I flip through the papers, noting that an emergency court date has been set for next week. “This makes no sense to me,” I snap before trying to rein in my temper. Aidan isn’t the enemy here. I just don’t like these kinds of surprises. “Where has this family member been all these years while I’ve been picking up the tab for their loved one’s care? And how could this woman be the next of kin? I would think that would still be her father.”
“I have no fucking clue.” Aidan sighs as he signals the waitress for another beer. At this point, we both probably need something a lot stronger. “Like you, I never had an inkling Cassie had any family other than her mostly absent father. This floored me. I tried to talk to her about it today but didn’t get anywhere.”
“Is she well enough that she could tell you something like that?” Hell, I’ve already been surprised one time today. At this point, if Aidan tells me Cassie is now singing show tunes and knitting sweaters, I don’t think it would shock me much.
He smiles for the first time tonight, looking happy for a moment. “You wouldn’t believe how far she’s come, Luc. She still has a lot of gaps in her memory, but we actually have rational conversations now. She remembers things that happened when we were children. Her doctors are blown away at her progress. I don’t think anyone ever imagined it happening. Even the makers of the experimental medication are floored by her progress.”
“Does she remember…that night?” I ask, unable to stop myself. I put it down to some kind of morbid fascination.
He’s clearly uncomfortable now, choosing his words carefully. “I don’t believe so. She has asked about you. She also remembers meeting Lia. I…um told her that Lia was your girlfriend now. I’m sorry, I should have cleared that with you first, I know. I wanted to see her reaction to it.”
“And what was it?” Fuck, why do I keep asking questions that I likely don’t want the answer to?
“She said, ‘That’s good, I’m glad he’s happy.’”
I look at him incredulously as I try to process this information. “That sounds nothing at all like Cassie. Even if we hadn’t been involved, she never liked any girl who either of us talked to.”
“I know, trust me, I remember, which is why I was curious. That’s the thing about her now. She seems to be the best version of herself. We don’t talk for hours every day or anything because she’s still confused about a lot, but when we do, she’s…sweet. Not once has she said anything mean or snide about anyone. Other than her appearance, it’s almost as if she’s not the same person. When I mentioned it to her doctor, he said it wasn’t uncommon for a traumatic experience to change someone drastically. Some may turn into worse versions of their former selves and some may go in the opposite direction as Cassie seems to have.”
Call me cynical, but I still have a hard time buying into the fact that she’s Mother Theresa now. Maybe I could have had I not lived with her for so many months with my blinders removed. In the beginning, she’d at least attempted to keep up appearances that she was a loving girlfriend, except for occasional slips. Those last months though, she didn’t bother hiding it at all. If she was angry, then you fucking knew it. If you didn’t pick up on it fast enough, she’d damn sure get it across by any means possible. If that meant slapping, or even biting, then so be it. She knew I’d never hit a woman, no matter how close to the edge she pushed me. “That’s…interesting,” I hesitantly reply. “What exactly was her reaction when you asked her about her family? It sounds as if she’s well enough to know if she has anyone besides her father.”
“I asked her if there was someone besides her dad she might want to see. I didn’t want to upset her by telling her too much. She kind of laughed and said that even her father didn’t care what happened to her so why would anyone else?”
I had to think that she possibly had a point there. The man had taken off years ago and, to my knowledge, had never looked back. “Did you mention her mother? That seems like a good place to start.”
He rubs his eyes before shaking his head. “I was afraid to. If she hasn’t mentioned her all these years, I didn’t want to be the one to send her into some kind of tailspin. I thought it best to see what Max could dig up and go from there. If all else fails, I’ll go to court and find out then. No use unleashing something if it can be avoided.”
“We’ll go to court,” I add absently as my mind spins. “I’ll have Max begin looking into this immediately. I’ll also have him contact the investigator who looked into Lia. Maybe we can track down this mystery person before the court date. I’m damn curious as to who it is.”
Aidan nods. “I don’t know about you, but I’ve had more drama than I can handle. This is a real bad time to be fucking with me.”
“I’m right there with you,” I agree, as I take a bite of my now-cold food. My hunger forces me to continue eating even though it tastes about as appealing as a pile of woodchips. “I’m ready to take Lia and move away to another country where no one knows us.”
Aidan grimaces as he eats a bite of his burger. “This tastes like shit,” he grumbles, but like me, keeps eating. “So,” he says as he takes another sip of beer, “when are you going to make an honest woman out of Lia? You’ve already knocked her up, so let’s hear some wedding bells.”
Instead of panicking, I grin. “Why does everyone keep asking that? Even Cindy has taken to calling Lia my wife. Unless she’s had a sudden memory lapse, she’s trying to tell me something.”
“You bet your ass she is. You’re probably going to show up at the office one day and Cindy will have Lia standing there in a white gown and a justice of the peace ready to perform a certain ceremony. If you don’t propose to your woman soon, Cindy may just beat you with her keyboard until you do.” Aidan laughs. “Seriously though, Lia is amazing. If I had a woman like that, I’d never let her out of my sight.”
“She’s perfect,” I agree without hesitation. I pause as I debate telling him my reason for not proposing to her yet, then remind myself that he’s my brother in all ways that matter. I can talk to him about anything—even this. “I guess I’m just afraid of repeating my past mistakes. When Cassie got pregnant, I popped the question, thinking it was expected of me. In hindsight, things went completely to hell after that. I know that my proposal didn’t cause what happened, but the similarities are enough to freak me out a bit.”
Aidan doesn’t tell me that I’m crazy or laugh at my fears. He simply says, “You don’t want history to repeat itself. I get that. I believe anyone who went through what you did would feel that way. Even when Cassie was on her best behavior, Lia is about as different as night and day from her. But you don’t have to be married to have a baby together.” Wiggling his brows, he adds, “I think you two already proved that.”
“Smartass.” I roll my eyes. “Her father has already put me on the spot in front of Lia about it.”
Aidan gives me a disgusted look. “You’re kidding? The man didn’t even know he had a daughter until a few months ago and he’s giving you shit? I have to give it to him, though. He has some big balls on him. I hope you told him to fuck off.”
“I’m sure that would have looked really good to Lia. Cussing her father out for daring to suggest I marry her. I don’t know…do you think that would have offended her?”
Aidan throws his hands up in surrender. “Don’t ask me. I’ve offended more than my fair share of women through the years. I’m the last person who is qualified to give advice on the fairer sex.”
Before I can answer, my phone rings. My heart feels lighter and I can’t help but smile. “Everything okay, baby?”
“I’m fine,” she says with a hint of amusement in her voice. She thinks I’m overprotective, but I don’t care. She’s my world, and if she doesn’t know that, then I’m not doing something right. Maybe like asking her to marry you, asshole? Great, even my subconscious thinks I’m dragging my feet. “Just a little hungry…”
I chuckle, thinking if I had a dollar for every time I’ve heard that in th
e last few months, I’d be an even richer man. I know it’s bad, but I can’t help teasing her. “Really? I thought we just had a grocery delivery yesterday.”
“Yeah…we did. I guess I could find something. Maybe another sandwich.” I hear the disappointment in her voice and imagine that plump lower lip sticking out in frustration. My cock stirs to attention, which isn’t ideal with Aidan staring me down from across the table.
“All right. Good. I’ll be home when I’ve finished my cheeseburger.”
“Cheeseburger?” she parrots and I can literally hear her lips smacking. She’s had a real craving for red meat since being pregnant, which isn’t that healthy. I try to ply her with fresh fruits and vegetables in between to hopefully make up for it. “That sounds really good. Does it have pickles on it?”
“Mmm hmm, it does. It’s messy, though. You know the kind that gets all over your hands when you’re trying to eat it?” Aidan’s mouth looks like it’s in danger of dropping to the table. I can only imagine what he thinks we’re talking about. Probably not food at this point. Hell, I’m not even sure anymore. Lia’s groan over a burger has my cock hard as granite. It’s time to end her torture—and mine. “How about I bring you one home?”
“Really?” She sounds like a kid at Christmas. “You don’t have to, but I’d love you forever if you did,” she adds quickly.
I laugh at her obvious delight over something so small. I can’t resist screwing with Aidan one last time before I end the call. “If that’s all it takes, baby, I’ll keep you supplied with as much meat as you can handle.” Lia starts giggling at the same time as Aidan chokes on his beer. If nothing else, I’ve provided the comic relief for the evening. After Aidan’s startling revelation, it was much needed.
When I end the call, Aidan shakes his head. “I don’t even want to know.”
“No, you really don’t,” I smirk as I wave our waitress over to place Lia’s order. Serious again, I tell Aidan resolutely, “Don’t worry about anything; we’ll get to the bottom of it. I’ll call you when Max knows something.” Walking out the door with Aidan a few minutes later, I shake my head wondering to myself why all roads seem to lead to Cassie. I just hope to God that pattern changes sometime soon because I won’t let her or anything jeopardize my future with Lia. I will keep the woman I love and my child safe this time—no matter what it takes.
Chapter Fourteen
Lia
“Are you nervous?” Rose asks as she helps me pull my graduation gown over my head. I grimace when I look down, seeing what looks like a basketball pushing against the silky material. There’s no hiding it any longer.
“Couldn’t they have picked black gowns?” I grumble as I attempt to smooth the clingy, white fabric down. “I look like a bigger version of Casper the ghost in this thing.” I see Rose bite her lip to keep from laughing as she somehow manages to make the same outfit look chic and stylish. I have little doubt she could wear a trash bag and make it look like something off a runway. She’s wearing mile-high heels that do amazing things for her legs while Lucian had made me promise to wear flats. He was worried about me tripping when going up the steps to accept my diploma. I could have ignored his advice, but I figured he might have a small point about me overbalancing. My stomach was now a force of gravity that made extra safety measures necessary.
Rose throws her arm around my shoulder and hugs me tight. “We did it, chick. Can you believe we’re graduating today?”
I swallow down the sudden lump in my throat as I return her embrace. “I know. It doesn’t seem real. I spent so long just taking it one week at a time, that I never noticed when months began passing. Have you decided what you’re going to do now?” I had asked Rose that before but hadn’t really received a straight answer.
“Oh, I don’t know,” she says. “My dad wants me to work on the campaign for one of his friends who’s up for reelection to the senate. I guess I’ll do that and then go from there. At this point, I just consider it a victory that I’ve managed to avoid moving back home. How about you?”
I can tell by her carefully blank expression that there’s more to it than what she’s saying, but I’ve learned that if Rose doesn’t want to talk about something, then you might as well leave it alone. She’ll continue to change the subject until you let it go. I give her a rueful smile as I pat my stomach. “I guess I’m out of the job hunt until after the baby. It’s not likely that anyone will be interested in hiring me looking like I’m going to go into labor at any moment.” I still have four more months to go until my due date, but my stomach is huge.
“I bet your dad or Lucian would hire you in a minute,” she suggests even though she knows my opinion on both of those options. Lee and I continue to take small steps toward building some kind of relationship, but it still seems weird to hear someone refer to him so casually. “True,” I agree, “but I can just imagine the talk from other employees at Quinn Software if Lucian’s pregnant girlfriend joined the staff. He doesn’t give a damn and has said as much, but I do—enough for both of us. It would be tough to prove myself there while sleeping with the boss under the best of circumstances, but toss in the fact that I’m pregnant and it’d be almost impossible to get any respect. The same thing goes for working at Falco—minus the sleeping with the boss issue, of course.” Lee has brought up the subject of us working together several times, going so far as to say it’s my birthright. I would love to work for a company such as his. It’s what I trained for. But I don’t want him hiring me out of some kind of guilt or responsibility. It’s best we don’t complicate things between us right now. “I’m going to use the time before the baby is born to research some of the companies in the area that might be interested in hiring me in the future. To get my name out there, I could also sign up with one of the recruiters the college recommends.”
Giving me an approving smile, Rose says, “That sounds like a good plan. They would be lucky to have you. Hey, where’s Lucian? I know there’s no way he would miss your graduation.”
Giving my hair one final brush, I say, “He had an important meeting this morning. I told him I could drive myself, but he insisted that I call you. He is going to meet us there.” I don’t tell her that Lucian has been acting strange for the last few days. I have a feeling there is some type of problem at work since Max has dropped by a couple of times looking unusually stressed. Both Aidan and Max had been at our apartment last night where they had gone into the office for a few hours. Afterward, Lucian had been preoccupied and distant. I’d tried to ask him if anything was wrong, but he had assured me there wasn’t anything, just some last-minute changes on a deal they were working on. I had no reason not to believe him, but something just didn’t seem right. This morning he had been more like his usual self although still tense. Whatever it was, I hope the meeting today resolved it. Lucian leaving work at the office and relaxing with me in the evenings has spoiled me.
Rose looks at her watch and says, “We’d better get going before we’re late.” Rose is a stickler for punctuality and likes to arrive everywhere well ahead of schedule. I have a feeling she gets that from her father. She rushes me out the door and into her waiting car. Traffic is light so we make it to the outdoor venue the university is using for our graduation quickly. I’m thankful for the beautiful weather and that it’s not too hot. The only thing worse than me in this white silk muumuu would be me sweating visibly through the thin material. I take a few moments to look around me, seeing no sign of Lucian. Where are you? I wonder as I feel a pang of unease ripple through me.
Lucian
“Where in the fuck is Max?” I hiss to Aidan as we sit in the waiting area. Since there isn’t a jury involved, the meeting will be held in the judge’s chambers.
“He had a call come in that he’d been expecting. He said he would be right behind us,” Aidan says. The only indication of his anxiety is the steady tap of his foot on the floor. I have to stop myself from putting my hand on his knee to stop him.
“We’ve only
got a few minutes left,” I snap as I pick up my phone to try Max again. The judge opens his door at the same time that Max walks in from the hallway with a sober look on his face. Aidan steps forward to speak to the judge as Max grabs the back of my jacket, halting me in my tracks.
“Luc,” he says under his breath, “we need to ask for a continuance. I know who April Chester is…and it’s not good.”
The judge is giving us a look filled with impatience as Max continues to prevent me from moving forward. “Gentlemen, please come into my office so that we may begin.”
Max clears his throat and steps forward. “Your honor, I’d like to file a motion for a continuance. I have not had sufficient time to prepare and—”
“Mr. Decker,” the judge interrupts Max, “this is just a preliminary hearing and will not be postponed. It is my hope though that all parties may be able to reach a compromise today in order to see that the care of the young woman in question is continued without interruption.”
“Fuck,” I hear Max bite off and hope the judge didn’t hear him. I give him a sideways frown, wondering what in the hell is going on. If Max is this upset, it can’t be good. “Prepare yourself, Luc,” he adds, making me want to run in the other direction. Aidan gives us both a questioning look, but we have no privacy to talk. The judge points to the chairs in the front of his desk and we have a seat. The introductions are made and the judge advises we’re waiting for the other party to arrive. Max is still trying to convey something to me when the door opens again and I turn in my seat to see someone I never would have expected.
“What?” Aidan half stands in confusion before dropping back into his seat.
“Ms. Chester and Mr. Banks, please take a seat,” the judge says as he too settles in his.
While I’ve been trying to regain my composure, Aidan finally looks at the newcomers and his voice rings out loudly in the small room as he asks, “What’re you doing here?”
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