by Jean Oram
“No. Sometimes the one you get on the first try is The One and nobody else can compare. But in your case, I think destiny brought you even better seconds, if you know what I mean.” Her mom gave her a wink as Maya came up the steps to help her into the lift.
“Your taxi awaits,” Maya said, bowing as she gestured to the now vacant device. “Good thing I didn’t let Connor talk me into letting him ride this thing during his stay last month or he’d have broken it and where would we be today?”
“Probably riding a new lift, knowing him,” their mother laughed. “He so likes to help out, doesn’t he? Oh, and remind me to thank him for fixing the screen door. I keep forgetting to mention it.”
“Okay,” Maya replied.
Evander joined them on the veranda.
“It was lovely meeting you, Evander,” said Catherine. “And thank you so much for all you’re doing for my girls.” She reached out and gave him a weak hug, her stroke-affected side hanging limp. He gave her a gentle, tender hug in return, and Daphne’s eyes filled with tears.
“It’s truly my pleasure, Mrs. Summer,” he said, his voice a quiet rumble.
The affectionate note in his voice made Daphne itch. Her mother had to be wrong. She herself had to be wrong. She and Evander couldn’t care for each other in that way. It was too scary. Too big. Too real. It was all just adrenaline and the way he was so kind that made her think she wanted him sometimes. He was a sexy man, that was all. Not her type. He didn’t want to be with her. They would never make it.
“You okay?” Evander asked, lightly touching her elbow. Electricity shot up her arm and she flinched.
“Fine.” She pushed past him, helping settle her mother in the lift, even though Maya was already there. She needed to get away from Evander, from everything running through her mind like wildfire.
She wanted Evander so bad it scared the daylights out of her.
“Mistral is not the man you need in your life,” Catherine whispered, her expression serious. “Open your eyes to what you’ve got before you let it go.”
Daphne squeezed them shut.
“I agree,” Maya murmured.
Daphne closed the lift’s gate, allowing Maya to take over. She needed to climb to the top of the island, sit on a rock and think. But when she turned back to the veranda she saw that Evander had Tigger riding high on his shoulders. Her daughter was laughing down at him, patting the top of his head as he beamed up at her. They looked just like the family she’d always dreamed of having.
But they were the family she could never have, because Evander had made it clear he was not cut out for real life. And having kids and a family was as real life as you got.
He rolled Tigger off his shoulders and the girl came bounding over to her. She wasn’t going to get that thinking space, was she?
“Mom, brains and beauty won’t buy you everything. You should marry for money.”
“What?” Daphne looked at Evander, who shrugged.
“I am a sweet and quiet girl and I promise to not cause a stir.”
“A stir about what?” Who had her daughter been talking to today?
“Mistral—Dad—said if I want to stop the circle I have to step out of it.”
“What circle?” Angry heat spread through Daphne.
“He said I can be someone special.”
Evander’s face was red, his fists clenched, jaw tight. He looked as though he was holding back a deluge of anger, just as she was.
Daphne dropped to her knees. “Mistral’s not your father.”
Tigger’s face scrunched in confusion.
“I mean, he is. But he—a dad shouldn’t…” She looked to Evander for help.
He scooped up the girl. “I happen to think you’re already somebody special.” He leaned over to give Daphne a peck on her cheek. “And I think your mom has the power to change the world. Do you understand how amazing that is? Because secretly, I hope you cause a really big stir every day for the rest of your entire life.” He gave the girl a kiss on the cheek, then lowered her carefully to the ground.
And in that small action, Daphne lost her grip and fell in love with the man she had sincerely hoped to resist.
Daphne was storming down the rickety old stairs of the veranda and Evander worried she would fall through the third step from the top, which was rotting through. He quickly scooped Tigger up onto his shoulders and followed Daphne down to the dock. A bee had definitely zipped into her bonnet with Tigger’s talk of being special, and he worried she was going to leave the island without them.
Maya, Florence, Kyle, and Catherine were on the dock and looked startled at the trio’s abrupt arrival.
“Is everything okay?” Catherine asked.
Voices drifted across the water and Daphne stormed to the end of the dock. Untying the rowboat that was bobbing there, she climbed in. If she was rowing, she wasn’t planning to go far. Which meant she was going across to the other island. To enemy territory.
Evander passed Tigger to Maya and, ignoring Catherine’s questions, climbed into the wobbly boat at the last second, nearly falling into the water as Daphne started pulling the boat with surprising speed and strength across the calm strait. The rain had let up, but the air was cool and damp, and moving through it felt like moving through a rain cloud.
“Dare I ask where we’re going?” Evander said.
Daphne didn’t reply, but climbed out on the opposite shore, yanking the bow upon land even before he jump out of the boat. She was out of breath from the brisk row, and was panting as he followed her through the trees.
“Daphne, are you okay?”
“I’m going to settle this once and for all.”
He had a feeling things were about to get crazy. He patted his side, ensuring his concealed handgun was still with him, then flexed his calf to check on his knife.
She was moving fast and he had to jog lightly to keep up.
She bounded up to an old cottage, where he could hear deep voices discussing something. Daphne flung open the door, heading inside. Evander followed, quickly taking in the room. It was an open concept cottage like Trixie Hollow, with a main room that had several doors leading off it. A fireplace covered half the opposite wall; screened doors and windows were at their backs. Were the doors ahead dead-end bedrooms? How many viable exits were there?
The men in the room were recovering from the shock of having uninvited guests barge in. Evander quickly identified Mistral, a gray-haired man who was Mistral’s father, Aaron Bloomwood, and the third, less active Rubicore owner, Jim Hanna. The new bodyguard, Leif, had drawn his weapon, as did Evander.
As the screen door slammed shut behind him, a man who rivaled Evander’s size came out of one of the side rooms. He looked dark and mean. Mario La Toya, Aaron’s right-hand man according to Tyrone’s background checks. Interesting that he was finally showing up. Yet, no trigger-happy Ricardo. That alone was good, but that still didn’t make this a friendly place to be—and especially with Daphne all fired up.
The room had a few tables he could turn up as protection. A few glasses half full of liquid. Flinging them would make a man flinch, buying Evander what could possibly be a lifesaving split second or two.
Daphne strode straight to Mistral, stopping a few feet from him. “It’s done. You had your chance, and you blew it. Do not ever talk to our daughter again. Do not talk to me. And the offer to work together on the development has been withdrawn.”
Mistral paled and his father smirked. Mistral’s father. That would make him Tigger’s grandfather. Evander hated him already.
“What did I do?” Mistral asked softly. He angled himself as though trying to shut out his father.
“Telling Tigger she could be special if she stepped out of the circle I’m in. You’re already trying to divide us. I know you don’t approve of how I live my life, but putting our daughter between us is a game ender. You will not get custody. Ever. You will drop your claim right now and never speak to either of us ever again.”
> Mistral glanced at his father, then whispered to Daphne, trying to draw her away from the men. Evander heard him say, “I told her she should step out of my circle. I want her to be able to break the cycle my family is in, where money and prestige are more important than love.” He turned to his father, raising his voice. “The way the Johnson family lives is not healthy, and I want my daughter to have more than I did as a child. That’s part of why I haven’t stepped up. She deserves more.”
“You got that right,” Evander said. He shut his mouth and stepped back, wishing he’d kept quiet. This wasn’t his fight, but with Tigger involved, it felt as if it should be. The girl was like an RPG missile, her sole purpose to break through men’s armored shields, as she’d done with him.
Mistral’s father rolled his eyes. “Not this again. You had everything you could possibly want as a child.”
“I never had the one thing I truly wanted. I wanted and needed a father to be there for me.”
“I was out earning a living.”
“You never approved of me.”
“And how have you shown me that you’re worth approval?”
Evander wasn’t a sappy, touchy-feely, let’s-hug-it-out sort of guy, but the sudden urge to punch Mistral’s father made his knuckles itch. He figured it was a good time to put his gun away, so he didn’t shoot the man in the foot accidentally-on-purpose.
“And hiding a grandchild from me?” Mistral’s father continued. “I had to learn about Kimberly from the press rather than my own son. You’re lucky I didn’t disown you.”
Evander wasn’t sure whether he should punch Mistral’s father now or comfort Daphne, who looked as though someone had yanked a rug out from under her.
“I can’t believe you lied to your own son,” she whispered. She gave the man a look that could kill. Almost automatically, Evander covered his nuts. Daphne turned to address her ex. “Mistral, I guess your father never told you that he shooed me and Tigger off when we came to see you once. He knew exactly who we were.”
Mistral paled, and Evander wasn’t sure if the man figured he was busted in some old lies or whether he hadn’t realized just how deeply his dad had been meddling with his life.
“Your father was afraid I’d convince you to give up the life he’d laid out for you,” Daphne said.
Mistral ran his hands through his hair, shoulders hunched. Evander shook his head, wishing he could give the man enough strength to break free. If only for Daphne and Tigger’s sake.
“She’s a slutty liar!” Mistral’s father shouted, pointing a finger at Daphne.
Evander broke the man’s nose.
He hadn’t even felt himself move. He was suddenly in front of him, his fist stinging, with the man bent over, blood gushing. Leif pulled Evander’s arms back in a weak lock that he could break by sneezing.
“You son of a—” Mistral’s father shouted as his men bustled around, trying to take control again.
“You don’t talk to the mother of my child that way,” Mistral said, stepping between his father and Daphne.
“Mistral,” she said softly.
“No,” he replied. “It’s time I stood up to him. It’s time I broke free and lived the life I want.” He moved closer to Daphne and Evander broke Leif’s grip, getting between the two, one hand resting lightly on his holstered gun in warning. He didn’t like the way Mistral was changing his tune. Sure, it was probably good that he was standing up to his father after years of submission, but it wasn’t enough.
“And what life do you want to live?” Daphne asked.
Evander got the feeling they were touching on a discussion they’d had years before.
“Anyone want to buy an island?” Mistral called, letting out a pained laugh.
“Don’t you dare,” commanded his father. “I bought you this island so you could finally break free of this woman and show her she no longer has a hold on you. You go through with this development plan. Show her who’s boss. Show her who and what really runs this world.”
“I don’t know what runs this world, Dad, but I know it isn’t you.” Mistral positioned himself at Daphne’s side. “I can’t believe I’ve let you be in charge of my life for so long. I can’t believe I didn’t walk away when you hired Aaron after I fired him. I don’t even know why he isn’t in jail. And you want to know the truth, Dad? Your development plans are unoriginal crap. Who needs another exclusive resort that ruins the environment? Nobody. And certainly not me. This is my island and I’m asking you and everyone associated with you to leave. Effective immediately.”
Mistral’s father, a handkerchief held to his bleeding nose, gaped at him. Then his face turned as red as the blood still flowing from his nose as he realized he’d finally lost his son.
“So?” asked Evander. “Is that offer to buy the island still up for grabs?”
Daphne was already shoving the rowboat into the water by the time Evander caught up with her.
“You don’t have to buy this island,” she said, clambering into the boat. “I don’t need another rich man trying to alter my life or trying to save me.”
“You don’t need anyone to save you, period.”
She looked at him in surprise.
“I’ve never met anyone as strong as you are,” he said.
She gave a snort, then stiffened. Evander turned to see what was bothering her. It was Mistral, looking half scared and half triumphant. He came to a stop on the shore, several feet away.
“I understand that you don’t want me to have anything to do with Tigger, but I really like the way you’re raising her,” Mistral said. “She’s an amazing person and is going to be a lot like you.”
“Yeah, well, that’s too bad for her, because it means you will never love her,” Daphne said, standing tall in the wobbling boat. Evander steadied its bow, partly so she wouldn’t have an embarrassing incident where the boat tipped her into the lake, and partly so she wouldn’t leave without him.
“I did love you,” Mistral said. “I still do—”
Evander thought he heard someone growl, but it didn’t seem to be Daphne.
“I hope to find a way to be the father figure that Tigger so greatly needs,” Mistral said.
“If she needs a father figure, I’ll be that man,” Evander said. “That’s a right you have to earn by putting in the time and love, and you have a long way to go. Just because she shares half your genetic code does not make you a father.”
“He’s right,” Daphne agreed. “Being a father is a right that has to be earned.”
“You start at square one,” Evander continued. “You have to start by earning Daphne’s trust. Then Tigger’s. You pay attention to that girl when Daphne goes out of her way to set up a meeting.” He let go of the boat, stepping forward to poke the man’s chest, furious at how he had overlooked his own child.
“You’re right,” Mistral said, and Evander tried to grant him the love and understanding Daphne was so good at, rather than hit him for being such a pushover. He knew that sometimes people got wounded bad enough it caused them to give up. For Mistral it had likely been one drawn-out emotional blow as a child as he’d sought love and approval. The man had taken a crippling hit and Evander recognized the hollowed-out result. The bravado might still be there, but there was little left but shell.
Mistral might get his spirit back one day, but it would be a long, difficult journey, and he was kidding himself if he thought he could get there with a few smooth words to his ex-girlfriend.
“Get some balls and grow up,” Evander said. He turned to the boat, pushing it off with Daphne still inside. “We’re done here.”
Daphne stumbled out of the rowboat, her legs weak from the waning adrenaline rush of the confrontation. She was shaky and less than exuberant.
What box of Pandora’s had she opened in the middle of the Johnson family?
Evander steadied her with a hand at her elbow. He’d been a constant strength behind her for the past few days. The man she’d been seeking fo
r years, but had always been looking in the wrong direction. And she couldn’t have him.
Maya, standing on the edge of the dock, already had the mothers, Kyle, and Tigger loaded into Connor’s boat, along with their bodyguard. Maya shared a look with Connor. “We have Tigger for the night,” she said. “Connor has lots of security.”
“I think everything is over,” Daphne said, considering the possible effects of her trip to Baby Horseshoe.
Her sister tipped her head. “What do you mean?”
“Mistral told his father and his development plans to get off his island. I told Mistral he wasn’t welcome in our life.” She glanced at Tigger, her heart breaking as the girl frowned, obviously trying to connect the pieces and figure out the implications. “I know Mistral’s words are often different than his actions, but I think this time…”
A warm hand caressed her shoulder and she leaned into it, knowing it was Evander looking out for her.
“Is it okay if Tigger goes?” she asked him. Daphne needed time to think. Time to sort everything out.
“Who’ve you got?” Evander asked Connor.
“Tyrone’s on. The other guy’s sick and Tyrone said something about you having his head if he sent in a newbie.”
“Good. You’ll all be fine, but don’t let your guard down. Just in case.” Evander nodded and the boat pulled out, leaving them alone at the cottage.
Daphne waved them out of sight, then collapsed into one of the Muskoka chairs. She picked at its flaking white paint. When she looked up, there was something in Evander’s eyes that made her gut tug tight. A low hum of need and desire was sparking in his eyes, a feeling that was echoed in her veins.
She stood, her dress and sweater feeling like a barrier between them. She gently hooked her fingers in his, resting her head against his chest. “Thank you.”
“You keep thanking me, but for what?”
“Everything. I couldn’t have done any of this without you and your strength, and knowing that you were here… I always thought I was independent and could do things on my own, but you helped me do more. To stand up for myself and to have the courage to say to myself and to Mistral that he wasn’t the right fit for us, no matter how much I wanted it for Tigger.”
