“No, Regan, he didn’t hurt me,” Liv lied again. The truth was he had inadvertently hurt her by not saying anything more than good-bye. What did she expect from him? The man’s world had been totally rocked over the last year. She was just silly to think that anything could come of it.
“Whatever. Say what you will, but you’re still a terrible liar. I guess Ex-Lax brownies are in order.”
That statement got a giggle out of Liv. “You really don’t need to do that. He has enough to worry about, as well as Damon. I guess he told you about Drake?”
“Yeah, he did. How screwed up is that?” Regan asked and sighed heavily into the phone. “I would have never believed in a thousand years that Eugene had a mistress or another son! Damon is taking it all better than I thought. He’s a strong man, and we’ll make it through.”
“Yeah, you will. So listen, I hate to go, but I need to get this stuff sent in and completed. Next week I have a project in Tyler that I need to get ready for,” Liv said. She couldn’t handle any more talking.
“All right, liar, so uh, let’s get together tomorrow afternoon. I have a wedding to decorate for first thing in the morning, but I’ll be free the rest of the day. We can go shopping, or eat, anything. I don’t care,” Regan said.
“Sounds good, sweetie. Call me tomorrow when you’re finished,” Liv said, and they ended their call.
At least her mind would be occupied tomorrow, and as for tonight, well, it was going to be a long one.
* * * *
Drew finished up feeding and his regular morning chores. The thought of facing the rest of the day was daunting at best. His mind was on Liv and the fact that she wasn’t there teasing him with her smile or body. He felt like a jackass. He had used her, took everything she had to offer and gave nothing in return.
What did he have to look forward to now? His days were back to the same old. Work, drink, and find a way to combat the demons inside him that wanted retribution for his pain. Shay was no longer haunting him. Now it was his father, his newly found brother, and the fact that he was such a damn idiot for allowing Liv to drive away. He wished it would all go away and leave him be. He wanted someone to blame and someone to punish. His father would be a good start. He was never a big fan of his father, and now he really had reason to hate him. His heart ached for his mother and the fact that she had lived with the knowledge of Drake and his mother, the mistress, all these years. The one question he had hadn’t been answered. Why would his mother allow that? Did it hurt her? And how much time had his dear old dad spent with this other family? Would he have rather had that family over them? Is that why he’d showered them with gifts and busted his ass every step of the way?
Drew walked into the barn and to the refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of water. He needed some damn answers or a lobotomy so he could forget. The only person or event he didn’t want to forget was Liv. If he could just make everything go away then maybe he might have a chance of being the man she needed and deserved. Right now he wasn’t worth a plug nickel.
“Come on Drew, we have some shit to discuss.” Damon walked into the barn. He had lingering questions and was sure Drew did as well.
Drew raised a brow and turned up his bottle of water. He didn’t want to discuss anything. He had plans and those plans included a six-pack, his couch, and maybe a porn flick or two.
“Seriously, this has got to stop. I know you’re pissed, and so am I, and we’re going to deal with it, together.” Damon motioned him to follow.
This was not the afternoon Drew had planned, but if Damon was as fed up with it all as much as he was and needed to have a brotherly pep talk, then he’d do it just because Damon was the only person in his life that would always be there. “Fine, but I don’t know what it will help,” Drew said and reluctantly followed Damon to the house.
* * * *
Late that night, Drew sat on his couch mulling over the entire conversation he and Damon had with their mother on the phone earlier. His heart ached for her and the fact that she put up with their father for so many years. When Damon asked her why she stayed with their father after she found out about the mistress, she simply answered, “Because I loved him.”
Bullshit, it was ridiculous to think that she could love his father after that kind of dishonor. Drew really wanted to kick his father’s ass into the next century. Damon felt the same but had continued to ask questions. What they learned was that their parents had been going through a rough time. His father had been busy with all manner of cases for the state when he was the state prosecutor. His mother hated him being gone all the time and hated being alone on the ranch with two little ones and no father figure in their lives daily. She said she had considered divorce but knew that she’d never be able to take care of the ranch financially on her own and knew that the ranch was the one thing her boys loved and hated the thought that they might not own it one day.
Their mother had also expressed that even through the lonely times she always loved their father. She had found out about the mistress but said nothing because she didn’t want to put them through a divorce and have her boys find out why. She had hoped that they would never find out. Then the mistress got pregnant and had Drake and that really changed everything. She had said that she’d do whatever it took to keep the ranch for her boys and allow Drake to grow up as normally as possible.
Why she cared was beyond Drew. Granted, she had a point when she said that Drake never asked to be brought into the world in the first place, especially under the circumstances that he did. She had said that she didn’t want Drake to grow up without a father, so she allowed the visits and the money to be funneled to the other family. She also didn’t want the scandal hitting the newsstands and the possibility of their father’s career being ruined and their reputation to be ruined in the process. She continued and expressed that although he wasn’t the greatest father or husband in the world, he was very great at his work as a prosecutor and senator, and the idea of his talents going to waste was too much of a sentence for infidelity.
Drew continued to think about it all and felt utterly numb. Why was love so damn complicated? Although he admired his mother for what she endured, he wished she hadn’t. It wasn’t fair, and it wasn’t right. Her main goal was to ensure that he and Damon grew up honest and would one day find a woman that they’d cherish and never hurt like their father had hurt her. She wanted to instill in them good values and a good work ethic, and most of all she wanted them to know how much she loved them and how proud of them she was.
No matter what his mother said, it still didn’t make it right. He respected the hell out of her for her sacrifice, but she shouldn’t have endured it all these years.
Chapter Seven
Liv finalized the copy for production the night before, and now she lay in bed thinking about Drew. She wondered if he was coping with everything okay. Yesterday he wasn’t doing so well. These were some more problems that weren’t her own that she needed to leave alone, but her heart egged her on. Her original plan concerning Drew had never come full circle, and she wondered how differently things might have turned out if this latest scandal hadn’t bombarded his fragile ego. The poor guy didn’t seem to have a chance at a normal life that she could tell he wanted. Liv noticed at the first breakfast how Drew watched Damon and Regan with regret filling him. Deep down Drew wanted what Damon had, and it was eating away inside him because he couldn’t let his anger or the past go.
Shuffling out of bed, Liv wondered what she could possibly do with her time until Regan was finished with the wedding flowers today. It was not like Liv to have a lack of chores or work to do to fill her time, but today she was utterly clueless on how to proceed.
It was strange to walk through her tiny apartment to the small kitchen. There were no voices chattering and no hint of bacon wafting through the air like at the ranch. How could she miss something that she barely could call routine? She supposed it was just such a wonderful change from her usual routine, and it fill
ed a void that she didn’t realize she had until now. She was tired of lone-wolfing it. She craved interaction with people that made her smile and she certainly craved a man that was as obtainable as winning the lottery.
Liv started a pot of coffee and began sorting through the pile of mail that had accumulated. “Bills, junk mail, bills…” she chimed as she tossed items toward the trash. It occurred to her that her life kind of sucked in a way. Really, all she had was her business, but other than that she had no family and few friends. It had never occurred to her how lonely she really was, until now. She poured a cup of coffee and stared out the window at a sea of cars. Beyond that was the interstate with a steady line of vehicles hurrying here and there.
“Rat race, work to live and live till ya die, chasing money,” Liv mumbled. She could accuse herself of the same behavior. She was chasing an elusive piece of cheese through a maze that she always believed would make her happy, but would it? Her business was going well, but honestly, she wasn’t any happier now than before. She was just surviving the best way she knew how.
Now that she recognized the truth for what it was, how did she proceed from here? All she really wanted was a family, and it didn’t even have to be perfect. What she wanted was Drew which she found ridiculous considering the current situation. She always had avoided the path of least resistance and instead found the road full of uphill climbs. Brilliant.
When Liv’s cell rang several hours later she nearly fell running for it. She had spent the morning scrubbing the kitchen floor, dusting, and vacuuming. Not that her apartment really needed it since she was hardly there, but it kept her mind occupied.
The call was from Regan, and she said she’d be over in about twenty minutes. Unsure of what they would plan to do, Liv took a quick shower while she waited.
* * * *
Damon didn’t know where Drew had been all day but he needed to find him. Regan had called him and asked him to bring Drew to dinner. He knew what she was doing, and generally under the circumstances he wouldn’t go along with it, but he knew that something needed to be done.
Drew missed Liv. It was obvious, but whether he’d act on his own to get in touch with her they didn’t know. So he and Regan planned to get them both to dinner at the same time and bail on them. It was a good idea. His wife could see that Drew and Liv had feelings for one another but were both too stupid and proud to say so. Yep, they were messing with the wrong cupid. Regan was really good at matchmaking. Well, most of the time.
When Drew answered his cell, Damon basically told him to have his ass ready to go to dinner by five. Of course Drew gave him a load of grief about it but finally caved when Damon mentioned steak and a break from everything, including the ranch.
Now Damon stood and smiled, very proud of himself and his cunning wife. When two people were obviously meant to be together, why in the world should they resist? It didn’t make sense to him because it had taken him about three days to realize Regan was the one, and he went for it feetfirst and couldn’t be happier. He just wanted to see Drew as happy. With a silent prayer offered, Damon went about the last of his chores before time to get ready for “Operation Now or Never” as Regan called it.
Regan was one in a million where Damon was concerned. She wanted others around her to be happy, and right now she was determined to do what she could in order to make two dodos, as she called them, realize that life was too short to not go after what they wanted. It was simple. They wanted each other.
* * * *
Drew stepped out of the shower with a frown. He didn’t want to be the third wheel on a date with Damon and Regan. That’s what he had been for the last year. He considered calling Liv, but her number was at Damon’s. Even if he had it he wasn’t sure he could summon the strength to call her. While she had been at the ranch, he basically used her. He said no kind words, and he allowed her to drive away after he gave her a kiss on the cheek and nothing more.
The truth was he was afraid she’d say no if he called. Really, he hadn’t given her a single reason to want to be around him. And he was sure that their week of sex was a way for her to blow off some steam as well. Yeah, he was sure that they both mutually used one another, and he was stupid enough to fall for her. The one thing he did know for sure was how nice it was having her on the ranch. He remembered that first breakfast when he and Damon sat at the table drinking coffee, and Regan and Liv giggled in the kitchen while cooking. At the time he didn’t realize it, but now he knew that was the most wonderful sound that he had ever heard. He had been with his brother and his incredible wife, and Liv was a part of it, and it seemed so natural, so amazing. But, of course, he had to brood and be angry about things that in all actuality didn’t matter and throw Liv the cold shoulder. No, he wouldn’t be calling. He couldn’t. Tonight he’d put on a good show for Damon and Regan then return home, hold down his couch, and sip a beer, alone.
* * * *
Liv and Regan had spent the afternoon watching a movie and engaging in just fun girl time. When the movie was over, Regan picked up the half-eaten bowl of popcorn and held her stomach. “I wish we would have eaten something more substantial first, Liv.”
“Yeah, I’m with you. I feel a little queasy, too. I put too much butter on it.” Liv laughed and picked up the remnants off the carpet.
“Why don’t we just go to dinner. We need to eat something really good…hey, why don’t we go to that little steakhouse we used to go to?” Regan smiled. She could trick Liv into about anything, and the woman would never catch on.
“Oh, that sounds great.” Liv threw the popcorn in the trash and leaned back against the counter.
“I was wondering about something if you don’t mind me asking,” Regan started and searched Liv’s face.
“Shoot,” Liv replied and waited.
“Well, remember how you told me about you and Brock, you know, after y’all started dating?” Regan treaded lightly.
“I remember, why?” Liv pulled her eyebrows together.
“I know what you said about how he helped you…anyway, I was wondering if you thought that might work for Drew?” Regan asked and tried to act nonchalant while pouring a glass of tea.
Liv sighed. “I wondered that myself…I actually planned that, but I guess I got so carried away with allowing him to dominate and control. You know I like that, and there are so many men that just can’t get it right.” She laughed.
“Oh, I know exactly what you like. That was why I really felt you’d make an impact on Drew. Did he say anything about seeing you again or—”
Liv waved a hand quickly. “No, he didn’t say he’d like to see me again. It was sex, Regan, a week of really great sex.” She sighed and smiled, thinking about their time together. It was sex, but it was incredible.
Regan nodded and frowned. “I’m really sorry, Liv. I thought and actually prayed that you two would hit it off.”
Liv smiled. “It’s not the end of the world, Regan. We still have each other, and who knows, maybe one day he’ll combat all his demons and give me a call,” she said, apparently trying to make her feel better.
“There you go lying again. I know that you don’t want to wait for someday, and I also know that you’re crazy about him. I also think that it would be more enjoyable for the both of you if you put him through the course you went through.” Regan smiled and winked.
“Yes, no doubt that would be a lot of fun, the course that is, but he really made it clear that he didn’t want anything else, so…I just have to let it be.” Liv turned and began to rinse their dishes and put them into the dishwasher.
Regan ceded the battle. “Okay, I won’t speak any more about it. So, what do you think. It’s after four now. Should we try to beat the dinner rush?”
Liv nodded. “Give me a few minutes, and I’ll go get ready.”
* * * *
Drew rode with Damon and glanced out the window with third-wheel syndrome setting in. “Tell me why I’m going on a date with you and Regan.”
“It’s not a date. It’s dinner, and we wanted a night out away from everything, and we wanted you to come along and get away also.” Damon shrugged.
“Don’t keep me out too late, I have stuff to do at the house,” Drew mumbled.
“Yeah, I know there’s a six-pack in the refrigerator and a stack of porn that needs to be viewed.” Damon chuckled.
“Well, porn doesn’t talk back, it doesn’t set you up in a blackmail scheme, and it doesn’t require the words ‘I love you.’” Drew rolled his eyes. God, he was pathetic.
“Tell me something. Why haven’t you bothered to call Liv? I mean, it seems like both of you are attracted to one another…yesterday you wouldn’t take your eyes off her and seemed jealous about Drake being too close.”
Drew ignored Damon. Attraction and sex don’t always make for good relationships. All he had to do was to think of Shay and how that played out to know.
“You’re scared.” Damon laughed. “I didn’t think you were scared of anything, man.”
Drew turned and glared. “I’m not scared.”
“Whatever, bro. It can be our little secret,” Damon teased.
“I’m not scared, asshole.” Drew turned back and looked at the window. It was almost like being in the third grade again with Damon at times.
“Well, what’s the problem then? And don’t even tell me you weren’t all that into her. I know what I saw,” Damon said, prodding for information.
What was the problem? Drew asked himself that a couple of times today. For one, it seemed that Liv didn’t care one way or another when she left. He didn’t know what he expected her to say or what she expected from him, but no words seemed right at the time. “Of course I like her. What’s not to like?”
Drew [The Texas Senator's Sons 2] (Siren Publishing Classic) Page 10
