by Lexie Davis
“Hello, darling.” Blair Riggens came through the door, pulling Bree into a bear hug. “Oh, it’s so good to see you. How’s my sweet little grandchild?”
“Shiloh’s fine. She’s sleeping right now. I just put her down for her nap.” Bree looked at Blair as if she were an alien. “What are you doing here, Blair?”
Blair walked inside the townhouse as if she was welcomed, and Bree groaned, slamming the door shut. Blair Riggens wasn’t her biggest fan but the feeling was mutual. But after seeing Kaden and the whole situation, she really didn’t want to have anything to do with any of his family.
“I’m here because my son said he saw you the other day.” She sat on the couch, looking stiff as she did. Good, Bree thought. Not as luxurious as the leather she used to own when she’d been single, but she had a baby now. Give and take a little. “He said that you had a bit of a disagreement.”
It was all Bree could do not to snort. “Your son and I have disagreed since the very second I told him I was expecting his child. It’s old news.”
Blair pursed her lips. “Bree, he means well.”
“Yeah. Right. For who? My point of view clearly says he’s still the same love-’em-and-leave-’em type.”
“Well, if you knew that, then why did you sleep with him?”
“I was drunk, and your son was a handsome man. We were best friends, and it all went to my head. I never planned on having a baby this early in life, and I sure as hell didn’t plan or trap him as he seems to think.”
Blair looked around the less than spectacular room. “Will you let him be in the baby’s life if he wants?”
“He doesn’t want to be. Quite frankly, I’m not sure I trust him with my child.” Bree stood with her hands on her hips, wishing her life wasn’t so chaotic.
“Please don’t make this go to court, Bree. It’ll be so much easier on all of us if you just agree to visitation and custody.”
Bree narrowed her eyes at the woman on her couch. “Is that a threat?”
“It’s a warning. Kaden deserves to be in his child’s life, and you have no right to keep him out of it.” Blair stood, obviously uncomfortable sitting on Bree’s lumpy couch. “I personally think marriage is suitable for the pair of you. That way it guarantees the baby will have both parents. It’s healthier on her emotions, and the psychological benefits are a plus.”
“Excuse me for saying this, but you need to butt out of my life.” Bree stood with the door open, giving Blair the hint she was not welcome. “I know what’s best for my daughter, and I will abide by my knowledge. I gave birth to her after all.”
Blair nodded, pursing her lips tighter. “Choose your battles, sweetheart. Do you really think you have a chance at winning full custodial rights to the baby when Kaden’s father is the best divorce attorney in the state?”
“Please get out of my house.” Bree clenched the doorknob and waited until Blair passed by and stood on the other side of the threshold. Then she slammed the door in her face and slid the lock home.
She wouldn’t let them take her baby away. She didn’t care if it took everything she had to find a good attorney. She wouldn’t let them take her away.
Bree slid down to the floor, unable to hold back the emotions streaming through her body. Even though it’d been nine months since she’d given birth, her body still wasn’t back to normal. She cried more than she should and got angry for no real reason. Her bills kept piling up, and she hadn’t a clue how she was going to pay them. Too much was on her plate to worry about a custody battle.
Shiloh’s cry sounded over her own, and she instinctively stood to get her sweet baby. She dried her eyes on the large sweatshirt she pulled on and hoped she didn’t scare the poor child to death. Kaden didn’t even consider her his. Why would he want custody of the baby?
“Ssh, sweetheart. Momma’s here.” She picked up her daughter and cuddled her close, automatically stopping the crying. She patted her wild curly hair and kissed her head before sitting back in the wooden rocker in the corner of the room. “Everything’s alright. Momma will make sure of it.”
* * * *
“Sorry about the loss of your grandfather, Kaden.” Derek came up to his buddy, not seeing him since the night they went out to dinner. “Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help.”
Kaden nodded, not really wanting to talk to anyone. As the funeral home cleared, all the flowers stacked inside the vehicles, he made his way to the front of the building, unable to hold back his emotions any longer.
Tim Riggens had been the most exceptional man Kaden had ever known. From the first time his grandfather took him out on the docks to the first time he had actually let Kaden have a glass of his finest whiskey, he’d always been the one person that didn’t push Kaden to do anything. He had wanted him to be happy and had said happiness only comes from within.
He loved Brianna to death. Treated her like his own granddaughter. He even once said that he could see the two of them getting married. Kaden chuckled at that as two fat tears rolled down his cheeks. She’d only been twelve at the time, making him fifteen. He clearly didn’t want a wife, and she clearly didn’t want to marry him. Little did he know how much he had screwed up their relationship until now.
“Kaden?” Greg Riggens came up behind his son, patting his back. “You okay, son?”
“Just thinking.” He scooted over in the seat, allowing room for his father to sit. “I figured I should probably tell Bree about Grandpa’s passing, but she’s really pissed at me right now. I’m not so sure calling her would be a good idea.”
Greg folded his hands in his lap. “Women are fickle creatures, son. But I’m sure if that’s all you intend to say, she’ll bite her tongue until you hang up. Why don’t you give her a call?”
Kaden shrugged. “I suppose a two-minute conversation couldn’t be that bad.”
He stood to leave, but his father caught his attention. “Son, we’re gathering the family together tonight to have the reading of the will. Make sure you’re available.” He paused for a moment, meeting Kaden’s eyes. “And not drunk.”
He left him alone in the funeral home, the room seeming so big without anybody near. Bree’s number was still programmed into his phone, but he knew it by heart. He flicked open his black cell phone, punched in the number, and hit “talk.”
Three rings later, a breathless Brianna came to the phone. “Hello?”
“Bree?” His voice sounded groggily even to his own ears.
“Kaden? What’s wrong?”
No arguing so far. Maybe his father was right. “Um, I just wanted to tell you my grandfather passed away. He died yesterday morning, and I would have called you then but I’ve been busy helping with the funeral arrangements. He didn’t want a big funeral, so we had it today. Uh, I just thought you’d want to know.”
He sniffed, refusing to get emotional on the phone with her.
“Are you okay?” she asked, not something he was expecting.
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
A heartbeat later, she spoke again. “Do you need me to do anything? Um, I have tomorrow off. Do you need me to come to Raleigh?”
Her kindness tore at his haywire emotions. “No, I’m fine. Thanks, though.”
Silence filled the phone line, and it was all he could do not to ask her to come over tonight. Through thick and thin, she was always there for him, and he really wanted to have her here now.
“I can come tonight,” she said, taking him by surprise. “Shiloh is with Mom for the night, so it’ll be just me.”
“I can’t ask you to do that.” Even as he said it, tears rolled down his cheeks.
“What if I want to? Will you let me?”
A million times, yes. “Yes.”
“Okay. Uh, I’ll probably be there in an hour or so. Can you give me directions?”
He told her everything she needed to know and hung up, feeling a sense of peace come over him. Even though they fought like cats and dogs, she wanted to come to his
side when she knew he needed her the most. It would have been so easy for her to brush him away, like he had when she came to him over a year ago, but she didn’t. She knew he needed her and offered to take off from work to come be with him.
He couldn’t possibly feel more like an ass than he did right then.
* * * *
Kaden waited in the foyer before the family gathered to read the will. Brianna’s car appeared at the gates a moment later, and his heart picked up a beat. He never thought he’d be eager to see a beat-up Mazda, but he couldn’t help feeling excited to see her. Pathetic really, considering the hell she’s been through. He’s probably the last person on earth she’d want to see.
She parked in front, obviously not planning to stay long. He came out of the house and greeted her on the steps. She wore a slinky black dress with a knot at the waist that accentuated her breasts. She was beautiful in every right.
“Kaden,” she climbed the steps and didn’t think twice before pulling him into her arms. “I’m so sorry.”
If anyone knew him, she did, and she knew how close he was to his grandfather. His eyes were puffy enough as it was, but he didn’t shed any tears. He allowed himself to revel in her softness while she was here.
“You didn’t have to come, but I’m glad you’re here.”
She smiled, looking up at him. “Tim was like a grandfather to me, too. Hell, he even planned on us getting married when I was what, twelve? You weren’t much older.”
He nodded. “Fifteen.”
She shook her head. “How’s Evelyn?”
“Grandma’s holding up well.” He led her to the side, where a glider sat in a secluded patio. She took a seat and he sat beside her. “Georgie and Buster are taking it pretty hard. They don’t understand Granddad isn’t coming back.”
“Poor things.” They slid in silence, gliding back and forth.
“I’m sorry about the whole restaurant thing.” Kaden blurted. “I-I didn’t know what to say to you, and I sure didn’t expect to see you that night.”
“Kaden, I really didn’t want to talk about us. I’m here for you and to pay my respects. Talking about us only makes me angry.” She leaned forward, stopping the gentle gliding motion. “Do you agree with your mother?”
Kaden furrowed his eyebrows. “Agree with what?”
She turned toward him. “She thinks you should be in Shiloh’s life and even threatened to take her away from me if I didn’t let you. I can’t let you take my baby away, Kaden. She’s everything to me now.”
Kaden stiffened as if all his muscles had a charley horse at the same time. “I’m not taking anything away from you. When did she say this?”
“A week or so ago. She stopped by on a Saturday and told me all this.” She looked like she wanted to cry to him, and instinctively, he wrapped his arms around her.
“Don’t worry about her, sweetheart. I’ll take care of it.” She still smelled of the same strawberry shampoo she favored. The same damn stuff he had to use every time he showered at her place.
For so many years they’d had a platonic relationship. He had spent so many nights at her house when he visited town and never once thought about touching her sexually. Not until she called him that one afternoon and needed his shoulder to cry on.
Brett, her current boyfriend, had dumped her and along with the relationship had gone her job. He had to admit, the damn job paid well considering all she did was wait on tables, but then again the damn meals cost almost as much as a normal working class citizen made in a week.
She’d called him for support, and he gave it to her. He opened the wine and let her have at it, knowing she’d be perfectly safe in the comforts of her own home. He must have been drunk as well, because never in his right mind would he have allowed himself to take her. Not in the condition she was in. And never, ever, would he have not used a condom. Even drunk he still made sure he covered himself before taking a woman—for his protection more than theirs.
But that night he had let his good sense and good judgment go out the window, along with his rational brain. And now they had a baby because of it.
He pulled back staring in her eyes. “Will you let me see her?”
“Uh, I thought you didn’t like kids.”
She had him there. “Maybe my kid will be different.”
When she hesitated, he continued. “Just for an hour. You can be there the whole time, and I give you permission to beat the hell out of me if I do something wrong with her.”
She laughed. “I suppose. How could a girl refuse that kind of offer? I told you I’m off tomorrow. You can come by my place any time.”
He nodded. For some reason, Brianna had been blessed with the peacemaking skill. She always looked for a way to solve people’s differences, no matter what the situation.
“Oh, I don’t live at the house anymore. Mom and I rented a small townhouse on the opposite side of town. It’s in a nice neighborhood. Not as nice as the house, but Mom likes it. It’s closer to town, and she doesn’t have to wait that long for an ambulance if she needs oxygen.”
He knew Regina had a lung condition, and it had to be difficult for Bree to take care of her mother and the baby. Especially since she worked at the restaurant and did more than her fair share of supporting her family.
“But anyway, remind me to give you directions.”
“Kaden? We’re about to start—oh, Brianna. When did you get here?” Blair stepped around the corner looking elegant as ever with a wine glass in her hand.
“Earlier, Mom.” Kaden turned toward her. “Did you tell Bree that I’d take away Shiloh from her?” Blair looked like the cat that ate the canary. Kaden shook his head. “Unbelievable, Mom. You know damn good and well, I’d never take that child from Bree because she’s an exceptional mother. And how dare you go see her at her home and threaten her with something that is none of your concern.”
Blair tipped the glass back, downing the last of the drink. “I was looking out for the benefit of the family. You should have demanded a paternity test and, if the baby was yours, demanded that you get visitation rights.”
Kaden pinched the bridge of his nose. “The baby’s mine, Mom. No paternity test needs to be taken.”
“So trusting. Why not have it put in writing?”
“Because I know!” Kaden stood taking the few steps necessary to the concrete railing.
“You can’t be certain. You have money. She can’t pay her bills. How do you know it’s not a ploy to get you to support her? Did you think about that?”
“Mother, I’ll not repeat myself again. Butt out and let me handle my business my way.” Taking a deep breath of fresh air, Kaden leaned against the railing.
“Fine. You’re wanted inside for the reading.” His mother turned with a huff and went through the doors she came from.
Kaden could feel Bree’s eyes on his back, though he didn’t know what to say. He just stood up to his mother for her and everything Blair had said could have been true. He didn’t really know if Shiloh was his baby. He’d never seen her and didn’t dare ask questions. Brianna didn’t offer any answers. He believed her when she said she was a virgin and knew she hadn’t been with any other guy. So that ruled Brett out.
“You didn’t have to stand up for me,” Brianna finally said, coming up behind him. “You have every right to assume those things.”
“Yeah, but you’re about the only person outside my family that I trust.” He turned and saw her small body closer to him than he would have thought. Amazing that he didn’t even hear her make a sound. “Thank you for coming tonight, even though I’m sorry my mother did that to you.”
“No sweat. You sounded like you needed a friend on the phone.” She smiled and looked toward the door. “So are we going in, or are we going to sit out here all night?”
“Are you giving me a choice?” He wished she were.
“Sure. I’m just here for the ride.”
He grinned, knowing better than to piss off his father. H
e thought she knew it too, because she had a sly look in her eyes—the one she had when she was up to no good. God, how he missed hanging out with her. She made his life fun.
“Come on.” He grabbed her hand and led her to the doorway. “It’s like ripping off a band aid. Pull really quick and then be done with it.”
Once inside, every one of his family members gathered around to hear what his grandfather declared. His grandmother received the house and most of the assets. His four kids received equal shares of stock options, putting their small fortune at around five million a piece. And the grandkids received funds set aside for them.
“Oh, Kaden’s has a note beside it.” Greg, who was executor of the will, looked up at his son. “It says here that you are to be married before you receive the money.”
Kaden’s eyes widened. “Married? Why do I have to be married?”
Greg looked toward Bree, who stood next to Kaden, hand clasped hard in his. “Because your grandfather wanted you to be happy. He even stipulated who you are to marry.”
Bree’s face blanched. Kaden knew what was coming before Greg even said it.
“He wants you to marry Brianna Lynn Miller within thirty days of the date of death, or no money will be settled. To anyone.”
Chapter Three
Brianna knew this had to be one horrific nightmare. One very bad dream that kept getting worse as the days went on. Kaden’s hand clasped hers in a deathly grip. Everyone stared at her, greed and envy showing on the faces around the room.
“Dad, you can’t just stipulate that in the will. Why would he stipulate such a ridiculous request? Not to mention telling me who to marry!”
“Each may have a copy of the will. It states in plain English that unless you are married to Brianna, no one gets anything.” He shrugged. “Dad was keen on you two being together. I guess the ornery old man will live on from the grave.”
Kaden dragged Brianna across the room, grabbed the will from his father’s hand, and read it. “No fucking way.”
