The photographers were annoying and pissed him off, but this just took it to a whole new level. They weren’t just a nuisance that wouldn’t leave him alone anymore; they were a hazard to the community.
In his job, every second counted. One minute late and people could die. Lives would change forever, and it would be his fault. He couldn’t have that. He was a man who’d made a vow to protect his community and it was a vow he took very seriously.
Anger pulled tight across his neck, and he didn’t even bother to try and rub it away. He wanted to feel it because he needed to be reminded of the reality. Rebecca’s career interfered with his own, and that was a problem they had no control over.
“I really am sorry, guys,” Chase said again.
Miguel slapped his hand down on Chase’s shoulder and shook him. “Don’t worry about it.”
“I have no idea why they were there.”
Sam glanced over to him, a dark brow raising. “You’re involved with one of the most famous women in the country. What the hell did you expect?”
“I don’t see her that way.”
“Just because you don’t doesn’t mean the rest of the world doesn’t,” Sam said.
Chase ran a hand over his face and glanced out the window at the passing houses. “I don’t know what I’m going to do.”
“You have feelings for her, right?” Sam asked.
It wasn’t something he could deny. “Yeah.”
“Then you’ll figure it out.”
“Easy for you to say.”
“I fell in love with my best friend’s baby sister even though I swore to him I’d never go near her. Trust me, I understand hurdles better than anyone. But the heart wants what it wants, and you just have to find a way to make it happen. If you don’t”—Sam ran a hand across his chin then glanced over at Chase—“then that says it all. You don’t want it enough.”
Sam’s words stayed with Chase as they pulled onto the street and saw the cloud of black smoke billowing out of the hood of a car. He closed his eyes, clearing his mind as Sam put the truck into park.
“Let’s do this,” Sam said.
Chase opened his eyes, mind clear, and did what he did best. He jumped into action and got the job done.
***
Back at the station, Chase slumped down on the couch, taking a sip of water before resting the bottle on his thigh. Matt’s deputy managed to clear the crowd, and whatever he’d said to them was enough to keep them away. Whatever it was Chase was sure it would wind up in tomorrow’s tabloids.
He placed his arm over his eyes, wondering how his life came to this. Rebecca’s pretty face popped into his mind, her green eyes sparkling with an unreleased laugh, her lips parting slightly, and the edges of her mouth tilting upward.
His mind immediately went back to that morning in his bed, Rebecca’s hair fanned out across his pillow. He held the image in his mind, not wanting to open his eyes and head back to reality.
Sam was right. If he wanted her enough he would find a way to make it happen, and he would because a life with Rebecca was worth fighting for.
“Oh shit,” Sam said and Chase blinked an eye open in his direction. Sam’s eyes hardened and Chase sat up following his gaze to the television.
Nothing could have prepared him for what he saw. Nothing. A blinding rage unlike anything he had ever known consumed him as he stared at the man who abandoned him all those years ago.
He was missing a few teeth, had a few more wrinkles and was in desperate need of a shave, but there was no denying those eyes. Eyes he could see himself in and that scared him more than anything.
His body shook, blood boiled, and every ounce of control he had was held together by a tightly stretched cord.
“Join us tonight at eight when we bring you childhood stories of Chase Marshall, Bex Shepard’s new man, from his very own father.”
Chase swallowed, but nothing could stop the building anger. “That son of a bitch!” he yelled, throwing his bottle of water against the wall. The bottle hit with a loud smack, the force causing the top to fly off and water to explode.
The day his father walked out on them was the best damn day of their lives. He never wanted to see him again, none of his family did, and now the bastard was on TV discussing his childhood? Who the hell did he think he was?
“He’s just doing it for the money,” Sam said, resting his hand on Chase’s shoulder.
Chase jerked away from him, hands raised. “Don’t!” he said, backing away. “I need to go home.”
“Go,” Sam said.
If he was lucky he would get to his sisters before they saw anything. He could break it to them easily. It was going to sting regardless, but they needed to hear it from him.
Chapter 19
Chase got to the house and jumped out of his truck. Before he got to the door Brooke was storming down the steps toward him. Her eyes blazed with anger but he saw beyond the rage to the pain. “How could you let this happen?”
“Look, I’m sorry,” Chase said. “I had no idea.” Even if he did, he had no power to stop it. Everything was out of his control, and his sister was hurting. Agony shone in her features, the fight she was battling on the inside to keep all emotions but anger buried deep beneath the surface.
“Sorry isn’t going to fix this, Chase. Sorry isn’t going to keep that bastard from going on national television and saying god knows what about us.”
Overwhelmed, he threw his arms up in the air. “What the hell do you want me to do?”
“You couldn’t just keep your dick in your pants, could you?”
“Shut up!” he yelled. He hated that Brooke was hurting but he couldn’t let her say things like that no matter how hurt and angry she was.
“This is all your fault. If you stayed away from her, none of this would be happening.”
“You should talk! You were just out shopping with her the other day.”
“Because you already brought her home. It’s not like I sought her out.”
“She’s not a freaking dog, Brooke. She’s a person, and I’m sure she’s feeling just as guilty about this as I am.”
“Good! She should be.”
She lifted her finger, pointing at his face as she walked closer to him. “You’ve done a lot of stupid shit, but I think this takes the cake.”
Her finger stopped inches from his face, and he forced it away. “Oh, and you’re just a goddamn angel.”
“I’ve never brought that lowlife piece of trash back into our lives. Poor Layla is beside herself.”
Chase’s heart broke as he thought about all Layla had sacrificed for them after their father abandoned them and their mother died. She didn’t deserve that bastard going on TV and acting like he knew any of them. He didn’t.
“Where is she?” Chase asked, swallowing down the regret.
“She had to go to work.”
He was mad at himself for not getting here sooner. Maybe that’s why the photographers had been swarming the firehouse. They knew the story was about to break, and they wanted his first reaction. He should’ve known something was up. He should’ve been here for his sisters.
Chase hadn’t seen his dad in over a decade, yet the man was still ruining his life.
“I bet we won’t even hear from him after this. He’s in it for the payday,” Chase said, a sad attempt at sugar coating the terrible situation.
“Too bad the damage is already done.”
The sound of a car zipping up the street caught Chase’s attention. He turned to see Bex’s convertible pull into the driveway.
“You have got to be kidding me. I swear to god, Chase, if you bring her in this house it won’t be pretty.” Brooke stormed off and slammed the front door, rattling the hinges.
“I came as soon as I heard,” Bex said, jumping out of the car before he even suspected it was in park. “I’m so sorry. This is all my fault. I can’t even imagine what you must be feeling.” She stepped toward him, reluctant in the way she moved. “
I already called my publicist. She’s ready to do damage control and bury this story as fast as she can. I’m going to fix this.”
He stepped back. “Fix this? You can’t just slap a band-aid on this and call it a day. It doesn’t work that way.”
“I know,” she said, reaching out to him but he stepped back before she could touch him. He was too angry right now and he had every right to be. He didn’t want her to take that away from him.
“I warned you,” she said and he could hear the tears in her voice.
“You never told me they’d track down my deadbeat father and give him a voice. A voice that he doesn’t deserve. He has no right to talk about my childhood.” Frustration took over and Chase’s voice continued to rise with each word. “He wasn’t there. Even when he was, he wasn’t.” The anger spun inside of him, mixing with other emotions, a combination so strong he couldn’t keep it in a second longer. “He wasn’t there!” He choked on a sob, hating himself for letting that asshole get the better of him.
“Chase,” Rebecca said, moving toward him. This time he didn’t step back. She wrapped her arms around him, pulling his head down to her. Her gentle touch soothed his soul and he closed his eyes, letting the calming sensation of her hands on him wash away the rest of his anger.
She held him until he finally regained his composure and drew back.
He’d been so angry and had directed some of that anger at her, but now seeing her, concern in her eyes, unease creating lines across her forehead, he realized this was not her fault and his ire slowly faded.
He could see his own pain reflected in her as if she was helping carry his burden. He lifted his arms, securing them around her and pulling her back to him.
“It’s going to be all right,” he said as he stroked her hair. The words not so much for her as they were for him. He needed to believe everything was going to work itself out.
She looked up at him, a worried expression on her face. “How is Brooke?”
“Angry. Upset.”
“She must hate me.”
“She hates everyone.”
Bex shrugged, a sadness passing through her eyes. “I actually thought she liked me, though.”
“She’ll get over it,” Chase said even though Brooke had been known to hold onto a grudge forever, but Bex didn’t need to know that. “The best thing to do is just give her space.”
“Okay.”
“Come on,” Chase said. “Let’s go back to your place, cuddle up with Willy, and pretend this day never happened.”
Chapter 20
Bex had been so worried that Chase would blame her for this disaster, but in the end, he didn’t. He told her the only person to blame was his scumbag father who cared more about money than anything else.
She still wished she could have prevented it. He didn’t need to see that man’s face on TV after all these years. Didn’t need to hear him speak, and he sure as hell didn’t need to know that his dad was exploiting his childhood for a quick buck.
The only thing she could do was keep him away from a TV which is exactly what she did. They spent the entire night entertaining each other.
Her head rested against his bare chest, and he stroked her arm. She closed her eyes, absorbing every sensation. “This is nice.”
“Yeah.”
“And I hate to do this but…” She sat up, pulling out of his hold so she could see his face. “We should talk.”
He ran a hand over his face and looked toward Willy. “I don’t want to talk about my father anymore.”
“That’s not what I meant. I mean we should talk about us.”
His eyes turned back to her. “Like what?” She took a deep breath and he sat up, leaning against the headboard.
“Next month I’m starting a new film, and I’ll be on location in Louisiana.”
“The South. I’ve never been,” he said.
“It’s really nice, and I would love if you would come visit me. The filming should take about three months and then I don’t have anything lined up until the new year. I can pay for your flight.”
“Let’s get one thing straight,” he said, placing his finger beneath her chin and urging her to meet his gaze. “I don’t need your money. Ever.”
“But if you’re coming to see me…”
“Then I’ll pay my way.”
She appreciated his sense of pride and didn’t push the money issue further.
“Does that mean you’ll come see me?” she asked, a hopeful glee in her voice.
He nodded, a smile etching his mouth.
She leapt at him, throwing her arms around his neck and kissing him. He laughed, and the sound was liquid ecstasy to her ears. After yesterday she had been afraid Chase would never laugh again. She straddled him, leaning forward to kiss him before pulling back. “The thing with your dad…”
His head fell against the headboard. “I told you I don’t want to talk about him anymore.”
“I know, but it’s possible that’s not the end. I can guarantee that’s not the end. Once they try to interview every person you’ve ever known, they’ll accept you in my life, and that’s when the ridiculous lies will start.”
“Lies?”
“You’ll laugh at a woman’s joke in the grocery store and next thing you know you’re cheating on me, she’s pregnant with your child, and you’re getting ready to leave me for her.”
His eyes narrowed. “And I’ll know the truth, so who cares?”
“You say that now, but it’s not that easy. They have a way of making you believe their lies. So many relationships have been ruined because of it.” She had watched so many couples who she thought were perfect together crumble under the media’s relentless stories. Nobody was off-limits in their eyes and they could spin a story any way they could to fit an agenda.
She couldn’t even count how many guys she had been with according to the tabloids. She couldn’t as much as glance at a man without stories of their impending wedding being plastered across a dozen covers.
Chase grabbed her hips, running his thumb back and forth over the bare skin of her back. “I won’t let that happen.”
“You promise?” she asked, needing reassurance.
“I promise. As long as you promise to always tell me the truth.”
“Always.”
He flipped her beneath him, his gray eyes shining down at her. “Then that settles it.”
“Are you sure? I don’t want you to resent me for it one day.”
His eyes bore into hers, adoration and affection brimming in his irises. “I told you. You’re worth it.” She linked her arms around his neck and pulled his lips to hers, savoring the way he devoured her in one sweeping motion.
“Hold that thought. I need to refuel,” he said with a wink as he pushed up from the bed and made his way to the ladder. “You want anything?”
She shook her head. “I’m good. Hurry back.”
He flashed her a sexy smile before going down the ladder. The sun was making its descent in the sky, and she wondered what time it was.
She promised Chase no cell phone, but there was no harm in checking the time. She reached for her phone, unsurprised to see a million notifications. She was going to ignore them, but curiosity got the best of her.
Her heart sunk to the floor as she read the article. Her body was frozen in disbelief.
Chase couldn’t see this. Everything he thought he knew about his mom’s accident was a lie. The unearthed newspaper article about the accident proved that.
Disbelief turned into fiery rage. The media was spineless, digging into a poor man’s past just to sell a paper and get more clicks on their websites.
Didn’t they realize the pain they caused? Did they even care? Bex couldn’t let Chase see this. The interview with his dad nearly broke him this… this would destroy him.
He climbed back up the ladder and before she could hide her phone he swiped it out of her grasp. “Chase, no!”
“I told you no phones,” he said,
but then his eyes caught on the screen, and his whole body went rigid. “What is this?” he asked as the picture of his mom’s accident stared back at him. The headline stated how she suffered a horrible death. The first sentence made it clear she didn’t die on impact like Chase had believed. A sentence after that explaining the police report.
“I’m sorry,” she said, her voice barely a whisper. Sorry wasn’t enough but it was all she had. She warned him they wouldn’t stop, but even she knew, nothing could have prepared him for this.
“No,” he said as he scrolled the article, his eyes scanning fast and furious. “No.” She could see the denial in his irises but how could he deny an actual police report? He couldn’t. The tabloids lied, made up stories and bent words to their will, but this was a report directly from the Red Maple Falls police department.
The phone fell from his hands, and he started to back away. Bex jumped up, needing to do something. She couldn’t bare the tortured look in his eyes, the stiffness of his body. The agony that was slicing hard across his features.
He turned from her and grabbed his shirt, hurrying back down the ladder. She reached for the closest article of clothing she could find and pulled it on before following him. He was already halfway out the door by the time she got on the floor. She ran to the door, closing the it behind her and making sure Willy didn’t try to escape, but the cat must’ve known better because he didn’t even flinch.
“Chase, wait,” Bex said, running after him. He was at his truck, hand on the handle. He looked at her but said nothing. It was like he wasn’t even there, just a shell of himself going through the motions.
Bex grabbed his arm out of desperation. “Chase, talk to me!” His eyes met hers, a cold hard stare. This was different than yesterday when his anger was uncontrollable, exploding out of him. This was silent, brewing deep beneath the surface and it terrified her. “Please!” she pleaded. She couldn’t let him walk away like this not after everything they’d already been through.
They dealt with it together and she wanted to be there for him now more than ever. But his eyes fell from hers as his hand rested on the door of his truck. “I can’t,” he said. He pulled out of her grasp. “I just can’t. I don’t think I can do this. I thought I could. But this.” His jaw clenched, enraged lines cutting sharply across his skin. “It went too far. I’m done.”
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