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She’d been ignoring him.
Lance stared at the wooden door as he tried to make up his mind...did he really want to ring the bell and intrude on her privacy? He should leave her alone, but somehow—he couldn’t do it. It’s not like I don’t have enough troubles to begin with!
Jenna was special though. He didn’t want to lose her because of his own confused state of mind. He liked her, sure. They had some heat between them, no doubt about it. First and foremost, she’d always been a good friend and he didn’t want anything to destroy their relationship. It would be better to leave things alone, but that meant not seeing her again—and that, he couldn’t do.
While he debated, he heard a low murmur of voices. He walked over to the side of the house, and what he saw made him stop abruptly. Two young boys were talking to Jayden. Since he was behind a pillar, they didn’t see him. He listened.
“Dude, it's just one quick smoke.”
“I don’t want to get into any more trouble,” Jayden hissed in a firm voice. “I got grounded for two weeks last time I got caught.”
“We’ll go down to the park,” the other boy offered.
“No way!” Jayden pulled up the backpack he carried on his back. He bent over and picked up a carton. “I’ve got work to do.”
The boys shook their heads. One of them punched the other on the arm. “Leave him, Matt. He’s lost his balls.”
Shocked as he was to hear young boys talking like this, Lance didn’t interfere. He moved back to the main door and waited for them to spot him as they walked over.
When Jayden saw him, he stopped and frowned.
“Hi,” Lance greeted. Imagine being caught by a young boy lurking in front of a door. It certainly wouldn’t endear the kid to him. Lance got the distinct impression that Jayden didn’t like men who hovered around his mother. “I came to see your mom. Is she home?”
“No,” Jayden replied. “She won’t be home for another hour.”
He should have checked first, but how was he supposed to do it when she wouldn’t answer his calls. “Guess I’ll come back another time.”
Jayden waved to his friends. “Yeah, whatever!” He walked away.
Lance fell into step beside him. Why was the boy so prickly? Did he hate all men who came near his mom or did something about Lance rub him the wrong way? “Are you allowed to stay home alone?”
“Mrs. Molder left just now. I’m supposed to deliver these cupcakes to mom’s customers. And yes, she knows I’m doing it,” he announced.
Lance smiled. The kid had an attitude, much like Seth did at that age. “Do you want me to take you wherever you are going?”
“No, thanks. I’m not supposed to accept lifts from strangers.”
“I’m not a stranger.” Lance maintained his patience with the boy. He could understand a little bit of his ire. It couldn’t be easy to know he was the man of the house and young as he was, he must have mentally assumed the responsibility ever since he became old enough to understand his mother was dealing with a lot of pressure. “Your father and I were very good friends. In fact, we were best friends. I’m sure he would like me to look out for you guys.”
“We don’t need your help,” Jayden retorted in a dismissive voice.
Lance put a hand on his shoulder.
Jayden stopped.
“Listen, kid. I can’t force you to accept my offer, but believe me, I want to be there for you and your mother. And if you ever feel you need a man to man talk, don’t hesitate to come to me. It’s the least I could for your old man. I know he would’ve done the same for me.”
An emotion brimmed in Jayden’s eyes. His stare softened. “Thanks. But I’m all right now. I just have to deliver these cupcakes for mom.” He glanced about as if he was checking to see if anyone was overhearing them. “And I’ve also got this side project. I’m going to collect surveys and feedback from all of mom’s customers and then go over to the bank and show it to them. That would show them that she’s very capable to running her own bakery. She would make a success of it.” The boy’s gaze was determined, his jaw set. “I know it.”
Lance couldn’t help but admire the boy’s resolve and his confidence in his mom. If he had a son, he would’ve liked him to be like Jayden. A smile crept over his face. “Sounds like a good plan.”
“If I managed to convince the bankers, it would be the best Christmas present for mom, won’t it?”
Lance doubted the people who worked at the bank would be swayed by a young child, but he liked that Jayden intended to take matters in his own hands. At this stage, he could plan and strategize. It wasn’t a small feat for a boy his age. “Yes, it would,” he assured the boy.
“But don’t say anything to mom.”
“I won’t.” Lance mimed pulling a zipper over his lips. “Mum’s the word. Good luck!”
A slow smile lit Jayden’s face. “Thanks. Take care.”
Lance watched the boy leave. He had a good head on his shoulder. He admired Jayden’s courage to say no to his friends who sought to lead him astray. His values were in place and it appeared he learnt his lessons fairly well. After Jayden disappeared from view, Lance sat back in his car. He could wait for Jenna, or he could do something percolating in his mind.
Rather than walk away without having any contact with Jenna, he pulled open a notebook and wrote a brief message, telling her that he’d passed by and needed to see her. Perhaps she would ignore it, or maybe it would tell her how serious he was. He tore the page out of the notebook and folded it. Then, he left the car, pushed the message through her mailbox, and left her place.
He was now on another mission. Since he wasn’t the kind of a man who could let things be, he’d used the last day to collect some information on Bryn. The reports he got weren’t very encouraging.
Bryn appeared to be the type of man who flitted from one woman to another. He didn’t even have a permanent job and worked as a freelance software engineer. But he didn’t have a good reputation in his field.
Lance had no doubt the man would never accept the responsibility Lisa wanted him to take. Yet, he wanted to give it a try. If he talked to Bryn and made him see reason, perhaps he could turn this situation around. Lance didn’t specifically have a plan in mind, but he would come up with one before he found him.
A couple of hours later, he walked into Tiger’s Head, a bar that was tucked between a supermarket and a feed store. The kind of place he would never visit, but it became obvious its appeal was the cheap drinks displayed on the wooden board.
Bryn was sitting with two friends at a low table.
Lance strode over.
Bryn’s hand halted in mid-air as he’d been talking. “What the hell are you doing here?”
Lance pulled a chair out and sat. He wasn’t going to be deterred by the man’s bad attitude. “We need to talk.”
“Get the hell out of my face, man!”
“It might be better if you came to a corner table with me. We should discuss this alone.”
Bryn’s sneer was mocking. He raised his bottle and took a healthy swig. “No, man! I’ve had enough of you. Lisa is your problem. You deal with her.”
Seeing his eyes were already glazed, Lance realized deciding to come here wasn’t the best idea he’d ever had. How could he talk rationally to someone who was darn near drunk? This wasn’t going as he planned.
While Bryn appeared insulted when Lance kicked him out of the house the other day, now he appeared to have cut off all ties with Lisa. The man was a louse and an unpredictable idiot.
What does Lisa see in him?
He stood. This was a waste of his time. “Fine. Lisa and I will sort it out.”
“Going to raise my baby as your own?” Bryn sneered.
Lance clenched his fists. Clearly, the man didn’t care who heard him say these things. He wasn’t bothered about Lisa’s reputation or her feelings.
“If push comes to shove man, I might just do that,” he replied. “It’s better than leaving her in the lurch.”
Bryn lunged towards Lance in one quick move. “Don’t judge me, dude. I was there when you were off fighting phantom battles with the enemy. She cried on my shoulder. I helped to get rid of her loneliness. And now you’re back, staking a claim, making me out to be the bad guy.” His lips peeled back to reveal sharp teeth. “I didn’t ask her to get pregnant. In fact, she told me she was on the pill. It wasn’t my fault.”
“You keep thinking that, pal. Whatever gets you through the day.” Lance turned, but Bryn’s hand on his shoulder made him stop. Anger roiled inside him like a powerful tsunami.
He didn’t want to be the one who caused trouble for Lisa. He came here with the hope of convincing Bryn to do the right thing, but clearly there was no chance of that. The man was a loser and a fraud. He didn’t care about Lisa. Probably never did. As long as he had a good time with her, everything was great but now, when he was saddled with a baby, he didn’t want to take part in shouldering the burden.
“Don’t you mess with my head.” Bryn released his grip on Lance’s shoulder.
“I’m not doing anything. You’re doing it all on your own.” He caught Bryn’s closed fist an inch before it connected with his nose. The unexpected assault took him by surprise and also ignited the rage that he’d tightly controlled up until now.
If the man wanted a fight, he would give him one.
Lance’s quick jab in Bryn’s stomach made him scream. He grabbed Lance’s hair and yanked, but in one quick move, Lance was free from his hold. His years of army training came in handy. Bryn was no match for his agility and skill. Within seconds, he’d turned the other man over the table and gripped his arms at an awkward angle behind his back.
Seeing that their buddy wasn’t faring too well, Bryn’s friends leapt in to defend him. Grabbing his arms, they tried to yank Lance off, but each time they pulled him, his grip on Bryn’s hands tightened. His friends pounded on Lance’s back. They pulled his hair and kicked his legs, but he was a hardy guy and three civilians were no match for a trained solider who sniffed death and spat it out dozens of times. He kicked hard and one of them fell on the floor while the other leapt aside to figure out his next move.
Lance bared his teeth. “Listen pal! One quick jerk and your arms will pop out of their sockets,” he growled. “While I was off chasing phantom enemies, I was taught all these neat, handy, little tricks. Next time you raise your hand to me...think hard. I’m letting you go this time around because I want you to be able to pick up your child should you ever get it into your thick skull to do so. But I won’t be lenient next time.”
“Sir...You need to step away from the gentleman and let him go.”
Lance glanced back and saw the two tall, burly bouncers who appeared ready to pull him back if he resisted. He didn’t want a battle. This wasn’t what he came here for. He wanted what was best for Lisa even though she betrayed him in the worst possible way. He wouldn’t stoop to her level. He let go of Bryn and stepped away. “If you don’t step up, man, I’ll manage somehow to deal with this mess, but think about your child,” he said as a parting shot before being escorted out of the premises.
His encounter with Bryn didn’t serve any purpose. He thought a man to man chat would give them both perspective, but it seemed this jerk was beyond any hope of being reasonable. Just a selfish bastard who cared only about his own comfort and happiness. Lisa had only been a way to pass time, not someone he wanted forever with.
Too bad for her.
Even worse for him.
The noose that was his marriage kept tightening around his neck. How could he leave her alone? He couldn’t desert a pregnant woman. Some solution to this problem would have to be found, but right now, he couldn’t think straight. She was his responsibility as long as she bore his name and stayed in their house. Sure, she’d been unfaithful, but he’d left her alone for a long time. In that assessment, Bryn wasn’t far off the mark. If he’d been in town, Lisa wouldn’t have sought the company of this vile man. If she walked out, he wouldn’t stop her, but until she decided to take that step, he couldn’t kick her out the house.
He felt stuck in this quagmire and there didn’t seem to be any hope for escape.