by Marie Force
She pulled him down to her. “I’m sure we can think of something.”
A crash downstairs startled them.
“What was that?” Kate asked.
Reid got up and pulled on a pair of jeans. “I don’t know.”
“Dad?”
“Shit!” Reid moved fast to zip up his pants and get to the bedroom door.
“Dad, wake up. I’m coming in.”
The door swung open before Reid or Kate could move.
“Well, well, well. What do we have here?” Ashton’s face twisted with anger as he looked from his father to Kate in the bed. “What a fucking idiot I am!”
“Ashton, wait.” Reid held up a hand to stop his son from coming any farther into the room.
Ashton pushed his father aside. “No, you wait. What the hell are you doing? She’s younger than me!”
“Ashton,” Kate said as tears rolled down her face.
“You knew I cared for you, Kate. You must’ve gotten a real kick out of having a father and son competing for you.”
“No,” she said. “I cared for you, too.”
“But not enough to level with me, huh? Is this the guy you were so heartbroken over, the one you cried about?”
Kate looked away from him.
He snorted with disgust. “You both had ample opportunity to tell me about this. Instead you made a fool out of me. You two liars deserve each other.” He turned and stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him.
“Stay here,” Reid said to Kate. He chased Ashton down the stairs and out the front door. Reid was bare-chested and bare-footed, but he never felt the cold, just the chill in his heart over the searing pain on his son’s face. “Ashton, stop!” He grabbed Ashton’s jacket and spun him around. “Don’t leave like this.”
“I asked you point blank if you knew who she was involved with, and you said you didn’t. You lied to my face. Is that how it’s going to be between us now? I can’t trust a goddamned word you say?” Ashton’s voice broke along with Reid’s heart.
“Wait, son.” Reid put his hand on Ashton’s shoulder to stop him from walking away. “Talk to me.”
Ashton shook him off. “Would you happen to have any idea how Buddy and Taylor found her?”
Reid didn’t answer him.
Ashton released a harsh chuckle. “Does she know?”
Reid looked down at his bare feet. “No,” he said softly.
“I didn’t think so. Are you being truthful with anyone?”
“I’m sorry. I hated lying to you, but I love her, and I knew you wouldn’t understand.”
“Maybe you could’ve let me decide that. Instead you lied to my face. Now I’ll never believe another fucking thing you say.” Something else seemed to dawn on him. “This is why Martha left, isn’t it?”
“Martha retired.”
“More lies, Dad? Are you so out of your mind you don’t even recognize the truth anymore?”
“I know you’re mad right now, and you have every right to be—”
“I’m so far beyond mad I don’t even know what it’s called.”
“Be careful what you do with this, Ashton. Remember all the people who depend on me for their livelihoods. If you set out to hurt me, you’ll only hurt them.”
Ashton leaned in so he was an inch from his father’s face. “Maybe you should’ve thought about them before you started banging an eighteen-year-old.” With that he spun around and walked to his car. He was gone a minute later in a cloud of dust and rage.
With a heavy heart, Reid trudged back upstairs to find Kate dressed and crying.
“I’m sorry, Reid,” she said between sobs. “I’m so sorry.”
He took her in his arms. “It’s my fault. I lied to him. He asked me straight out if I knew who you were involved with, and I said no.”
She pushed her way out of his embrace. “He’s your son.”
“And you’re my life, Kate.”
“You need to go to him.”
“He doesn’t want to see me right now.”
“I have to go.”
Reid reached for her. “Don’t. Don’t run away.”
Kate brushed the tears off her face. “I’ve come between you and your son.”
“We’ll work it out. Come here, baby. I need you.” He stretched out next to her on the bed. “I love you. Nothing’s changed.” But as he held her close to him, he couldn’t help but worry that everything had changed.
When Ashton got home, he went straight to the liquor cabinet. With two shots of Jack Daniels burning their way through his gut, his heart finally stopped racing.
“How could I not have seen this? I’ve got to be the stupidest asshole in the goddamned world.”
When Kate called about her meeting with Buddy and Taylor, the whole thing clicked into focus with such stunning clarity it had taken his breath away. Buddy was like an uncle to him, and he was the godfather to Buddy and Taylor’s oldest two children. Since Ashton joined the law firm, Buddy had sent so much business his way that Ashton was already on a fast track for partnership.
After he talked to Kate earlier, Ashton left the office and walked along the river for hours trying to figure out what to do. When he couldn’t wait another minute to find out for sure if it was true, he went to the house.
A sigh shuddered through him as he plopped down on the sofa. Resting his head in his hands, disgusted by the memory of the cozy scene he’d interrupted in his father’s bedroom, he cringed when he realized he could’ve walked in on worse.
He really cared about Kate. He could’ve even loved her, but she’d never given him an ounce of encouragement. At least now he knew why.
“Son of a bitch,” he muttered as he got up, walked over to his desk, and rifled through a pile of paper until he found what he was looking for. He studied the business card for a long time before he picked up the phone and dialed the number in Rhode Island.
Chapter 27
Aidan tore through his bedroom, throwing clothes into a duffel bag.
Clare got up to put on jeans and a sweater.
“What’re you doing?” he asked as he zipped his bag.
“Coming with you.”
“You don’t have to do that. You’ve been so sick. I’ll be all right.”
Clare met his gaze with determination. “I’m coming with you.” Seeing that his eyes were shiny with tears, she went to him. “He’s going to be fine. Colin said he’s alive, right?”
Aidan nodded.
Clare hugged him. “It’s going to be okay. Let’s go.” She picked up her bag, grabbed her toothbrush from the bathroom, and followed him downstairs.
Holding his hand, she rested her head on his shoulder as they hurtled south in his truck through the mountains. Except for a couple of semis, they had the road to themselves. Colin had reported no change a short time ago.
“Hanging in there?” Clare asked.
“Yeah,” he said, but his jaw was clenched with tension.
“Talk to me. What are you thinking?”
“I’m not ready to lose my father.”
“You aren’t going to.” Clare unbuckled her seat belt so she could move closer to him. “He’s where he needs to be, getting the care he needs.”
He lifted his arm to let her in. “I hope you’re right. Thanks for coming. I’d be flipping out by now if I was alone.”
She kissed his cheek. “You’re not alone anymore.”
He leaned in to kiss her, and the spark of fire surprised them both. “How is it possible that even in the midst of a crisis and even at eighty miles an hour, I still want you?” He kissed her again. “I hope you’re prepared for what’ll happen in Chatham when I show up with you.”
“And what’s that?”
“They’ll be all over you.”
“I can take it,” Clare assured him.
He chuckled. “We’ll see what you’re saying in a day or two when you hear my mother and sister planning our wedding.”
“Wedding?” Clare st
ammered.
“You have no idea what you’re in for.”
“Maybe I can stay in the truck the whole time. They won’t see me.”
“They’d sniff you out. You do know that you’ll be, officially, the second woman they’ve ever seen me with, right?”
“Yes, I’m getting that picture.” But it didn’t bother her nearly as much as it probably should have.
They arrived at the hospital at five in the morning. Clare had watched him get more and more anxious the closer they got to Chatham.
Aidan grabbed Clare’s hand, and they ran inside. She was proud that she was able to keep up with him, which she took as a sign that she’d made more progress in her recovery from the coma. The tightness in her chest and the occasional coughing fit reminded her of the more recent bout with pneumonia.
They were directed to the third floor where a large group had congregated in the waiting room. From Aidan’s vivid descriptions of her, Clare recognized Colleen O’Malley right away.
“Mum, where is he?” Aidan asked. “I want to see him.”
Colleen stood to hug her oldest son. “I’m glad you’re here in one piece, love.” She bent around him to get a better look at Clare. “Who’ve you got there?”
“This is Clare Harrington. Colin, introduce Clare while Mum takes me to see Da, would you?”
Watching Aidan walk away with Colleen, Clare felt all eyes in the waiting room land on her. “Hello, everyone,” she said.
Thankfully, Colin stepped up and did as his brother asked. Clare met Aidan’s brothers Brandon and Declan, his sister Erin, and brother-in-law Tommy. Brandon might’ve looked like Aidan at one time, but his bloodshot eyes and weathered face put ten extra years on him. The other three siblings closely resembled each other.
“Pleased to meet you all.” Clare took the seat next to Tommy.
“Are you Aidan’s girlfriend?” Erin asked.
Colin shot his sister a dirty look. “Erin.”
“Yes, I guess you could say I am.” Clare maintained eye contact with Erin, who seemed shocked that Aidan had brought someone with him.
“Well, how about that?” Brandon said with a nasty edge to his voice. “The old boy isn’t dead after all.”
“Shut up, Brandon,” Declan snapped.
“How’s your father?” Clare asked Colin, recognizing a friendly face in the tough crowd.
“They think he’s going to be fine,” Colin said. “It was a mild heart attack. His biggest problem right now is my mother.”
“She’s forced him into retirement, effective immediately,” Declan added.
Clare winced. “Well, at least the heart attack wasn’t as bad as it could’ve been.”
“My father would rather be dead than retired,” Brandon said.
Something about him made Clare nervous.
Outside Dennis’s room, Aidan grilled the cardiologist. When he was satisfied that everything had been done to his satisfaction, he went in to see his father.
He stood by the side of his father’s bed with the older man’s work-roughened hand in his.
“I’m sorry you came all this way for nothing,” Dennis said in a weakened voice.
“It wasn’t for nothing, Da. I’m glad you’re okay.”
“He is not okay,” Colleen chimed in. “The man had a heart attack.”
“The doctor said it was mild and more of a warning than anything,” Aidan said. “You got lucky, Da.”
“How about you give me a minute with my boy, Mum. Go tell the kids they ain’t getting rid of their old Da today, and send ’em all home.”
She kissed her husband’s cheek. “Don’t let him get worked up, Aidan.”
After Colleen walked out, Dennis sighed. “You gotta get me out of here, son. The heart attack didn’t kill me, but she’s going to.”
Aidan’s knees wanted to buckle with relief at his father’s feistiness. For the first time since Colin called, he was able to draw a deep breath. “You’re not going anywhere until the doctors say you can.”
Dennis groaned. “You were my last hope.”
Aidan laughed. “No luck with the others, huh?”
“Bunch of ingrates. Honor thy father, my ass. Not a one of ya minds me, and you never have.”
“So are you wondering how you got rid of Mum so easily just now?” Aidan asked, raising an eyebrow.
“That was kind of easy, now that you mention it.”
“I brought someone with me.”
“Did you, now?” Dennis said with a glint in his eye. “A girl?”
Aidan snorted with laughter. “What do you think?”
“And you’ve left her out there by herself to face your mum and your sister?”
“Shit, you’re right. I’d better get out there before they run her off.”
“Listen, son, before you go rescue your lady, there’s something I need to ask you,” Dennis said seriously.
“What?”
“I think your mum’s serious about this retirement thing.”
“I’m afraid you might be right.”
“I want you to come home to run the business.”
Aidan shook his head. “Da—”
“You’re the only one with a head for business. The others will run it into the ground in six months’ time. I need you.”
“I’m sorry, Da. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you, but I can’t come back here. I’m just starting to finally get my life together. Coming home would be a step back for me—an unhealthy step.”
Dennis studied his son for a moment. “I understand. I shouldn’t have even asked you, but I’m desperate. I can’t let forty years of my hard work go down the drain, and I won’t have them fighting over it.”
“What about Colin?”
“I just skip over Brandon?”
“He’s not equipped to run a business. Not right now, anyway.”
“We’re going to have to do something about his drinking.”
“Yes, but let’s get you better first. Take another look at Colin, Da. He’s the best of all of us. Sarah always said so. He’s got what it takes, and he has the balls to stand up to the boys. He’s got a lot of Mum in him.”
“Yes, you’re right, he does. I’ll think about that. You’d better go rescue your lady, son. Bring her back to see me later?”
“You got it.” Aidan leaned down to kiss his father’s cheek. “You scared me.”
Dennis patted his son’s face. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“Good,” Aidan said gruffly. “I’ll see you later.”
Aidan walked into the waiting room and groaned when he found Clare and his mother holding hands, their heads bent together in deep conversation.
“Mum, what’re you telling her?”
“Don’t be fresh, Aidan,” his mother said with a pointed look at her son.
Clare choked back a laugh.
He shot Clare a warning glare to let her know that laughing right now would not be a good idea. “Where is everyone?”
“They went home to get some sleep,” Clare said.
“We’re going home, too,” he said. “Clare’s been really sick, and she’s been up all night.”
“Yes, I heard you took very good care of her when she had pneumonia,” Colleen said with a hopeful glance at her son, the former doctor.
Clare hugged Colleen. “Your husband will be just fine. Try not to worry.”
“Thank you, honey,” Colleen said with a wink over Clare’s shoulder at her son.
“Mum, why don’t you come home for a bit?”
“No, love, I’m staying here with Da. I’ll be fine. Go on ahead.”
Aidan kissed his mother and held out a hand to Clare. “We’ll be back later.”
They walked out to the parking lot, where the sun was coming up on another cold winter day. The windshield of the truck had frosted over, so they waited for the heat to kick in.
“Did it take you all of five minutes to bond with my mother?”
“She’s lovely.
”
Aidan snorted. “Just don’t cross her. You’ll find out how lovely she is then.”
“I can’t imagine that. How’s your father?”
“Full of piss and vinegar, which is a good sign.”
“Thank God.”
“He’s anxious to meet you.”
Clare muffled a yawn. “I want to meet him, too.”
“First, you’re going to sleep. I don’t want you having a relapse.”
“Yes, Doctor O’Malley,” Clare said with an impish grin.
His eyes clouded. “Don’t call me that, okay?”
“I’m sorry. I was only kidding.”
He kissed her hand. “I don’t mean to be a jerk, but I just can’t hear that.”
“I understand.”
They drove through the picturesque town of Chatham on their way to Aidan’s parents’ home. He took a left onto Shore Road. “I’ll take you to see Chatham Light after we get some sleep.”
“These houses are amazing.”
“None of this was here when my parents moved in. It’s gotten really built up and swanky, but the O’Malleys keep the neighborhood humble. I have to warn you that the paint job on our house was not my father’s idea,” he said as they pulled into the driveway of his parents’ colorful home.
“Oh, it’s adorable!”
“It’s ridiculous,” Aidan grumbled. He grabbed their bags and led her inside. They went straight upstairs to Aidan’s old room, where he immediately pulled off his shirt. “God, I’m beat.”
“Um, Aidan, where am I sleeping?”
“Right here with me.”
“I am not sleeping with you in your mother’s house. No way.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Aidan groaned. “I’m almost forty years old, for Christ’s sake.”
Clare winced. “You have to keep reminding me you’re not even forty yet, don’t you?”
He dropped his jeans. “That’s not the point.”
Clare’s eyes drifted over him with appreciation for his muscular chest and belly.
“You’re really going to look at me like that and then tell me you won’t sleep with me?”
She walked over to caress his chest. “Uh-huh.”