Gia had seen Lou with Lexi and knew Lou was strict, but affectionate too. Gia had seen her kiss Lexi, even when the little girl's cheeks were dirty with cake or whatnot.
The love was there with her, but apparently not with Robert.
Gia knew love couldn’t be forced, but that wasn’t to say Robert had the right to treat Lexi unfairly. A bit of human decency went a long way. Robert could and would carry on feeling the way he did; there was nothing Gia could do about that. But—and it was a huge but—to make it obvious enough that a five-year-old with her head stuck in a book most of the time noticed it?
Yeah, that was out of order.
“Come on in,” Lou encouraged, her voice cheerful if still perplexed. She had a rag in her hands, and she dried her fingers. The action was nervous. The digits were dyed purple, and from the hint of vinegar in the air, Gia assumed Lou had been pickling beets.
“Thanks. I won’t be long. I need to ask him something.”
“Sure.” As Lou guided her down the navy-carpeted hall, lined with the watercolors she painted in her spare time, she kept on peering back. Obviously trying to discern why Gia was here. “Is Luke okay? He hasn’t called in a few weeks.”
“He’s fine.” Should she tell her that he was getting deployed?
Gia decided against it. It was for Luke to share, not her. He’d told his dad and not his mom for a reason.
“Oh, that’s good. I’ll call him again tonight. It’s not like him to be out of contact for long.”
Gia nodded. When they reached the office door, Lou knocked once and opened it. “Gia’s here to see you, Robert.”
“Gia? Luke’s Gia?”
“Yeah.” Lou widened the door to usher her in.
She’d never been here before. It was usually the place Luke spoke with his father before they ate dinner. It was a cold, blank canvas. White walls, a muddy brown carpet, and more of Lou’s art that tried to brighten up the dour space and failed.
Robert had an antique double-breasted desk, a matching mahogany filing cabinet, and a desk chair that belonged on a ship in a pirate captain’s quarters. A laptop purred on the desk, but the wires were hidden—they probably didn’t dare come out of captivity. The papers on the surface were neatly piled together, and the rigid orderliness was a reminder of why Luke was so goddamn neat. She’d thought it was two decades in the army, but the army had nothing on this.
Gia had the feeling this was where Robert grilled his sons. Wanting to know the nitty-gritty of their lives.
The office fit the scene. It was a perfect place for a dressing down.
She could easily see Luke sitting here in one of the two seats for guests, feeling like he was being judged by his father whose desk chair was higher, so he looked down on his visitors. She could picture his heart breaking as his father denied his daughter. She could imagine him having to control the tears that longed to fall at such cruel words spoken by a man he loved and, only God knew why, trusted.
Her heart stuttered with each visualization, and stuffing Robert’s mouth with her fist went to the top of her list of things to-do today.
In comparison, Lou was night to her husband’s day. Dressed in sloppy jeans stained with more spots of beet-purple and a tie-dye T-shirt, she looked like a hobo. Unlike Robert who seemed as if he could be in an office somewhere downtown thanks to his formal get-up of a white button-down shirt and neatly pressed trousers.
Robert’s years in the Navy were evident not only in his carriage but his regimental haircut and the stern cast to his features. If he’d demanded she salute, Gia was pretty sure she’d have obeyed.
It said a lot that Lou had knocked on his office door. Josh, a brigadier general, didn’t make Gia do that, and he was handling sensitive issues on an hourly basis. Robert was only a farmer now.
Pity filled her for the rigid life Lou must have.
“Gia? Is everything okay?” As politeness dictated, he was on his feet the instant she came to a halt in front of his desk, but as always, there was the chill of disinterest in his tone.
“No. It’s not, actually.”
Lou, who had been on the brink of closing the door, froze. “It’s Luke, isn’t it?”
“No. Well, maybe. More than anything, it’s to do with Lexi.”
“Lexi? Is she all right?”
She thought back to the last time they’d visited Josh’s parents. Before Nanna Laurie had asked after her son, she’d asked after Lexi.
Maybe Lou was as neglectful as Robert.
Stung, she bit out, “No, everything isn’t okay.”
“She’s not ill, is she?” This from Robert.
“Would you care if she was?”
It was a cruel thing to say, but the words were impossible to stem.
“Gia!” Lou gasped out. “Why would you say something terrible like that?”
“Not for fun, I can assure you.” She glared at her mother-in-law. “Something has come to my attention that makes me feel like it’s a viable question.”
“Of course we care. She’s our granddaughter!”
“Is she?” Gia glowered at the older woman. “Seems to me you’ve both been neglecting Lexi. Luke tells me that she isn’t good enough to inherit a legacy from you. Not that she needs the money, mind. We can provide that for her, but still, the thought would be nice. And the fact you’d say something like that to him, actually make such an admission… It’s my turn to ask why you’d be so cruel not only to your granddaughter but to your son.”
Lou frowned. “What are you talking about? Lexi’s in our will. Not that it’s any of your business what we leave and to whom.”
“No, it isn’t. But it is when Luke starts to question whether he’s Lexi’s father or not, whether he should be a part of her life, because of something his father says.”
“What have you been telling Luke, Robert?” Lou snapped. “This is the first I’ve heard anything.”
Knowing Luke should share the news with his mother was one thing, but needing to explain the situation was another. She disregarded her earlier preference of keeping things quiet from Lou and murmured, “Luke’s being deployed. He’s nervous. He thinks… Well, he believes he’s not coming back from this tour.”
Lou’s lips trembled as she pressed her fingers to them, and the nervous reaction caught Gia’s attention. She watched as the older woman staggered over to one of the seats in front of Robert’s desk where she clutched her hands together in a silent prayer.
“When is he going?”
“Soon.”
Lou tensed, and there was a plea to her words as she asked, “He’s too old, isn’t he, Robert?”
But there was no relief from that quarter—like that came as a surprise. “No. He has a few years left in him for a tour or two.”
“I thought we were in the safe zone,” Lou whispered, swallowing roughly. Her eyes were glassy with fear. “Why does he think he’s not coming back?”
She sounded sick at the notion, and Gia could easily comprehend why. Terror was too weak a word to describe how Gia felt at the realization Luke was being deployed, and she’d only had to live through one other tour without him. Lou had endured it all. All his tours, all the fear and worry that her son wouldn’t come back.
Gia had no doubt Lou loved her son. Like that, and for the first time, she felt an affinity for the older woman. A connection formed by loving one man and the need for him to be safe.
“I think it’s the situation. Plus the mission. He doesn’t feel positive about it.”
She blinked. “Is it a Middle East post? I thought we were pulling out of there?”
“We are,” Robert murmured, folding his arms over his chest. Gia wanted to smack him when he made no move to comfort his upset wife. “Luke’s a specialist. You know that, Louise. ”
Gia stepped over to Lou’s side, and though she was uncertain of her welcome, she pressed her hand to the older woman’s shoulder and squeezed gently. When Lou reached for her fingers and squeezed back, Gia felt th
e other woman’s concern and relief that her worry was reciprocated.
“Did you come here to ask me about that?”
“No. I could have talked to Josh if I’d needed to. I came to talk to you about Lexi.”
Lou raised a hand and rubbed at her temple. “What does Luke going have to do with Lexi and a will?”
“He wanted his inheritance to pass to her if he died on this tour.”
Lou whimpered, eyes clenching tightly shut at the notion. Luke was the baby of the family, the only one still serving. “Could he die over there, Robert?”
“There’s always a risk,” came the callous retort.
Gia glared at him. “Are you wishing it on him?”
“Of course not, but we have to face facts. He’s entering hostile territory and stepping deep into a situation that is loaded with hazards.”
“This is where he got this ‘practical’ bullshit, isn’t it? One conversation with you, and his own concerns combined with your negative mentality have turned him into a different man,” she accused. “Lexi’s getting picked on at school, and all of a sudden, it’s ‘well, she needs to get used to it.’”
Lou frowned up at her. “Who’s bullying her?”
“A brat in her class. It isn’t a problem anymore. Josh dealt with the school this morning, and we’ve pulled her out of the academy.”
Robert snapped, “That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.”
“It has nothing to do with you, Robert. You’ve made it clear that you don’t consider our daughter as important enough a member of this family to deserve Luke's inheritance, and it begs the question: why should we take your opinion into account?”
He glared at her. “Are you sure you want to get into this with me?”
“I’m here, aren’t I? I think we’ve been ignoring this subject for the last six years.”
As he took a seat in his wooden desk chair, Robert sneered at her. “You all made the choice to live in this ridiculous farce of a relationship. It’s only natural that the innocent in this, Lexi, will suffer.”
“Robert!” Lou barked. “I can’t believe you think that.”
He ignored her. “There are always consequences for our actions. In this, Lexi is suffering because you’re disrespecting society’s customs.”
“I’m sorry we offend you.”
“No, you’re not. If you were, you wouldn’t be in a relationship of this nature with him.”
“I’m surprised you tolerate Josh.”
“I’m not completely antiquated. I want Luke to be happy, and Josh has always made our son content.”
“And I don’t, I suppose.”
Robert pursed his lips, but before he could answer, Lou snapped, “You know full well Luke has never been happier. Ever since they had Lexi, things have been great with him. He was always a sad boy. Emotional. Gia, once you came onto the scene, he’s seemed so much more balanced.” She eyed her husband. “What have you done? What have you told Luke?”
“I said that I’d prefer for his inheritance to go to our other grandchildren.”
Lou choked. “You can’t seriously tell me that you said that to Luke?” She shook her head. “Do you know who our boy is? What the hell that must have done to him? You idiot. Are you trying to get him killed over there?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. It’s a goddamn insurgent who will do that, not me.”
Lou shuddered. “You coldhearted bastard.”
“I’m a realist, Louise. You know that. I say it how it is."
“Sometimes there’s no need to point it out,” Gia retorted. Her voice was calm, but she was enraged by his callousness.
“You basically told him that everything he’s been seeking for the last thirty years is worthless, you idiot,” Lou gritted out. “He’s always listened to you, and only God knows why.” She raised a shaky hand to her forehead. “I need to talk to him. Need to tell him you’re a fucking moron.”
“Language, Louise,” Robert snapped.
“Screw you. If anything happens to Luke because of this, I’ll never forgive you.”
“Don’t be melodramatic.”
“It’s the God’s honest truth.” She sneered at him with a ferocity that beat the sneer he’d aimed at Gia moments ago. “Any legacy the children get is from me. From my mother’s trust fund.” She looked at Gia. “Lexi will be provided for; you need never fear that. He had no right to say anything to the contrary. Luke should have come to me about it, but I’ve always let Robert handle the finances.”
Gia gritted her teeth. “It’s the principle, Lou. We don’t need the money.”
“Since when? You’re from the East Central area of Austin. You rely on my son and his partner for financial support."
“That’s where you’re wrong.” She stared him down, hoping he felt frostbite at the ice of her disdain. “I have my own means of support. All legal and aboveboard and absolutely nothing to do with you.” Gia sniffed.
She’d have loved to say she’d had a New York Times bestselling book last year, but the content of her stories would have detracted from her success. Not to her but to this man. After today, after what she’d learned about him, Gia refused to let him judge her anymore. Yes, she’d lived in East Central for a while, but that didn’t define her. She was no longer that person, thanks to this bastard’s wonderful son and Josh.
“The money isn’t the issue, but the intolerance behind it is. Are you both treating Lexi differently from the rest of your grandkids? I mean, she told me some things you do, and it sounds like it to me.”
Lou gasped. “Of course not! I have to be strict with her when she’s here, because she’d never stop reading if I weren’t.”
Well, that would explain why she didn’t like it here. Being denied access to her books would not please Lexi, never mind Robert’s behavior.
“When all the grandkids are here, I want her to play with them. They don’t live near one another, but I still want them to be close.”
“Maybe she reads because she knows she isn’t welcome here. You know how perceptive she is. She already said that if she gives you a picture she painted, Robert puts it down, but Jerry’s will go on the fridge. She says you never let her sit on your knee. That you’re not nice to her.”
Lou gawked at her husband, then looked to Gia. “I swear to you, I didn’t know. When Lexi’s here, so is the rest of the family, and it’s always chaotic. If I’d noticed, I’d have taken him to task.”
Despite herself, Gia believed her. She nodded. Once. That seemed to be enough to take some of the tension from Lou’s shoulders.
“I’m throwing this out here that if I hear anything like this again, I won’t bring Lexi here anymore.” Gia pursed her lips, eying Robert and sensing that her words weren’t affecting him at all. God, she wanted to shake him. Instead, she turned to her mother-in-law and murmured, “You’re welcome to visit us, Lou. But I won’t have her made to suffer this mean man’s presence.”
“And I don’t blame you. I’m ashamed of you, Robert. How, no, why would you be cruel to her?”
“She’s a cuckoo in the nest, Louise. How can you not see that?”
“She’s Luke’s daughter.”
“No, she’s Josh’s.” He slammed his fist down against the desk, knocking his papers out of alignment.
“Luke is her father. Do you hear me?”
He firmed his mouth, and Gia knew Lou’s words were flowing over the top of his head.
“Apparently I was right to come here and discuss this. The cuckoo in the nest won’t bother you again, Robert. Neither will I, and I’m sure once I share all this with Luke, he won’t either.”
At that, Robert sat up. “Don’t you dare turn my son against me.”
“I’m not doing a damned thing. It’s you who’s to blame. Your actions will turn him against you. I’ve had nothing to do with it. Your words and your behavior are the cause. Not me.”
He gritted out, “Luke is my son. I love him, and he knows that.”
“I know… Maybe if you say it enough, then it will remind you that’s the truth.” She huffed as a thought occurred to her. “This isn’t the first time you’ve mentioned this, is it? But it’s the first time he’s let it hit home. He wants a child of his own, and I don’t blame him; of course I don’t. He's a great dad, and any children we have will be lucky to have him as a father. But you’re the reason why, aren’t you? Lexi’s not good enough for you, and subconsciously, she’s not good enough for Luke.”
The words made her choke, but she realized that was the case.
“You’ve turned your own son against his child,” Lou whispered, aghast. “How could you do that? Why would you do that?”
Robert sat frozen in his chair.
“Because he’s twisted, that’s why.” She flung her hand out, physically underlining her point. “You do realize he’s been thinking about leaving us.”
“Breaking up?” Lou choked out. “Oh, my God, you can’t be serious.”
Gia nodded. “Yeah. I’m serious.”
“You've made him doubt the only relationship that has ever given him any peace. You know how hard it was for him to come out. Damn you, Robert Gray. God, I can’t stand to be in the same room as you, you snob.”
Gia watched as the two stared at each other, a silent argument passing between them. No words were necessary because every now and then, they would firm their mouths or jerk their chins forward.
Discomfited, wishing they were yelling down the house rather than simply glaring at each other, she inserted, “Now that I’ve made my point, I’m leaving. I won’t tarnish your lovely home with my presence.”
That broke the silent argument. Lou jumped up and grabbed her hand. “Please, don’t be silly. I’ll make this right. I want Lexi to know her family.”
“How can I let her be here when I know he’ll treat her differently? She’s a little girl. She doesn’t deserve this.”
“No, she doesn’t, and I’ll make sure to skin his hide if I see him treating her cruelly. He’s not a bad man, Gia. He’s old-fashioned. That’s all.”
“Yeah, well, it’s a modern world. He needs to get with the times.” She rubbed the back of her neck. “I’ll think about it.”
The Luck of Love_Happily Ever Menage Page 8