by Reese Ryan
Nate gritted his teeth. The muscles in his jaw tensed. “Shacking up with your sister doesn’t make him family.”
Lips pursed, Kendra narrowed her gaze. “So you’re going to go all 1950s on me? Fine. They’re engaged, so he will be soon. But in my book, he couldn’t be a better uncle, even if he were blood.”
“From what I hear, he hasn’t always been so good to his blood brother, either.” He huffed, hating that he’d revealed his hand.
Now she’d know he’d talked to his brother Mitchell, who worked as Liam’s next in command at Pleasure Cove Luxury Resort—one of the many resort properties owned by Liam’s family.
What he hadn’t gleaned from Mitchell—or his brother hadn’t been willing to reveal—he’d learned by searching the web. Liam had sustained a feud with his brother Hunter for years over a woman Liam had dated and his brother eventually married.
Kendra stood, glowering down at him, her expression filled with disappointment. “People make mistakes, Nate. Hopefully we learn from them and eventually grow up. You should try it.”
Nate caught hold of her hand as she turned to walk away. “I’m not trying to be difficult. It’s just hard seeing Kai so excited when he talks about this guy. It feels like Liam is trying to take my place in Kai’s life.”
Kendra’s eyes glistened. She cupped his cheek. Her sweet, familiar scent soothed his anxiety, warming his chest.
“Our son is growing up, Nate. New people will constantly come into his life. No matter how much he admires or cares for them, it doesn’t mean he doesn’t love us, too.” She smiled. “You’ll always be his number one. Always.”
Nate grasped the hand on his cheek and kissed her palm. He slipped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer, pressing his ear to the thumping of her heartbeat.
“Marcus was right. You’ve always been able to talk me down off the ledge.”
She leaned down and kissed his head. “That’s why they pay me the big bucks.”
Laughter rumbled in her chest, immediately followed by a sharp intake of air. Nate glanced up at her face. The corners of her eyes were wet with tears. He pulled her onto his lap. “What’s wrong, babe?”
She shook her head and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. “Nothing, because Kai is going to be fine, right?”
“Of course he is.” He swiped her wet cheek with his thumb. “He’s a Johnston. Takes more than a couple of broken bones to take us out.”
She nodded, a nervous laugh bubbling from her pursed lips. “He’s a warrior. Like his dad.”
“There you are.” Liam stood in the doorway, his expression a mixture of guilt and relief. “Kai’s out of surgery. Everything went brilliantly. The doctor wants to see you now.”
Kendra hugged Nate, thanked Liam and headed off in search of the doctor.
Liam shifted his attention to Nate. He cleared his throat. “Again, I can’t tell you how sorry I am.”
“I know. And about earlier...” Nate sighed deeply. “I’m sorry. I’m not usually that much of an ass. I was just really worried about our son.” He extended his hand and shook Liam’s firmly. “Thank you for taking care of Kai today.”
If he couldn’t always be there for his son, it was good to know someone else who cared about him would.
Chapter 20
Kendra’s eyes fluttered open in response to the harsh sunlight filtering through Kai’s hospital room window. She repositioned herself in one of the comfy recliners and pulled the plush throw up around her neck.
It wasn’t her own bed, but the setup was remarkably comfortable. Despite her insistence that it wasn’t necessary, she was glad Liam upgraded Kai’s room to a family suite so she and Nate could both spend the night there in comfort.
She looked around. Kai was resting peacefully, unbroken limbs akimbo, in his blue-and-white-patterned hospital gown. She moved beside him and leaned down to kiss his forehead.
The door opened and Nate stepped inside carrying a pastry box and a carafe of coffee. From the delicious scent of both, there was no way either item came from the hospital cafeteria.
“That coffee smells delicious, and are those doughnuts?”
Nate popped the lid open, revealing her favorite doughnuts in the world. Maple bacon, from Lila’s Cafe. They’d met there for coffee a few times during the weeks they’d been working together.
“Thank you.” She reached into the box and grabbed one. She took a generous bite of sweet, salty perfection. The doughnut was soft and fresh. It melted in her mouth. An involuntarily murmur conveyed her satisfaction.
Nate’s eyes widened in response. He cleared his throat. “Got your favorite coffee, too.”
“A mint chocolate mocha from Lila’s?”
“You know it.”
Kendra stood on her toes and kissed his cheek. Cedar and citrus filled her nostrils as she inhaled his fresh-out-of-the-shower scent.
“Is that a maple bacon doughnut?”
Nate and Kendra both turned toward the small, groggy voice coming from their son, his eyes barely open.
Kendra dropped the remainder of the doughnut back in the box and rushed over to him. “Kai, sweetie, you’re awake. Don’t you ever scare Mommy like that again.”
“Hey, champ.” His dad sat on the opposite side of the bed and mussed his son’s hair. “Didn’t we tell you that time you fell down the steps at Nana’s that you can’t fly?”
Kai swallowed hard and nodded. “This time I wasn’t trying to fly. I just wanted to show Uncle Liam how far I could jump down after I climbed up the mountain, just like he did.”
“Honey, your uncle is an experienced mountain climber. And he didn’t just jump off the mountain. He had special equipment and training.” Kendra squeezed Kai’s hand, ignoring Nate’s frown. “So promise Mommy you won’t ever try anything like that again.”
“I promise.”
“Good.” She kissed his forehead. “How do you feel?”
“Tired and thirsty and hungry. Can I have some water and a doughnut?”
“Yes and yes.” Nate poured a small glass of water. “You want to sit up, li’l man?”
When Kai nodded, Nate picked up the remote and adjusted the bed.
“Cool. Can I play with it?”
Nate and Kendra laughed.
“It’s not a toy, honey. It’s the remote to the bed,” Kendra explained. “Tell you what, you can have your doughnut, but only after you eat a real breakfast. How about some eggs and bacon?”
Kai agreed reluctantly and she called in his breakfast order while Nate found a children’s program for him to watch on television, then showed Kai how to work the remote. When she hung up the telephone, Nate was there, frowning at her.
“You want to tell me again how Kai’s accident wasn’t Captain Awesome’s fault? He was probably bragging about his mountain climbing, BASE jumping adventures. No wonder Kai got the crazy idea to jump off the jungle gym.”
“Mommy, Daddy...”
“Just a minute, sweetie,” Kendra called over her shoulder, then turned back to Nate. “You’re being ridiculous. He’s a little boy with a vivid imagination. Just like you and your brothers were. Stop trying to make this Liam’s fault. I thought we’d squashed this yesterday.”
“But Mommy...”
“Just a sec, champ,” Nate said. He lowered his voice and turned back to her. “All I’m saying is maybe this guy is as great as everyone seems to think he is, but that doesn’t mean he knows the first thing about taking care of a kid.”
“Who does when they first have children? Liam’s never had kids before, but he’s really good with them.” Kendra pointed a finger at Nate for emphasis. “What happened with him is no different than when he fell at my mom’s or yours. Not to mention the time he got that knot on his forehead when he was with you in
Memphis.”
“You’re on TV, Daddy.”
“I know, champ. That was from yesterday,” Nate said.
“Look, there’s Mommy, too.”
Nate and Kendra both looked toward the screen. There was a picture of her and Kai at the skating rink, then another of her at the press conference.
“Sweetie, turn up the volume, please.” Kendra tried to keep her voice calm, despite the fact that her heart was beating like a jackhammer and her legs suddenly felt like jelly.
The news story raised suspicions about Kai’s injuries, painting a picture of her as either an abusive mother or a very neglectful one.
“What the hell...?”
“Don’t say bad words, Daddy.”
“Sorry.” Nate rubbed the back of his neck. “Do me a favor and turn back to the cartoons, okay?”
Kai happily complied.
Nate turned to Kendra. “Don’t panic, babe. Everything is going to be fine.”
“They’re making me look like an unfit mother.” She clenched her fists as she paced the floor, tears spilling down her cheeks. “Your ex-girlfriend did this.”
She couldn’t help her accusatory tone. Kendra knew it wasn’t fair. Nate didn’t ask for any of this.
“She must’ve had someone at the skating rink taking photos.”
“I knew she had it out for me, but I had no idea she’d stoop low enough to involve you.” He gripped her shoulders and held her gaze. “Listen to me, Kendra, I promise I’ll do whatever it takes to fix this. Everything is going to be fine. All right?”
He hugged her to his chest. Kendra pressed her face to Nate’s sweater and melted into him, hoping she could trust him, and that everything would be okay.
* * *
Nate paced the floor of his beach house, clutching his cell phone. He’d promised Kendra he would do whatever it took to make this right, and he meant it. Even if it meant dancing with the devil herself.
He forced out a slow breath, then dialed the phone.
There was a smirk in her voice when Stephanie answered. “I wondered how long it would take for you to reconsider my offer.”
Nate clenched his teeth and breathed, saying the vile things he thought of Stephanie Weiss in his head, rather than aloud.
“Look, Stephanie, I’m sorry about how things worked out between us and about what happened with your career. I discredited your story, not because I wanted to hurt you, but because you put me in a position where I had to protect my friend. But what you’re doing in retaliation is ruthless and unethical. The Stephanie Weiss I knew was ambitious, but a generally decent human being. What happened to you?”
“I got blackballed from legitimate sports networks, thanks to you.” Her tone was icy. “You made me look like a fool in front of the entire world. Don’t like it so much when the shoe is on the other foot, do you?”
“I don’t care what you say about me, but bringing my family into it... That’s low, even for you.” Nate tried to keep his voice level.
She clucked her tongue three times. “Not a smart way to talk to the person whose help I assume you’re about to request.”
He clenched his fist and willed himself to calm down. “Actually, I’m calling to help you. You want people to view you as a legitimate reporter? Start by reporting honestly. Stop creeping around taking pictures of my kid and his mother. She’s a genuinely good person and a hell of a mom. She doesn’t deserve this.”
“And I did?” Stephanie’s voice reached a high pitch. “I was sleeping in your bed three nights a week, but you chose your teammate’s reputation over mine. Now I’m supposed to feel bad for some baby mama of yours?”
He cringed at the term baby mama. “She’s my son’s mother, and yes, I expect you to behave as if you have a shred of decency.” Nate massaged his temple. “Maybe I’m not entitled to privacy, but my kid and his mom, they are.”
“You know how this works. Anyone associated with a public personality is fair game. Now, are you calling just for old times’ sake, or have you reconsidered my offer?”
Nate was silent. Appealing to her sense of decency had been a bust—though he’d put little faith in that possibility. Now he scrolled through his remaining options. Give in to her demands or beat her at her own game.
He chose the latter.
“Actually, I’m calling to make you an offer.”
“Oh?”
“Lay off me and my family or I swear to you, one day soon, you’ll be lucky to get a job at the daily gazette in Bumfuck Nowhere.”
She laughed incredulously. “You of all people, Nate, should know I don’t respond well to threats.”
“You of all people, Stephanie, should know I’m willing to protect my family by any means necessary.”
“Then I guess there’s nothing more for us to say.” Despite Stephanie’s bravado, her voice was tentative. “One day you’ll look back and wish you’d taken me up on my offer.”
“I won’t,” he said, “but I assure you that you’ll wish you’d taken me up on mine.” Nate ended the call, then dialed another number.
“This is Edge. What can I do for you, Nate?” Edgerton Mathis, a private investigator often employed by members of the Marauders, always sounded laid-back, like he was drinking a beer and smoking a blunt.
“Remember that dossier I asked you to put together on that reporter a while back?”
“The one you told me to burn because you were afraid of causing irreparable damage to her career?”
Nate swallowed. “Yeah, that’s the one. Any chance you can re-create that?”
“Maybe,” Edge said. “This have anything to do with that piece running today, implying your ex is a bad mom?”
Nate didn’t acknowledge the question. “How long will it take you to put it together?”
“Two hours.”
Nate had always suspected that a guy like Edge held on to files like this. He didn’t comment on exactly what he thought of that. “Good. You think it’s enough to discredit her?”
Edge chuckled. “What I showed you three years ago? That ain’t even the half. Been keeping tabs on this one just for the hell of it. With the way she operates, it was only a matter of time until she ended up on someone’s shit list again.”
“Good. Same as we agreed on last time?”
“Double the content, double the price.”
Nate gritted his teeth. Hell, he’d be willing to pay four times what they’d agreed on previously if it would expose Stephanie for the snake she was and help clear the rumors about Kendra. “Fine. There’s a generous bonus in it if you use your pipeline to put this info out to the media, rather than having it come from my camp.”
“Done.” There was a smile in Edge’s gritty voice. “I’ll send you a text with my account number in the Caymans. Wire half now, the rest after the news hits the airwaves. Then ding dong, the wicked witch’s career is dead.”
“I’ll wire the money as soon as I get the info.”
“One more thing,” Edge said. “My gut is telling me Weiss isn’t in this alone. If I tug on that thread, it may unravel something you aren’t prepared to deal with.”
“What do you mean?”
“The person she’s colluding with may be a teammate.” There was the clink of ice in a glass in the background. “Maybe even someone you consider a friend.”
“I don’t believe it.” Nate paced the floor. Could one of his teammates have enough malice toward him to jeopardize his career and his family? “But if it’s true...”
“It’ll be included in the story.”
Nate ended the call with Edge and poured himself a shot of whiskey. When the truth came out about Stephanie’s “reporting” methods, she’d be done. She’d be a pariah with whom no reputable news outlet would want ties.
He hadn’t resorted to this option three years ago, because despite what Stephanie had done, he’d once cared for her. He hadn’t wanted to destroy her career.
But now she’d left him no choice.
His family meant everything to him. He’d do whatever it took to protect them. Even if it meant Stephanie Weiss and her co-conspirator getting what they deserved.
Chapter 21
“Have you seen the news?” There was a lilt in Kendra’s voice that he hadn’t heard since the reports questioning her parenting abilities hit the airwaves.
“Been preparing for a trip.” Nate threw a couple days’ worth of socks and underwear in his luggage. “Why, what’s up?”
“Stephanie is all over the news. It looks like the Marauders’ personnel manager, Lee Davis, conspired with her to compromise your image, so the team wouldn’t offer you a new contract.”
“Marcus mentioned it,” he said nonchalantly. “He suspects that’s the reason the Marauders were so quick to offer me such a generous final contract.”
“She’s been tapping people’s phone lines and using a bunch of shady tactics. Plus, it looks like she’s been known to falsify sources. It’s been going on for years.”
“Hmm...” He put the phone on speaker and tossed it on the bed while he rummaged through his nightstand for a few pictures of Kai and Kendra he kept there. “Guess we won’t have to worry about her anymore.”
Kendra was silent for a moment. “Nate, you didn’t have anything to do with this, did you?”
He scratched the back of his neck. “You really want to know?”
“Did you do anything illegal or unethical to make this happen?”
“I did not.” He couldn’t vouch for Edge, but that was the beauty of working with a guy like him: plausible deniability.
“Then I don’t need to know anything else.” She paused momentarily. “I didn’t realize you were going out of town. You have another segment on the Donnie Jones show in a few days.”