by Cat Schield
“True love really does conquer all.” Beth’s radiant smile made her sister wince.
“If you say so.”
Harley’s heart became a stone lump in her chest. As much as she wished her feelings for Grant were only an echo of her long-ago crush, coupled with great sex and their connection through Daniel, she’d grown more and more convinced that she was truly in love with him.
“I do.” Beth’s eyes glowed with fervor. “In fact, I bet Grant already realizes that you are the woman he can’t bear to live without and he’s just waiting for the perfect moment to tell you.”
“Well, that would be something,” Harley remarked, wishing she had a speck of her sister’s optimism. “In the meantime, I’m just going to take it one day at a time.”
* * *
Two days after Grant met with the family law attorney about establishing his paternity claim to Daniel, he came home to an empty house. It was Franny’s day off and the plan had been for him to take Harley and Daniel out for dinner. Usually Harley picked their son up from day care and brought him over to swim in the late afternoon before he got home. Grant had grown accustomed to the vibrant energy and unrelenting noise of the four-year-old and the silence that greeted him had a weighty, oppressive feel to it.
Grant searched his cell phone, but found no message about a change of plans. If something had come up, surely she would’ve notified him. They were supposed to be celebrating. The night before, in the wake of his meeting with the lawyer, he’d repeated his offer to fully fund her nonprofit. This time when she demurred, he hadn’t taken no for an answer and had written a sizable check with the promise of more to follow.
Despite having grown up in one of the town’s wealthiest families, Harley had learned to live simply in Thailand and selflessly shared her time and energy, harnessing the power of Wingate Enterprises’ charitable contributions to help those who had little. The more time he’d spent with her, the more he accepted how much good Zest was doing. He no longer believed that his fertility practice was more important than Harley’s transformative crusade to lift women out of poverty by empowering them to help themselves.
Which was why he’d been so surprised that her thanks the previous night had such a hollow ring to it. He’d thought she’d be relieved that he’d agreed to provide the much-needed funds to keep it going. Yet, it seemed like no matter what he said or did, the state of things between them deteriorated with each passing day. The level to which this bothered him only fueled his uneasiness.
Exhaling harshly, Grant dialed Harley’s number and when she didn’t answer, followed up with a text.
Are we still on tonight? Shall I swing by and pick you up?
He’d no sooner sent the text than Harley was walking through his front door. Grant was swept by an overwhelming sense of relief. What had he been thinking? That she’d run off again and taken Daniel with her? Given his abrupt lightheadedness, no doubt that’s exactly what he’d presumed.
“Where’s Daniel?” he asked a little too sharply, seeing his son was not with her.
She shot him an odd look. “I dropped him off at your parents’ ranch so they could spend some one-on-one time with their grandson.”
He should’ve felt relief, but a trace of coolness in her manner caused his stomach muscles to clench. “So are we picking him up there?”
“Actually, they’ve invited us for dinner. I hope that’s okay.”
“Of course.” He stood staring at her, wondering at her unhappy expression. “Is something else going on?”
“Were you ever planning to tell me that you’d met with an attorney this week?”
He cursed silently. “How did you know?”
“I saw the appointment pop up on your phone.” Although she was obviously trying to keep it together, her voice quavered. “Are you planning on seeking partial custody of Daniel?”
Remorse flooded him as he realized he should’ve had a conversation with her before contacting an attorney. He was accustomed to taking action without discussing the ramifications with anyone. And concern about his paternal rights made him more inconsiderate than usual.
“I met with Lloyd because I want to legally establish that Daniel is my son.” Grant was well aware that he hadn’t answered her question. When her gaze continued to bore into him, he added, “I haven’t taken any steps in that direction.”
“But you’re thinking about it?”
They could no longer exist in a bubble, insulated from reality.
“I’d be a fool not to.”
Harley reached into her pocket and pulled out the check he’d given her. “I told you my son isn’t for sale,” she said, extending it to him.
Treating her like Paisley had been a mistake. Harley wasn’t going to be pacified with tokens that had no meaning. “That’s not why I wanted to help you.”
Her skeptical look said it all. “What did you think would happen if I took the money?”
“That you’d stay in Royal.”
“And if I didn’t stay?”
Suddenly, her strong reaction and the disquiet he’d been feeling all day began to make sense. He saw now that his gesture had been both a bribe and a threat. He’d been warning her that he possessed the resources to help or fight her. The choice was hers.
“I can’t lose my son,” he answered quietly, his tone deadly serious. “I really hope we can come to an understanding.”
“Maybe I would be more open to that if things were different.” Harley gazed at him with hope and frustration fighting for dominance in her green eyes.
“What sort of things?” he asked, determined to find a way to make them both happy.
When they had been together five years earlier, he’d gone into the weekend recognizing that she’d been too young for him. Not as young as she turned out to be. But someone who had a lot of life to live before she’d be happy settling down.
Since she’d come home, he’d started to see her in a whole new light. Harley was no longer the pampered daughter of a wealthy family. She’d lived on her own halfway around the world and was raising a child as a single mom. And it impressed him to no end that she’d been so touched by the desperate plight of others that instead of turning away, she’d started a nonprofit to help women lift their families out of desperate poverty. Her level of experiences had surpassed that of an average twenty-three-year-old.
So why was he so reluctant to give her the credit she deserved? Because he’d have to treat her as an equal and acknowledge that they shared a lot in common from Daniel to their passion for helping people to a deep, unquenchable sexual chemistry. And couples with a lot less going for them made permanent relationships work.
“You’ve been clear about what you want,” he said, aware that he’d been existing in a vacuum, avoiding tough questions about the future and unwilling to imagine his life without her in it. “You’ve made it clear your reasons for returning to Royal were to find funding for Zest.”
“That’s true, but since coming home, a lot has changed. I love being with you and Daniel. But I want more. A lot more.” Harley turned imploring eyes on him, begging him to meet her halfway. “I want us to be together like a real couple.”
“You know how I am. What I can and can’t give you.”
She nodded. “I know what you believe you’re capable of, but I want to be the woman you can’t live without.” Harley drew in a shaky breath, revealing just how scary this conversation was for her. “And now I need to know what you want.”
Since she’d returned to town, he barely recognized himself. When it came to her, instead of taking in information and making thoughtful decisions, he was far more likely to act out. He yearned to be with her, longed to wrap her in his arms and sink into the harmony they’d discovered these past few weeks, yet the need left him feeling exposed and unsteady. And if giving her what she wanted meant he would be like this al
l the time, that was more than he could handle.
“For now, I just want more time with my son.” And with her. Yet, he couldn’t bring himself to confess a feeling that he didn’t understand and risk building up her hopes only to disappoint her later.
A shutter fell over her features. “How much more time?” Her sharp tone made her sound unreasonable, but Grant knew he was to blame for her disappointment.
“As much as I can get.” He grabbed her hand and squeezed. “Don’t go back to Thailand.”
“How long do you expect us to stay?” she demanded. “A week? A month? A year? How long do you want me to put my life on hold with no promises from you?”
He didn’t have a number. There was something between them. He just wasn’t sure where it would lead or the sort of form it would take. And not being a man who made snap decisions, all he could do was hope she’d stick around while he made up his mind.
“I don’t want you to put your life on hold,” he said, yet that’s exactly what he was asking her to do. “But there has to be some way you can run the nonprofit from here.”
“Maybe I could, but I don’t want to.”
Harley pulled her hand from his grasp and closed her eyes, making a visible effort to calm down. When her lashes lifted once more, she appeared to have found a new center of gravity. She regarded him with such purpose that he backed up half a step. In a flash of insight, he recognized that she was asking him to voice how he felt about her. To bare his soul and commit to the hungry emotions that burned brighter each time they came together. He wasn’t prepared for that. He didn’t believe he’d ever be.
“I need a reason to stay, Grant.”
Sudden panic consumed him, flushing adrenaline through his veins. Even so, part of him longed to throw caution to the wind, confess that he’d grown accustomed to having her around and trust that she’d stay in Royal because she’d see it was the right thing to do for both her and Daniel.
“There are plenty of reasons.”
“I need one from you,” she clarified, her manner calm, but determined. “Something that matters.”
“Royal is your home,” he said. “You and Daniel have family here.”
Harley shook her head. “I no longer consider Royal my home and I’ve lived for years without my family. They never supported me the way my friends have. Both here and in Thailand.” She paused and her eyes narrowed. “But your response didn’t give me what I asked for. So let me be clearer. What about us?”
Buffeted by doubts and his fear of rejection, Grant wished he could let go of the past and be the lover, friend and partner she needed him to be. With his head and his heart vying for dominance, he maintained a neutral expression to conceal how badly this conversation was shaking him. This was why he’d avoided romantic entanglements, preferring to keep his existence plodding forward at an organized, consistent pace.
“Us?” he echoed. “You and Daniel?”
“You and I.” Her sharp gaze drilled into his. “I’m giving you the chance to tell me if that’s something you want.”
“You’re asking if I want you,” he reiterated, buying time while his frenzied thoughts whirled, refusing to give him clear answers that would satisfy her. “Of course I do.”
“But not in the way I want you,” she guessed. “Five years ago I fell in love with you.”
Her confession stopped him cold for several thundering heartbeats.
“That’s ridiculous,” he retorted, all too aware that she was awaiting his response. “We were together one single weekend. No one falls that fast.”
“Even you’ve heard of love at first sight. Well, that’s what happened to me.” She looked so damned sure of herself as she spoke that Grant was filled with envy. “I really believed by the end of that weekend that we were meant to be together. And then you found out how old I was and you were so mean about it.” Harley let that sink in before continuing. “I’ve spent a long time thinking about what happened. What I did wrong. And what I decided is that we were awesome together. So what if I was thirteen years younger? You claim you weren’t worried about your reputation and if that’s true, then you sent me away for some other reason. What was it?”
“Going into the weekend, I never planned to see you afterward and by the end of our time together, it became clear to me that you weren’t going to just walk away.”
Harley scowled and shook her head. “Maybe I was a one-weekend stand for you at the start, but something happened. The longer we spent together, something wonderful sparked between us. We talked about driving to the Gulf Coast so you could take me to your favorite beach and about a new restaurant you wanted us to try. Why would you say those things if you didn’t plan on ever seeing me again?”
Why? Because until he’d found out her true age, he’d been absolutely smitten with the passionate creature who’d been sharing his bed. Being with Harley had made him feel like he was standing on the edge of a cliff. But where he’d formerly assumed a new beginning with other women would end in disappointment, being with Harley had convinced him he could fly.
“You were so enthusiastic about the things you enjoyed,” he explained. “I merely let you believe I wanted them, too.”
Her breath rushed out in an impatient hiss. “That’s not the way it happened. Why are you acting like this?”
“Like what?”
“Like you’re blind to how good we are together. Or maybe it’s your opinion that what’s between us isn’t enough for you.” She sunk her teeth into her lower lip and her lashes fell, obscuring the hurt in her eyes. “That I’m not enough for you.”
“The fault doesn’t lie with you,” he assured her, taking her fingers in his and squeezing gently. “My track record with relationships isn’t great and I can’t promise to make you happy.”
“You don’t know that. You have no idea what I need to be happy.”
Grant’s throat tightened at the misery in her tone. “Maybe not, but I know Paisley was not happy because I couldn’t give her everything she needed.”
And if Paisley had been disappointed in his inability to give her the intimacy she craved, how much more harm would befall someone who led with her heart like Harley?
“I’m not Paisley,” Harley fumed, “and I wish you’d stop painting us both with the same brush.”
“Okay, forget my ex-wife. Let’s talk about how I disappointed my parents when I chose to become a doctor rather than join the family business.” Grant found his tone darkening with grief as he tried to make her understand. “It wasn’t easy on me knowing that I let them down, but I could never be happy unless I followed my own path.”
She stared at him in grim silence as she processed what he’d said. “And the path you’re on doesn’t have room for me.” Blinking rapidly, she dashed the back of her fingers over her damp cheeks. “If that’s your final word, then I guess I have to do what’s best for me.”
“Meaning?” Too late Grant saw that he’d done too good a job of pushing her away.
“Obviously, if there’s no future for us, there’s no reason for me to stay in Royal.”
Even though he’d known that his words would shatter the rapport between them, Grant believed he was doing the right thing. Until now.
“Then you’ve left me without a choice,” Grant said, angry with himself and with her. “I’m not going to just let you take Daniel halfway around the world.”
She must’ve been expecting that because nothing in her manner reflected surprise. “Have you thought about what this will do to Daniel?”
“Have you?” he snapped, furious with her for forcing his hand. Why couldn’t she just be reasonable? There was no reason why she couldn’t run Zest from Royal. Instead, she was taking Daniel away to punish Grant because he couldn’t be a lovesick fool. Damn the woman for demanding more than he could give!
“I guess we are at a stalemate.
” Harley tossed her head like an unruly filly.
Grant growled in pain as every fiber of his being screamed at him to give her whatever she needed to be happy again. “I guess we are.”
Eleven
In the days that followed the revelations that Grant would never consider taking their relationship any further, Harley channeled all her energy into Zest. To her chagrin, now that she wasn’t spending any time in Grant’s distracting company, her productivity had increased tenfold. How much more could she have accomplished if she hadn’t wasted so much energy on something that could never be?
“I’ve been thinking that it might be time to shift my focus to Dallas and pursue donors there full-time,” Harley said, eyeing her best friend to see how Jaymes would react to her plan.
“Are you sure you don’t want to take Grant up on his offer of the funding and give him the partial custody of Daniel that he wants?” Jaymes asked the question patiently, despite having already discussed the sore subject with Harley several times in the last week.
She’d come back to Royal to shore up Zest’s finances and she’d been foolish enough to think she’d succeeded when Grant had offered to back her nonprofit. That he’d done it to guilt her into staying in Royal felt like a huge betrayal. Add to that his decision to pursue a legal claim to Daniel and Harley was regretting that she’d ever come back to Royal.
“You know how much I hate being bullied.”
Harley dug her nails into her palms to stop the tears that threatened. She knew it would be easier for Grant if she and Daniel remained in Texas, but at the moment, she wasn’t feeling particularly open to making things easier for him.
“I know you think that the best thing for Daniel is for him to spend as much time with Grant as possible,” Harley continued. “But the work I’m doing in Thailand is very important as well and I can’t bear the thought of leaving Daniel behind while I’m halfway around the world.”