Chapter Nineteen

The oven timer beeped loudly over the music Mo had put on while she was tidying up the kitchen. She paused her music and grabbed the oven mitts from the drawer. Popping open the door, she smiled as the delicious aroma of cheese and marinara wafted out from the warm oven. Once she slipped the mitts on, she grabbed the lasagna, placing the hot dish on the potholder she’d set out on the counter.

August was going to be so surprised. Heck, she was surprised. A quick Internet search had led her to a fairly easy recipe for zucchini noodle lasagna. Normally, she’d gag at the thought of replacing deliciously carb-loaded pasta with zucchini, but since eating some of the meals August had been making, she’d discovered zucchini was actually quite good.

Didn’t mean she was giving up her bread products in entirety, but she could handle a substitute now and then. Besides, there was a crunch that came along with the zucchini that made it kind of fun. And Mo was all about the fun. In food, in life…in the bedroom.

And boy, oh boy, did she have some bedroom fun planned for dessert.

Agatha’s friend Patricia had called earlier and let Mo know that Agatha had come through the surgery with flying colors and was now at home resting. Mo offered to come over, but Patricia lived in the complex and had promised to stay with Agatha for the night. She was so relieved everything had gone well. Now, in a few days, Agatha could share her surgery with August, and Mo could stop keeping this secret from the man she suspected she was falling for.

Ha!

Was? Like she would go out of her comfort zone to make zucchini lasagna for a man she hadn’t already fallen for. Yup. It was time to admit this fun little chemistry thing with August went deeper. She was pretty sure he felt the same way. He hadn’t been complaining as much about the city lately, and his talk about selling the shop had almost vanished. Good thing, too, since Agatha was submitting the loan application next week.

“You need to tell him, Moira.”

Lilly’s words still bounced around in her brain, but she hadn’t had the chance to tell August of her and Agatha’s plan yet. Liar. Okay, so she’d chickened out on telling him. But only because she thought she and Agatha should do it together and Mo wanted to wait until after the woman’s surgery. No need to add the stress of arguing with her grandson over a business loan when she had her health to focus on.

But now everything was okay. Agatha was back home resting, and soon they’d loop August in on their plans. He might not agree at first, but she was sure once she and Agatha pointed out the logic of their plan, he’d have to agree. He’d get his land for a flower farm, the shop would get a new supplier at drastically discounted rates, Agatha could stay in the city she loved, and best of all, August could stay with her.

Everybody wins!

It was the perfect solution to all their problems.

“And this will be the perfect zucchini lasagna,” she said with a smile. It looked perfect and smelled perfect, so logically it had to taste perfect, too. She hoped. Even if it didn’t, at least she’d tried something new.

Letting the hot dish cool, she tugged off the oven mitts and placed them on the counter, cleaning up the last bits of dirty dishes she’d used in making dinner. She couldn’t wait to see the look on August’s face when he came home and she not only had a semi-healthy dinner ready but had cleaned the place, too.

Mostly cleaned.

More than she normally would have anyway.

Heavy footfalls sounded from the corridor outside the door. Mo’s heart rate kicked up, nervous anticipation filling her chest. She gave one last glance around the kitchen to make sure she hadn’t missed anything, satisfied to see she hadn’t. The metal key fitting into the lock had her bouncing on her toes. As the door swung open and August stepped through, she flung her arms wide.

“Surprise!” She waved her arms around, showing off all her hard work. “I made dinner and I cleaned. Well, actually, I just put all the dishes in the dishwasher, but aren’t you proud?”

Her bright smile slipped as she glanced at the unhappy scowl on August’s face. Uh oh. Something was wrong, something big. She hadn’t seen him looking this upset since the night she tried to take him out and get him laid. Oof, what a mistake that had been. She was so glad she hadn’t succeeded in that little plan.

“Is something wrong?”

“Yes, Moira,” he growled. “Something is very wrong.”

She jumped as he slammed the door. The loud sound echoed in the stillness of the apartment. He stormed into the kitchen area, and she backed up until her butt hit the lower cabinets. She didn’t think August would physically hurt her, but she’d never seem him so mad. Anger radiated off him in waves, and beneath that there was something else…pain. He was hurting, and for some reason, it appeared he thought she might have something to do with his suffering.

Impossible.

She’d never hurt August, or anyone for that matter. Not knowingly. So why was the guy staring at her like she stole his puppy and sold it to Cruella de Vil?

“You want to explain this?”

He thrust a paper under her nose. It was clutched in his fist and so crinkled, she’d guess he’d been gripping the thing tightly ever since he found it. She peeked down at the paper, glancing enough of it to read the words Loan Application. Guilt churned in her stomach. Crap! August had discovered her and Agatha’s plan.

Okay, this was bad. But she could fix it; she just had to explain to him about—

“What the hell were you thinking?”

Grumpy Gus Gus had turned into Asshole August. He might have a right to be pissed, but no one talked to her that way. Crossing her arms, she pushed away from the counter, lifting her chin to stare into his furious eyes.

“I was thinking my friend asked for my help in saving her shop, the one that’s been in her family for years, that she loves and planned on leaving to her grandson. I only wanted to help.”

Russet brows climbed high on his forehead. “Help. Help? You think digging herself deeper into debt is going to help Grandma? You think risking your own financial safety is going to help?”

“I think,” she said, uncrossing her arms and poking him in the chest as she spoke, “that investing in a savvy business move will help my friend get what she wants and even provide a nice compromise for her stubborn grandson who is being a giant ass right now when all I’m trying to do is make sure everyone is happy.”

August scoffed, knocking her finger away. “Really, Moira? Because I don’t think you really know what makes people happy. You know what makes you happy, and you assume everyone else will be satisfied by the same things. You put on this air of live and let live, but you’re always pushing people out of their comfort zones. Trying to get them to live their lives the way you think is best. That’s not compromise. That’s bulldozing.”

She rocked back on her heels, his barb hitting her directly in the heart. Her jaw dropped. She tried to respond, but the words kept getting stuck in her throat. How dare he accuse her of not thinking about others? She loved helping people, making them smile, bringing them joy. Yeah, she might be a little pushy, but some people needed a bit of a push. And she was about two seconds away from pushing August right off the apartment balcony.

“You said if I came up with a compromise, you’d give it a fair shake,” she argued.

August held up the paper still clutched in his fist. “This isn’t an idea you came to me with. This is you and Gran going behind my back to set a plan in motion so I have no say in the matter whatsoever.”

Okay, yes, she supposed it could appear to look like that. But it wasn’t like Agatha had secured the loan yet or anything. There was still time to alter the plans.

“You didn’t even ask me what I thought about it.” He shook his head, sadness filling his eyes. “You two just made a decision without me. I’m her grandson, her family, and she didn’t even care about my opinion on this.”

Shame crashed over Mo, threatening to drown her. How could she have been so naive? The conversation they’d had a few weeks ago, the one about his family and how he never felt a part of either of them, played over in her memory. Oh no! Had she and Agatha done the same exact thing to August that his parents always had? Had they cut him out? Made him feel unimportant?

Yes, you did. Now apologize.

“Oh, August. I’m sorry.” She reached out a hand toward him. “I didn’t mean to—”

He reared back from her touch, the clear rejection slicing through her like a knife to the heart.

“How could you do this to me?” He glanced from the paper back to her. “How could you lie to me?”

“I didn’t lie.” She winced. “Technically, I just withheld information from you.”

His eyes narrowed. “A lie of omission is still a lie.”

She supposed that was true, and he had every right to his anger, but if he could just calm down and listen to—

“Was everything a lie, Moira?” he asked. “Were you just sleeping with me so I’d be distracted while you and Gran planned this whole thing behind my back?”

Now wait one fucking minute.

Umbrage replacing the guilt, Mo stomped over to August, lifting on her toes to get right in his face as she spoke between clenched teeth. “How dare you! I don’t use sex to manipulate, August. Yes, I didn’t tell you about the loan application, and I apologize for that, but don’t you fucking dare accuse me of sleeping with you for nefarious reasons. I fell into bed with you for one reason and one reason only: because I wanted to. I felt a connection with you that I wanted to explore. I thought you felt it, too, but maybe I was wrong. Maybe I was just a readily available warm body.”

“I thought we had a connection, too,” August flung back at her. “But now I’m wondering how real it could have been when you were keeping something this big from me.”

She scrubbed her hands over her face, running her fingers through her hair, tugging on the strands to see if she could pull any solutions into her brain to help her out of this awful situation unfolding before her.

“Our connection is real, August. And I’m sorry I didn’t loop you in on Agatha’s plan when she asked me for help.” She reached out, encouraged when he didn’t back away. Placing her hand over his heart, she stared him directly in the eyes and spoke with all the honesty she had. “That was wrong, and I should have told you. I didn’t mean to block you out of a decision. I didn’t mean to make you feel like your opinion isn’t valuable. I care what you think. A lot more than you realize.”

She said the last part softly, but he heard. Some of the anger disappeared from his face, but it was only replaced with more sadness, and it was breaking her heart. When he placed his own hand over hers, she felt a flicker of hope that they could sit down and talk this out. Maybe it would be okay. He had a right to his anger, and she’d apologized. Maybe now they could talk it all over. Get back on track. Perhaps August would even come up with some ideas or request he co-sign instead of her. Whatever made him happy and kept him and Agatha in Denver, Mo was willing to do it.

“I’m sorry.” His brow furrowed. “I know what we do here has nothing to do with Gran’s flower shop. I shouldn’t have said that. I’m just so angry, Mo. How could she have kept something so big from me? Did she think I wouldn’t be open to discussing the option?”

She reached up with her other hand to cup his warm cheek. He shaved every morning, but at this time of night, his five o’clock shadow made his jaw slightly scruffy. “Oh, August, she was going to tell you. She just didn’t want to fight about it until after her surgery, and I said—”

August reared back, out of her touch. Shock filling his face. “After what?”

Oops.

One secret had gotten out and she’d completely forgotten about the other. Dammit! This was why she hated keeping things from people. When you started hiding things from everyone, you tended to forget who knew what. Her emotions had been so charged since August came bursting into the apartment, she completely forgot about keeping Agatha’s surgery a secret.

“My grandmother is having surgery?”

His faced paled, the dark brown freckles standing out in stark contrast. Her heart raced, panic setting in as she rushed to assuage the fear she saw in his eyes.

“She’s fine, August. It was a simple laparoscopic gallbladder removal. The surgery was this morning, and she’s home now resting.”

“This morning?” his voice roared. “Gran had surgery this morning and didn’t tell me? Was anyone there with her? Who drove her home? What happened to girls’ weekend?”

She thought he was mad when he came home? The man was absolutely livid now. The paleness had given way to stark red rage, filling every inch of his expression. Anger, betrayal, and fear swam in his gaze as he stared at her, demanding answers she knew he deserved.

Oh shit, I’ve screwed up big time.

“Um, her friend Patricia is with her. She drove Agatha and is staying with her overnight. They live in the same building.” Her hands were shaking, guilt choking her as she tried to fix this unfixable situation. “Your grandmother didn’t want you to worry, so she said she wasn’t going to tell you until after. The girls’ weekend was kind of a cover, I guess.”

“You guess?” he spat. “And this was what? Just another lie you were keeping from me?”

“No!” She reached for him, but when he flinched away, she tucked her arms around her aching stomach. “I mean, I wasn’t supposed to know about this, either. I kind of walked in on Agatha talking to her doctor, and she swore me to secrecy. I’m sorry, August, I know I should have told you, but Agatha made me promise.”

“She’s my grandmother, Moira. Mine.” He pounded a fist to his chest. “I don’t care how simple the procedure was. What if there’d been complications? What if she had died? I never would have gotten the chance to say good-bye. You had no right to hide something like this from me, promise or not. She’s my family, not yours, and I deserved to know.”

Her heart broke, cracked like a crystal wedding vase and shattered into a million tiny pieces. He was right. Agatha wasn’t her family. She should have told August no matter what she promised. Just imagining what could have happened…no, she couldn’t. It was too painful.

“August, I-I’m sorry.” Tears leaked out the corner of her eyes, tracking warm paths down her cheeks.

“Save your sorrys for someone who actually believes them.” He stared at her as if he’d never seen her before. “I don’t think I can trust anything you say ever again.”

A sob broke free, and she bent over as pain and guilt pressed a heavy weight on her shoulders.

“I have to go see Gran.” He rushed out of the kitchen, heading for the front door.

“August, wait.”

He paused with the door slightly ajar. Not even glancing back, he spoke. “I know I’m breaking the sub-lease, but I can’t stay here anymore, Moira. I can’t…be with you. I’ll come back tomorrow for my things. Please don’t be here.”

With a slam of the door, he was gone. Mo crumpled to the floor, letting the tears flow freely, heaving sobs racking her body. What had she done?

She knew what she’d done. She’d lied and kept things from the man she’d fallen in love with. The man she suspected was her soul mate. And now, because of her actions, he couldn’t be in the same room with her, couldn’t even stand to look at her. She’d screwed up so, so badly. And it might have just cost her everything.