“I don’t think so.”
“Blueberry pancakes?”
She grinned at his persistence. “Are you trying to fatten me up?”
“No, just trying to make sure you have enough stamina for whatever fight awaits you when you get home.”
“Oh, believe me, I can work up a good head of steam without eggs, waffles or pancakes,” she said, jabbing her fork into her eggs and envisioning Wes in their place. She met Trace’s gaze. “When I thought he’d taken the girls this morning, I really do think I could have strangled him with my bare hands.”
“Well, thankfully, it didn’t come to that,” Trace said, though he seemed to find her display of temper reassuring. “Abby, I am sorry if all my warnings yesterday added to your panic.”
She waved off the apology. “No, you were right that I need to be alert. In the past few days I’ve started to see Wes in a whole new light. It’s not that he’s not the same man I married or that he’s undergone some dramatic change. I must have romanticized him during the years we were together, and now my blinders are finally off. I don’t believe he’s a truly bad man. And I know he’s a good father, but…” Her voice trailed off.
“But what?” Trace prodded.
She tried to put her finger on why she was suddenly so distrustful of a man she’d once loved and respected. It had a lot to do with the things Jess had said about him, forcing her to see his passive-aggressive behavior for what it was. It also had a lot to do with the way he’d been behaving since he’d found out she was in Chesapeake Shores. It would be different if her taking the kids out of state posed a genuine hardship in terms of his visiting rights, but that wasn’t actually the case. He reminded her of a spoiled kid who couldn’t cope with not getting his own way even for a minute. It wasn’t an attractive quality. Had he always been so inflexible and incapable of bending? Or, as Trace suspected, did he have some kind of plan where the girls were concerned, a plan she’d inadvertently given him the perfect excuse to implement?
“He scares me a little,” she admitted finally, then shook her head at the absurdity of it. “That sounds ridiculous when I say it aloud.”
Trace didn’t look as if he thought it was ridiculous, and that scared her even more. “You’re not disagreeing with me,” she said with a frown.
“Because I can’t. Look, I don’t even know the man, so I’m probably not being at all fair. I certainly have my own agenda where he’s concerned.”
“Agenda?”
“In my twisted logic, he took you away from me.” He held up a hand before she could speak. “I know that’s not precisely what happened, but it feels like that. So, bottom line, I don’t like him. Still, I like to think I’m a pretty good judge of people, and that I’m capable of viewing them with an unbiased perspective, even under circumstances like these.”
“And?”
“Something feels off to me,” he said. “I can’t put my finger on it, but first thing tomorrow I’m going to do a little digging. You’d be surprised how much I can discover under the guise of doing a routine credit check on a bank’s prospective loan customer.”
“You’re going to investigate him?” Abby asked incredulously, feeling a little queasy at the thought of it. “I don’t know, Trace, that seems extreme.” And Wes would be outraged if he ever found out.
“I’m not going to hire a private investigator,” he soothed. “I’ll just look into a few things. It probably won’t turn up anything, and then we can both rest easier.”
“I suppose that makes sense,” she said reluctantly. It felt a little underhanded and sleazy. Still, this was the father of her girls, a man who wanted to take them away from her, if not for good, then at least for several weeks. She owed it to them, if not herself, to make sure there was nothing going on in Wes’s life that might put them in danger. Not that she could imagine him allowing the girls to be in any kind of physical danger, but what if he was about to start legal proceedings to gain full custody? The battle would traumatize them. She had to know if that was even a remote possibility.
She stood up abruptly. “I need to go home.”
To her relief, Trace didn’t argue. He stood up at once, put money on the table for the bill and tip, then followed her outside.
“You feeling okay to drive? I can take you and have Jess or someone give me a ride back later.”
“I’ll be fine. The drive will clear my head,” she assured him. “Thanks for not making me out to be a nut this morning when I freaked out.”
“You could never be a nut,” he said, brushing her hair away from her cheeks and tucking it behind her ears. He grinned. “Of course, even if you were a little flaky, I’d still be crazy about you.”
He pressed a quick kiss to her lips, then said, “Call me if you need me for anything, okay?”
She couldn’t seem to stop herself from testing him. “You’ll pick up a bottle of milk and bring it to the house?” she teased, feeling a bit more lighthearted.
He regarded her with amusement. “No problem.”
“Feminine hygiene products?”
He blanched. “I can do that,” he said firmly.
“A hug?”
A smile spread slowly across his face. “That would be my pleasure.”
She reached up and touched his unshaven cheek, liking the way the sandpapery texture felt against her fingers. It was a testament to the fact that he’d rushed right out the second she’d asked for his help this morning. She felt somehow reassured that he always would.
“Thank you,” she said softly.
“For?”
“Being around when I needed you.”
“You didn’t really need me. You had it all under control. I was just backup.”
She stood on tiptoe and kissed him. “It’s been a while since I’ve had backup, Trace.” A long time, in fact, since she’d felt the need for it. “It feels good.”
“Anytime, darlin’. Anytime.”
His words were lightly spoken, but she knew with everything in her that she could trust them. That she could trust him. It made going back to the house to face down Wes a thousand times easier.
When Abby walked around the house, she found Wes sitting alone on the porch. There was no sign of the girls, Jess or Gram. She eyed him warily.
“Where is everyone?”
“They’ve gone for a walk on the beach,” he said.
“You didn’t want to go along?”
He shook his head. “No, I wanted to wait for you. We need to talk.”
Bracing herself, Abby perched on the edge of an Adirondack chair. “What’s on your mind?”
“I want the girls back in New York with me,” he said flatly.
She gave him an incredulous look. “Is there some reason you think I might have changed my mind in the past hour? The answer’s still no,” she said. “This chance to spend time here might have come about unexpectedly, but it’s good for them. I won’t let you deny them the opportunity to get to know their extended family. Once we’re back in New York, they can stay with you longer, if you want them to.”
“How am I supposed to see them in the meantime, Abby?” he demanded, trying to stare her down. “You’re here for God knows how long. Does that mean I won’t even get my regular visits with them? Or am I supposed to turn my life upside down to fly to Maryland every other weekend? You know that’s unreasonable.”
“Not for you, but never mind, I can be flexible,” she said, then made an impulsive decision. “Which
is why I’ll bring them up to New York in two weeks. They can stay with you for four days, while I deal with a few things at the office, then I’ll bring them back here.”
“And after that?”
“Hopefully it won’t be much longer before we’re all back in New York and this will no longer be an issue, but if it comes to that, I’ll bring them up again. You’ll have your time with them, Wes. I’m never going to try to keep them from you.”
He still didn’t look satisfied. “What about school? They’re missing school now. If they stayed with me, they could finish out the school year.”
“They’re in kindergarten, not going for an advanced degree in physics,” she said impatiently. “Missing the last couple of weeks of school is not that big a deal. I called the school before I came down here to let them know they’d be out for a couple of days, then spoke to their teacher again as soon as I knew we’d be here for an extended visit. Gram and I are reading with them every day. They were already ahead of everyone else with counting and even with some basic math.” She met his gaze. “Any other issues?”
His expression remained disgruntled. “I don’t like this, Abby. I don’t like it at all.”
“Yes, I gathered that. What I don’t understand is why. You’ve gone two weeks, sometimes longer, without seeing them when you’re off on a business trip or a vacation. Why is it such a big deal that they’re down here with me now?”
“At least I don’t flaunt my relationships in front of them,” he said sourly.
Abby very nearly laughed, but she could see that he was perfectly serious. “I’m not having a relationship with Trace,” she said emphatically. “I don’t know how many different ways I can say that.”
“Don’t bother, because I wouldn’t believe you, anyway. There’s something between you.” His gaze narrowed. “I’m guessing there always has been. He was the other man all along, wasn’t he, Abby? I always knew there was someone you hadn’t gotten out of your system.”
“You’re being absurd,” she snapped.
He regarded her evenly. “Am I?”
She faltered then, wondering if it was possible that somehow she’d held something back from Wes. Was it possible she’d never gotten over Trace after all? Or was this just another of Wes’s attempts to make her feel inadequate, as if she were in the wrong yet again?
“Look, Trace and I were young when we were together,” she said candidly. “It was over by the time you and I met. I hadn’t seen him in years until we both turned up back here a few weeks ago.”
“You expect me to believe that? He lives in New York, Abby. Are you trying to tell me you haven’t seen him even once up there?”
“That’s exactly what I’m saying, because it’s the truth. I didn’t even know he’d been living in New York until the other day. That’s how out of touch we’ve been.” She shook her head. “Why are we even having this conversation? Whom I date is none of your business. We’re divorced. And up until now, I thought we’d been handling that really well for the sake of the girls.”
She leveled a look into his eyes. “Don’t start stirring up all sorts of ugliness now, Wes. I’ve never brought up the women in your life since we divorced, but I do know all about them because the twins have mentioned a whole long list of Daddy’s friends. Don’t try telling me you don’t flaunt your relationships in front of them, because I know better.”
He turned pale at that. “You make it sound as if I’m trotting a whole parade of women in and out of their lives. It’s not like that, especially lately. Actually, there’s just one woman.”
“Really? You’re getting serious about her?” She waited for even a tiny twinge of jealousy to strike, but there was nothing.
He nodded, then said, “You should probably know that it’s Gabrielle.”
Abby knew at once exactly whom he meant. “Gabrielle Mitchell? From the bond department at my company?” So much for Wes’s supposed objections to Abby’s long hours. Gabrielle’s career was equally demanding. No, that objection had no doubt been voiced merely to let Wes take the position of aggrieved husband.
He nodded again, a guilty flush in his cheeks. “I’ve asked her to marry me.”
She could have called him on it, asked exactly how long the affair had been going on right under her nose, but she was determined to take the high road. “Congratulations! Does she get along well with Carrie and Caitlyn?”
“She adores them,” he said, a smile lighting up his face. “You should see her with them. It’s as if they’re her own children.”
Abby frowned at that. “As long as she remembers that I’m their mother,” she warned quietly.
“Well, of course, Gabrielle wouldn’t step over that line. I’m just saying that you don’t have a thing to worry about when they’re with her. I won’t be bringing some evil stepmother into their lives.”
“Good to know,” she said wryly. “And just so you know, Trace wouldn’t be any kind of evil stepdad, either. Not that he’s going to be in their lives permanently.”
“Okay then,” he said. “I guess we understand each other.”
“I hope so.”
“And you’ll bring them up in two weeks?”
“I said I would.”
He regarded her with satisfaction. “That’s good then. I’ll go inside and finish packing. As soon as they’re back, I’ll say goodbye and head for the airport to catch my flight back to New York.”
He was almost to the front door when he turned back. “One last bit of advice, Abby. Don’t let Jess drag you into her drama, whatever it is. You know in the end it’ll backfire on you.”
“You have no idea what you’re talking about,” she said stiffly.
“Actually I do. I’ve watched your sister take advantage of you time and time again. At some point you have to stop trying to make up for the fact that Megan left. Your mother needs to make that right, not you.”
Abby felt the truth of his words, but hearing him point it out grated. Taking care of Jess was an obligation she’d assigned herself the minute their mother had taken off. Bree had been too young herself to care about a devastated younger sister, and Connor and Kevin had been totally self-absorbed teenagers. None of them had noticed that Jess was floundering. Mick was gone, so that left Abby and Gram to deal with all of Jess’s struggles in school and her heartache at being left behind by her mother.
“You’ve made your opinion known more than once,” she told Wes. “Your lack of understanding and compassion don’t speak well of you, so perhaps you should keep your opinion to yourself from now on, at least around me and my family.”
He looked as if he might say more, but then he simply shook his head and went inside. Only when he was gone did Abby realize she’d been holding her breath. She released it slowly.
Wes had been right about one thing—it was past time for her mother and Jess to make peace. Maybe they would never be close, but at least if Jess understood why Megan had left them, perhaps she could forgive her mother and move on.
The opening of the inn might be the perfect occasion, Abby concluded. There would be so much to do that Jess wouldn’t be able to fret too much over her mother’s presence. And the show of support from Megan might start the healing process. Abby vowed to make a call to New York later on this afternoon.
Of course, there was the very strong possibility that Mick would be furious with her for bringing Megan to town for a family occasion, but he’d just have to get over it. In fact, it was about time those two started communicating again, as well
. Heck, if she really started dreaming, she could envision her parents patching things up, too.
Abby knew in her heart that neither of her parents had really wanted the divorce. She’d been old enough to understand exactly what was going on. Her mother had said a few things, expressing her displeasure over the amount of time Mick was away. Her father had reacted heatedly, accusing Megan of not appreciating the importance of his work. The next thing anyone knew Megan had called a lawyer. Once the wheels for the divorce had been set in motion, neither had been willing to stop the process. It was evidence of the O’Brien pride at its very worst.
And she was going to thrust herself into the middle of that, Abby thought wryly. Maybe she was the glutton for punishment that Wes had said she was.
When Trace showed up for Sunday dinner at his parents’ house, he found his sister already there, though Laila didn’t look especially happy about it. He gave her a questioning look as he went to the bar and poured himself a beer.
“Command performance,” she muttered. “Mother got it into her head that we’ve been neglecting the whole family thing since you got back in town. She thinks if you feel more loved and missed, you’ll stick around.”
“As if,” he replied. “How are we going to get through to Dad that you belong in this job, not me?”
“ We’re not doing anything,” she said. “I have my own bookkeeping company. I make enough to live comfortably. I don’t need to work for the bank, and I really don’t need to work for someone who doesn’t think I’m qualified for the job.”
Trace frowned at her. “Your qualifications have never been an issue, Laila.”
She grinned at him. “Oh, that’s right. It’s my sex.”
Their mother walked into the room just in time to overhear Laila’s comment, but not its context.
“Young lady, that is not a proper subject for a Sunday afternoon.”
Trace grinned. “Laila was referring to her gender, Mother.”
The Inn at Eagle Point Page 20