Chapter 18
Sitting at his desk, Cody squeezed the bridge of his nose and second guessed every decision he’d ever made. Because every choice led him to this moment, with the woman of his dreams and her adorable son in his home while he barricaded himself in his office.
The ache in his chest was so raw, so real he could barely breathe. He’d been so transparent, so open with Katherine. He’d thought she’d been the same, but he was the biggest fool of them all.
Teenage Cody would laugh at the idea of Katherine Wells giving him a second look. Maybe he’d had it right all those years ago.
The letters in front of him blurred together and he shut the laptop. He needed a break—needed some fresh air.
Hell, who was he kidding? He needed Katherine.
He pushed back his chair to stand, but his ringing phone sat him back down. He swiped the device off the desk and answered. “Hogan here.”
“Hey, man. It’s Tommy. Mind if I stop by?”
Cody frowned. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”
“I’ve got some photos to show Katherine.”
“Can’t you email them?” Having Mike come over the day before was a big enough risk. He didn’t need a whole parade storming around his property and drawing unwanted attention.
“Nope. I have prints.”
Cody straightened. “Of what?”
“Dad stayed up all night searching through the files you pulled. He found an arrest from three years back, someone Katherine went to high school with. That guy’s still in prison, but it’s the only connection we’ve found so far.”
“What’d he go down for?”
“Assault with a deadly weapon. He claimed self-defense, which was bullshit since his wife was beat to hell. Katherine cleaned her up at the hospital.”
Cody let loose a low whistle. “Awful lot of coincidences. But who’d be the one holding the grudge if the husband’s still behind bars?”
“Guy comes from a family of assholes. You know how it goes. The whole damn tree is poisoned, ruining every apple on it.”
The sentiment made Cody’s stomach drop. Yeah, he understood how a family name could haunt you, drag you down to hell.
And never let go.
“I’ve got photos of some of the family members for Katherine. A couple from a yearbook. A newspaper clipping with the guy’s dad. Even an uncle. All have served time, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see them lashing out on behalf of their relative.”
“Then looks like you asking if it’s ok to stop by is a bit of a moot point.”
“Sure is, especially since I’m pulling in your driveway. Besides, I didn’t get a chance to sign Ollie’s cast.”
Cody grumbled under his breath and disconnected before stalking across the room. He yanked open the door and his gaze instantly found Katherine’s.
She sat on the couch with Ollie tucked beside her, Bailey on the boy’s other side.
His stomach muscles clenched and he wanted nothing more than to storm to her side, sweep her into his arms, and tell her to screw everything he said. To go back to enjoying each other as much as they could for as long as they could.
But what he said was important. She had to know where her heart lay before he went any further. For Ollie’s sake and his own. He’d already fallen hard. Any harder and he’d crash and burn.
A knock on the door widened Katherine’s eyes. “Who’s that?”
“Tommy. He has some things for you to look at.”
Katherine dropped a quick glance at Ollie before meeting Cody’s eye again. A hundred questions shone from her irises.
He wished he had answers for her, but hopefully after their visit with Tommy, at least one issue could be settled. He continued to the door, opening it wide.
“Hiya, bud.” Tommy slapped a hand on his shoulder and walked past him into the house.
Bailey barked and hopped off the couch, greeting Tommy with a wagging tail and lolling tongue.
“Hey, girl. Good to see you again,” Tommy said, running a hand over the top of her head. “I bet Ollie loves being around you.”
“Uncle Tommy!” Ollie spun around on the couch and grinned. “What are you doing here?”
Tommy wiggled a black marker in the air. “I have a cast to sign. Amelia wants to sign it too. I told her maybe in the next couple of days.”
At least Tommy had enough sense not to bring his and Sadie’s daughter to the house. The last thing Cody needed was another child running around while trying to keep his head on straight.
Katherine stood and walked to her brother. She gave him a quick hug then stepped back, her arms wrapped around her waist.
Tommy frowned. “You okay?”
She shrugged. “It’s just been a lot.”
“It’s been a lot for a few days and you’ve been in better spirits than I’ve seen in a while. Something happen?”
Katherine kept her gaze down and shook her head. “Must be tired.”
“Sorry, sis.” Tommy looped an arm around her shoulders. “We’ll nail this guy and everything will go back to normal. I promise.”
The promise was enough to rip Cody’s heart from his chest. He didn’t want normal, he wanted new. The thought of returning to the lonely and isolated hours he thought he preferred made a cold sweat break out at the back of neck.
But this wasn’t about him—at least not entirely. Katherine had to figure her shit out, and apparently, she needed real life to start back up before she understood her feelings for him.
And dammit, that hurt like hell. All he needed was one look, one touch to be sure where his feelings for her stood. But as much as he wanted to shout that from the rooftop, to urge her to believe in him and them and everything they could have together, she had to sort through her emotions herself.
He wouldn’t beg. Wouldn’t coerce or manipulate a woman to love him.
Love.
His breath caught at the base of his throat. Where the hell had that word come from? Yes, he was certain beyond a shadow of a doubt his feelings were strong and real. But love? Was it possible to fall that hard so fast?
Katherine glanced his way, and the truth smacked him in the face.
No matter what she decided, she held his entire heart in his hand. He loved this woman, and there was nothing he could do but give her the space she needed.
And pray she didn’t crush him in the process.
Sitting at the kitchen table without Cody felt like Katherine was missing a limb. Okay, more accurately like her arm had been sawed off and someone waited in the wings to slam her upside the head with it.
She’d made him feel like he wasn’t enough.
Agony sizzled inside her like burnt butter. They’d spent the most amazing night together—after a whirlwind few days that left her breathless and happy—only for her to let everyone else get inside her head.
She knew her feelings were real. Knew she wanted a future with Cody. And now instead of clearing things up between them she was staring at photographs in Cody’s kitchen with her brother.
Her skin itched to jump up and find Cody and talk, but that had to wait. He’d taken Ollie outside so her son wouldn’t overhear all the details Tommy needed to share.
“Does he look familiar?” Tommy asked.
She struggled to focus. This was important and deserved all her attention. She picked up the weathered newspaper article and squinted to bring the man in the photo into better focus. “No, I’m sorry.” She tossed the paper back on the table. “Who is it?”
“Eric Rider’s dad.”
She winced at the name of the man Tommy had told her about.
She’d never met him, but his wife had left a lasting impression.
The battered woman was one of the reasons she’d decided to volunteer at Safe Haven Women’s Shelter.
The poor wife had suffered at the hands of her abusive husband for years, feeling trapped and like there was no one there to help.
Her story had haunted Katherine, prompting her to give back and help others who found themselves in similar situations.
“You really think that guy’s dad would track me down because his son was arrested for beating his wife?”
Sighing, Tommy shoved a hand through his shaggy hair. “Weirder things have happened. What about his brother?” He flipped open a yearbook to an earmarked page and pointed to a surly teenager with pimply skin and close-cropped hair.
“When is this yearbook from?” she asked.
“Five years ago,” Tommy said.
“Well, this guy doesn’t look familiar, but he could have changed a lot in five years. But again, I think it’s strange he’d be so hellbent on avenging a monster of a brother.”
Tommy shrugged and flipped the book closed. “Families stick together. If the dad or brother thought their blood was wrongly accused, they may want to make things right in their own way.”
She thought of Cody’s family. Of the hell he’d survived with a criminal as a father and brother. “Not all people fall into the same bad habits as the people who raised them.”
Tommy cringed. “Shit.”
“What?”
“I said something similar to Cody on the phone—some crap about bad people from bad families. No wonder he’s in a pissy mood. I should apologize. I really do like the guy, Kat.”
“He’s a good guy.” Tears sprung up and choked off her sentence.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” Tommy slid his hand over to cover hers. “I can put all these pictures away if this is too much for you.”
“That’s not it,” she said, waving away his concern. “I messed everything up.”
“With Cody?”
She nodded. “I had a moment of doubt, and he overheard me say some things on the phone. Now he thinks I need to take time to sort through my feelings before we go forward with anything.”
“Okay. That doesn’t sound like a bad idea to me. I mean, you’ve been through a lot. Then you two were thrown together and things happened so quick. Allowing both of you to have some space to really analyze things could be a good thing.”
“I don’t need time to understand my feelings.
After Theo died, I thought that part of my life was over.
Cody’s reawakened parts of me I’d buried along with my husband.
I lo—” Gasping, she covered her mouth with her hand.
She widened her eyes and stared at the comically shocked expression on her brother’s face. “Holy shit.”
“Holy shit is right,” Tommy said. “I’m not the one you should be saying this to. We both know that tomorrow isn’t promised. Don’t waste a single second of it. Talk to Cody.”
Nodding, she rubbed at her aching chest. “I will. Maybe tonight when Ollie’s asleep.”
Tommy squeezed the hand he still held. “No. Now. I’ll hang out with Ollie. I’ll clean this up then head outside.”
Fear shot through her, but she pushed it down. She couldn’t be afraid to take hold of the life she wanted—the life she deserved. And that started with being vulnerable with Cody.
“Thanks, Tommy.” Standing, she pressed a kiss to her brother’s cheek then made a beeline for the backyard.
Bailey ran in a large circle around the fenced-in back yard.
Ollie laughed and threw a tennis ball, clapping his hands as the dog let the ball hit her in the face then bounced after it in the corner of the lawn. “She’s so silly!”
Cody chuckled. “That’s why I call her a dufus.”
“Hey, you two, I hate to break up the fun, but Tommy and I are finished. He wants to come out and play with you and Bailey for a little bit if that’s okay.”
“Bailey will love that,” Ollie said.
Cody turned for the deck steps. “I want to have a word with him really quick. Keep throwing that ball or Bailey will freak out.”
As he passed her, Katherine grabbed his shirtsleeve. “Can that wait? I’d love to have a conversation.”
Uncertainty danced in his eyes. “Let me get this out of the way first, then we can talk. If that’s what you want.”
“I need to talk, and I need you to listen. You know, every woman’s ideal situation.” She winked to let him know she was teasing.
A small half-smile cracked through his gruff expression. “Sounds about right.”
“Be quick.” She resisted the urge to press her lips to his, something that had become as natural as breathing.
He dipped his chin then jogged the rest of the way inside.
“Mom, come watch Bailey,” Ollie said. “She doesn’t know how to catch a ball.”
Pasting on a wide smile, she erased the distance to where Ollie sat in his wheelchair. “All dogs know how to catch tennis balls, silly.”
“Uh-uh.” Ollie shook his head. “Watch.”
He tossed the ball high in the air.
Bailey jumped up on her two back paws, her nose sniffing in the air as if trying to find the ball. The ball whizzed toward the ground and bopped her on the head. She barked, bounced around like a lunatic, then chased down the ball before carrying it back over to Ollie.
“See,” he said on a giggle. “She can’t catch.”
Katherine couldn’t help but laugh. She’d feel bad for the pooch if Bailey wasn’t standing with what could only be described as a smile and a wagging tail. “Maybe you threw it up too high. She likes to chase it better. Throw further for her so she can run more.”
“Okay.” Ollie drew his arm back and hurled the ball like a missile.
Bailey raced forward but was forced to stop at the fence and watch the ball land amongst the trees. She leapt up and down, barking like crazy.
“Oh, no. Mom, you have to grab the ball,” Ollie said. “She might jump over the fence and run away. Hurry!”
Although the dog had a great vertical, Katherine doubted Bailey could get her doggy butt all the way over the black wrought-iron fence.
But the worry in Ollie’s voice hurried her to the gate.
“All right, but then we’ll go back to teaching her how to catch.
I’m not the one supposed to be playing fetch. ”
She unlatched the gate and made sure to close it behind her.
The last thing she needed was Bailey following her and getting lost, defeating the whole purpose of her coming back here in the first place.
Fallen leaves crunched at her feet and the sun disappeared as she stepped between the large trees.
The snapping of a twig reached her ears and sent her heart racing. Goosebumps erupted on her arms and the hairs on the back of her neck stood straight up. Screw the ball. Cody had more in the house. He could come get this one later.
She turned to hurry toward the house. A hard grip on her arm pinned her in place.
“Not so fast,” a man said, his deep voice shooting bile up her throat. “You’re staying here with me. Don’t try to run. I wouldn’t want to hurt your little boy.”