Gerry wasn’t sure how he felt now about the fact that his parents divorced shortly after he was born. He’d never known, and considering she’d left anyway, what did it matter? “Marriage just never came up.”
“What? Why not?”
“I never thought about it. I’m surprised you feel this way. You never had anything nice to say about my mother … she left and … fuck, I’m an idiot.”
“You said this woman, uh, Maia, is in love with you?”
“Sure … I … yes. She says so and I believe her.”
“Then she probably wants to marry you. Don’t base your life on mine, Gerry. Your mother never wanted to marry me but I didn’t want you born into this world without at least beginning the right way. I thought she might be different after she had the baby—you—a lot of women are. She could have changed her mind.”
“But she didn’t.”
“No. She had secrets and a life somewhere else she always wanted to get back to.” His eyes glassed over and he shifted slightly to the left, propping his elbow up on the arm of the chair. There was pain behind his eyes—Gerry wanted to yank it away. It killed him to see it there. A sorrowfulness. Regret? Maybe. An unguarded vulnerability burrowed into the lines of his face, the way the little creases grew deeper as he remembered the woman Gerry always thought he hated. “I knew it up front, but that didn’t stop me from wanting you.” He glanced at Gerry, allowing his lips to curve slightly. “I know I always talked bad about your ma because she wasn’t good for you, for us. That’s why I told her to leave.”
What? Gerry tried for the life of him to remember his dad telling her to leave. He’d always thought she wanted to leave.
“She actually wanted to take you with her when she left. I convinced her to leave you with me, told her never to come back. She agreed her life wasn’t one she should have brought a child into.”
Gerry thought back to the day his mother left. The fight he’d heard as he hid behind the door to the living room didn’t match the story his father was now telling. He glanced across the room at the same door; saw that scared little boy sitting on the hardwood floor, his knees tucked up under his chin with his hands over his ears, not wanting to hear anymore. Not wanting to hear how she didn’t want a little boy in her life. Not wanting to hear his pop beg her to stay because he loved her. When the yelling stopped, he watched his mother touch his father’s face, holding her hand there for several seconds. At that point, his dad stopped begging and instead insisted she leave, claiming he didn’t love her, said he never had. She had even walked up to Gerry and kissed him goodbye before she left. Why did Gerry just now remember this part? He knew he got his powers from his mother; he only remembered up to a point, but never this before. Perhaps being back in the house, talking with his dad reminded him and opened a door in his mind. Well, I’ll be damned. She’d compelled him and replaced his memory, hardening his heart to ease his pain. She hadn’t made him forget completely, only altered the details slightly to make him hate her enough not to care where she went. She couldn’t stay, but she hadn’t wanted him to suffer either. Compassion? Maybe. What did it matter?
“But you … you and Maia—she’s a good woman?”
“The best, Pop. You’ll love her.”
“And you’re sure you do?”
“Absolutely, without a doubt.” Gerry took a sip of his beer, grinning. He was the luckiest man alive.
His father nodded. “Then you marry her.”
***
A boisterous noise swept over the calm in the bar making Maia and Addie turn to discover Careen and Finn stomping in through the front door in the midst of a heated argument. Can’t they keep it to themselves? Maia cringed as Careen raised her hand to strike at Finn’s face, but luckily, he caught her wrist within inches of her palm making contact with his cheek. Good thing there weren’t any other customers in the bar to witness the two acting like imbeciles.
Since the two obnoxious idiots interrupted hers and Addie’s private conversation, Addie stood and walked back behind the bar. It was just as well; the door opened and several locals strolled in and took possession of a four-seated table in the center of the room. Maia turned to pretend she was actually interested in the club soda she’d been nursing all afternoon. The last thing she wanted was for Careen to start talking to her, but we don’t always get what we want, she mused as Careen slinked onto the stool next to her.
“Hello, Maia,” Finn said, tapping Careen on the shoulder. “I’m gonna hit the loo. Be back in a flash.”
Careen waved him off in an I-don’t-give-a-damn gesture. Frowning, she turned her attention to Maia. “Where’s Gerry?” Her voice vibrated with a gruffness that Maia hadn’t heard before.
“Is something wrong with your voice?” Maia asked with as much compassion as she could muster.
“Well, duh! I’m getting laryngitis, probably from all this fucking cold weather you all seem to enjoy so much. I don’t know if it will be gone in time for our first performance. So where is Gerry?”
“He’s not here.”
Careen shifted her bottom on the stool so that her face glared directly into Maia’s. “You can’t keep me from talking to him. You know if you weren’t pregnant he wouldn’t be with you.”
“That’s enough,” Addie said, slamming her hand down on top of the bar in front of Careen.
Maia held up her hand to stop Addie’s interference, not taking her eyes off Careen. “It’s okay, Addie.”
“Right, Addie,” Careen said, spitting out Addie’s name with contempt and sneering at her for a brief moment before returning her glare to Maia. “Listen to your auntie and leave the conversation to the grownups. She knows the truth when she hears it.”
Maia stayed seated and amazingly calm as she continued rubbing her finger around the edge of her glass. She knew Addie wanted to do something similar to what she’d done with the coffee the first time they’d met Careen, but Maia wanted to handle this herself. She glanced at Addie and shook her head slightly, letting her know not to interfere. “You must think very highly of me to even suggest that I could ever keep Gerry from talking to anyone. I do appreciate the compliment, though. I find that the truth is always the best policy. So, in truth, Gerry told you he didn’t have any feelings for you whatsoever and that you should stop bothering him and me. Therefore, if you want to keep this little gig, I’d advise you to change your tune, pun intended. Go home, drink some honey-lemon tea and nurse your voice back to health before Friday night.”
“You can’t tell me what to do.” She coughed several times before continuing, her voice becoming scratchier with every word. “You don’t own this bar. Just because you’re carrying Gerry’s brats doesn’t make you his wife.”
That one hit home, but Maia considered the source and let it roll off her shoulders without a flinch.
“I thought you would have lost them, after that tumble down the hill you took.”
Maia hid her shock. She wasn’t aware that anybody other than the four of them and Red knew about that. She turned to look Careen in the eye. “It seems I am stronger than you expected.”
“I bet you’re the one who pushed her,” Addie said, pointing her finger at Careen.
“I never laid a hand on her,” Careen shot back with a glare at Addie. “You should be careful where you point that finger, little girl.”
“Stop this!” Maia said in a hushed shout. Maybe the woman did push her off the trail, but sitting here accusing Careen wasn’t going to accomplish anything. It would probably be best for all to simply let it go, but Maia wasn’t going to let the other comment slide. “Look, we’re all grown women here, so stop acting like high school girls. Careen, as a matter of fact, I am co-owner of this bar, so if you know what’s good for you, you’ll do what I say.” When Gerry first presented her with the papers that very morning, she’d hesitated to sign them, wishing he had made a different type of proposal. He had insisted though, said it would be better for the twins if anything ever happened to
him.
“Is that a threat?”
“Call it what you want.”
“You can’t threaten me. There is no way in hell I’ll believe that Gerry gave you half of his bar. I’ll see you dead before I let you get your grimy claws any further into Gerry. He doesn’t love you as much as you think. Gerry and I were meant to be together. You see this?” Careen pointed to the ruby pendant that always hung around her neck. “Gerry gave this to me as a token of his undying love. We were perfect for each other. You should see him with me when we’re alone together; if I were you, I’d be a bit jealous.”
Maia stood, needing that extra edge of confidence, surprised she wasn’t shaking from the anger swimming through her mind. “’Were’ is the word you used. Let’s concentrate on that. Go home, Careen, while you still have an ounce of dignity and voice left, if that much. I’ll let Gerry know about your laryngitis.”
Careen huffed, “Tell Finn I left and to find his own way home,” before she stomped to the door.
“And don’t think your threat went unnoticed,” Addie yelled after her then added, “bitch,” under her breath.
Finn, returning from the bathroom, took the seat next to Maia that Careen had just vacated. “Sorry ‘bout that, love. She can be a bit erratic, particularly when she’s not feeling real well.”
“A bit?” Maia said.
Finn smiled and Maia found herself smiling back. “You seem like a nice guy, Finn. What are you doing with someone like Careen anyway?”
“Ah, well, all the good women around here seem to be taken.” Finn grinned and placed his hand on top of Maia’s.
Maia glanced at him and still smiling slightly, pulled her hand out from under his. “You’ve got that right.”
Harmless? Maybe.
“How are you feeling these days?” Finn asked, then lowering his voice added, “Are the twins showing any signs of Gerry’s gifts?”
This took Maia by surprise. She hadn’t realized Gerry’s friends knew about his compulsion and telekinetic abilities. “Um … no.” Perhaps there was a possibility because of the voice, but she didn’t want to reveal that to Finn or anyone else, for that matter.
“What can I get you, Finn?” Addie asked, breaking Finn from the spell he seemed to be under as he stared at Maia.
Slowly redirecting his gaze to Addie he said, “Guinness‘ll be fine, love. Now you’re another beauty. That boyfriend of yours better mind himself, or someone’s gonna come along and snatch you right out from under him.”
Finn no sooner uttered those words, than Aiden came walking through the front door, planting what Maia considered a very fine behind down on the stool next to Finn. A hot guy who didn’t really seem to know it, Aiden gave Addie that gorgeous smile of his and Maia considered Finn’s words, wondering what the chances were that someone like Aiden could take her away from Cael, considering the baby issue.
Addie returned Aiden’s smile with her own, lowering her eyes in a shy way. Maia shrugged. She was only being polite, right? Addie was completely devoted to Cael. Aiden might be gorgeous too, but also a bit older than Cael. Maia sighed; where did age ever factor in when there was chemistry? And boy, if she didn’t know better, she’d think these two would have been excellent lab partners.
Chapter 17
Bar Days
Returning from their trip to Scotland, Gerry and Cael walked in through the back door after materializing in the thick five-foot tall evergreen brush behind the bar. Cael headed straight for Addie, scooping her up in his arms and twirling her around like Gerry had witnessed him do many times. Gerry walked up to Maia, kissed her ever so softly on the lips, wishing they were alone. He had so many things to talk to her about.
Gerry glanced around, somewhat surprised to see so many people in the bar on a Wednesday afternoon. Not only the band members, aside from Careen, whom he didn’t miss at all, but also several town locals sat sipping beers and assorted cocktails. “It’s busy in here. Addie, has it been like this all day?”
She shook her head. “No, not really. It was quiet for a while. I’d say it picked up about an hour ago. Could use your help, though. One of the Guinness taps is pouring very slowly. I think we need a new keg.”
“I’ll handle that,” he said, walking around to the refrigerated area between the taps and his office. The smell of beer weighed heavily in the air, a kind of musty, hoppy fragrance that brought back memories of his boyhood—a memory he now cherished. Those days of helping his dad in the pub as a teenager were some of the happiest memories he had. It had always made him feel so important. Working in a bar grounded him with a sort of cool character image to his friends. He unplugged the old keg, pulling it free and placing it on the cement floor along with a couple other empties ready to get picked up for refill. He pulled out a new one, hoisted it into place and tightened the tap. He stepped back, admired his work and thought about his pop, how he’d watched him do the same thing so many times. Like father, like son? Maybe it would be better to have some time to think about everything. Besides, he had no idea what to say to Maia, yet. He welcomed the extra time to process everything he had learned from his dad.
“Hey,” Addie’s soft voice broke him from his reverie.
“Hey back. Everybody out there taken care of?” Gerry grabbed a towel he had left there to wipe his hands with, then threw it over his shoulder.
Addie nodded. “Yeah, Darcy is keeping things under control. Um … you’re … ah, ex-girlfriend was in here about an hour ago, asking for you.”
“So?”
“So … her voice is all messed up. Claims she has laryngitis.”
“Christ.” Gerry pinched his eyes in an attempt to squelch down the headache threatening to form behind his eyes. “Does she think she’ll be better by Friday night?”
Addie shrugged. “Maia told her to go home and have some honey lemon tea. I can go over there and see what I can do if you like.”
“Let’s wait and see. The less Careen knows about your abilities the better off you’ll be—we’ll all be, for that matter.”
“Does she know about yours?”
When Gerry didn’t respond right away, Addie stood silent, eyes set on him, waiting for an answer.
“She knows of one. She witnessed me move a car back a couple of feet in a parking lot once so my car would fit in. She’d gotten out of the car and I thought she’d already gone inside when I did it. At first, I told her my car must have nudged it. She didn’t believe me and later that night she demonstrated her voice manipulation.”
Addie’s eyes grew wide and she opened her mouth then closed it. An incredulous frown transformed her face. “And … what is that exactly?”
“Nothing life-threatening. She can generate vocal sounds. I mean she can change her voice to be anything. That’s why she can sing so well.”
Addie rubbed her hands over her arms and laughed. “You mean like a ventriloquist?”
Gerry shrugged. “Yeah, but she can make animal sounds, realistic ones too. I mean as loud as a real lion’s roar or as quiet as the buzz of a bee. It is quite interesting.”
“Must be. Did she make weird animal sounds during … you know, when you two banged the nasty?” Addie smirked.
Gerry laughed. “That, sweet thing, is none of your business.”
Addie giggled. “If she has that type of ability, I bet she was faking this afternoon.”
“Could be. I wouldn’t put anything past Reenie.”
Addie touched his arm as the playful gleam in her eyes faded. “Gerry, there’s something you should know.”
“What?”
“I think Careen is the one who pushed Maia down the bank on the trail.”
“What makes you think that?”
“Well, she practically admitted it. She mentioned how surprised she was that Maia hadn’t lost the twins when she fell—almost as though she wanted her to lose them. No one knew about what happened, right?”
Gerry nodded. “I didn’t tell anyone.”
“Rig
ht. So she must have done it. How else would she have known?”
“Possibly, but unless she actually confessed, we have no proof.” Although it concerned Gerry to think Careen was capable of devising such a horrible plot to win him back, he had to consider the way Careen thought. Yes, she’d never hidden her desire to rekindle the old flame they’d had, but to commit such a horrific act and to think that if Maia lost the babies he would stop loving her was outrageous and unrealistic, even for Reenie.
“True, but she threatened Maia.”
“What do you mean?”
“She said she’d kill her … no, what were her exact words? Oh yeah, she said, ‘I’ll see you dead before I let you get your grimy claws any further into Gerry’—same as threatening to kill her in my book.”
Gerry sighed. “It sounds like I need to talk to Careen, but I’m sure she’s harmless.” He’d never considered her a dangerous, a thief, but not life-threatening. But he also didn’t want her making idle threats to Maia.
“Sounds more like you need to talk to Maia.”
“Yeah, that I do.” He rubbed his eyes before swiping his hand through the short crop of hair on his head.
“What’s up with you and Careen, anyway? Why does she keep coming around annoying the crap out of everybody? And why does she keep insisting on having private conversations with you?”
Gerry stared at Addie, perplexed for a moment, trying to decide which question to answer first. “I don’t know.” He shook his head. “Yeah, I do. There’s nothing going on with Reenie and me. We had a fling years ago. As to why she wants to talk to me privately all the time, she wants to start things up again.”
When Addie opened her mouth to speak, Gerry held up his finger. “I have no intention of rekindling anything with her. Not now, not ever. So get that thought out of your pretty little head. As for your third question, or maybe it was your second, I don’t know why she annoys everybody. She just does. I don’t think she can help it.” He grinned. “Some people are just that way.
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