I’m sorry I didn’t. I need to see you in person and make this right. Please tell me where you are.”

  “That’s none of your business.”

  “Damn it, Bailey, you’re my wife.”

  “Not for much longer,” she said, her weak voice warbling slightly, hinting at the heartbreak she felt. “I…I want a divorce.”

  No! Panic slammed into his chest, making it harder to breathe. He couldn’t let that happen. No fucking way. Even if she didn’t feel the same way, Bailey needed to know what she meant to him, what she was walking away from. He loved her. And he needed to find her. Now. “Goddamnit. Where are you?”

  The line went dead.

  “Damn it.” Nash hit redial several times, but her phone went straight to voicemail. “Fuck!” He leaned on the desk and heaved out a hard breath, trying to figure out what to do.

  “If you want my advice—”

  “I don’t. You’ve done enough already.” He ran his hand over his face. “I just need to find her.”

  “It’s one woman. How har
d could it be?”

  Nash rolled his eyes. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”

  “Try me.”

  “It took me a month to find her before…and that was with her staying in one place. I don’t even know which state she’s in. By now, she’s probably somewhere between here and Alaska.”

  “Alaska, huh?” His dad didn’t look the least bit surprised.

  “You did a background check on her, didn’t you?”

  “Of course I did. You think I’d let my only son marry someone without making sure they weren’t some kind of con artist? I checked out her father, too. And I must say, he was not an easy man to find.”

  Sonofabitch. If Bailey made it to Alaska before Nash could stop her, it would take him months to find her. He didn’t have the endless resources his dad had access to, including Sutherland Industries’ team of private investigators. Nash had invested all of his inheritance into building a life Aaron Sutherland couldn’t control.

  “Nash, she loves you. That was apparent the moment she turned down my offer. But I’m warning you, if you don’t go to her soon, you’re going to lose her. I should know. Your mother loved me, but by the time I realized I had lost her, it was already too late for us. She moved on…without me. Don’t make the same damn mistake I did.”

  Nash blinked at his father. He’d never heard him say anything like that before. In fact, he had always gotten the impression that his father couldn’t care less that his mom had left him. Guess his dad wasn’t invincible, after all. Maybe the old man was finally coming around and making a change for the better. “I can’t go to her. She won’t tell me where she is.”

  “Son, you’re a Sutherland. Make her tell you.”

  “Yeah, because that worked out so well for you with Mom? The more you tried to roll over her, the more your relationship deteriorated—”

  Aw, hell. Is that what I’ve been doing to Bailey all along? From the beginning, he’d asked her to trust him, but he hadn’t given her the same respect. Not really.

  From the first moment he thought she had been pregnant with his child, he hadn’t considered her feelings in the decisions that needed to be made. He’d just made them and expected her to go along with it. Hell, he’d even pushed her into marrying him, treating her like some prized trophy, rather than an equal lifelong partner.