It had been a long week. Aiden lifted his head from the computer screen in front of him, finally admitting to himself the numbers on the screen meant nothing. They were floating there, little dots of ink among the white, and he was sick of looking at the damn things.
For the hundredth time he picked up his phone and checked his messages. One from his boss, a couple from some contractors, but nothing from the person he wanted to hear from the most.
And it stung like a bitch.
The door to the office opened, and Brecken Miller walked in, taking his hard hat off and smoothing his hair with the palm of his hand. “The crew have finished for the night. No overtime needed this weekend – we’re back on track.” There was a grin on his face, and no wonder. He and his team had worked like Trojans to catch up after all the delays they had. Normally, Aiden would have been the first to celebrate their achievement – keeping to the schedule had a big effect on the bottom line, after all. This was a prestigious project – the success or failure of which would be laid firmly at his door.
And in his business life he’d been nothing but successful.
His personal life was the complete opposite. He’d made such a goddamn hash of it all. The thought of it made him sick. He’d lost her and it was all his fault.
Breck said something. Aiden frowned and looked up at him. “Sorry, Breck, I missed that.”
“You okay?” Breck asked, sitting down in the chair on the other side of Aiden’s desk.
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
“You still not heard from her?” Breck inclined his head at the phone laying in Aiden’s upturned palm. It came as no surprise to him that Breck knew exactly what was going on. Not because Angel Sands was a small town, either. But he was also best friends with Lucas Russell, who happened to be engaged to one of Brooke’s best friends.
This place was way too connected.
“No, I haven’t heard from her.” For a moment he considered asking Breck if he knew anything, but shrugged the thought off. Partly because he didn’t want to make himself vulnerable, but mostly because he didn’t want to know. Not if it was bad, and let’s face it, it would be. Why else would his phone be silent?
“You heard from your brother?”
News really did travel fast. “No. But the PI I hired says he’s back in Sacramento. I don’t think he’ll be coming back down here for a while.”
Breck didn’t blink at the mention of a private investigator. “That’s good to hear. I remember Jamie from when we were kids. He was bad news even then.”
“Yeah, well he’s worse now.” Aiden’s mouth dried at the thought of his brother, and the claim he tried to stake on Nick and Brooke. The claim he could still pursue if he had the energy or motivation, and thank God he didn’t right now.
“You’ve had a crazy few weeks. I bet you’re glad it’s all calmed down now. If things keep going like this we might even finish ahead of plan.” Breck grinned at him. “Wouldn’t that be good?”
“It would for you.” Aiden raised an eyebrow. As project manager and head of the construction team, Breck’s contract had a nice little bonus written into it on completion. Finishing ahead of the agreed date would lead to it being doubled.
“It’s a win-win, right?”
“Yeah. It sure is.”
“Man, she’s really messed you up, hasn’t she?” Breck said. “You want to talk about it?”
“Not really.”
“I didn’t think so.”
“What’s there to say? I made decisions without her, I hid things from her, and now she doesn’t want to know me. Who can blame her?”
“Nobody.”
Aiden rubbed his jaw with his fingertips. “Maybe I should call her. Do you think I should?”
Breck’s eyes were wide with surprise. The irony of their conversation didn’t escape Aiden’s notice. For a guy who didn’t want to talk about it, he sure was saying a lot. It felt good, to finally get it out. Like somebody uncorking a bottle, he could feel the pressure slowly release from him.
“Why haven’t you already called her?” Breck asked. He pulled up a chair and sat down, crossing his legs in front of him.
“Because I’ve made enough decisions for her, I don’t want to make any more. I don’t want to pressure her into talking to me. I want her to make the choice to do it willingly.”
“That sounds fair enough.”
“Yeah, but it’s killing me.”
Breck laughed. “I can see that, man.” He shrugged. “But for what it’s worth, I think you’re doing the right thing. I’m no expert on relationships, but I can tell you’ve thought this through. You’re not playing games. You’re handing back control.”
“And I freaking hate it.”
“You’re giving her the time and space to think things through. You’re a good guy, Aiden. She’ll realize it eventually.”
Good guy, bad guy, at the end of the day it didn’t matter. He’d ended up treating her the same way she’d always been treated. No wonder she didn’t believe him when he’d said he was different.
But he’d do whatever it took to be the man she wanted. Even leave her alone if that was her choice. It would hurt him like nothing had ever hurt him before, but he’d still do it.
Because he loved her, and right now it was the only thing keeping him going.
Brooke flicked on Nick’s nightlight and pulled the door closed behind her, walking back into her small living room. “He’s finally asleep,” she told Ember and Ally, who were sitting on her sofa looking up at her. Three insulated cups of coffee were on the table in front of them – Ally had finished her shift at the coffee shop and had brought them over with her, along with some pastries that looked delicious.
“I’ve got one for Nick, too,” Ally said, pointing at the paper bag next to the cups. “I thought he could have it for breakfast. It’s completely nut free, I promise.”
“Thank God for that.” Brooke wasn’t quite up to smiling at the situation yet, but she still appreciated Ally’s levity. It was so good to have her friends with her. For the past few days she’d taken time off work and her classes to stay at home with Nick while he recuperated. He was itching to get back to school, and the doctor had given him the all clear to start back on Monday.
But for now, all she wanted to do was keep him home and hug him tight.
“Nick’s teacher asked me to give you this,” Ember said, pulling a large envelope from her bag. “His classmates made him a get well soon card.”
Brooke took it, pulling the large white card out of the envelope. Each child had drawn a self-portrait on it, and beneath their drawings they’d written their names in varying degrees of scrawl. Opening it up, she smiled as she read the words.
Get well soon, Nicholas. We miss you.
“That’s so sweet,” Ally said, leaning over Brooke to read the message inside. “I didn’t think of bringing a card.”
“You brought coffee, which is even better,” Ember pointed out.
“Talking of coffee, your mom came into the shop today,” Ally said, glancing at Brooke from the corner of her eye. “She said she and your dad came to dinner here yesterday.”
“I didn’t know you were talking to them again,” Ember said, leaning forward with interest. “Tell me more.”
“It’s still early in repairing the relationship,” Brooke said slowly, remembering the awkward politeness of the previous night. “And they’re probably not going to be talking to me for a while after I fed them chicken nuggets and mashed potatoes, but it was Nick’s choice and they got what they were given.”
“I’d pay good money to see your folks eating chicken nuggets,” Ally said, trying to suppress a grin. “Did they really eat it?”
“Every last morsel,” Brooke said, biting down a smile. “I guess they really wanted to spend some time with Nick.”
“And have you heard from Aiden?” Ally asked.
“No. Not a word.” She tried to hide the disappointment from her voice, but it didn’t work at all. “Actually, that’s not true. He messaged on Wednesday to ask how Nick was, and to see if he was up for staying with him on Saturday.” Brooke licked her dry lips. “I said it would be fine. End of conversation.”
“He didn’t talk about your relationship?”
Brooke shook her head. “No.”
“Maybe he’ll say something tomorrow when you drop Nick off?” Ember said, frowning at Brooke’s words.
“Maybe.” Brooke tried to ignore the taste of disappointment on her tongue. “But wouldn’t he have said something already if he was still interested? Maybe my running out of the gala and being all high maintenance has put him off.”
“Your reaction was understandable. You discovered he was lying to you.” Ally crossed her arms in front of her.
“Yeah, but he’d done it with good intentions,” Ember said. “He never meant to hurt you. He was so upset. But as soon as you ran out of the Beach Club he realized his mistake. I’ve never seen him so shaken.”
“So why hasn’t he called?”
“I don’t know.” Ember pressed her lips together, her eyes soft as they met Brooke’s. “And you won’t either, unless you ask him.”
“Oh this is such a mess.” Brooke dropped her head against the back of her chair and closed her eyes, pressing her palms to her face. “I wish Jamie had never come back.”
“Have you heard from him?” Ally asked.
“No. Thank goodness.” He was the Black brother she could do without talking to. “I know all children have a right to know their fathers, but I really don’t think he’ll bring anything good into Nick’s life. Not unless he cleans his act up massively.”
“I don’t think he’ll ever do that,” Ally said, her voice solemn. “Does Nick know about him?”
“Yeah. I told him on Wednesday.”
“What did he say?”
“Nothing, really. He was thoughtful for about five minutes before he asked me to get him some ice cream and completely changed the subject. I guess I’m taking my lead from him. I’m ready to answer his questions when he has them, but I’m not going to push him to talk about it until he’s ready.”
“You’re such a great mom.” Ember gave her a warm smile.
“Yeah, sure.”
“You are. I wish you had more confidence in yourself. Look at you, you have motherhood cracked, you’re almost finished with your studies, and you’re one of the mainstays of the animal shelter. All of Angel Sands thinks you’re fabulous.”
Brooke looked over at her friend. There wasn’t a hint of humor on Ember’s face. It was as though she meant every word. But she couldn’t bring herself to believe it. Because right now it felt as though everything she touched turned to dust.
“I know of at least one person in Angel Sands who doesn’t think I’m fabulous,” Brooke said, her voice thick. And damn if he wasn’t the one person whose opinion mattered most of all.
“You sure about that?” Ally asked, raising an eyebrow. “Maybe you should ask him first, before you come to any conclusions.”