What Might Have Been: Daniels Brother #4 (Daniels Brothers)

by Sherri Hayes

  It was good, though. It got him focused on something other than Abby for a while. Or at least it gave him an outlet to work off some of that sexual frustration he’d been feeling the night before. Abby had been the only girl—woman—who’d always been able to make him feel slightly off balance and yet centered at the same time. It was unnerving, but that didn’t matter. He hadn’t been able to walk away when he was a teenager and her pull hadn’t lessened over the years.

  When he finished with the mulching he’d abandoned earlier in the week, Trent swung by his house to clean up, and then made his way over to his parents’. It was sort of an unspoken rule that he came over on Saturdays after work to help with whatever needed to be done. He was single and he lived the closest. Plus, it always meant that he got to enjoy his mom’s cooking. A definite plus.

  He pulled into the driveway and noticed Chris’ truck. Trent hoped nothing was wrong.

  Trent was getting out of his vehicle when he saw his brother marching toward him, a huge smile on his face. “Hey.”

  “Hey,” Trent said. “I didn’t know you’d be here tonight.”

  Chris shrugged. “Elizabeth wanted to hit some of the flea markets, so we decided to stay down here tonight instead of driving home and then back again tomorrow.”

  “Makes sense.”

  They walked around the house and into the backyard where their mom, dad, and Chris’ wife, Elizabeth, were sitting on the deck, sipping iced tea. His dad had the grill going and Trent could smell meat cooking. It made his mouth water. Lunch had been hours ago.

  “About time you joined us, son. I thought we might have to eat without you.” Their dad pushed himself out of his chair and went to check on the meat.

  “No such luck.” Trent took a seat beside his sister-in-law. “How’s my brother treating you? If he’s slacking, let me know. I’m always willing to step in.”

  Elizabeth laughed and rolled her eyes. “I’m sure you are.”

  Chris, on the other hand, gave him a hard shove, pushing Trent out of his chair and onto the deck.

  “Hey!”

  His brother lowered himself into the seat Trent had just been unceremoniously removed from. “Back off, little brother. Get your own woman. This one’s mine.”

  Trent stood and brushed himself off, not bothered in the slightest by Chris’ caveman behavior.

  Elizabeth snuggled up to her husband and whispered something in his ear. A pang of jealousy hit Trent. Not because he wanted Elizabeth for himself. No, this was more along the lines of him wanting the type of relationship that his brother had. There was a level of intimacy there. He’d seen it plenty of times over the years with his parents, and one by one he’d seen it with his brothers and their wives.

  The vision of Abby on the boat came to mind and he had an intense longing to see her. They hadn’t made plans again, mainly because he didn’t want to rush her. Something had happened between her and Chris, beyond what Trent and the rest of the family knew. That much was obvious.

  His mom handed him a plate. “Did you see Abby again this week? Is she coming tomorrow?”

  “You saw Abby?” Chris asked. He still had his arms wrapped around Elizabeth, but his attention had shifted, awaiting Trent’s answer.

  Elizabeth looked bewildered. “Who’s Abby?”

  “We grew up together.” Chris paused and glanced at his wife. “And she was my girlfriend in high school.”

  “Oh.”

  Trent wondered if Chris and Elizabeth had ever talked about Abby. Judging by the look on Elizabeth’s face, Trent was guessing they hadn’t. Then again, none of them thought they’d ever see her again.

  “Well?” his mother prompted.

  Ignoring what was going on between his brother and sister-in-law, he answered his mom. “Yes, I saw her. And I don’t know if she’s coming. She said she needed to think about it.”

  His mother frowned. “But why? I don’t understand.”

  Mike Daniels put an arm around his wife’s shoulders, comforting her. “I’m sure she has her reasons, honey.”

  A look of guilt crossed Chris’ face. Trent hadn’t wanted to push Abby, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t get answers from his brother.

  After they finished dinner, Chris ran upstairs to get something. When he emerged from the spare bedroom, Trent was waiting for him in the hall.

  “Oh,” Chris said, after nearly running directly into Trent. “I-Is something wrong?”

  Trent leaned back against the wall and crossed his arms. “I was hoping you’d tell me.”

  His brother looked confused.

  “What happened between you and Abby?”

  Chris tilted his head back until it hit the wall with a thud. “It’s a long story.”

  “I’ll wait.” Trent wasn’t leaving here tonight until he got some answers.

  His brother seemed to be weighing his options. “I don’t . . .” Chris blew out a breath. “Look, I’m not proud of what I did, okay? I was young and stupid, and it should have never happened.”

  Trent waited.

  “You know she and I broke things off when I went off to college.”

  They all knew that.

  Chris glanced down the hall toward the stairs. Trent wasn’t sure if it was because he didn’t want to look at him or if Chris was making sure they were still alone. “It was my junior year and I went down to Fort Lauderdale for spring break with a group of my friends.”

  “I remember. Ma wasn’t thrilled you weren’t coming home.”

  “Yeah. Well. Abby was there.” Chris swallowed and closed his eyes. “We hooked up. We were both drunk and not thinking clearly. But that’s not an excuse. It never should have happened.”

  “And then what?” Trent knew there had to be more. Two exes hooking up on spring break couldn’t be the whole story. It didn’t explain Abby’s hesitation.

  “When we both woke up the next morning, reality set in. We’d made a huge mistake and we both knew it. Although, I probably should have handled it better. I ended up saying something about forgetting it ever happened. I left shortly after that, leaving her alone in the hotel room.” Chris ran a hand over his face. “Ma would kill me if she knew.”

  Trent couldn’t disagree with that. Their mom excused a lot of things when it came to her boys. Being disrespectful to a member of the opposite sex wasn’t one of them. And their dad would have been right beside her to help deliver the fatal blow.

  “Is that all?” For some reason, what Chris had told him still didn’t mesh with the vibe he’d gotten from Abby. Or Max, for that matter. Friends, no matter how protective, didn’t tend to act like that just because someone had a drunken hookup with an ex-boyfriend.

  “What do you mean?” Chris asked, looking at Trent for the first time since he began his tale.

  Trent sighed, a little frustrated. “I mean, did anything else happen?”

  Chris shook his head. “No. Not that I know of. The last time I saw her was when I walked out of the hotel room. Why?”

  Trent pushed off the wall. If something else had happened, Chris wasn’t aware of it. “No reason. Just trying to put the pieces together. I knew there had to be something. You looked too guilty out there.”

  His brother cringed. “I’m going to have to tell Elizabeth.”

  Trent clapped his brother’s shoulder and moved toward the stairs. “Yeah. Better you than me.”

  Instead of heading out to the backyard when he reached the bottom of the stairs, Trent turned toward the front of the house. He paused briefly to look at a picture his mom had on the wall of all of them playing out in the backyard as kids. He was around nine at the time. Abby was there, right in the thick of things, with a huge smile on her face.

  Before he could think better of it, Trent walked out the front door. He needed to talk to Abby—needed to hear her voice. His family would have to wait because right now, she was at the forefront of his mind and he needed to know she was okay.

  Even though he knew it was just another
day, that what had happened with Chris was years ago, for him it was fresh. The only thing that was going to make him feel better was talking to her. At least, he was hoping that was enough, because what he wanted more than anything was to take her in his arms and comfort her.

  Trent dialed her number and waited patiently as Abby’s phone rang four times before going to voice mail.

  He debated whether or not to leave a message. Would it seem stalkerish if he hung up without saying anything? Probably.

  “Abby, it’s Trent. Call me later if you can.” Direct and to the point.

  He hated talking to machines. Worse, it hadn’t even been Abby’s voice on the recording. It was some generic ‘the person you’re trying to reach is unavailable’ type thing.

  Disappointed, Trent made his way back into the house. Normally he loved spending time with his family, but tonight his heart wasn’t in it. He was too distracted by his thoughts of Abby.

  Chapter 8

  On Saturday morning, Abby did some therapy shopping—anything to get her mind off Trent. After he’d dropped her off, she’d gotten herself ready for bed and tried to sleep. Tried being the operative word. No matter what she did, the memory of his arms . . . his lips . . . his body . . . assaulted her. She could still smell the scent of his cologne when she closed her eyes.

  She finally gave up on sleep around four o’clock and pulled out her beads. If she wasn’t going to sleep, she might as well do something productive.

  Around noon, Abby exited one of her favorite stores with two new additions to her wardrobe. Buying something pretty for herself usually brightened her mood. Today it barely scratched the surface.

  Throwing the bags in the trunk of her car, Abby considered her options. She could go home and continue to dwell on what was or wasn’t happening with Trent, she could do some more shopping—even though it wasn’t really helping—or she could visit Max and his family. They were the only people she knew here anymore besides the Danielses, and going there wasn’t an option.

  Katherine Collins, Max’s mother, greeted Abby before she’d even had a chance to knock on the door. “I was wondering if we’d see you today. Max said you had a date last night.”

  It didn’t surprise Abby that Max had mentioned her date to his mother. Given her position as Max’s assistant, Abby spoke to Katherine often. They had a good relationship. And while Abby had never bonded to Max’s mother like she had Marilyn Daniels, Abby still cared deeply for the woman. Knowing what she was going through with Max’s father broke Abby’s heart.

  Abby hung her purse on the coat hanger to the left of the door and followed Katherine down the hall to the sitting room. “Yes, I went out with an old friend.”

  There was a time when Katherine had entertained the notion that Max had romantic feelings for Abby. That wasn’t going to happen and eventually she grew to accept it.

  Katherine halted outside the room and placed a gentle hand on Abby’s arm. “I hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but I want you to know that I’m here if you ever need another woman’s perspective. I know you have Max, but, well . . . he’s a man and there are just some things men don’t understand.”

  “Thank you,” Abby said. “I appreciate that.”

  With a warm smile, Katherine dropped her hand and continued into the sitting room where Max and his father were waiting. When Max saw her, he met her gaze for a long moment before nodding. She knew he’d been worried about her, but it wasn’t as if Trent would do anything to intentionally hurt her. Then again, Max didn’t know Trent like Abby did.

  Shaking off her own personal issues, Abby focused on Max’s father, Jacob. “How are you feeling today?”

  He grinned at her, but it was weak. “Ready to get up and dance a jig. You willing to be my partner?”

  Max snorted.

  Abby chuckled. “Whenever you need me.”

  For the rest of the afternoon, the four of them enjoyed the sun shining in from the large windows of the sitting room. They talked about everything except his dad’s illness. They didn’t need to. The stark reminder was there in the paleness of his skin and the fragileness of his features. The first time Abby had met Jacob Collins, he’d been an imposing figure. With the cancer eating his insides, he looked as if the slightest gust of wind could blow him away.

  Patsy, a middle-aged woman the Collinses had hired to help around the house, strolled into the room at four thirty to let them know dinner was ready. Katherine stood and wheeled her husband toward the dining room.

  Abby started to follow, but Max stopped her. When she met his gaze, she saw unease. He was nervous about something. Was it his dad? Had something happened she didn’t know about? “What?”

  “How was your date?”

  Oh.

  “You really want to talk about this? Here? Now?”

  He shrugged and gave her a sly grin, sinking back into the more confident Max she knew. “Why not? I’ve been biting my tongue for the last hour as it is. The suspense is killing me.”

  Abby rolled her eyes.

  “Well?”

  “You’re a pain in my ass, you know that?”

  He brought his arm up to rest on her shoulder and they began walking toward the dining room. “Ah, but you love me anyway.”

  She leaned into him. It wasn’t like the feeling she had when Trent’s arms were wrapped around her, but it was comfort just the same. “I do.”

  When she didn’t say anything more, Max took her silence the wrong way. “Do I need to pay him a visit?”

  “No.” Abby glanced up at him. “It was good. We had a nice time.”

  He stopped. “Did you two . . . I mean did he . . .”

  “Are you trying to ask if he spent the night?” Abby didn’t know if she was more annoyed or amused. Even if she had slept with Trent, Max had no reason to make a big deal out of it considering how many women he’d slept with over the years they’d known each other.

  “I know it’s none of my business.”

  She narrowed her eyes a little and gave him a pointed stare. “You’re right. It’s not.”

  He nodded and dropped his arm. Max looked as if she’d just kicked his puppy or something. Men and their egos.

  Abby sighed, letting go of her annoyance. “No. I didn’t sleep with him. Happy?”

  Max countered by asking a question of his own. “Are you?”

  “I don’t know. I like him. A lot. And he makes me feel things . . . things I haven’t felt in years.” She never would have admitted it to anyone other than Max.

  “But?”

  “But what about when he finds out what happened with his brother?” She paused, and her voice took on a grave tone. “And the baby. I don’t know if I can risk it.”

  “But you want to,” Max said. “I can see it in your eyes.”

  Abby didn’t bother to deny it.

  Max opened his arms and she went willingly into his strong embrace.

  “I’ll be here no matter what you decide, Abby. You know that.” He kissed the top of her head. “And I’m always willing to kick his ass if need be.”

  She laughed and pushed him away. “Come on. I’m starving. And your parents are going to think we got lost.”

  Once dinner was over, they all moved outside. As they sat next to the large pool, Max’s father told stories of his childhood. While she enjoyed hearing about him as a little boy, it also broke Abby’s heart. It was as if he was trying to share as much as he could with his family because he knew he didn’t have a lot of time left.

  The first time Abby had met Jacob Collins he’d been larger than life, standing beside his wife in a white dress shirt and slacks. It was Max’s college graduation and they were beaming with pride. Knowing what he was like then, compared to now, had her fighting tears she knew Max’s father wouldn’t appreciate. He’d accepted his fate. The people who cared about him had to as well.

  At seven thirty, Jacob was worn out. Katherine hugged Abby and gave her son a kiss on the cheek before wheeling Jacob
inside.

  “I should probably get going, too,” Abby said.

  Max nodded. “I’ll walk you out.”

  He waited until they were at her car before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a flash drive. “My mother found this in my father’s briefcase. Can you take a look?”

  “Sure.” Abby took the flash drive and dropped it into her purse. “Any idea what’s on it?”

  He shoved his hands in his front pockets. “I plugged it in long enough to see it’s a bunch of spreadsheets, but I didn’t have time to dig any further.”

  “I’ll let you know what I find.” She started to get into her car, but something about his stance made her pause. “Anything else you want to tell me?”

  “I have a conference call with New York tomorrow morning, so if you try to call me I might not answer right away.”

  Abby narrowed her eyes as if she were trying to find some sort of hidden meaning behind his words. “Okay.”

  She climbed into her car and reached for the door to close it.

  “No plans with Daniels this weekend?”

  “No.”

  “Oh. I figured since you said your date went well—”

  “He invited me to dinner with his family tomorrow.”

  Max seemed to sense her but. “You’re not going to be able to avoid his family forever. Not if you keep seeing him.”

  “I know. That’s what worries me. Trent I’m fine with.” Better than fine, if she was being honest with herself. “The rest of them? I don’t know.”

  “I’d offer to go with you—”

  Abby snorted. “Yeah. I don’t see that ending well.”

  “What? You don’t think I can control myself?” Max asked with a twinkle in his eye.

  “Not one bit.”

  He clutched his chest in mock hurt.

  She shook her head. “Joke all you want. I know how you are. Especially when it comes to Chris.”

  Max sobered. “He hurt you.”

  “I don’t think he did it on purpose. We were young and stupid and it never should have happened.”