“The Mathis family has never been a part of or contributed to my political career. I have hired a private team which I am financing personally to review all my election campaigns to ensure that no money was given by any member of the Mathis family, and to ensure that all elections were run legitimately, both at the state attorney level and pertaining to the governorship.
Secondly, and this is a personal matter but one I have decided to share with you out of my own good will. I did not know my mother growing up. I was unaware I had a brother since they both left when I was young. I will not focus on the reasons they left. That is water under the bridge. Many families face turmoil, many marriages fail, and my parents had a failed marriage. Could they have done things a little differently?” he pauses and smiles softly to the crowd. “Yes. I believe they made poor decisions they wish they could take back upon deeper reflection. However, now we are in the present, and I would like to get to know my mother and brother. They are not villains in this story. We are simply an all-American family. We are not perfect, but now it is time for us to reunite. I know I would like to take the time to get to know them.” He pauses, and I can see him swallow hard.
“The last matter I wish to discuss is Evie Harper.” He pauses again and looks to the camera. Shit now I’ve become a matter. I sit at the edge of the bed my legs crossed over each other feeling like I can crawl out of my skin as I wait for Colton’s next words. “I want to confirm that I am the one who pursued Ms. Harper. She is also not the villain here. I did not know she had ties to my estranged mother and brother when I pursued her. She was not hired by any of my political adversaries as has been reported. She is simply a woman I dated for a short length of time.” He stops talking and looks down to some papers he has in front of him on the pedestal. “That is all I will say about Ms. Harper other than she is, I repeat, in no way involved in a scandal to try and bring me down. As your governor, I assure you that my own very reliable sources have confirmed that Ms. Harper’s relationship with my estranged mother and brother was a complete coincidence. A tough pill to swallow. Nonetheless, we met by chance, and it simply didn’t work out.” He smiles to the camera - that panty melting sexy smile that made me first accept his dance, invite him into my apartment and inevitably fall in love with him.
“I hope I have laid all your questions on this matter to rest. Finally, I would like to say in light of recent circumstances I will be withdrawing my intent to run for the presidency of our great country. I will also be stepping down from my role as governor.” Colton ends his speech, and you can see many flashes going off on the TV screen. A woman steps in beside him and says that the governor has agreed to answer a few questions.
“What will you do after you leave the post of the governor?” one reporter asks.
“Spend time with my new family. Get to know them,” he says with a crooked grin.
“You were running as an independent candidate. Do you see someone else stepping into that position?” another reporter asks.
“I don’t know. It’s not for me to say.” He smiles and looks sideways. The camera lands on Al. Then returns to Colton. I notice that his father isn’t there like he was in the first press conference I watched when Colton announced his intention to run for the presidency.
“Mr. Governor, do you think you and Ms. Harper will reconcile? I mean, your story is a little like a fairy tale. You met not knowing who she was and because of her you were reunited with a family you didn’t know you had?” the reporter asks and it doesn’t seem like a question.
“I am thankful for meeting Ms. Harper. I don’t see any chance of reconciliation. Sorry to disappoint.” He gives a wry smile.
Someone shouts. “The women of Illinois will be happy you are a bachelor again.” Colton smiles bashfully. I can see why the people are so enthralled with him. He has such a friendly likable personality, and his looks just give him that movie star quality of being bigger than life.
“Thank you to the members of the media for coming out today on such short notice. I truly do appreciate every one of you.” With his last words he smiles and waves. I continue to watch as he is ushered off stage. I blow out a breath. I am simply a woman he dated for a short length of time. I repeat his words in my head, only my heart cracks in two. He was so much more than that for me.
Carter shuffles in the bed beside me and opens his clear blue eyes. “Hi Mommy,” he signs. I wonder if his eyes will ever stop reminding me of Colton and if the pain will remain in my heart forever.
“Good morning, baby.” I smile and kiss my son on the forehead. I need to look on the bright side. At least Colton knows I didn’t try to hurt him on purpose. Maybe the media will back away now. That seemed to be the intention of his press conference. He wants to step away from the public eye. Carter shoots out of bed and runs to the door. I’m sure someone must have knocked.
“Carter no, we need to ask who it is first.” I hope I’m shouting when I say it but my words are too late. Our hotel room door flies open. I sigh with relief when I see that it’s only Jake and Veronica. They are all dressed in new clothes and wearing smiles on their faces. It also seems like the stress of this ordeal has been lifted for them. I wish I could say the same for me.
“Good morning,” Jake signs and Carter gives him a big hug.
I look down to my robe. “I should get dressed,” I sign. I walk over to my suitcase. Veronica walks into the room and takes a seat on a chair beside a little kitchen table. Carter is busy chatting with her.
She asks him to pause for a minute and signs, “We should eat some breakfast, yeah?”
I nod, and so does Jake. I walk off to the washroom and Jake takes me gently by the arm to stop me. “You okay?” His brown eyes look sincere. Gosh! When I think about everything that happened these last few weeks, my head spins. Jake told me he was in love with me while he knew I was in love with his brother. Now Jake, Veronica, Colton and probably Carter will want to spend time together. To get to know each other and where will that leave me?
“I’m fine,” I lie in response to Jake’s question. I’m far from fine.
“Okay.” He gently releases my hand and doesn’t move, but I can see he has more on his mind. He waits a moment looking me over. “He wants to see us, today…” he signs then pauses, running his hand over his freshly washed light brown hair. “It’s weird, isn’t it? I mean I saw him as a man you were dating. I was jealous of him,” he admits with a sorrowful look. “I don’t know what to feel for him now. I thought I was an only child. It’s always just been Mom and me.” He shrugs.
I place a hand on Jake’s shoulder to console him then sign, “You don’t have to feel like you owe me an explanation about meeting with him today or ever. He’s your family. He wants to get to know you guys. He’s lead a lonely life I’m truly happy for all of you.” I force a smile because deep down I want to be part of their family.
“Maybe it’s too soon for you to see him today but maybe in the future, you two can at least be friends.” Jake leans in and hugs me. I know he means well but the thought of only being friends with Colton makes me feel ill. I wanted much more than friendship from him.
I pull away from Jake. “Thank you,” I smirk. It’s the best I can do right now. “I’m going to get changed.”
Jake nods. He knows me too well. He can read the hurt in my eyes. “Is it okay if Carter comes with us?” He winces when he asks.
The question causes a pang of pain in the center of my chest. My brows draw together, “Yes, of course. Carter likes Colton,” I answer and turn away quickly because I feel like I will break down crying and I prefer to do it in the privacy of the bathroom, and I don’t want to ruin the reunion party Veronica and Jake are about to have. When I close the bathroom door, I allow myself to break down and cry.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Evie
Two weeks later
“We made it to the end of the year,” Jake smiles cheerfully.
“Yup,” I smile back. It’s the last day
of school. I had taken the principal’s advice and gone back to work. Once Colton announced that we were no longer together and I wasn’t the evil conspirator trying to bring the handsome prince down, the media chilled out which was nice. A few stories ran about me being a single mom to a hearing child, but there was nothing too invasive or accusatory about the reporting. It was more like the reporters giving the public information about the poor woman who was accused of trying to bring down the great Colton Mathis.
“Are you going to go away for the entire summer?” Jake asks and frowns. I had decided to take a trip to venture across British Columbia since I had never been. Carter was coming along with me. Then we would head back to LA to spend some time with Grandpa Jack since he was getting old and his health was deteriorating.
“The whole summer. You can’t talk me out of it.” I laugh because clearly, Jake tried to talk me out of it and even convinced me to let him come along. I just felt like I needed to take this trip on my own. For so much of my life, I was dependent on Jake. We were a duo but I also needed to figure a few things out about myself, and I needed alone time with only my son to do that. I was just grateful that Jake agreed to allow me to take Carter along.
“I know, trust me. You are one stubborn redhead. I’m convinced it’s the color of your hair that contributes to the stubbornness,” he jokes.
I laugh and throw a small piece of chalk I have on my desk at him. He catches it mid-air.
“I need to do this,” I sign and let out a sigh.
“I know.” He gives me a meaningful look that tells me he truly understands. “I’ll come by your apartment at six and drive you two to the airport,” he says.
“Thank you, but you don’t have to drive us,” I answer and he gives me a look. The one that says don’t argue with me.
“Evie, you’re taking Carter to the other end of the country. I won’t see you two for two months. The least you can do is let me drive you to the airport.”
I shake my head. It must be my nerves. Even though we are only going for two months, saying goodbye to Jake will be hard. He’s been the one constant in my life. “Sorry. You’re right.” I smile. It’s been almost three weeks since I saw Colton. Three weeks since the scandal broke. I had hoped he would make contact, but he didn’t. Not one single attempt. His words from the press release were loud and clear. I am simply a woman he dated for a short length of time. I didn’t know if I would ever love like that again in my life, but I had a son to raise and a family. I had to find inner peace because the last few weeks I felt like a shell of a person. It wasn’t fair to those who loved me; who had to spend time with me. My emotional distress was hurting them too. Especially when Carter would come home from Jake’s house and tell me how he spent time with Colton. How cool Colton was and how Colton hired someone to teach him how to sign, how Colton learned so many signs already. I knew Carter wasn’t doing it on purpose, he just genuinely liked Colton. I couldn’t blame him, that was the problem.
Later that evening Jake came to pick us up and drove us to the airport. He even insisted on coming in to help with the luggage. There was no arguing with him.
“I may take a trip while you guys are gone too. I’m not sure where yet, but I will be in touch. Okay?” he leans in and hugs me.
“Thanks for everything Jake.” I pull away and sign, and he reaches down to hug Carter.
“I’m going to miss you, buddy,” Jake signs and ruffles his hair.
“Me too, Daddy,” Carter signs back. Jake and I never discussed his feelings for me after the whole ordeal. It was clear I didn’t return his feelings, and so he fell back into the role of being my best friend. I hoped inside he was okay because now that I knew what heartbreak was, I didn’t wish it on my worst enemy, not that I had any. Carter and I got on the plane. While my son was busy with his iPod, I gazed blankly out the window and prayed for strength and guidance. I was feeling so lost, so lonely without Colton. Still, I tried to stay positive because I had to show Carter I was strong. This was a new chapter in my life, and I would have to embrace it.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Colton
Carter spots me first. His smile is wide as his eyes meet mine. I lift a finger to my mouth telling him to be quiet or rather hinting to him not to give me away. He nods. I show the stewardess my ticket, and she points to my seat at about midway through the plane. I’m the last passenger on the plane, but I had to wait in a corner off to the side for a while so Evie wouldn’t see me and the surprise wouldn’t be ruined. At least I think it’s a surprise. My brother…huh, it makes me laugh still to say the word brother. Jake is my brother through and through. It’s funny that we share some of the same mannerisms even though we weren’t raised together and it’s a little freaky how much he looks like my father, but he’s a true, honest version of him so I can’t hold his looks against him.
My father had finally come clean to me about the truth behind the fire, and my mother and brother’s departure. I even confronted him about threatening my mother with Jeffrey Davis, the drug cartel leader. My father confessed to everything and began to tell me that his motives were pure. I told him that if he ever asked Jeffrey Davis for any favor, I would make sure the FBI received a file on him that would inevitably lead to jail time. I, too had connections in the prosecutor’s office, and I was, after all, a Mathis. Dad was less than pleased, but he made his bed a long time ago, his greed pushed him to choose power over family, and now he had to live with the consequences. There was no place for him in politics and no place for him in my life or Jake’s. He was going to die a lonely old man.
I lean over and tap her shoulder, her dark blue eyes turn around, and she sucks in a quick breath. Before she can say anything, I begin to sign, “Evie, I’m sorry. You will never know how sorry I am that I ever doubted you. I know what happened. I know that you feared for my life, and Jake and Carter too. I want you to know that my father isn’t a threat anymore.” I pause. I had rehearsed this many times in the car, but if I got even one of my motions wrong, it would take away from what I was trying to say. Evie remains silent, staring at me like she was trying to convince herself I was real. “See here’s the thing. I can’t live without you…no…I don’t want to live without you. You make my life whole. You make my heart feel warm…I didn’t know what love was until I found you.” I pause, thinking I did a pretty bang-up job as long as there were no mistakes. I look down and whisper to Carter covering my mouth, “How did I do?”
He laughs. “You nailed it. Only you told her that she makes your heart feel like poo.”
I burst into laughter. “You’re shitting me,” I reply.
“Wish I was,” Carter responds, laughing so hard he is holding his stomach. I told him he was shitting me because the pun was intended and he got the joke. He is a great kid who likes to joke around so I couldn’t miss the opportunity.
Evie stares at us quietly, not saying a word. “Say something,” I finally urge her.
She moves her mouth, but it is like she was grappling with what to say. I fear I am too late. “You don’t need to do this, Colton. I know we would have to see each other eventually because we share family but this gesture or whatever it is, isn’t necessary,” she responds, and I have to say it wasn’t what I was expecting, but Evie did tend to knock me off my feet.
“Me getting on this plane was not a friendly gesture,” I snap. I am feeling heated and angry and way too excited having her this close to me, yet feeling like she was an ocean away. “I am telling you that I am in love with you,” I say, waiting for the words to click. I had stopped signing because it still took a lot of effort on my part. I know reading lips takes a great effort on Evie’s part, but I am still willing to learn, to practice until things became more fluid for me. Only now I wonder what the hell I am doing. When she left me text messages in the first days after the scandal broke she had wanted to patch things up, she was worried for me, but I was blinded by all the lies my father had been telling me my whole life to see what was indee
d in front of me.
I wasn’t going to live in the dark anymore. This was me taking life by the balls. Doing what I wanted to do. Jake had told me that she was hurting and sad. The thought that it was me who caused her pain made me feel ill, and I knew I had to do something about it.
She finally speaks. “Colton, you thought you were in love with me, but it was just you remembering Jake, you were intrigued by the fact I was deaf. You wanted to learn how to sign because you longed for the deaf brother you lost. Well, now you have him back. I hope your life is more fulfilled now, but you don’t need to project your loss anymore. You sure as hell don’t owe me anything.” She purses her lips then signs, “sorry” to Carter. I think for the curse.
I blow out a breath and shake my head. “You are so damn stubborn. I don’t know where you came up with that stupid ass theory, but it’s a stupid ass theory.” I look down to Carter and apologize too. Then I remembered Al giving me a similar theory. I was going to have choice words with him when I saw him if it was him that planted these ridiculous assumptions in Evie’s mind.
Carter waves me off. “No worries. The kids at school say a lot worse than the “s” word.”
Evie’s mouth hangs open.
“Give me your hand,” I demand her, extending my own for her to take.
Mr. All Wrong Page 24
