Fighting For Light: A Dark Sports Romance (The Coldwell Brothers)

20. Kai

Cordi has been fidgeting in her seat since we left the campground. I’ve tried to calm her down and tell her there is nothing to be scared of, yet nothing worked. Mom has always liked Cordelia, and now that we’re getting married, I think she likes her even more.

I glance at Cordelia’s dress again. The baby bump is hardly there, but knowing Mom, she will know something is different. I swear Cordi is even more beautiful. She has a radiance about her even when she’s grumpy, hungry, or tired. I like it on her. It makes me wonder what I can do to help her keep it…like another kid. I shake my head at the thought. We haven’t even had our first date yet. One step at a time there, Coldwell.

Mom picked a nice beach-front restaurant I’d imagine is impossible to get into, but when you’re Esmarie Astor-Coldwell, everyone jumps. Our wealth didn’t come from my father, it came from Mom, and we know how to invest it. Which certainly helped when she somehow took back the eight hundred million of the one billion Astor fortune. My father got around all the red tape, including the prenup my grandfather set up, and took all of it. I still don’t know the details as to how she got it back. Some things are better left unknown. Regardless, she was smart and built it again.

The conditions to our trust funds were cut and dry, becoming the three accounts our father couldn’t touch. My brothers and I each have one, but neither of us can use it until we’re married. The only exception is to invest it in order for it to grow. My grandfather wanted us to learn through investing, and we have. We’ve all done well. Now that I’m getting married, I’ll be able to use it to secure Cordi and our future kids for three lifetimes on top of what I earn professionally. The moment Cordi and I say I do, I’m going to make sure her name is on that paperwork and my will. If anything ever happens to me, she will never have to worry.

I pull into the main drive for the five-star hotel. Stopping at the valet, I put the car into valet mode and type in my code so they can’t get into anything other than turn on and off the engine. Cordi’s looking out her window, staring at the beautiful lighting of the hotel. I grab her hand before opening the door and lift her knuckles to my mouth. “You’ve got this, gem. You look beautiful.” Her eyes meet mine, and she smiles softly.

“Promise?”

“Always,” I murmur. She nods, and I drop her hand and circle the car to help her out. We walk hand in hand through the hotel’s main entry towards the restaurant. The smell of steak wafts into my nose, and my stomach grumbles.

“I did not dress appropriately enough for this,” she mutters.

“I like what you’re wearing,” I say, and she rolls her eyes and holds my hand tighter. I didn’t think twice about my own attire because I couldn’t care less if it was appropriate or not. My white linen shirt is unbuttoned, the way Cordi likes it, and black dress pants with loafers. It’s not my usual uniform of jeans, t-shirts, or athletic shorts, but for Mom, I try a little extra.

The hostess leads us to our table. We’re a few minutes early, and knowing my mother, she will be on time down to the minute. I set the flowers I grabbed for her on the table and hold Cordi’s hand, helping her into her seat. “Is this okay?” I ask, and she nods, making herself comfortable.

I sit next to her, and a waiter comes to ask us for our drinks. Cordi orders lemonade, and I get the same. I don’t like to drink around Mom. Hell, the extent of what I drink normally is beer. Dad drank a lot, so I’m careful.

Cordi traces the edge of my button-up to my thin gold chain. I focus on the way her touch feels on my skin. “I like this shirt,” she says quietly.

“I guess it’s my new favorite shirt, then.” Her palm flattens on my chest over my heart, and I briefly put my hand over hers. Our eyes lock, and my heart beats a little harder because of her. A few seconds later, I see my mother, with her bodyguard, following behind. Her caramel hair is up in a French twist, like how she always styles it, and she’s wearing a pair of unwrinkled white silk pants and a sleeveless, ruby silk shirt tucked into the waist. Her pearl and diamond necklace with studded ruby earrings sparkle in the light, and like always, people stop to look at her as she glides over to the table. I immediately get to my feet and hug my mother’s small body to mine. Clarence nods to me, and he leaves for the bar to wait.

“Mom,” I grunt, emotion thick in my throat.

“Oh, sweetheart, I’ve missed you so much,” she says, hugging me with surprising strength and kissing my cheek. Her fingers touch my hand, and she slips a small velvet box into it. While still hugging her, I drop it in my pocket, then pull her chair out for her to sit.

Instead, she rounds the table and hugs Cordelia. “Cordi, you sweet girl. It’s wonderful to see you. I’m so happy to hear the good news of your nuptials!” Cordi smiles, glancing at me over Mom’s shoulder. I wink as Mom lets her go.

Cordelia sinks back down in her seat, and I scoot Mom closer to the table. “Thank you, honey.” I sit next to Cordi and hold her hand in mine on the table as Mom glances at them clasped together. “I’ve been waiting a long time for you two to finally figure this out,” she says, looking between us.

“I’m sorry?” Cordelia asks.

“I could see the look in my son’s eyes the moment you met. You two are silly for waiting for so long.”

I shake my head, chuckling at her. “Mom, come on. There is no way you could have known we would…” I trail off because the way she’s looking at me tells me exactly that.

“Sometimes a mother just knows, and I knew for you two. You had to overcome that fear of letting yourself live beyond your self-imposed cage. Now, Liam? I’m not so sure about your little brother. Emerson, well, maybe someone will come along to pull him out of that cave he’s been living in since—“ I cough into my fist, cutting Mom off. Her expression brightens again, and she turns to Cordelia. I check on her from my peripheral, and I can feel her eyes on me. Her questions shoot at me like darts.

Our waitress comes up to our table, breaking the awkward air, and takes our order. When she walks away, Mom jumps in again, asking Cordelia all kinds of questions about what she’s up to and how her dad is doing. Cordi choked on that last question, but recovered quickly.

“So, when is the wedding?” Mom asks. I shrug and look at Cordelia. She looks at me with wide eyes, begging me to answer. I take her hand back and put it on my thigh. Her fingers twitch on the muscle, and I drop my hand on hers.

“We haven’t decided that yet. We will soon, though.” I cough, taking a drink of water. An idea pops into my head. We haven’t discussed any of this, but I wonder if Cordi would be up for it. “We thought about going to the courthouse, you know? Why wait…we’ve waited this long.” Cordi’s hand squeezes my thigh, and her nails dig into my skin. I don’t push her off, relishing in the pain of her irritation. The problem is, I don’t know if that’s approval or denial.

“Well, no son of mine can just get married in a courthouse. We need to make it an event becoming of a Coldwell man. We will have to have some kind of coming out party for Cordelia to introduce her into society. A large wedding would solve both things, plus the last thing we need is rumors as if we were trying to hide something,“ she says with a fire in her eyes.

She doesn’t like that we had to keep the Coldwell name. If she could have changed them all to Astor, she would have already. It was a calculated move on her part to keep it that way. She didn’t want to give him another reason to find us, especially when we were younger, but more so that it wouldn’t tip off his mob associates that there was some kind of issue. When you work with the mob, it’s not just you, it’s the whole family that is involved. So you and the family are being watched. In some ways, while we were still kids, it was a good thing because we were still sons of the great Congressman Coldwell, and it didn’t give his associates any reason to be concerned about his loyalties or that of the family’s. That’s not the case now.

“Um, I don’t know that I want a big wedding to be honest, Esmarie. I think something small would be better,” Cordi says. I nod in agreement, and Mom smoothly covers her disappointment.

“Well, small isn’t bad either, but will you let me help you plan it, Cordelia?”

Cordi nods, and her hand trembles a little. I look at her, lifting an eyebrow, wondering if she wants to tell Mom she’s pregnant. The longer we wait, the more she will show. I have no problem with any of it. Nor do I care if she’s nine months pregnant, walking down the aisle to me. I just want her.

Cordi meets my eyes, and I give her a subtle dip of my chin, and she blinks in understanding. Our eyes unlock, and she faces my mother. “We want to keep it small because, um…” she stutters for words. I slide my fingers between hers in silent encouragement. “I’m pregnant, Esmarie,” Cordi says quickly. My heart soars with her words, and I grin at Cordelia, kissing her cheek quickly before looking at Mom’s reaction.

Mom’s expression is a cross between elation and utter, complete fear. Typically, she hides her feelings well; she learned to do that by being married to a man like my father on top of being a Congressman’s wife. But I know her, and I know when something’s wrong. I keep my smile plastered on my face and give Mom a look. She seems to shake the fear from herself and stands to walk around the table, pressing a kiss to Cordi’s cheek and mine. “Congratulations, my darling. That is wonderful news.” She sits back down and takes a sip of her water, waving for the waiter.

The woman approaches us, and Mom says, “A glass of your best Brunello, please.” The waitress nods and heads off. I force my head not to jerk back. Mom rarely drinks, only when she’s…stressed about something. I scrutinize her body language and try not to send a text to my brothers. Something is up.

“I can’t hardly believe I’m going to be a grandma.” She pauses and levels her gaze at me. “I never thought I’d have the opportunity.” Her eyes water for a moment, then it disappears. A waiter returns with her wineglass and the requested bottle. The waiter shows her the bottle, and Mom dips her head, telling the waiter to open it. After he pours a glass, he walks away, leaving the bottle in a little cart next to our table. “And how far along are you?” she asks.

“I’m about three months now,” Cordi says carefully. She glances at me, then back at Mom. My mother, in all her intuition, looks at me carefully.

“Three months ago, Kai was with us,” she says politely, but it holds so much weight.

“Mom,” I clip.

“I understand. But do you understand this is even more reason to have an affair to remember?” she asks breezily. My mother is a smart woman. She knows I wouldn’t have gotten Cordi pregnant because I wouldn’t have crossed the line in order to keep her away from our family drama. In other words, she surmised this kid was not mine. But she seems on edge from something else.

“Yes, Mom, I do.”

Cordi smiles, and I can tell she’s not quite sure what I’m getting at, but I’ll explain later.

Mom takes a deep sip, and the concern only grows. My gut twists, and that foreboding feeling since we caught John grows tenfold. Our food finally arrives, and Mom makes general small talk to fill the space. I can tell Cordi senses that something is up, but I can’t answer what it is because I don’t know.

The ring Mom gave me feels like it’s burning against my thigh the whole evening. I want to give it to Cordi now, but I don’t think she would like the spectacle. That’s not how she is.

“I plan to stay a few more days to watch your freestyle event,” Mom says.

“Oh, that will be nice. We should have brunch after Kai gets his workout in,” Cordelia suggests.

“That would be lovely. I will make reservations for ten tomorrow. Is that okay?”

“Sure, that’s fine, Mom,” I tell her. Over the course of the night, Cordi has scooted herself closer and closer to me. My arm rests on the back of the chair, and she’s leaning into me. I glance down at her. She’s wide awake, but I can see the exhaustion in her eyes.

Mom glances at her and sighs, waving for the bill. I fish my pocket for my wallet and pull out my black card. The waitress drops by to hand me the check, and I hand her the metal card.

“Well, you two lovebirds, it’s time for me to get some rest. I’ve been traveling all day,” she says, making excuses so Cordelia won’t feel bad for being tired. I thoroughly doubt Mom’s tired, seeing as she’s generally energetic.

If I asked Cordi to stay out with me, she would, but the pregnancy has been exhausting for her. I know she wants to sleep.

“Oh, we can stay out a little longer if you want. Miami is famous for its nightlife,” Cordelia says.

I chuckle, and she slaps me on my chest. I grab her wrist in a quick movement before she pulls it away. “I know you’re tired, babe,” I tell her quietly, knowing Mom can hear everything. She shrugs and puts her hand back on my chest, sneaking her fingers under the fabric. Cordi tilts her head up to kiss me, and I lean in to give her just that. She then seems to remember my mom is across the table, and she pulls back. Her cheeks turn red, making her freckles burst to life. I swallow my laugh and kiss her nose.

“So, we will see you in the morning?” I ask Mom. She nods with a soft smile as she looks between Cordelia and me. “Great, I’m going to get Cordi home,” I say and stand to hold my hand out for Cordi.

“Let me run to the restroom real quick,” Cordi says, heading for the back of the restaurant.

Once she’s out of earshot, I look at Mom. “Tell me what’s going on right now,” I say as calmly as possible. My jaw feels like it’s about to snap in half.

“I didn’t want to talk over the phone,” she says quietly, taking another deep pull of her wine. I haven’t seen her drink this much in a very long time.

“Okay then,” I prompt her.

Her expression tightens, and she daintily crosses her legs and wrists on her lap. “Your father contacted me, and the beach house was tossed,” she says, referring to our beach-front home in Malibu. Liam likes to go there when he’s home because he can still surf.

I swallow the bile rising in my throat. “Was Liam at the beach house?” I ask her.

“No,” she says.

“When exactly did this happen?” I ask.

“The cameras were cut, so we’re not sure. The cleaning staff found the house a mess. That’s when they called us,” she says.

“Why did we not have a security team there?” I ask.

She shrugs and takes another drink. “You know, Emerson didn’t think it was necessary because it’s not in any of our names. It’s a gated neighborhood, and we rent it out, so …”

I hold up my hand.

“Yeah, okay. And you said they cut the cameras? We were very careful with where we put those. Since Liam and Emerson installed them, no one would know where they were.”

“I know,” she says.

“Does that mean we have someone talking who shouldn’t be?” I ask her, wondering about the hole in the security team that we pay a lot of money to stay loyal.

She glances over my shoulder. I turn and watch Cordelia walk to me. My heart surges, and my whole body wants to meet her halfway.

“It’s been too quiet aside from what happened earlier, Kai. He’s done waiting, honey. Our time is up.”

I sigh and keep my eyes on the woman who calms me and yet makes every cell in my body buzz with anticipation. “When did this happen?” I ask again. “And did you tell Emerson and Liam that Dad tried to contact you?”

“Last night, but I spoke to Emerson. Liam is currently climbing in Montana. You know how cell service is.”

“Alright, I think you need to stay with one of us until then,” I suggest.

“That’s what the security is for, sweetheart,” she says softly.

“They can come, too,” I grunt. Cordelia comes to stand next to me, and I slip my arm around her waist as my fingers brush the side of her stomach. “We can finish this conversation later.”

Mom nods and stands to tell Cordelia bye. I lead us out of the restaurant and hand the valet my ticket.

“What’s going on?” Cordi asks hesitantly.

Her wide eyes are full of concern as she stares at me. “Nothing to worry about,” I tell her and kiss her forehead. Grabbing my phone from my pocket, I dial Emerson.

“Kai,” he grunts.

“You need to get a hold of Liam,” I say cryptically, not wanting to worry Cordelia anymore than she already is.

“She told you?” he asks. I take a deep breath, trying to get my jaw to unclench.

“Yes. Talk to Liam,” I say.

“Is she with you now?” he asks.

“Yeah, but I’m leaving her hotel now,” I say as the valet pulls up the car. The attendant hops out of the driver’s seat and runs around to open the door for Cordelia. “She’s going to stay on the road with us for a few days.”

“Got it, talk soon,” he grunts out and hangs up. I get Cordelia into the car, close the door behind her, and slip the attendant a fifty before driving off.

I knew sooner or later, especially when election season started, Fred would pop his head up. He was a shoo-in last election, but now he has competition. We’ve been paying close attention to his movement, and our father is not a patient man. The last few times have been warnings.

I glance at Cordelia as she looks out the window. I realize this goes against all the things I’ve told myself about why Cordi and I couldn’t be together. But that was then, and this is now. I know I can keep her safe against any and all odds, but Cordi needs to know. She can’t marry me without knowing everything.