Small Town Billionaire

by Cheryl Michaels

  “I should have known better than to believe him.” Ainsley sniffled as she sank down on one of the benches flanking her kitchen table. “But I just thought…” She shook her head. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter what I thought. I should have just told him no and walked away.”

  Shay sat beside Ainsley on the bench, propping her head in her hand as she faced her friend. “So why didn’t you?”

  She sighed. “I’ve been asking myself that very question all day.”

  “And?”

  “The only thing I can come up with? It was Bryce. How could I?”

  “Oh, sweetie.”

  At the sight of Ainsley’s watery smile Shay could have cried herself. She was there to hold Ainsley’s hand through her miscarriage and divorce, when she’d been lost and devastated. She’d even been there for her the last time Bryce left her, as best she could, given the challenges she was facing at the time. But this time Shay didn’t know how to help. She couldn’t tell her what she’d told her back then: that she and Bryce were just kids and she had her whole life to find the right guy. She’d lived life, thought she found the right guy, and ended up circling back to Bryce in the end. What did that say about the hold he had on her? That it wasn’t likely to vanish no matter how many thousands of miles separated them.

  “Maybe you should call him? Call him out on leaving. I’m sure that’s the last thing he’d expect you to do.”

  “No way, I have my pride.”

  Shay reached for a paper napkin to blot her friends’ mascara-streaked eyes. “I had my pride too,” Shay said, remembering when she’d been in exactly the same position. “When Chase left. Maybe if I’d called him back then I never would have gone through with the adoption. Maybe we could have been the ones to raise our son.” Releasing a shaky breath as she wrestled with her own doubts and regrets, Shay whispered, “Sometimes pride isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Sometimes it can ruin our lives if we let it.”

  “I hear what you’re saying, I do. But he left because he doesn’t want me. How can I call him up and ask him why? It would be humiliating.” She dropped her forehead in her upturned palm. “He wouldn’t want to hurt me, so he’d stutter and stammer and make excuses. It would be awful for both of us.”

  “Maybe,” Shay conceded. “Or maybe Bryce would realize he finally has someone in his life, other than Chase, who’s strong enough to stick around even when he makes stupid mistakes.”

  Ainsley half-laughed, half-cried as she bumped shoulders with Shay. “That’s why I love you, you know. ‘Cause even when I feel like crap you can make me feel better.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chase was feeling better than ever about his relationship with Shay. They’d spent time together every day since their overnight date at the inn, and were slowly figuring out how to fit into each other’s lives.

  “You sure you don’t mind that Nick’s spending the night with me?” Chase asked, kissing Shay’s hand as they sat in the parking lot waiting for the players to start trickling out after their post-game shower.

  This time Nick’s team had lost so Chase knew he may not be in the best mood. But he didn’t care. He just couldn’t wait to see him again.

  “No, I’m fine with it.” She curled her free hand around his knee. “The most important thing is that he wants to spend time with us, right? It doesn’t matter who he’s staying with.”

  Though she claimed it didn’t bother her, Chase feared Shay saw him developing a bond with their son and she was afraid of being left out. “I’m sure it’s just because I have all the cool toys,” he said, grinning. “Come on, you’ve seen my bunker. With all those fishing rods and baits, any teenage boy would be salivating.”

  “Your guns are all locked up, aren’t they?” Shay asked, biting her lip. “I know you keep them in a cabinet, but it is locked, right?”

  Chase dropped his head to keep from laughing. Based on everything Nick told him he’d been shooting things up for years. “Careful now, you’re starting to sound just like an overprotective mama.”

  She paled. “Oh no, I better not say anything like that in front of Nick. I wouldn’t want him to think that I’m trying to take his mother’s place.”

  “Relax,” Chase said, curling his hand around her face as he pulled her in for a kiss. “I was just teasing you. I think it’s sweet that you’re looking out for him. And you can relax, by the way, the guns are all locked up, safe and sound. And I’ll make sure he knows how to use ‘em all before I take him on any hunting trips.”

  Before she could respond Nick knocked on the window before hopping in the backseat and tossing his backpack down beside him. “Hey, guys. What’s up?”

  They’d had a few phone conversations that week and Chase felt like he was getting to know him better every day. They even exchanged texts and Nick had sent him links to a couple of fishing and hunting videos he thought he might like.

  “Good game, buddy,” Chase said, starting the truck. “Sorry about the loss. I really thought you guys were gonna pull it out of the fire in those last few minutes.”

  “Ah, you win some you lose some, right?” Nick buckled his seatbelt. “I’m kinda hungry. You mind if we pass by a drive-thru on our way out of town?”

  Chase didn’t think there was a single chain restaurant in the county, so Nick must know something he didn’t. “Sure, just tell me where to go.”

  “Head back towards Landon,” Nick said. “You’ll see a sign for Hedley’s on the right. They have a drive-thru window.”

  “Cool,” Chase said, putting the truck into gear.

  “Did you have a good week at school?” Shay asked, shifting in her seat so she was partially facing Nick.

  “It was okay, I guess,” he said, shrugging.

  Nick looked out the window instead of facing Shay and Chase frowned at him in the rearview mirror, though he suspected the boy was paying him little mind.

  Looking slightly uneasy, Shay said, “So, um, your parents weren’t able to make it to tonight’s game?”

  “No, why would they come?” he asked. “They knew you guys were gonna be there to pick me up.”

  “We’d like to meet them,” Shay said. “Wouldn’t we, Chase?”

  “Yeah.” Chase looked in the rear view again, this time catching Nick’s eye. “Maybe we can come to Brockville when you’re available and we can all go out for dinner.”

  “Sure. Whatever.”

  Chase sensed Nick was a little uneasy and he wanted to ask why, but not in front of Shay. He didn’t want to give her reason to worry or make the kid uncomfortable. “My brother owns the inn in town,” Chase said. “He invited us for brunch tomorrow, with my mother. I hope that’s okay?”

  “Sure, why not?” Nick looked at Shay. “Your parents aren’t going to be there?”

  “I don’t think so.”

  “They can’t be too happy about you spending all this time with me.”

  “What makes you say that?”

  “I read your book. I know they pressured you into putting me up for adoption.”

  Shay and Chase exchanged a look, wondering how they should respond to that bold statement. They didn’t want to lie to him, but they did want to protect him if they could.

  “I don’t need my parent’s approval anymore, Nick,” Shay said, finally. “So how they feel about us spending time together is irrelevant.”

  “Then you admit they’re not happy about it?” he asked, narrowing his blue eyes. “They still don’t want an illegitimate grandson, huh?”

  Shay gasped as Chase eyed Nick in the mirror as he pulled up to a stop sign.

  “Sorry, but it’s the truth and we all know it.” Nick crossed his arms and sunk further down in his seat, closing his eyes.

  Chase gripped Shay’s hand when tears sprang to her eyes as she faced forward.

  “Ignore him,” Chase mouthed. “Teenagers are moody.”

  After a brisk nod, she bit her lip and looked out the window as rain started to fall, pelting their wi
ndshield.

  “Hey,” Chase said to Nick as he pulled into the parking lot of the greasy spoon he mentioned. “We’re here. What do you want to eat?”

  “I’m not that hungry anymore. I think I’ll pass.”

  Chase clenched his teeth as he pulled back onto the main road. If they’d been alone, he’d have had plenty to say to the boy, but he didn’t want it to escalate into an argument in front of Shay. He knew she had high expectations for this weekend and he didn’t want to disappoint her.

  They drove the rest of the way, a little over half an hour, in silence until they pulled up in front of Shay’s house. “Let me walk you to the door,” Chase said, hopping out to get her door before she could argue.

  Chase heard Shay say good-bye to Nick before she got out of the truck but he merely grunted in response, his eyes still closed.

  “You don’t have to walk with me,” she said, sprinting to the door. “You’ll get soaked.”

  When they were safely under her enclosed porch Chase gripped her shoulders. “You okay?”

  She tried to smile but it fell flat. “That didn’t go too well, did it? I know I shouldn’t be surprised. He has every right to be bitter and resentful. I just thought after how well things went last weekend…” She shrugged before Chase pulled her into his arms. “I guess I was expecting too much.”

  “We just have to let him get it all out. Let him yell and scream at us. Take his rage, if we have to. Then slowly try to build his trust.”

  “You’re right.” She sighed against his chest. “Building a solid relationship with him won’t happen overnight and we can’t expect it to. We just have to take it one day at a time.”

  “Right.”

  He framed her face with his hands before kissing her forehead. He wanted to kiss her on the lips but he knew Nick was probably watching them and he didn’t want to get into a discussion about his relationship with Shay tonight. That could wait for another day, when they’d hashed out everything else.

  “So, you sure you’re okay?”

  She offered him a shaky smile. “I will be. I think I’m just going to have a hot cocoa and a bubble bath, then head off to bed with a good book.”

  “You know how much I’m going to miss being with you tonight?”

  “I’m going to miss you too.” She sighed. “But it’s only two nights. I think we’ll survive.”

  Chase was relieved she saw things reverting back to their ‘new normal’ when Nick returned home. He didn’t want to spend another night without her, if he could help it.

  “So, we’ll meet you at the inn for breakfast in the morning?” Chase asked.

  “I’ll be there.”

  “I’ll text you good-night in a little while.” He jerked his head towards the truck. “Let you know how it went with the kid.”

  Before he could step off the porch, Shay grabbed his arm. “Go easy on him, okay? Try to put yourself in his position. He has every right to feel the way he does.”

  “I know. I’ll be patient and understanding, I promise.” Chase was clueless when it came to being a good parent, but thankfully he’d had the best example. So he just imagined what his old man might have said and done in this situation and planned to do the same.

  “Chase.”

  He turned to face her, heedless of the rain showering him. “Yeah?”

  “I love you.”

  Chase grinned. “Love you too, baby.”

  Nick had already jumped in the front seat by the time Chase returned to the truck. “So, you two are a couple. Why’d you lie to me?”

  Chase gave him a long hard look before fastening his seat belt. “I didn’t lie to you, Nick. It’s a recent development, and I don’t really want to talk about that until we’ve had a chance to talk about your attitude tonight. What’s that all about?”

  Nick wasn’t surprised Chase was calling him out. He could already tell he was a no nonsense guy. “So, I’m supposed to just keep my mouth shut when something’s bothering me? Is that how you do things around here?”

  “No, not at all. I want you to talk to me when you have a problem with something, but there’s a right way to do it and a wrong way. And I don’t think I have to tell you that what you said tonight really upset Shay.”

  “So you only want to protect her? You don’t care about me? Good to know.”

  Nick knew he was being a jerk, but he’d had a rough day. He did poorly on an English test he thought he’d aced, got into a another fight with his so-called girlfriend when she asked him to hit Chase up for some cash this weekend, then lost the game ‘cause his head wasn’t in it.

  “I think you know that’s not true.” Chase curled his hand around the steering wheel. “What’s got you in such a mood? Losing the game?”

  “That’s part of it.” Nick slouched down, wondering if he could trust Chase with the rest of it. It would be nice to unload on someone. The stuff that was bothering him his buddies wouldn’t understand, but maybe Chase would. He’d been a teenage guy once.

  “What’s the other part?” Chase asked, giving him a side-long look.

  “You know how I told you I didn’t have a girlfriend?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Well, that’s not completely true. There kind of is this girl that I’ve been seeing for a while.”

  “Why didn’t you feel you could tell us that?”

  “I knew you and Shay were young when you got together and she got pregnant. I guess I didn’t want you two to embarrass me with a lecture in the middle of a restaurant.”

  “Fair enough, so long as I can count on you to tell me the truth from now on.”

  Nick nodded, knowing Chase would probably be able to see right through him if he tried to lie. They didn’t know each other all that well yet, but experience taught him some people were just intuitive and he could tell Chase was one of those people.

  “Okay, so what’s she like, this girlfriend of yours?”

  If he’d asked that question a few weeks ago Nick would have told him she was awesome, but now he wasn’t so sure. “I don’t know. She’s okay, I guess.”

  Chase chuckled. “Not exactly a ringing endorsement. You two having problems?”

  Nick’s stomach growled and Chase’s lips twisted as he tried to keep a straight face. “Guess you were hungrier than you thought, huh?”

  “Guess so.” Nick was always hungry. His mother claimed all boys his age were.

  “I have some leftover steak at home,” Chase said. “I’ll make you a sandwich when we get to my place.”

  “Cool.” Nick hoped Chase had a well-stocked fridge, since he’d asked him what some of his favorite foods were a few days ago.

  “You were telling me about this girlfriend of yours.”

  “We kind of got into it today.”

  “Ah, I see.” Chase said, nodding. “That explains the bad mood. You want to talk about it?”

  Nick wasn’t sure he had the guts to tell Chase that Maggie thought he should get in good with Chase because she wanted a handout. “She and I just don’t always see eye-to-eye on things. She, uh, kind of thinks it’s okay to take advantage of people and I don’t.”

  “I see.”

  “My dad worked real hard. He was an electrician. And he always tried to teach me that there was no shame in an honest day’s work, even if it didn’t make you rich.”

  “Your dad sounds like my kind of man,” Chase said. “I wish I’d gotten to meet him.”

  “I do too.” Nick knew his dad would have respected Chase. Just like he did. He came from nothing and made something of himself. How could he not admire him for that?

  “Anyways, Maggie just doesn’t see things the way I do. Her parents have always been flat broke, taking on extra jobs every month just to pay the bills. I think she’s always been embarrassed that her dad had to drive cab and her mama had to work in the school cafeteria.”

  “I don’t think there’s any shame in working for a living, keeping a roof over your kids’ heads and food in thei
r belly any way you can. What do you think?”

  “I agree.” Nick’s family had never had a lot of money, but they’d always had enough and he’d rarely thought about what it would be like to have more. That is until he started feeling the pressure of knowing he would need to get a scholarship if he wanted to go to college without incurring a mountain of debt.

  “Listen, my folks didn’t have much when I was growing up either, but we made it just fine. Your friend Maggie is young. She probably just wants things the other girls have, like fancy clothes and stuff like that. Does she have a job?”

  “Yeah, she works at the local convenient store after school and on weekends, but she hates it.”

  Chase chuckled. “I can relate. I worked plenty of jobs I hated too. It taught me to be appreciative that I get to do what I love now.”

  “Is that part of the reason you got into this?” Nick asked. “Because you grew up with nothing? Did that light a fire in you?”

  “No, son. I never really thought much about making a lot of money, if you wanna know the truth. All I knew is that I had to make a living doing something. So, why not something I enjoy, right?”

  “Yeah.” Nick wondered if Chase got to test all the cool products they sold. Probably not, since there were thousands on their website and in their catalogue.

  “Something specific happen to set Maggie off today?”

  “She knew I was coming here and she, uh…” Nick could feel his face burning as he looked out the window. “Wanted me to ask you for some money.” He forced himself to rush on before he lost his nerve. “We’ve got this stupid junior prom coming up. She wants me to take her and she found this really expensive dress and shoes she wants.” He still couldn’t believe how much she’d said they would cost. Who spent a thousand bucks on a dress and shoes they only planned to wear once?

  “I see.”

  The steely edge in Chase’s voice prompted Nick to add, “Don’t worry. I wasn’t gonna ask you for it. I don’t need anything from you.” He realized how that came off, so he added, “You know what I mean. I don’t need money and stuff.”