by Law, Kim
Nate didn’t answer. He couldn’t believe his brother was going to say it out loud. That he would bring it up here. Now.
Jaden shifted his gaze to Meg. Then to Gabe. “Michelle.”
Gabe’s whole body tensed. “What about Michelle?”
Michelle was Gabe’s ex-wife and Jenna’s mother and had been fully out of the picture only since last year. She was also an exact replica of their mother. Narcissistic to her core.
Jaden looked almost regretful. Not enough to keep his mouth shut, apparently. But slightly mollified. He then opened his mouth and announced Nate’s worst act. “He slept with her.”
Gasps sounded in the room.
“He . . . what?” Gabe looked at Nate with shock.
“And he fell in love with her,” Jaden added, and Nate could have gladly killed his baby brother.
He didn’t say a word in defense of the accusation, though. Because what was there to say, anyway?
He also noticed that Megan let go of his hand. He didn’t look over at her. He didn’t want to see what she now thought about him. She’d loved him that morning.
“Is that true?” Gabe still hadn’t moved. “Did you sleep with her?” He didn’t look angry so much as disbelieving. And good Lord, Nate wanted to say no. He wanted to do that more than he’d ever wanted anything. He wanted to ignore the question and rewind the clock. And he wanted a complete do-over.
Do-overs didn’t come with life, though. Only a person’s own fuck-ups and Karma breathing down their neck.
So, Nate answered the question. It was time to pay the price. “Yes”
Gabe jerked as if he’d been hit. “When?”
“On my eighteenth birthday.”
The answer made the entire room somehow go even quieter. They all now knew. They got it.
“That’s why you left,” his dad said.
Nate nodded, but he didn’t take his eyes off Gabe. “I couldn’t stick around after that, could I? After I’d slept with my brother’s wife? While under the same roof?”
The words had Gabe’s jaw tensing. “It happened in this house?”
“In my bedroom, yes. But only that one time.”
Gabe tilted his head back then, as if visually measuring the distance down the upper hallway from the master suite—where he and Michelle had slept at the time—to the bedroom Nate had shared with Nick.
“It’s not as bad as it sounds,” Nick interrupted. “At least not from Nate’s perspective.”
“Don’t,” Nate told him. “Don’t take up for me. I did it. I participated. And it can’t be undone.”
Gabe was now staring at Nick. Then he looked at Jaden again. “And you both knew about this?” Anger finally made an appearance, fighting with the shock already marring their oldest brother’s face. He took in the rest of them. “Did the rest of you know, too? Have we all just been lying to each other about everything for years?”
“No.” Dani jumped up, baby in her arms. “We didn’t all know. And we don’t all lie to each other.”
Which wasn’t exactly the truth. Or it hadn’t always been. Because back before Dani had quit blocking memories out of how terribly their mother had treated them, the rest of the family had intentionally kept that knowledge from her. For years.
“Plus,” Dani added, “it’s not exactly a lie to withhold something that could hurt someone so terribly. I’m sure Nick and Jaden were just trying to protect you.”
“Yet you didn’t like it when we were all trying to protect you from the memory of our mother’s abuse,” Gabe shot back, and Dani went still. He had her there.
Instead of saying anything else, she sat back down. And she snuggled her baby close.
“What happened?” Gabe turned back to Nate. His hands rested on his thighs, his palms intentionally flat, and his fingers spread wide. “You slept with my wife.” Revulsion painted his features. “Why would you do that, Nate? And why would you tell anybody about it after the fact? The only person you should have ever told was me. And funny, this is the first time that I’m hearing about it.”
“He didn’t actually tell us,” Nick spoke up before Nate could.
“Shut up,” Nate replied.
“You need to talk about it,” Jaden urged from the other side of the room. “Holding this in for so long isn’t healthy. It’ll never allow you to have a viable relationship with anyone.”
Nate finally snapped, and he surged to his feet. “I don’t fucking want to talk about it, okay? It was nine years ago. It’s not part of my life now. And Gabe isn’t married to her anymore, so thankfully, it’s not part of his life, either. And, yes . . .” He faced Gabe again, his breathing now coming hard. “I slept with your wife. I’m an ass. I slept with her while you were married. While you were in bed down the hall from us. And I will forever hate myself for that. But talking about it won’t help because it can’t be undone. And though Lord knows I’m sorry, I also know that I can never apologize for it enough. I can’t take it away, and I can’t make up for it. Nor can I make up for the fact that I didn’t just screw you over that night. I’ve let down all of you over and over again. My whole damned life. Because that’s what I do. That’s why Dad lost a fucking leg, for Christ’s sake! That’s why I should never—ever—stay in this town again!”
He stormed out of the room, the back door slamming behind him so hard that it shook the house, and five seconds later, his truck roared to life and sped down the driveway.
Megan looked from face to face, trying to digest everything she’d just heard. Everything those words had implied. All the while, telling herself that Nate just needed time to calm down. That he would be back.
But something about the finality of his words stripped her bare. And she found herself fearing the worst.
“What did he mean?” Max’s voice broke into the silence. His words shook. “Why does Nate think my injury was his fault?”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Megan had had to explain Nate’s feelings of guilt to his entire family. They’d agreed with her, of course, that Max’s accident had not been Nate’s fault. She’d tried to express that very sentiment to Nate more than once since they’d started dating, but he’d always refused to budge. And seeing as how he’d stormed out of his family home a week before with those words hovering in his wake, his opinion clearly hadn’t changed.
She stepped back from the wall where she’d just hung a piece of artwork in Cabin 7 and studied the room as a whole. The work on the cabins had been finished the prior Thursday, and after a crew had come in to do a deep clean the next day, Megan, Brooke, all of Nate’s family, Dre, and the remaining guys who’d wanted to stay through the weekend had spent the last two days loading everything in.
It had been a long, hard couple of days. But it had been completely worth it.
“You’re good at this, Meg.”
Megan turned to Brooke, who’d just stepped into the cabin. “Thanks. Doing this was even more fun than I thought it would be.”
“Yeah?” Brooke walked around the space, admiring the more masculine plaids Megan had used in this cabin. It had been harder than Megan would have guessed to add all the finishing touches without Nate being there. To do anything without Nate, really. But as far as she was concerned, he was a grown man, and if what he wanted to do was storm out of his house and leave town without so much as a thought for her, then he could lie in the bed he’d made.
To be fair, Dre did know where he was. Nate had apparently texted the other man sometime Sunday night, asking him to see that the cabins got finished. Dre had offered to tell her where Nate could be found, but she’d declined the information. She didn’t plan on chasing any man around the country. Not even Nate.
“I think you should do more interior design work,” Brooke announced as she came back from exploring the single bedroom. “Get yourself yet another side gig going.”
Megan laughed halfheartedly. “I could probably use another gig or two.” It wasn’t like she wouldn’t have the time when she
was going home alone every night.
“I’m not kidding.” Brooke stopped at her side, and together they gazed upon the wrapped canvas of an expansive open Montana range that Megan had found. “You’re very good. And you’ve never even had official training.”
“I guess I’ve always just had an eye for things.”
“I can see that. So, take a class or two, why don’t you? See if you like it.”
Megan looked over at her, realizing that her friend really was being serious. “What are you doing? Trying to help me find ways to spend all my empty hours?”
“No. I’m just trying to help you find you, babe.”
Along with sharing the details of what had happened at the Wilde house the week before, Megan had also told Brooke about her dad’s visit. And she’d provided far more details about her family than her friend had likely ever really wanted to know. They’d been good talks, though, and it had helped their friendship to grow even closer. But with all the sharing, she’d admitted that she had no real idea what she wanted to do with her life now. It was as if the whole world had suddenly been opened to her. Yet, so far, nothing looked all that appealing.
“Smile, girls.”
They looked over as Dre stepped into the room, cell phone out in front of him, and smiled for the picture. He’d been taking several over the weekend as the cabins had come together. They’d be used as part of a portfolio for bidding on future jobs, she supposed. But she had no idea why he’d include one of her and Brooke.
Or one with just her, for that matter. Which Brooke had caught him taking earlier in the weekend.
“He’s not going to turn around and ask you out again, is he?” Brooke spoke under her breath as Dre disappeared back outside. “Because I’d think that would feel really awkward at this point.”
Megan made a face. “He’s leaving town in a couple of days. He wouldn’t have time to take me out even if he asked me.”
“Not that you’d go, anyway.”
Megan shook her head. “Not that I’d go, anyway.”
The reality was, she was destroyed over Nate’s leaving. Watching him walk away like that, and then sitting there listening to his family discuss what had just happened had only solidified her gut instinct. That Nate wouldn’t be coming back. At least not anytime soon.
The situation Jaden had been referring to had been Michelle repeatedly playing mind games with a vulnerable seventeen-year-old, then slipping into his room on his eighteenth birthday with one thing on her mind. She’d taken advantage of him, and he’d been unable to deal with the guilt of staying after that.
Megan had been disgusted. And not just by that one story, but by everything that had been shared of Gabe’s ex. And hearing those stories had made her feel even worse for Nate.
However, Nate had known what he was doing when he’d walked out of the house that night. Then it had been three long days before she’d heard a word from him. And when she had?
It had been a single text.
I’m sorry. You deserve better.
She hadn’t known if he’d been talking about his actions of that evening or about him in general. And she hadn’t replied to find out. She didn’t want to have a relationship by text. She didn’t want to have a relationship where a man walked away without so much as a thought about her. And she wouldn’t allow their next words to be via text or phone. He could either come home and deal with life like a grown-ass adult. Apologize for the way he’d walked out.
Or he could sulk his days away wherever the heck he was and be alone forever.
“Should I pick up wine and ice cream for tonight?” Brooke asked, and Megan smiled. They’d spent more than one night like that over the past week.
“How about we go out for a real meal tonight? To celebrate a job well done? My treat.”
“Well, if it’s your treat . . .”
They turned together and walked out of the cabin. But before she stepped off the small porch, she stood there and took in the beauty spread out before her. The water and the mountains. The peace of that very spot and of so many dotted throughout the town. This place was special. Just as she’d known it to be the first time she’d visited. And though her heart was currently crushed, she had a feeling that views like this and the community she’d befriended since moving there would pull her through.
Her phone buzzed, and she pulled it out to see that it was another text from Nate.
He’d not only texted that first time, but he’d sent two additional messages, as well. Both of which she’d also ignored. The first had been another declaration.
You probably think I’m an ass.
Again, was he an ass because he’d left town without saying a word to her or because he’d slept with Gabe’s ex-wife? And either way, yes.
Well, the sleeping with Michelle thing . . . he’d been an already emotionally damaged teenager, and Michelle had actively set out to screw with him. So, the verdict was still out on exactly how big of an ass he’d been in that situation. Possibly none.
But, still.
The next text had been him finally sounding a bit more concerned for her well-being.
Would you please at least reply to me? Let me know you’re okay?
No, she would not, and she did not. He didn’t get to know anything at all about her. And if he really wanted to know how she was, then he knew where she lived.
And now she had this one. And it broke her heart a little more.
Could I call you?
She stared at the message. It broke her heart because she’d wanted to call him. She wanted to talk to him. She missed him. She loved him. And she wanted to ask if he was okay. His family certainly didn’t blame him for Michelle’s behavior, and Max had thought the entire idea that his accident might have anything to do with Nate to be ludicrous. So, yeah. She’d love to talk to Nate. She’d love to make sure he understood that, even if nothing else came from the conversation.
But she also wasn’t ready to talk to him. He’d hurt her. She knew that he’d been hurting that day, himself, and she could have totally understood him needing to get out of the house in that moment. She could even understand him flying out of there the way he had without thinking about her. Sort of. But she couldn’t understand him not seeking her out.
She couldn’t understand it taking him three days to reach out to her.
So, no. She wasn’t ready to talk. And she wasn’t going to be forced into it.
She slid the phone back into her pocket, then she took in the newly landscaped yard surrounding the cabin and breathed in a deep lungful of fresh air. And she turned to her friend.
“You good?” Brooke asked.
“I’m good. I will be good,” she corrected.
“Then it sounds like you’re exactly where you should be at this point.”
* * *
Nate stared at his phone. He looked for any missed calls. Missed text messages. But he found nothing. Not from Meg. And he supposed that told him everything he needed to know. He’d tried to text her the week before. He’d asked if he could call her two days before. And he’d gotten nothing in reply. Not that her silence surprised him. And not that he’d even known what he would’ve said if she had agreed to talk to him. He’d just wanted to hear her voice. Badly enough that he’d asked.
But her silence said no. So, he’d have to be okay with that.
And it would be best, anyway. He’d stay away, and he’d let her move on.
He slid the phone into his pocket and swiped a line of sweat from his brow, then he grabbed his clipboard from the front seat of his truck and headed back to the forty-year-old home his team was currently renovating. He was in Round Rock, Texas, there to relieve his construction manager as the man supported his daughter in court, and where he’d head to next, he wasn’t yet sure. Nor did he know if it would even matter. He was tired of going. Tired of not knowing where to go. But he didn’t know how to do anything else.
As he entered through the open garage, he pulled his phone back
out, unable to keep from looking at it one more time. He’d been gone from Birch Bay for over a week, and though he’d basically had no conversations with anyone, this small piece of electronics had been his lifeline. It wasn’t unusual for him to go several weeks without speaking to any of his siblings when he wasn’t at home. And that’s what he’d expected this time. But he’d been surprised to see that they’d all reached out to him at some point over the last week.
He scrolled through the messages, pulling up the ones from Nick first.
Are you okay?
Nate had replied to that one. Yes. The question had been simple, as well as the reply. Nick had simply needed to know that he was alive. That he’d made it to wherever he’d been headed. It had come in Monday morning, then Nate hadn’t gotten another text from Nick until late Friday.
Come home, man. For good. It’s time to stop doing this bullshit.
He hadn’t replied to that one, because what was he supposed to say? Would anyone actually want him there if he did go home? Especially after the way he’d left. All he did when he was around was cause problems. And it wasn’t as if he contributed in any real way when he was there. Not that they couldn’t replace him by either hiring out or doing something themselves. They didn’t need him.
He’d also gotten a message from Cord on Wednesday.
That was a nice scene, bro. You about done yet?
On Sunday night, Dani had said, We’re always going to be here for you. You know that, don’t you? No one loves you any less, and we never will.
He didn’t know if he believed that one. Gabe had to love him less. Gabe should hate him.
Jaden had even reached out.
I apologize for the way it went down, but I don’t apologize for it happening. You needed to process what happened back then. I’m sure you still need to process it. Please call me.
Jaden had been trying to get him to talk about Michelle ever since Nate had threatened to tell Gabe what happened. Nate had left the house that next morning, riddled with guilt that he’d let himself fall for her, that he’d let himself have sex with her, and he’d wandered around for months. He’d started drinking during that time. In certain areas, it was easy for an eighteen-year-old to get beer. Then, about three months after he’d left home, he’d called Michelle.
