by Reese Ryan
Once the kids were down for a nap, the adults were able to move to the beautiful den with two walls of windows—one overlooking the lake and the other the mountains.
She’d agreed to drive home later so that Benji could enjoy Blake’s stash of King’s Finest Premium Bourbon while they watched a movie. She and Savannah sat on the other side of the room, taking in the pretty views.
“So, how is not-quite-married life?” Savannah’s smile was warm and teasing.
Sloane smiled and sneaked an involuntary glance at Benji, who was laughing with his cousin. Her smile deepened. “Things are good. Really good.”
“Wedding bells good?” Savannah prodded as she folded one leg over the other and leaned forward in her chair.
Sloane nearly choked on her punch. She covered her mouth and coughed, using the time to formulate her response.
“I don’t think either of us has even considered that yet. Not seriously,” she added, thinking of Benji’s perfunctory proposal when he’d first learned of her pregnancy. “I know that how we’re doing things isn’t the traditional Magnolia Lake way. But right now, it’s working for us.”
“Humph.” Savannah looked thoughtful as she leaned back in her chair.
Sloane clearly saw the trap Savannah had laid out, but like a cartoon mouse, she couldn’t resist taking the bait.
“All right, I’ll bite. What’s the humph for?”
Savannah shrugged and sipped her Chianti. “Maybe I’m allowing my own experience to color the situation,” she acknowledged, “but what I hear is fear. I couldn’t help noticing the deep connection between you two that day we were all at the cabin. Even though you were obviously a little miffed that you’d been ambushed with a party after your release from the hospital.”
Sloane frowned. “Was it that obvious?”
“Maybe not to everyone.” Savannah laughed. “But it wasn’t that long ago that I had a baby myself. I remember feeling gritty and exhausted. I just wanted to take a hot shower, relax in my own bed and enjoy my time with Blake and our baby. I’d probably have had a meltdown if I’d been presented with a party. Believe me, you handled it well.”
Sloane breathed a sigh of relief. It was bad enough that Benji’s immediate family wasn’t part of his and the twins’ lives. The last thing she wanted to do was alienate his extended family. The Abbotts had been warm and welcoming to her. The only person who seemed to regard her suspiciously was Parker.
Then again, no one in Magnolia Lake would use the terms Parker Abbott and friendly in the same sentence.
“The bond between you two seems even stronger now.” Savannah nodded toward Benji. “It’s obvious how much he adores you and the twins.”
Sloane sighed, feeling a little more at ease with Savannah. “I care for him. Very much. Still, there are a lot of issues we both need to work out. One of which is, despite what he says, I often wonder if he’ll ever fully trust me since he had to find out about the twins on his own. Sometimes, when he looks at me, I see it, that pain and resentment. Him imagining what would’ve happened had he not shown up at my place in Nashville that day.” Sloane swallowed hard. “It made so much sense in my head when I made the decision. Now it just seems cowardly and selfish. I don’t blame him for being angry.”
Savannah nodded sagely. “You know the story of what happened between me and Blake and why I really came to Magnolia Lake?”
Sloane nodded apologetically. She hated to admit that she—and everyone in the town or who had relatives here—had heard the story.
“And yet here we are. Together. Happy. And truly in love.” An absent smile lit her eyes as she talked about Blake. Then her gaze met Sloane’s again. “I hate to sound like one of those annoying newlywed couples, but I honestly feel... No—” she shook her head “—I know that Blake is the man I was meant to spend my life with. The way we came to be... I’ll always bear some pain for my role in deceiving him in the beginning. But if I hadn’t come here, hadn’t done what I did, there would be no us. And we wouldn’t have learned the truth about the role my grandfather played in King’s Finest.”
Sloane glanced over at Benji. Could they, too, have a happy ending despite their inauspicious start?
“I honestly want to believe that Benji and I could have the kind of relationship that you and Blake have, but...” Sloane looked over at Benji, who seemed to be having a more serious discussion with Blake now. “I don’t know. Especially with him being estranged from his family. They didn’t even come back to Magnolia Lake this summer the way they typically do. I’m hurt and angry about their reaction to me and Benji. Delia, especially. We’ve been best friends since we were ten years old. I can’t believe she’d think, even for a minute, that I’d ever do anything to harm or take advantage of her brother.”
Savannah’s hazel eyes were filled with sympathy. She placed a hand on Sloane’s arm. “I’m sorry that the Bennetts are being so unfair to you. Iris feels horrible about it,” she said, referring to her mother-in-law, who was Benji’s aunt. “She’s tried talking to her sister, but Benji’s mother won’t budge.”
“I appreciate it. And as furious as I am with Delia and Connie, it’s mostly because of what it’s doing to Benji. He doesn’t like to talk about it, but I can see how much it hurts him.” Sloane took another sip of her punch and shook her head. “I hate being the wedge that drove Benji and his family apart. They’ve always been so close.”
“He sided with you over his own family.” Savannah looked at her pointedly. “And you think that man isn’t serious about you?” The question didn’t require a response. “Take things as slowly as you need to. Don’t mind busybodies like me trying to rush you to the altar.” Her smile widened and they both laughed. “I know Benji has reasons to be hurt, just as Blake did. But if he’s trying this hard to get over it, he obviously wants this. Don’t give up on him. Give him time. He’ll get there.”
Sloane hugged Savannah and thanked her.
She didn’t know where things would go between her and Benji, but she felt more hopeful about it than she ever had before.
* * *
Benji and Blake had volunteered to bundle up the kids, put them in strollers and take Blake’s two dogs—Benny the Labradoodle and Sam the greyhound—for a walk around the lake. But the real reason for the walk was that Blake wanted to talk to Benji. It was a conversation Benji wasn’t sure he wanted to have, mostly because he already knew he wouldn’t have answers to many of the questions his cousin would ask.
Where did things stand with him and Sloane? Were they a bona fide couple now?
The answers were that he didn’t know and he didn’t think so, though he felt more hopeful that it was possible. As far as he was concerned, it wasn’t a conversation worth packing up three children and two dogs.
After they covered the basics, Blake asked him a pointed question. “Do you love her?”
Benji frowned at his cousin.
“Does that mean no, or is it that you think I’ve broken some unofficial bro code by asking you about your ‘feelings’?” Blake made a flourish with his hands when he said the word.
“The latter.” Benji stared out onto the lake instead of looking at his cousin.
Blake chuckled. “Well, put your big-boy pants on and try to make an exception just this once.” Blake elbowed Benji in his side, then indicated the spit-up dribbling down Beau’s chin.
Benji wiped his mouth and secured the blankets around the twins, who both seemed to enjoy the venture into nature. Likely because Livvie often took them for walks around the lake by their cabin.
“Yes,” Benji said finally.
“Yes, what?” Blake wasn’t going to let him get off with the bare minimum. He was determined to throw a little torture in with his cousinly advice.
“Yes,” Benji said, pausing. “I think I love her.”
“You think you love her?” Blake was like
Benny with a bone. For a fleeting moment Benji wanted to knock that self-satisfied smirk off his older cousin’s face.
“Anyone ever tell you that you can be kind of an asshole?” Benji gritted the words through clenched teeth, his voice low enough that none of the children could hear him.
Blake laughed harder than Benji thought the situation required.
“Yes,” his cousin said. “But usually only people I’m related to by blood.”
Now Benji chuckled, too.
“Okay, fine,” he said finally. “I do. I love her. I’ve never felt this way about anyone before. I honestly think I’ve been in love with her since I was ten years old. When I saw her again at your wedding—God, I thought I’d gotten over that puppy-love crush. But the second I saw her...it was like I’d been hit by a ton of bricks.”
“Well, you certainly know the mother of your children better than I do,” Blake said, carefully prefacing his next statement. “But the Sloane I’ve always known is a tough nut to crack. She’s got issues with her mom and her dad. She doesn’t like to need anyone or anything, and she’s slow to let people inside. But if you can ride out the storm and prove that you’re worthy, that you won’t let her down like so many people in her life have... Man, it’s worth it. She’s a good person. And you two could be really good together, if you’re both willing to work for it.”
“That’s just it.” Benji halted on the path as Blake’s house came into view. “I’ve been trying to show her. There’s obviously friendship and affection between us. Fire,” he added, his cheeks heating slightly. “I just don’t know if she’s ready to commit to something permanent.”
“Have you told her how you feel about her?”
“I asked her to marry me.”
“And she turned you down? When was this?” Blake looked stunned, but when Benji gave him the rest of the details, Blake shook his head and whistled. “Man, no wonder she turned you down. That wasn’t a marriage proposal, it was a business proposition. Sloane isn’t the analytical kind who would make a decision like that based on logic alone.” He patted his chest. “The girl’s all heart. If you want her to love you, to really be willing to risk her heart for you, you’re going to have to strap on a set and lay it all out there, Benj.”
Blake started walking toward the house again, but Benji tugged him by the elbow. “What if she doesn’t love me the way I love her? What if she never will?”
“Then it’s better that you swallow that bitter pill sooner rather than later,” Blake said gravely. “But for what it’s worth, I don’t think that’s it at all. If Sloane is the one for you, just keep showing her how you feel until you’re ready to tell her.”
Benji nodded and they resumed their final journey back to the house.
Sloane was the woman for him. He was as sure of it now as he had been when he was ten. Only now it wasn’t based on a childish infatuation. It was based on something real and true.
Still, sometimes it was hard to turn off the nagging little voice in the back of his head. The one that pointed out that if he hadn’t gone looking for Sloane, she might never have revealed the truth. The one that reminded him that if he hadn’t made a deal to pay off her family’s debt, she wouldn’t be with him now. And the ticking of the clock reminding him that in seven months she planned to take their twins and walk away.
Twelve
Sloane sat at her mother’s farmhouse kitchen table savoring her first cup of coffee in more than a year. The twins had just turned seven months old and were completely weaned. Sloane’s grandfather was mesmerized by the twins—both of whom adored him. And Bailey had a special bond with the old man. The first time Atticus Ames held her in his arms and she tugged at his wiry gray beard, she’d had him wrapped around her tiny little digit. And she’d brought her big brother along for the ride.
Now he couldn’t get enough of the twins. He visited them often. He even accompanied Livvie when she took the twins for their daily walk around the lake in their double stroller, weather permitting.
Beau was crawling across the floor, playing with one of the countless musical baby toys that drove Sloane crazy and made her consider sabotaging them.
Bailey was in her favorite spot—standing on her great-grandfather’s lap and trying to swipe his glasses off his face. She was fast and occasionally she succeeded.
For which the old man never so much as gave her a sideways glance. Instead, his deep chuckle filled the room. “You got ’em again, Bailey. PawPaw has got to be quicker.”
“He was never that kind and understanding with me,” Sloane grumbled, keeping her voice low enough not to travel the short distance to the family room where her grandfather and the kids were. She poured a generous amount of creamer into her second cup of coffee. “If it was me, I’d be on the floor doing baby push-ups or something.”
“Honey, you really shouldn’t exaggerate about your grandfather that way. He wasn’t as bad as you make him out to be. He loves you and you know it.”
“He’s always had a damn funny way of showing it,” she muttered under her breath, and nibbled on another one of her mother’s homemade cinnamon rolls. Which didn’t help her goal of losing that last fifteen pounds of baby weight.
Okay, maybe it was twenty. But Marcellus was a darn good cook.
“I know he was hard on you, but he regrets that.” Her mother sighed heavily, taking another small bite of her cinnamon roll. “I suppose I’m the one to blame for that. He felt he failed with me, so he was determined that you were going to be that perfect little girl that I wasn’t.” Her mother’s voice was small, her eyes sad.
Sloane reached over and squeezed her hand. Being a mother herself had given her new perspective on the enormous duty of raising a child—or in her case, two. Her mother had been little more than a child herself when Sloane was born. She’d done the best she could with the skills and experience she had.
Sloane didn’t agree with the choices her mother had made, but she respected the fact that she’d made those choices because it was what she felt she needed to do in order to take care of her.
“Granddad’s grand plan for me didn’t exactly work out.” Sloane forced a bitter laugh. “I guess we’re both incorrigible.”
“Wouldn’t say that exactly.” He was standing over them holding Bailey, who chose that moment to say, “Ma, Ma, Ma!”
“Nice, Bailes. You couldn’t have given me a heads-up before you guys got in here?” Sloane teased her daughter. Bailey laughed, whether she understood what was going on or not.
Sloane’s mother got up from the table, a sad smile on her face. “I’d better check on Beau. I’ll take Bailey, too.” She put Bailey in the playpen and then picked up Beau, who was absolutely a grandmama’s boy. His face spread into a gummy smile, showcasing two top teeth and one on the bottom.
Her grandfather sat at the table, both of them quiet until Sloane couldn’t take the silence between them anymore.
“Look, about what I said, Granddad. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said it.” There, she’d apologized and hadn’t lied by saying that she hadn’t meant it.
“That’s how you feel, and I can’t change that.” He tapped the table rhythmically. Then he raised his eyes to meet hers. “But I can apologize and try to explain why I was so tough on you.”
Sloane tipped her head, her brows furrowed. Who was this contrite man who was putty in the hands of precocious infants and willingly offered apologies?
“All right,” she said simply.
“I never got to be that doting grandparent with you because I was as stupid and wrongheaded as Benji’s family. I’d insisted that boy marry your mother, but that didn’t make me like or respect him. So I kept my distance. Missed most of the first year or two of your life. Never got to bond with you the way I’ve been blessed to have bonded with these two.” He pointed in the direction of the playpen in the other room. “Then when I d
id come into your life, I could see how smart and determined you were. How much potential you had. I didn’t want you to squander it the way I felt your mother had. So I took the hard line. Tried to make you the person I thought you should be. And it only got worse when your father left, because I was trying to be your father and your grandfather. Prepare you for the world.”
“And how’d that work out?” Sloane interjected, needing to add some levity to the tense situation.
He shook his head and chuckled bitterly. “Problem was that you and I are too goddamned much alike. You fought me tooth and nail. You were determined to be whoever the hell you wanted to be, which was deliberately the complete opposite of what I wanted for you.”
There may have been some truth to both those statements, but she wasn’t inclined to admit to either at the moment. Nor was she inclined to give him a you’re-excused-for-sucking-as-a-grandfather pass so he could go back to happily playing peekaboo with the twins, as if the way he’d treated her back then was no big deal or as if it hadn’t shaped the choices she and her mother had made.
“Why are you telling me this now?” She held back the anger that trembled just below her carefully controlled surface, like only the tip of an iceberg showing above the cold, icy waters that doomed the Titanic.
“I only wanted to prevent you from making the mistakes your parents made. I didn’t want you to run away from responsibility and family the way your father did. Or go chasing after the wrong men like your mother. But my hard, cold demeanor pushed you away. Prompted you to do both.” His voice broke slightly.
When she met her grandfather’s eyes, there were tears in them. The sight shook her, like a two-ton wrecking ball crashing against an old, dilapidated building. Suddenly he didn’t look like the old man who’d tried to ruin her fun at every turn. He was sad. Broken. Remorseful. None of those were words she’d ever used to describe him.
He pulled a hanky out of his pocket and quickly dabbed his eyes as he shook his head.
“Maybe there’s nothing I can ever do to change how you see me. But I can’t let you ruin your life and theirs without at least speaking up about it.” He stuffed the hanky back in his pocket.
