“Hey yourself.” Her heart beat rapidly, and nervous sweat dampened her palms. This could be it. This could be the moment that decided if there was any possibility of them having a future together. “It's been a while.”
“Yeah.” He removed his sunglasses. “I'm sorry about that. I needed some time to think.”
Brynn nodded, not trusting herself to speak. She could too easily start yelling like she had done at the hospital, outraged and hurt as she was by the unfairness which had plagued them for years. Yelling hadn't helped their situation then and it could drive him even further away now.
“This came a few days ago.” He handed her the envelope. “Sheriff Clarkson had a friend in the city's crime lab put a rush on it.”
Brynn looked at the envelope, her heart going into overdrive as she realized what she held in her hands. She was surprised to find it still sealed. “You didn't look?”
“No, I didn't. There are some things that need to be clarified before that envelope is opened.”
Brynn looked at him, unsure of what to say. She studied his face and posture, to get a read on him, but he gave nothing away. “I told you everything about that night. I don't know what else to say.”
Adam smiled, confusing her even more. “I talked to my mother, listened to her side of things, and I spoke to some very wise men I know and one very opinionated woman whom you used to baby-sit, and they've made me see some things I wasn't allowing myself to see before.”
“Such as?” Brynn prompted, hope flaring to life inside her chest.
“That I am not perfect and the one woman who truly loved me never expected me to be. And, that I am in love with a very strong woman who can fight her own battles and take a licking and keep right on ticking.” His smile faded. “And, that bad things happen and sometimes we just don't see them in time to stop them from happening.”
“I've been telling you this from day one,” Brynn couldn't refrain from pointing out.
“Yeah, well, it must have taken getting hit by a crazy woman with a rock for it all to soak in,” Adam replied with a shrug. “That, and having another crazy woman accost me in a hospital.”
Brynn smiled. “Well, if that's all it took I should have accosted you sooner.”
“No, Brynn, I had to take some time to myself to really see things. I talked to my mother, and the more she ranted, the more I realized I was doing the same thing as her.” He shook his head. “She blamed women for the bad things Zeke did. She blamed me for ruining the family name. And, I blamed myself, but nobody blamed Zeke.”
Adam licked his lips, gave her a look so full of remorse he heart ached for him. “I'll always feel some guilt because of the way everything went down, but when I really analyze it, Cal could have dealt with his feelings for me another way and Zeke could have just come out and told me the way he felt. I'll always wish I'd done something to prevent what happened that night, but I have to accept the fact that I just didn't know.”
He straightened and faced her directly with admiration reflected in his blue eyes. “If you can deal with what happened to you that night and use your experience to help others, then I can get over not being your hero.”
“You'll always be my hero,” Brynn whispered, holding back tears of joy. “I just want to move past that night.”
“Well, then, there's one more order of business,” Adam stated. “Where's Nathaniel?”
“Right here.” Nate stepped out onto the porch from where he'd been standing behind the living room door.
“Boy, we are going to talk about this sneaking up on people and eavesdropping while they're having private conversations thing.” Brynn fought the urge to smile in response to Nate's red-faced, unapologetic grin.
“It's all right.” Adam grinned as he turned toward Nate. “This involves him, too. I have a question to ask and it's a southern custom to go through the man of the house which in this case, is you, Nate.”
Nathaniel looked between the two of them, his eyebrows drew together in confusion. “Oh-kay. What's up?”
“First off, no matter how you respond to this question or what it says in that envelope, I want you to know that you are my blood and I'm sorry the beginning of your life was so messed up. I vow to be here for you no matter what as your father, your uncle, or your friend. You can depend on me for that. And…” He reached out for Brynn's hand, looking her in the eyes “As the man of the house, I'd like to ask your permission to marry your mother and make a home for the three of us.”
Brynn's knees buckled, and she grabbed the railing to keep from falling down as her heart leaped to her throat.
“You won't leave her?” Nathaniel’s tone was deadly serious.
“Not even at gunpoint,” Adam answered.
Nate looked at Adam long and hard, then glanced at Brynn with a smile. “Well, seeing as how the woman of the house would beat me with a stick if I answered otherwise, I'll say yes.”
Brynn fought back tears as she kissed her son's forehead, and then took Adam's face in her hands to kiss his smiling mouth. “I love you both so much.”
Adam kissed her hand, taking the envelope out of her grasp to pass to Nathaniel. “This is yours, Nathaniel. I personally don't care what the results of the paternity test are. As far as I'm concerned, you are my son and will be loved and treated as such, but you have a right to know the biological truth should you want to.”
Brynn's breath caught in her throat as she shared a look with her son. Curiosity ate away at them. For thirteen years she'd wondered, and she knew Nate had wondered non-stop since he'd learned the truth, so it was no surprise when he opened the seal and reached inside the envelope.
Adam's hand gripped hers tightly, and she could only imagine what was going through his mind as he waited to hear the results and how bad of a blow it would be to him if it turned out that Zeke had fathered Nathaniel.
“I don't want to know.” Nate suddenly jerked his hand away from the paper he'd begun to pull from the envelope. “I mean, I thought I did but if it was the guy who…I just would rather not know.” He handed the envelope back to Adam.
“It's all right.” Adam smiled, relief evident in his voice. “If you change your mind, that's fine, too. It's your decision.”
The two men looked at each other, nodding their heads in a silent understanding, emotions flooding their eyes so richly Brynn thought she'd drown in the intensity.
“Okay, my mother will be back soon.” Brynn broke the silence as she grabbed the envelope. “Why don't we go get lunch ready and plan how we're going to tell her the big news?”
Nate and Adam agreed and followed her into the house. She left the envelope on a side table in the living room as they entered the kitchen to figure out what to eat, taking their minds off of the dreaded paternity test results.
They worked as a team, Nate preparing salads while Adam helped her chop vegetables to stir into the pasta. By the time Linda Harlow arrived home, they were laughing and joking together like a normal family, and the sight of Adam and Nate getting along so well brought tears to Brynn's eyes.
“The paternity test results came,” exclaimed Linda from the living room, breaking the three out of their reverie. They glanced at each other, horror-stricken before dropping what they held in their hands and running toward Linda, but, by the time they reached her, the paper was out of the envelope and in Linda's hands.
They came to an abrupt stop, slack-jawed as Linda silently read the paper and froze. It seemed as though hours passed between that moment and the moment she let out a loud shout of glee. “I told you Adam was this boy's father! They have the same face.” Linda grinned smugly, looking between the three of them. “I told you. A grandmother is always right.”
Adam and Nathaniel turned to look at each other, the moment seeming to play out in slow motion and as they each smiled in evident relief as tears cascaded down Brynn's cheeks.
“Brynn?” Adam rushed to her side, drying the tears with his thumbs. “Brynn, baby, what's wrong?”
>
“He's yours,” she whispered. “He's always been yours and for thirteen years I—”
“Shush, Brynn,” Adam ordered. “That doesn't matter. The past is gone, and we can't blame ourselves. You helped teach me that. We have now.”
She looked past him to where her mother and son were standing together, nodding at her with big smiles plastered on their faces.
“We have now,” she repeated.
“That's right, baby.” Adam laughed as he kissed her and wrapped her in his arms. “We have now and forever. Nothing will ever separate us again.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Crystal-Rain Love resides in the south with her three children and a multitude of pets. She enjoys hiking, writing, reading, and spending time with her children. To learn more about Rain, follow her at www.facebook.com/crystalrainauthor
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