A Few Tables Away (Glenhaven #1)

by Deb Rotuno

  I poured myself a cup of coffee, smiling at the evidence of breakfast the boys had shared, but it was the squeal of happiness outside that called to me.

  I stepped around boxes that still needed to be unpacked, which would wait until after I got back from the airport. Some things would wait until Evan was back home in a little over a week…if the chaos and mess didn’t drive my own personal OCD to the brink of insanity.

  Through the sliding glass doors, the beach stretched out to the right and left as far as I could see. There were houses close by on either side, but it was quiet, private. I stepped out onto the back porch into the chilly, overcast winter morning, giggling against the lip of my cup as I fell in love all over again.

  Evan was in jeans and a gray thermal shirt, but he’d dressed Robbie adorably—little khaki cargos, a blue-and-white football shirt, and a blue-and-white-striped wool hat. Our son was an adorable blend of the two of us. He had big brown eyes and adorable dimples when he smiled, but his hair was fine—duck fluff, as Evan called it—so his little bald head tended to get cold. I loved that the color I could see coming in was dark like Evan’s but had some light streaks to it like mine.

  Robbie was squealing into laughter as Evan tried to hold him up to let him walk on the wet packed sand of the beach in adorable little sneakers. Our son was getting closer and closer to being able to do it, but not yet. Evan on the beach was a sight to behold, not because he was tall, handsome, with the chilly sea breeze blowing his hair but because he loved it now. When I first met him, the fear of water had a fierce grip on him, but ever since he’d taken that one giant step onto the beach when we’d first moved in together, he’d let that old fear go. Even our small wedding had been on the beach just off the boardwalk, and it was Sean who’d performed it. So yes, I was incredibly proud of Evan, especially when I saw him passing that recent love of sand and water on to Robbie.

  When my son caught sight of me, he lit up. His smile was like Evan’s, where it was a blinding flash of happy and sweet, making his whole face crinkle with it.

  “Mum, Mum, Mum!” he called, one little fist opening and closing over and over.

  Evan laughed, looking up from his stooped position as he guided our son, but then scooped the boy up into his arms. “There’s Mommy,” he crooned to Robbie, kissing the side of his head and walking to me. “Hey, pretty girl.” He kissed my lips, chuckling when Robbie reached for me. He handed him over, trading me for the cup of coffee. “We wanted to let you sleep, so we came out here to be noisy.”

  Laughing, I smooched my son’s face all over, down to his neck, just to hear him giggle uncontrollably. “Were you noisy, baby boy?”

  “No!” he answered loudly in the laugh I loved, curling in on himself.

  Evan set the coffee mug down on the porch railing, wrapping his arms around both of us. “I hate leaving you,” he whispered against my forehead, pressing kisses there. “Don’t overdo the unpacking, baby. Okay? If you need help, call Tyler or Wes. They promised they’d check in on you.”

  “We’ll be fine. Mom and Aunt Tessa are coming tomorrow to steal Robbie for the day, and Faith too, I think. Though, I have to be at the bookstore to open for your book release.” I smiled at him, cupping his handsome face. “I’m so very proud of you, Evan.”

  His grin flashed quick and bright, and he deflected the compliment by kissing the top of Robbie’s head. “You take care of Mommy while I’m gone, buddy. I expect a full report when you land in Montana.”

  Grinning, I shook my head. “I love you both like crazy.”

  Evan chuckled softly, pulling us closer and hugging us fiercely. “We love you too.”

  “C’mon. I want to snuggle with my boys before you go, and you have to finish packing,” I told him.

  I knew dropping him off at the airport would be hard, but I also knew Robbie and I would be joining him in just a few days. We’d done it before when the first book took off unexpectedly right after the baby was born, so we could do it again.

  Evan

  I leaned against the wall at the airport, waiting for the conveyor belt to kick on. Damn, I missed my family. The last few days had been busy with interviews and book signings, but the closer I got to Montana, the more anxious I became. Some shit just didn’t ever go away.

  California had been fine, in spite of the meetings and interviews. My Elves of Lenora would end up a TV show, which I could barely wrap my head around. There were still contracts to discuss and more books to come, but I’d left LA in shock and humbled at the excitement my old story had garnered. I’d had to attend two book signings so far in Montana, in both Missoula and Browning. However, as I stood in the middle of Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport, I sighed deeply at the feelings coursing through me.

  I’d told Dani a long time ago that I’d never come back here. And really, this trip wasn’t by choice. It was business, but I couldn’t help but remember some things from the past. I also couldn’t help but continuously look over my shoulder. We were too damn close to where all the bad shit had happened. We were too damn close to my dad, and I was really happy that Dani had offered to meet me here for the next few days.

  William Shaw had fallen off the grid. Sean, who occasionally would give me updates, had lost contact with him a couple years ago, not long after he’d left the halfway house. I didn’t care; I was perfectly content with my life, with my wife and son, with my family back in Florida. He’d never been a real father to me, so the loss of contact wasn’t a bad thing. Even if he’d tried to get in touch with me, he’d have been met with nothing.

  The luggage carousel kicked on, and people started to drift in, and that was when the smile spread across my face because my beautiful girl stepped through the throngs of people with my boy in her arms. I met them halfway across the large room, meeting my wife’s gaze over my son’s head.

  “Look, Robbie…Daddy!” she whispered to him, grinning my way, and my son’s head snapped up off her shoulder to gaze around until he finally set his sights on me.

  “Da-ee, Da-ee, Da-ee!” he called, reaching with stretched-out arms.

  “Hey, buddy!” I crooned, taking him from Dani, but I leaned down and kissed her lips. “Hi, baby,” I whispered. “God, I’ve missed you guys!”

  “We missed you,” Dani said, burrowing into my neck when I wrapped my arms around them both. “Apparently I’m not as good at storytelling as you are, Daddy, so bedtime the last few nights was…grumpy.”

  Laughing, I looked to my son. “Cut Mommy some slack, buddy.”

  My son grinned, all dimply and innocent, shaking his head.

  “Tough audience, baby. Sorry,” I teased my wife, unable to keep my lips from her one more time. “How was the release at the bookstore?”

  “Biggest day we’ve ever had, Evan,” Dani said with a laugh that was laced with pride and awe at the same time. “Not even kidding.”

  As we gathered Dani’s checked bags and Robbie’s car seat and stroller, I dropped repeated kisses to his head. I’d missed them both. I never thought I could love this damn much. It had been overwhelming and scary, but the very second I’d set eyes on my son, I was absolutely a different man.

  Two things flew through my mind the day he was born. One was that my Dani was the strongest, most amazing woman I’d ever met and I’d never be able to thank her for the life she’d given me. And two…I was nothing like my own father, not one fucking thing like him. Where he hated the mere sight of his own children, I could barely put my own son down long enough for a nap. I couldn’t stop kisses, tickles, revels in the littlest of things Robbie did or from the love I kept spewing at the two most important people in my life. No, I was not my father. Everything about being a parent I’d learned from my mother and then from Leanne, Daniel, and Aunt Tessa.

  Once we were loaded up in the rental car, I turned to Dani before pulling out of the parking spot. “Baby, the hotel is right next to the bookstore where I’m supposed to be for the next few hours. If you want, you can avoid the cha
os…”

  Dani grinned. “And your overzealous fans,” she teased, leaning over to kiss my lips. “Actually, that’s sort of perfect. Robbie needs a nap, and I need a shower from being on this plane. We can meet you when you’re done, Evan.”

  Smiling, I kissed her again. “Good, and then we’ll get something to eat. Sean wants to see us when we’re in Helena for the signing day after tomorrow—he’s out of town today and tomorrow, so he’ll make the trip to Helena when he gets back—so it’s just the three of us tonight.”

  Robbie babbled excitedly as we drove through the city, but the chatter slowly settled down, and he was asleep by the time I pulled into the hotel. I carried bags and baby stuff upstairs to the hotel room as Dani carried a zonked-out baby boy. Once she settled him onto the bed surrounded by pillows, I kissed them both and then made my way to the bookstore.

  Signings were hectic and sometimes crazy, but this one had been fun. There were pictures and tons of laughs, not to mention I signed my name more times than I could count. The line started to dwindle as my time was almost up. As one of the employees of the bookstore called an end to things, I glanced up to see who was left.

  My wife was there with Robbie in her arms, and he was chewing on one of his toys. I smiled her way but signed the last three books in the line, finally standing up to stretch. They both looked like they’d had a nap and a bath.

  Dani, who’d been gorgeous the first time I’d set eyes on her in college, was now just beautiful. She was older, and despite how she thought having Robbie had changed her body, she was still perfect to me. I’d teased her more than once that we now had matching scars on our stomachs, which always made her laugh, though I tended to do it while kissing every inch of her bare skin.

  “Da-ee!” Robbie squealed, drool dripping from toy and chin and chubby fist.

  I scooped him up out of her arms, holding him up and pretending to fly him like an airplane, just to hear him laugh. Shifting him to my hip, I leaned in to kiss Dani’s lips and then forehead, glancing around. In the far corner of the bookstore by the storefront window, I saw what looked like a familiar face. Cold, dark eyes met mine, bringing with them a flood of feelings—inadequacy, hate, fear, and then finally indifference. For a brief moment, I couldn’t understand seeing my dad. It had been so damned long since I’d been in the same room with the man that I almost didn’t recognize him. Time had not been kind to him. But when I stood up straight, he was gone. Frowning, I walked to where he’d been, but I didn’t see anyone.

  “Evan?” Dani asked, joining me at the large window that faced the sidewalk and busy street.

  “I swear, Dani…I thought I saw…” I trailed off, and on the sidewalk in the distance, again I saw who I thought was my father. “I think…my dad was here,” I said in a whisper, “but maybe it’s my imagination.” I looked to her. “You know, being here and…”

  Dani’s face was fierce. “He’d better leave you alone, Evan. Knowing him, he’d want in all of this,” she practically growled, twirling a finger around to indicate the bookstore and my signing.

  I could see her thinking. He had been stripped of everything, and my name was out there now. “Eh, he can try, pretty girl, but we’re leaving in the morning. C’mon. Your men are starving. Look, he’s starting to eat his own fingers!” I gasped, grabbing Robbie’s wrist and giving it a gentle shake. When I pretended to munch on his hand, he broke into hysterics.

  “My silly boys,” she sighed, smiling warmly. “Let’s go eat.”

  “Thanks, Mr. Shaw,” the woman said, waving as I handed her book back after scrawling my name inside the cover.

  Another copy landed in front of me, but it was the voice that made me smile. “Your mother would be mad you outsold her.”

  Grinning, I tilted my head up at Sean, and no matter that there were a dozen more people left in line, I stood up to shake his hand and hug the man.

  I couldn’t help but laugh again when he added, “That’s a downright lie, Evan. She’d be out front with signs.”

  “True,” I agreed easily, pulling back to look at him. “It’s good to see you, Sean.”

  As I sat back down, I really got a look at him. He’d aged, of course, but he looked well. There was more gray at his temples and he was dressed casually, but his eyes held something hard in them.

  “What?” I asked him.

  He glanced around but then leaned over. “I have some news, son.”

  “Okay, well, can you hang out for this last bit? Dani should be here soon.”

  “Sure,” he conceded, pushing my book closer. “My goal is to have the whole set signed, kiddo.”

  Grinning, I shook my head. I did as he asked, writing a personal thank-you inside to him. The rest of the line was getting antsy, but it went pretty quick once Sean stepped away to pay. I was signing the second-to-last book when there was a tug at my leg. Glancing down, I chuckled at my boy pulling himself up into a standing position, using a fierce grip on my jeans.

  “Da-ee…”

  “Hey, buddy. You’re late to the party.”

  I had to laugh at the coos from the women in the room, some standing around waiting, others just shopping, but when I set my son on my lap, he slapped his hands down on the table, beaming that dimply smile at everyone. He stayed content on my lap for the next couple of autographs, and then I stood up with him in my arms when the line was finally empty.

  I found Sean and Dani off to the side, and I kissed Dani’s lips. “Thanks. I needed an assistant there at the end.”

  Her laugh was beautiful as she reached over to adjust Robbie’s wool cap and jacket. “Once he saw you, it was like trying to hold a greased pig, baby. He just wouldn’t stay away.”

  “That’s one beautiful boy, you two,” Sean praised, shaking his head in awe, but he chuckled a little when Robbie reached out to grab his finger. When he met my gaze, there was a touch of sadness there, but he seemed to shake it off. “We need to talk, son.”

  “Okay. There’s an Italian place right across the street.”

  Once we were settled in a booth with Robbie in a high chair at the end, Sean leaned on his elbows and rubbed his face. “I got a call yesterday, guys.”

  “From?” I barely asked aloud because I was afraid it would be my dad, since I was pretty sure he’d been in the bookstore in Bozeman.

  “John Jenson. William’s lawyer,” he stated with a finality, wrinkling his nose. “Jenson knew your father wasn’t allowed to talk to you or your siblings. And he also knew I’m in contact with you pretty regularly, so most of the info I’ve ever given you came from him.”

  “Wasn’t…” Dani noted the tense of the word before I did, and I glanced to her before looking back at my mother’s old friend. “What happened?” she asked, dropping a handful of Cheerios onto Robbie’s tray just to keep him happily busy.

  “Your father, Evan,” Sean began slowly, eyeing Robbie for a moment. “Your father’s body was found yesterday morning.” When my eyebrows shot up, he nodded. “He was…beaten pretty badly, had two gunshot wounds to the chest, one to the head, and multiple broken bones—mostly fingers.”

  “Wha…Umm,” I started, frowning at the table as I adjusted my silverware for a second. “Why? How? I’m not even sure if I want to know this, Sean,” I finally blurted out, and then the memory of seeing him hit me. “I just…I swear I just saw him in Bozeman a couple of days ago. He was at the bookstore.”

  “Did he approach you?”

  “No. No, he left.”

  “I knew he’d end up with the wrong people,” Dani whispered, shaking her head. It wasn’t as if she was saying it to anyone in particular, because her focus was on our son.

  “That he did, Dani,” Sean concurred, nodding a little. “From what Jenson can piece together from his connections at the police department, William left the halfway house at the same time another man did. They’d followed the rules, worked at a grocery store together, but once they left, they dropped the job and the façade. The guy was head of a
pretty big gang or crime family, and he needed an under-the-table/off-the-books doctor who could fix up his members should they need medical attention. William was perfect. I can imagine the money was big; drugs and prostitution and gun sales are always going to be big money. Apparently he pissed them off.”

  “Jesus,” I whispered, raking my hands through my hair. “How? How’d he piss them off?”

  Sean smiled ruefully, shaking his head slowly. “William never really respected anyone, and he never could shut up when he should. He picked the wrong girl to mouth off to and rough up a bit—just about killed her—and she happened to be the leader’s cousin. He was barely sober or dressed when they dragged him out of the motel room.”

  “So…wait,” Dani pleaded. “He goes to see Evan and then runs off to do…whatever with this woman?”

  We both looked to her, neither of us answering, because that seemed to be exactly what happened. It was as if seeing me set him off on some sort of downward spiral. Sitting there in that booth, I could remember every single foul insult the man had spat my way, including how badly he hated the fact that I looked just like my mother.

  “Yeah, he probably did, baby.” I sighed deeply, linking my fingers with hers under the table. Looking back to Sean, I merely said, “He did that to himself.”

  Sean smirked. “He did. Though, they need someone to claim him.”

  “It won’t be me. And don’t bury him next to Mom,” I said firmly as an afterthought.

  My old friend smiled. “I figured, and I didn’t. He’s being cremated.”

  Before he could ask, I added, “And I’ll tell Tyler and Faith. They won’t care either, so…” I shrugged a shoulder, remembering Susan’s words to me so long ago. “Some people are just…toxic. He was one of those people. I understand that he came from an ugly childhood, but instead of overcoming it, he allowed it to swallow him up. He treated each of us like we were to blame for what he’d been through, and he made my childhood ugly.