The shuttle arrived and I lifted both of my bags back into my grip and stepped inside the bus. From the window, I waved goodbye to my friends and hoped that some time away from Wellington University was the reset that I needed.
Chapter Sixteen – Ford
The plane bobbed in the air as it hit another wave of turbulence. I supposed that I deserved the horrendous flight after the way that I left things with Jolee. She had been right on all accounts. Right about me and right about Hastings.
Of course, Jolee was always right. I kind of loved that about her. And God, how I loved her. It took her walking away from me to realize that. But even then, I had been too stupid to do anything about it.
Looking off into the clouds surrounding the plane, I thought back to how everything led me to this moment.
I met with the reporter after Brent sent me a meeting place. A shrewd looking woman had waited in a black sedan as if we were going to exchange drugs and money, not throw Hastings to the wolves. I leaned into the car, the documents, emails, and pictures burning a hole through my clothes, and asked her why she wanted the assignment. I gave her credit for not lying. She told me that she had an act of revenge against Hastings herself. She wasn’t interested in the politics and outrage that the article was going to cause, but she wanted vindication for her daughter.
I stood there listening to her explain her intentions of hiding our family name in the article, but I had an inkling that her editor would ask to disclose that information. She was placating me to get her information, but something held me back. That revenge I had felt for so long morphed into something else, something akin to protection. I needed to defend and guard my family against my father.
When I declined the reporter’s offer, she was shocked at first and tried to persuade me once more, but ended up slipping me her card in case I changed my mind. I had no preconceived notions that this was the last time she or any reporter would approach me. Word would get out that I had information related to my father – the kind of dirt that would sell papers and magazines.
I walked back to my car and called Brent, explaining that I was grateful for the information he found, but that I couldn’t go through with it. When he asked me why, I told him that the girl in the pictures had changed everything.
Instead of driving to my apartment, I drove toward Tracy’s house knowing that it was early on a Saturday and Tyler would still be home. I needed to unload it all and figure out what my next steps were.
Tracy was in the kitchen making breakfast for her and Tyler when I walked into the house. I had texted my other brothers when I parked my car, hoping that they would arrive soon too.
“Hi, honey. This is an unexpected visit.”
“Yeah, sorry I came unannounced,” I told her as I kissed her cheek then moved to the table beside Tyler, dropping my bag on the table.
“You know that I’m always happy to have you. What brings you by?”
“I wanted to speak with everyone about something. Everyone else should be here soon.”
“Okay. Can I make you something to eat while you wait?”
The thought of eating made me nauseous. I needed to get everything off my chest before I’d be able to taste anything real again.
It wasn’t much longer when my brothers arrived, gladly accepting Tracy’s offer for breakfast. They stared at me over their plates as they shoveled in the home-cooked meal while I stared blankly at the manila envelope I placed on the table. When Tracy took her seat next to mine, I unleashed everything.
I explained what I had been doing all these years, why I had seemed so distant, and why I never felt like I belonged in a happy home if my mother was taken away because of me. I showed them the documents I had about Tyler’s parents, about the blackmails against law enforcement and the court system, and finally all the details about my mother.
The silence that had filled the room was deafening. I wanted someone to speak up, to ask questions, to do something. But everyone except Tracy sat through my ten-minute spiel with forks dangling halfway to their mouths.
“Let me get this straight,” Archer asked, finally breaking the silence. “You have proof your father did all of those things? Like hard evidence?”
“Yes. And I don’t know what to do.”
“Dude, how could you keep this from us? We’re your family.”
“I’m so fucking disappointed in you, Ford. We could have been there for you through all of this.”
“What were you thinking, man?”
Beside me, Tyler hadn’t moved or said much and I wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad thing. I glanced over at him and caught his eye.
“I’m sorry, Tyler.”
“I’m still processing, man. But it’s not your fault. I know that much. And. . .ugh. . .thank you for not going to the press with this.”
Then it hit me how right Jolee had been. I had been so focused on righting all of the wrongs within my arm’s reach that I couldn’t see the destruction that would have been left in its wake. My body jolted at the realization that I needed to go to her – like being struck by lightning.
“I need to go,” I exclaimed as I stood from my chair, the wooden legs scraping against the hardwood floors.
“Where are you going?” Tracy asked as I began sifting through the documentation.
“I made a mistake and I need to fix it.”
“Oh, my boy. You didn’t mess things up with that nice girl, did you?”
“Of course, I did. I always mess things up. She’s the one that said I shouldn’t have met with that reporter to begin with, and you see how well I listened?”
“She’s a smart one. I liked her. You better fix this.”
“I’m trying, but she’s on her way home,” I explained as I set a pile of papers in front of her.
“Where is home?” Tracy asked and Link chimed in with a laugh, “Alaska.”
“Oh dear, Alaska? Well, you better go get my wallet, can’t have you making that trip in coach.”
“What?” I asked, completely confused at what was happening, and before I knew it, Tyler had handed Tracy her purse while Rylan had retrieved her laptop from the desk in the kitchen.
“Now, what part of Alaska?” She directed her question to Link, who informed her that Jolee lived outside of Anchorage. It began to irk me that he knew so much about the woman I was in love with.
“Okay, I have you booked on a flight leaving in three hours. You won’t have time to pack any clothes, but I’m sure they have nice stores there. I had the boarding passes sent to your phone,” she said just as my phone chimed in my pocket.
“Tracy, I-”
“As a mother, any kind of mother, we want to see our children happy. There was no denying that when she came into your life, you changed for the better. Now, be on your way.”
I wasn’t sure what to say or how to react, so I did the one thing I knew would mean the most to her. I walked around and wrapped my arms around her shoulders tightly. “Thank you, Mom.”
“Oh. . .well. . .you’re welcome.”
Before leaving, I explained that I wanted to see if we could get my mom released from the facility. Tracy took the paperwork I handed her and said she would head there the moment I left.
Everyone began piling out of the house, including Tyler, who walked with me to my car. I was waiting for the outburst, the anger, the resentment, but he showed none of them.
“You know I didn’t want to tell you,” I made clear as we stood by my car.
“Yeah, I still need to process everything.”
“It’s okay to be mad at me. I get it.”
“It may take me a while to wrap my head around everything. Just. . .be there for me, okay?” He reminded me so much of the little boy they had brought in the month after the accident. His grandparents could no longer handle his outbursts and Tracy was given temporary custody. He had taken a long time to warm to everyone.
“I will.”
The plane jerked as its tires landed on the ta
rmac. I glanced out the window and the sun was shining brightly even though I knew this time of the year they only got a couple of hours of daylight.
Nervousness enveloped me as I exited the plane. What if she didn’t want to see me? What if she told me to leave? I wasn’t prepared for any of those scenarios. I wasn’t even sure I knew exactly where she lived.
On my way to the airport this morning, Link had texted me her address listed in the computer database. I didn’t want to know how many rules he broke to get that information.
I was still in shock at how easily my brothers had accepted everything that I told them this morning. While I was away, they were going to brainstorm a way to take down my father.
Near the parking area, I flagged down a taxi and read him the address Link had provided. There was still an hour to go before we reached my destination.
I messaged Link again, gave him the details of my journey, and asked if Tracy had made any ground on getting my mother released. My mom was going to be flabbergasted if she was set free and I wish that I was there for the moment. But I knew Tracy would make her feel at home.
I watched the large city give way to suburban developments and then that give way to fields and trees. During the journey, the taxi driver pointed out some moose that were gathered by a frozen lake. For some reason, I had imagined Alaska as this snowy, iced-over state covered in mountains. Instead, I’m rewarded with lush fields and large bustling cities. I was never that kid that paid much attention in geography class, far more interested in the geometry and calculus.
“We’re about twenty-five minutes away.” The driver peered over the back seat as he spoke. “What brings you our way?”
With a heavy sigh, I said, “A girl.”
“Must be some girl.”
And for the first time in more days than I could count, I smiled, because she wasn’t just some girl – she was everything.
Another ping sounded from my phone and I found a message from Link with a newspaper article web address. That smile I had been wearing drained from my face with the rest of my coloring. I was scared to open it, fearful of what I would see. Did the reporter gather enough information to publish the article on her own?
Link sent another message telling me to read it.
I held my breath as I clicked the URL, worried that I had made this voyage to Alaska for nothing. In bold, bright red letters the headline read:
SENATOR HASTINGS DIES OF HEART ATTACK
Immediately I dialed Link’s number and asked him if the article was real, that Hastings had indeed passed away overnight from a heart attack when he was with another one of his mistresses. Based on the timing, he must have snuck away after my visit. He wasted no time in confirming the information and that various news sources were running the story.
It made the moment the taxi driver pulled into the driveway of a small brick house that much sweeter. I tossed the cash that Tracy had handed me on my way out this morning to the driver and asked him to sit tight for a few minutes. If Jolee wasn’t going to see me, I was going to need a ride to the closest hotel. But I hoped that she would at least hear me out.
I knocked on the front door, rocking back and forth on my feet in nervous anticipation. After a minute passed, I knocked again. It hadn’t occurred to me that she might not be home.
“Fuck,” I mumbled as I knocked on the door one last time, ringing the doorbell as well once I found it tucked behind a plant on the porch.
That’s when I finally heard feet pounding against the floors inside.
Oh, God, this was it. I was more nervous now than I had been in my entire life.
The door opened just a crack at first and my name was a confused whisper coming from her lips, then she opened the door wide. And I knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that I was in love with this woman. My heart raced as I took her in, the bare skin of her toes to the long blonde tips of her hair. I wanted nothing more than to grab her right then and never let her go, but I knew that she would define my next move.
“What are you doing here?” she asked, the hint of an oncoming sob evident as her voice hitched.
“I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t give it to the reporter. You were right that my family didn’t deserve it. Instead, I told my brothers everything.”
“Oh, Ford.” She sounded relieved as her body relaxed against the door. “I’m really happy to hear that.”
“My father died. Last night with his mistress,” I informed her as I took out my phone and flipped it around for her to see the article that I still had pulled up.
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Don’t be, I’m not. That bastard deserved a far worse death than what he got. It also means that, with Tracy’s help, my mother is free. That’s all I wanted for so long, until now.” I turned and held up a finger to the taxi driver to ask him to continue waiting as I stepped into Jolee’s home, hoping that she wouldn’t throw me out. “I came all this way not to tell you that I realized you were right or to beg you to come back to Wellington with me, but because I needed you to know that I’m in love with you.”
“What?” she murmured, tears materializing along her lower lids.
Reaching a hand up to touch her cheek, I caressed the soft skin as I repeated, “I love you, Jolee Ward. You make me want to be the man that you deserve.”
A watery smile grew on her lips just before she launched herself at me. I caught her easily, just as I always would. “I love you too, Ford.
“When I arrived this morning, everything felt wrong. This isn’t my home anymore; all that is left here are bad memories. I want to be with you. I was on the phone trying to get a ride to the airport to go back to Boston.”
“You were coming back to me?”
“Yeah, I was,” she replied as she pulled back to look up at me.
“God, I love you,” I told her before I kissed her lips with everything that I had. All of the love I felt bursting inside.
A few minutes passed where Jolee and I were attached at the mouth and if it weren’t for the taxi driver honking at us, I probably would have stripped her bare right then and there.
“Get your things. You’re coming back with me.”
“Sir, yes, sir.” She fake saluted me, which earned her a smack on her perfect ass. Pulling away, Jolee turned around to put her socks and boots on which had been resting against the wall. Her small piece of luggage and a bag was perched as if she was preparing to leave.
“Do you need to say goodbye to your parents?”
“I’ll call them. They weren’t going to be home anyway.”
“Ready?” I asked her as I grabbed her suitcase and held out my hand for hers.
“Yes, more than ready.”
Jolee sat next to me on the small couch as I watched my grown brothers tear into their Christmas gifts like a gathering of kindergarteners. Wrapping paper and bows were flying in all directions around the room. I hadn’t touched a single one because I had everything I wanted sitting next to me.
“Will you open your darn gifts already?” Jolee said as she lightly smacked my arm and I rubbed it as if it had wounded me.
“I don’t need any gifts.”
“Well, maybe I want to watch you open them. Please?” she asked and I couldn’t bear to tell her no. Her parents hadn’t even called to wish her a Merry Christmas; they barely acknowledged her voicemail that she had returned to Boston. But Jolee wasn’t letting any of that get her down. She seemed elated to spend the holiday with Tracy and my family. Last night she had told me that she had never had a big celebration and was excited to witness it.
We had been staying at Jolee’s apartment since we arrived because none of her roommates were home, but I had already started looking at a place for both of us, even if we wouldn’t be able to move in until summer. And since I was graduating this year, I needed to start researching jobs, at least until Jolee could open up her rescue. I planned to work beside her for the rest of my days.
Across from us, Meredith and Na
than sat together on the hearth in front of the fireplace. Her release hadn’t happened immediately like I had hoped, but with my father’s passing and the information that I had, the courts released my mother from the facility a few days later. She looked happier than I had seen my entire life. Meredith had seen the paperwork I had left with Tracy, and at first, she was angry, but the moment she was released from that building, she had let it all go. Like the sun had cleansed her of her anger and hate.
Women from all over the country had started coming out of the woodwork with their own stories against Hastings. At first, I felt terrible for his wife, children, and grandchildren, but from some of the articles I had seen, they weren’t all that surprised. The country was turning against his memory faster than an ice cube melting in a flame. I asked Meredith if she planned on coming forward, but she smiled and told me that she was perfectly content with how things had turned out. As long as I was alive and thriving, she never needed to bring more despair to his family.
Right now my mother was staying with Tracy until she could figure out her next move, but I hoped that she and Nathan would find the love that I felt for Jolee, if they hadn’t already.
With another push from Jolee, I moved to the floor to sift through my gifts. I wasn’t as enthusiastic as my brothers, but it was fun to tear through the wrapping paper. Once we had opened all of the presents, I grabbed all of the discarded paper and carried it to the garage, but I did it under false pretenses.
With Tracy’s help, I had a gift for Jolee that I knew she’d love.
“Come on, buddy,” I said to the black and white Border Collie mix missing an eye. It was one of the puppies from the shelter that Jolee had always given a bit of extra love, and when I called yesterday morning, the puppy was still available. Tracy went to pick him up and grabbed a bunch of supplies. “Are you ready to meet your mommy?”
Of Boys And Men: An Enemies to Lovers, New Adult College Romance (Ridge Rogues Book 1) Page 18