“And then, when you reached out to me this year I thought maybe time would’ve eased your opinion. Maybe you could see I’d changed. That I was worthy.” He lifted their hands and kissed her knuckles. “I hoped we’d have a chance. But then, we met for drinks and I figured that was never going to happen.”
It was a good thing he lightened the mood because she was about to explode with joy, learning he’d wanted her all along. Just like she’d always wanted him. She hiccupped a sob and smiled. “You pissed me off royally that night.”
Rubbing away her tear, he cupped her cheek. “And I’m sure I’ll piss you off many more times before I’m laid to rest.”
She sucked in a shaky breath. “I know you will.”
He laughed, but his eyes were so loving. “I want the chance to make things right every time. I’ve always loved you. I ruined so much because I was selfish and scared, then full of self-loathing. But you’ve given me another chance. You’ve given me life. And as much as I love our son, if he’d never been in the picture, I’d want to be right here, fighting for you.”
“What are you saying?” she asked, hope pounding in her chest.
“I’m moving to Austin . . . for good.” He searched her eyes, as if looking for something. Did the foolish man think she’d fight on this?
“I gave my notice to MSF. I’ll find something here, eventually. I’ll set up my own practice or something. There’s no rush. I want to spend as much time with Wes as I can before he goes off to school.”
“I think that’s a good idea. He’ll like that.”
He leaned in and gave her a light kiss. “But more than anything, I want to be with you. I’ve made so many mistakes, lost so much time. But that’s done now. I won’t let you go. I love you.”
This time, she didn’t fight the joy rushing through her, washing away the doubts and fears. God, it felt so good to let all that shit go. Tears welled in her eyes, but she didn’t wipe them away. She didn’t care if Trey saw them. They reflected her happiness. “I love you, too.”
Chapter 42
“Hurry up!” Wes yelled into Sue’s room. “He’s going to be here any minute.”
“Calm down, honey.” What a joke. She was wired tight. They were going to tell Wes about their relationship tonight. She’d thought about it all day, wondering if this revelation would send him running back to Mimi’s. Once again, his mother had kept the truth from him. Trey had assured her that wouldn’t be the case, but she wasn’t so confident. She’d had to repaint her nails twice already, and Lily had lost another square inch of hair.
She brushed on more blush. Shit. Raggedy Ann would’ve been pleased. She rubbed off as much as she could with a tissue.
“We’re going to be late, Mom. He made reservations.”
One more lesson to teach her son. Never rush a woman when she’s running late. And why was Wes so nervous anyway?
“Come in here and let me see what you’re wearing.” He walked into her bathroom, and she caught his reflection in the mirror. “Oh!” She spun around. “You look so handsome.” The jacket he’d worn to Kate’s wedding just months ago still fit, even though it was snugger in the shoulders. There was no tie, but no biggy. It was Austin. He’d worn his best button-down, and the gray showed off his blue eyes. “Look at you.” She straightened his collar. “You’re going to have the girls lined up. Just don’t break their hearts.”
He blushed and pulled away, then pointed to her robe. “Get dressed, okay?”
“Just a minute.” She looked him over, head to toe. “You look like your dad.”
Wow. She’d never compared Wes to Trey, at least out loud. And to use the term “dad” threw them both. It was true, but it was definitely strange to hear the expression. Wes seemed just as surprised. “It’s weird to hear you say that.”
“Trust me, it’s weird to say.” She studied him. “Are you okay with that?”
He shrugged. “He is my dad. I mean, biologically.” She searched his face. Despite his best effort, she could see something was bothering him.
“What’s going on with you?” He wouldn’t look at her. “Wes.” When he finally lifted his face, guilt filled his eyes. “Tell me.”
“Are you okay with him staying in Austin?” Trey had told Wes his plans, that part at least. She had supported his decision wholeheartedly, hoping things would go better if the news bombs were spread out.
“Yes.” Hell, she was thrilled.
“But you didn’t want him here in the beginning.” He looked so full of concern. Such a thoughtful boy. Man.
“Come here.” She pulled him into her bedroom, stuffing that silly quilt under her pillow before he noticed it. Patting the bed, she sat down and he followed. “When your dad came back, I didn’t want him here. I didn’t want you to get hurt. And as pathetic and as immature as it is, I was jealous that you would want him more than me.”
Wes turned away, but she grabbed his chin. “Look at me.” He did, reluctantly. “But that’s before I saw how he is with you. How he treats you.”
She pushed one of his wild waves into somewhat of an order. “Trey’s a different man than he was seventeen years ago. I know he would never hurt you.” She tried to contain the love she felt for the man, and calmly said, “And we’ve worked through our history. We get along, now.” Oh, how we get along. “I’m glad he’s staying in Austin.”
A smile illuminated his face. “You’re really okay with this?”
“Yes.” All she could do was smile. If she said another word, she’d let the cat out of the bag, and she wanted to do that with Trey. Call her a chickenshit, but she was depending on Trey to help absorb Wes’s reaction. Hopefully, it wouldn’t be too horrible. “Now, let me get dressed.”
Wes headed out to the hallway but stopped and turned. “Thanks, Mom.”
How did she get such a good kid? “I love you. Don’t ever forget that.” Especially later tonight.
* * *
As the maître d’ led them to their table, Trey leaned in and squeezed Sue’s hand. “Take a breath, baby. You’re stiff as a rock.” She jerked her hand away and discreetly shook her head. He was nervous, too, but he hated to see her like this. “It’ll be okay.”
As he seated her, the maître d’ smiled at Trey. “You have a very handsome family.” Wes’s head jerked up, and Sue’s eyes almost bugged out of her head, but his chest filled with pride.
“Thank you.” He watched Wes’s cheeks turn red. The boy swung around to check out his mom, but she was studying the tablecloth as if she were in charge of quality assurance at the linen factory. Just before the maître d’ walked away, she looked up and clawed his arm. “Can I get a Ketel One martini, straight up? Right away, please.”
That was it. They had to tell Wes now, or she would either end up drunk or stroking out before they ordered dinner. “Wes, I want . . . we want to—”
“Let’s get you guys some drinks,” she blurted. “Wes, you want a drink, right? I mean, non-alcoholic. What do you say, one of those virgin strawberry daiquiri drinks? A smoothie? Maybe a Coke and cherry? I’m sure they can make up all kinds of concoctions. Do you want an appetizer? Let’s get an app—”
“What is up with you?” Wes looked at her as if she were on drugs.
“Nothing! Nothing.” She shook her head, but her eyes were popping with fear. “Why would you even ask that?”
A waiter arrived. “Ketel One martini?”
“Right here.” She grabbed the glass before it reached the table. A long drink followed, she winced, then took a smaller sip.
The waiter took Wes’s and Trey’s drink orders and nodded nonjudgmentally when Sue told him to bring her another. She was as strong as they made them, but when it came to her boy, her heart was so tender.
“Take a breath.” Trey reached over and slid her glass to his side of the table. “Why don’t you hold up until we get our drinks?”
“Seriously, Mom.” Wes shook his head. “Should we call AA?”
Trey patted his
son on the shoulder. “Give your mom a break. We have something to tell you, and she’s a little nervous.” The mood of the table instantly changed. He wasn’t sure who looked more concerned, Sue or Wes. Made him think of a Western, with everyone switching glances between one another. Enough.
“Your mother and I . . . things have . . .” He looked over at her. She’d broken out in a cold sweat. Damn, who were the adults here? “We’re seeing each other. Your mom and I are together.”
“Dating,” she interjected. Why she felt the need to add that, he had no idea. Seeing each other. Dating. Whatever you call it, the cat was out. They both studied him, waiting for a reaction. Wes didn’t say a word, just wiped every drop of condensation off his water glass.
Shit. He’d fucked up. Why in the hell had he decided this was the place to tell Wes? Because you were so sure this would be a celebration. What if the news upset their son? Poor kid was stuck in public, trying to hold it together so he wouldn’t make a scene. “Listen, let’s go home, and we can talk.”
“How long?” Wes asked, looking at Sue. His tone was flat, so it was hard to tell what he was feeling. She hesitated, and Trey was ready to jump in, but she pushed back her shoulders and composed herself, at least on the outside.
“After a bad beginning,” she rolled her eyes, “very bad, Trey and I started to make peace. He was a good friend to me after you moved out.” She looked up and gave him a smile that grabbed his heart. “He helped us both more than you’ll ever know. Once you moved back in, that friendship grew stronger.”
She stopped there, and they waited for a response. Wes nodded his head, as if processing the information. No matter what his son thought, Trey wanted him to know the whole story.
“I care about your mom. I love her.” He looked into her eyes. “I always have.” He hesitated, then turned back to Wes.
Still silence, so he continued. “And now, I have chance to be with her, and I’m going to take it. I’m moving back here to be with you, but I want a life with her.” He couldn’t stop himself, even if he did embarrass mother and son, he reached across the table and grabbed her hand. She wrapped hers tightly around his.
“I love Trey.”
He knew right then, no matter how Wes reacted, he’d pull off miracles to make things right and keep this woman happy.
They waited in silence. There was nothing else to say until they knew Wes’s thoughts. Trey considered grabbing the martini and downing it. She was probably thinking the same because she squeezed his hand so tight, his fingers started tingling.
“I figured something was up,” Wes finally spoke. “Mom’s been acting so weird around you.” He shook his head. “But I never thought . . .”
Trey glanced at Sue. Her eyes were as big as his. He couldn’t wait any longer. “What are you thinking?”
Wes shrugged, then grinned. “It’s kind of cool.”
Sue’s jaw dropped. Trey let out the breath he didn’t know he was holding. He hadn’t been sure how Wes was going to react, but he’d hung on to hope that it would play out for the best. And it had. He’d received a free pass into paradise. He nodded to Wes and winked at Sue. “Yeah, it’s cool.”
Chapter 43
“What are you doing here?” Mimi asked, stepping out of Sue’s back door.
Thrown by her presence and ready for a break, Trey set down the mattock and stuffed his work gloves in his back pocket. “Figured I’d get a head start on the pond work before Wes gets home. With all this limestone, I’m starting to think this will be a Christmas gift. What brings you over?”
For the first time since he’d met her, Mimi look flustered. “Oh . . . well, I . . . have you talked to Wes or Sue today?”
“No. We planned this last night. Is something wrong?” He pulled out his phone, checking for messages. Nothing.
“No, uh . . .”
“Mimi, what’s going on?” Concern gnawed at him. He had so much in his world now. So much to lose. Was yet another shoe about to drop?
She must’ve seen his worry. “Nothing. Nothing bad. I’m sure it’ll eventually be good.”
Eventually? What the hell?
“You keep going. I’ll make some sweet tea.”
It was clear the woman wasn’t going to give him anything more. His heart was pumping now. Might as well put it to work on the damn Texas limestone.
He made a significant dent clearing the pit for the pond liner, the labor easing his tension. He paused to wipe the sweat off his face. Leave it to Texas to be hot in April, just after two days in the forties. He’d have to get used to the bipolar weather around here. In just a few months, this place had become his home. But it wasn’t the landscape or the weather. It was Sue and Wes. They were his life. And Mimi. She’d been rooting for him from the very beginning, even if she’d never admit it. Which made her behavior today even more odd.
Speaking of which, he turned when he heard her coming out, ready to find out what she was hiding. But it wasn’t Mimi on the deck. A man stood tall, probably taller than himself, eyeing him. He looked familiar, somehow, but Trey couldn’t place him. He didn’t look friendly, that’s for damn sure. He rested his hands on his hips, his wide frame made even larger with his elbows extended. Who the hell . . . Then, the man pulled off his ball cap and ran his hand through sandy hair. Catching the blue eyes, Trey figured it out.
“You must be Luke.”
The guy didn’t answer, but Trey knew he had it right. It wasn’t that he shared Sue’s genetic traits, it was the way he stood, protecting his territory. “You’re Trey.” No friendly greeting. Barely a grunt. Now Mimi’s uneasiness made sense. Thanks, Mimi. Would’ve been nice to have a heads-up.
Shame smacked Trey, looking at the man who’d help raise Wes when he didn’t have the balls. He almost looked away, reminded again about his cowardly actions, but by some miracle, he’d been given a second chance, and he couldn’t let his screwed-up decisions in the past rob him of today. He threw aside the shovel and approached Luke head on. “Trey Harrison.” He extended his hand, doubting the guy would reciprocate.
Luke studied him, let him sweat for no reason associated with the weather, then took his in a rough handshake.
“When did you get into town?” Trey couldn’t remember where the man lived but knew he hadn’t been in Austin for some time.
“This morning. Thought I’d surprise Wes when he gets home from school.” He didn’t hide his dislike of Trey. “Hear you’ve been around for a while. How long before you run this time?”
Chapter 44
Damn. The man knew where to take a shot, but Trey had kicked his own ass for too many years. Those days were over. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“Hmm.” Luke wasn’t convinced, but he hadn’t called him a lying piece of shit either. He nodded to the pit. “What are you working on?”
“Wes and I are building a koi pond for Sue, for Mother’s Day.”
“Little late to start now. You only have a few weeks, unless you’re going for a puddle.”
You’re a riot. “We’ve been on it a while. Unfortunately, we picked the one spot that’s all limestone.”
“You’ll be digging for a year if you try to do it by hand. Guess you don’t know much about Austin landscaping.”
Let me guess, you’re a pro. “You know something—”
Luke held up his hand, cutting him off while he punched a number on his cell. “Hey, Mitchell. Luke Taylor here. . . . Yeah, man. Got in today. . . . Definitely. We got a lot of catching up to do. Listen, I need a favor. Sue’s got some guy out here working in her yard, trying to install a pond.” He laughed in Trey’s face. “Yep, he’s in over his head.”
Luke Taylor was an asshole.
“Can you set me up with a jackhammer? . . . That’d be great. . . . Today’s perfect. I’ll be here for a while.” He looked up at Trey. “No, Sue’s not here, but I’ll let her know you asked about her. Maybe she can join us when we get together for that beer. . . . All right. Thanks, man. Catch you soon.�
�� He stuck his phone in his pocket and looked to Trey for a reaction.
“Sue’s not interested in setups.” Trey was pissed enough to clear the yard for an Olympic pool.
“You sure about that?”
“Positive. I know you looked out for Sue and Wes for years, and I’m grateful for that, but I’ll take it from here.”
Luke shook his head with a shitty smirk. “You’ve been here a couple of months and you know all about parenting, huh? And how are you looking out for Sue? I haven’t seen any save-the-date card.”
“We both know a proposal this soon would send her running for the hills.”
The man smiled, as if the thought pleased him. “All I know is your M.O.—run when the shit gets deep. A few months of reunion time doesn’t prove anything. Digging a hole in the ground doesn’t make a dad, a husband, or a man.”
Damn. This guy would never trust him. Too fucking bad. If he had to put up with Hard-Ass Man to have Sue, he’d gladly take his shit. But not before he set the record straight. “I fucked up. Royally. But that’s in the past. I’m here for good. As soon as I think she can handle it, I’ll have Sue at the altar. Wes may be almost grown, but I intend to help him any way he needs me.”
Luke nodded for a while, as if weighing the truth of his words. When he finally spoke, he pointed to the pit. “Leave it. You’re just pissing in the wind at this point. Jackhammer should be here in an hour. That’ll get it done.”
Was this a peace offering? Over power tools?
“Mom made some tea. Come on and take a break.” He turned and headed in. Trey followed, hoping they could reach some level of civility before Wes got home.
“Heard you were working over in Iraq,” Luke said without turning around.
“Yeah. Outside of Mosul.”
“Pretty bad over there.”
“Very.” Maybe this was the secret to the man. Talk while you walk.
“You fuck with my family again, I’ll make that place look like Disney World.”
Then He Came Back (Love From Austin Book 2) Page 24