Chapter 2
Liberty Blue stared at her ex-husband, doing her best to keep her temper in check when she really wanted to tell him to fuck off. When she moved from Palm Beach to Lighthouse Cove, the goal was to put the past behind her and give her and her brother a fresh start. One that didn’t include her ex-husband or his family.
She should have known Charlie wouldn’t let her go that easily. And now he was using his relationship with her little brother to worm his way into her life.
Fucking asshole.
But she couldn’t break Gabriel’s heart one more time.
The move had been hard enough. He’d been confused by what felt like the suddenness of it, even though she’d been planning it for months. And then there was her request not to continue contact with Charlie. That had been difficult for Gabriel and in the end, she allowed text messages and a few phone calls, but she asked Gabriel not to give Charlie details and she was to be present.
She thought Gabriel had respected her request, but Charlie must have manipulated Gabriel into doing otherwise.
It wasn’t the first time she’d had to deal with people who didn’t honestly care about Gabriel.
Their parents’ betrayal had nearly destroyed them both.
It had taken years for Gabriel to get over that one, and there were moments when he reverted back to the days when he wanted his mom and dad.
More his father than their mother.
She couldn’t blame him for that.
“Come on, Liberty. What’s the big deal?” Charlie smiled that cocky grin that used to make her swoon and giggle like a schoolgirl. Not anymore. He no longer had that kind of hold over her and no man ever would. She’d never fall for that kind of charm again. Charlie was the kind of man who made you believe he cared when he didn’t. He only cared about himself. No one else.
He never thought she’d leave. No one left Charlie Blue. He was the catch of the county. Handsome. Rich. And every girl wanted him.
But he chose the poor girl tasked with taking care of her little brother with autism.
Something to this day she still didn’t understand.
Of course, back then, she thought Charlie had loved her and Gabriel too. He treated them both like they were royalty. And she ate it up.
“I’ve asked you a million times not to stop by unannounced. It confuses Gabriel, especially when I have to ask you to leave.”
“So, ask me to stay for dinner.” He winked. “You know how much I love spending time with Gabriel. And you. I’ve missed you.”
“We got divorced for a reason.”
Charlie narrowed his stare. “If you recall, I didn’t want that divorce and I was willing to do whatever it took, including counseling, which I’m still happy to do. That’s also in part why I told my father I wanted to be the one to open our new offices here in Lighthouse Cove. I’m here. I’m fighting for us. You’re the one who bailed.”
She knew without a shadow of a doubt that Charlie had to be the one who came up with the idea to open an office here. But what really burned her ass was that this kind of town was not where Charlie wanted to live. He preferred to be where all the money and action was, and that was Palm Beach. Not almost an hour north, where the real estate was far less valuable and the entire vibe was small town and flip-flops, not high society and Chanel. Charlie would get bored with the clientele and what they could afford, not to mention the nightlife that ended at eleven.
If he couldn’t hobnob with the rich and famous, it wasn’t worth it to him, plain and simple.
“We’re over. You need to get that through that thick skull of yours and let me and Gabriel go. That starts by easing yourself out of our lives again so Gabriel can adjust. I’m begging here.”
“I’ve been in his life since your parents up and left you to care for him. He was ten years old.” Charlie inched closer. “I gave you both a home. I took you in and I’m not the one who gave up on us. You did that.”
“Oh, really.” She clutched the side of her sofa. The one she bought at a secondhand store because Charlie was an asshole. Him and his damn prenup. Well, she didn’t need his fucking money. She’d make it on her own. She didn’t need his breadcrumbs and she wasn’t about to take them. They always came with conditions anyway. “You’re honestly going to stand there and forget about the time I found you?—”
“Hey, Liberty, Miles is…” Gabriel came barreling through the front door of her three-bedroom home that she’d managed to purchase with her small divorce settlement. At least she’d managed to get something out of Charlie. Fucker. “Oh, hi, Charlie.” Gabriel’s eyes were wide and he didn’t smile.
Gabriel had always been able to sense the tension in the air, and it affected him deeply.
She hated that for him.
“Hey there, buddy.” Charlie wrapped his arm around Gabriel. “How are things going?”
“I didn’t know you were coming today,” Gabriel said.
For the first month they had lived in this house, Charlie had started to become a distant memory for Gabriel. It had been hard, since he’d been so attached to the man for years. However, Gabriel was a smart young man, and he’d been there on so many nights when Liberty sat in her room, crying. She’d tried to be quiet, but Gabriel still heard her and every once in a while, he came in to comfort his big sister.
He was good that way.
He knew Charlie had hurt her, but he believed one big whopper of a lie that Charlie had told, and that was the one wedge that existed between brother and sister that she’d never be able to fix because it meant telling Gabriel the truth. It would break his heart to learn of that kind of betrayal by another human in his life, and he’d been through enough. Not to mention that for Gabriel, every day was a struggle. He was neither high-functioning, nor low-functioning, but somewhere in the middle. He had a base level intelligence and could hold his own in conversations, if he felt comfortable. But that was the rub. He had few social skills and without her, he would never get along in this world.
“Charlie just came by to tell me something,” Liberty said. “He was just leaving.”
“Oh. Okay.” Gabriel nodded.
Ever since Charlie rolled into town, Gabriel had flip-flopped between being glad to see him to not wanting to be around him at all. She didn’t want to poison Gabriel’s thoughts against Charlie. That wouldn’t be right. And the therapist she spoke to told her it wouldn’t help Gabriel adjust to his new environment anyway. It would only cause him stress. It was one of the reasons she waited for her divorce to become final before moving.
Making it all that much harder on herself.
But Gabriel’s adjustment was more important.
“Um, Miles is outside,” Gabriel said. “I told him I’d come get you because I didn’t recognize the car in the driveway.”
“That’s because I just bought it. Isn’t she pretty? I’d love to take you for a spin,” Charlie said, giving Gabriel a squeeze.
Gabriel’s eyes grew wide.
Fuck.
Gabriel loved cars. Had a passion for them and when Miles had offered him a job, it had been a godsend in more ways than one.
“Just a quick ride, and then I’ll be on my way.” Charlie smiled. “Promise.”
“Please, Liberty. Can I go?” Gabriel asked. The man was twenty-two. It broke her fucking heart that he had to ask her permission. It didn’t matter how smart he could be, his emotions were that of a toddler sometimes.
“Sure,” she said. “But not too long. We have dinner and you have work bright and early.”
“I’ll have him back in a half hour.” Charlie turned, his arm still looped around Gabriel’s shoulders, and sauntered toward the front door.
She followed, stepping out onto the front porch.
“Hey, Miles.” Gabriel waved. “I’m going for a ride in that,” he said with excitement laced in every syllable. “It’s a Porsche 911 GT3. Isn’t it cool?”
“She sure is and she looks like she was just driven right off the showroom floor.” Miles leaned against the big palm tree in the front yard. “Charlie.” He nodded.
The two men had met in passing half a dozen times or so. While it had been cordial, it had never been completely pleasant. More like chest-pounding gorillas sitting in their corners, sizing each other up, waiting to pounce on one another.
“Miles, is it?” Charlie paused by the tree, looking Miles up and down, as he did with most people. And he sure as hell knew the man’s name because he asked who he was and why he was stopping by all the damn fucking time. His words, not hers.
Charlie certainly didn’t like that Gabriel was working for Miles either. He thought Gabriel should come work with him, in fucking real estate. That was no job for Gabriel. He struggled with strangers. And even though he knew his way around a computer better than most, that man liked to tinker with cars. Miles said he was damn good too. A natural.
And it made Gabriel happy.
Especially when moving had put him in a funk, including some self-harm issues, but that had all changed when Miles came into the picture.
She wasn’t sure what to make of that.
Or Miles.
And his odd charm. It was different from Charlie. More subtle and genuine. As if everything he said and did was just the way he was, no matter who he was talking to, man or woman.
“My name hasn’t changed since five days ago,” Miles said.
Liberty cringed. Pissing off Charlie wouldn’t help her situation. It would only make matters worse.
Perhaps it was time to tell her sexy neighbor a few things.
Charlie pointed his key fob in the direction of his new toy. “Go ahead and get in the passenger side. But don’t touch anything, okay, buddy?”
“Sure thing.” Gabriel raced to the side of the sports car and climbed in.
Charlie inched closer to Miles.
Shit. This couldn’t be good.
She flew down the steps two at a time, prepared to separate the two.
“I don’t know who you think you are,” Charlie said. “But that’s my wife. I expect you to be gone when I get back.” He turned on his heel and marched to the car, sliding behind the steering wheel and revving the engine before backing out of the driveway.
Miles pulled his phone out of his back pocket and tapped at the screen. “I suppose you heard that,” he said without looking up.
“I did,” she admitted. “Who are you texting?” Not that it was any of her business, but damn if she wasn’t curious.
“I’m not sure you want me to give you an honest answer to that question.” He stuffed his phone back in his jeans pocket.
She’d only known him for two months. The first time they’d met was the day she’d moved in and he’d helped unload the boxes from her U-Haul. She didn’t have to tell him a single thing about Gabriel; he’d figured out all on his own that he needed to keep a safe distance and to let Gabriel dictate his own comfort level with Miles.
From there, Miles would be outside, sitting on his front step, with a football in hand. He’d wave, smile, and wait for Gabriel to interact.
Miles had a kind heart. She could see that from day one.
And he was damn fucking sexy with his thick, dark hair, intense blue eyes, and muscular frame.
As she navigated her way through town, she heard a few stories and Miles was a ladies’ man. Full of charm. Definitely not the settling down type.
Not that she was looking.
“Now I have to know,” she said.
“Chris Manzo, one of my mother’s deputies.”
“You didn’t.” She planted her hands on her hips. “You know my brother has issues with authority. If a cop pulls over Charlie, my little brother might freak out. That’s the last thing I need.”
“Relax. Chris won’t pull him over with Gabriel in the vehicle. But if Charlie does anything remotely stupid, he will the second he leaves this house, without Gabriel in the car.” Miles lowered his chin. “I wouldn’t do that to Gabriel. You should know me better than that by now.”
“The only thing I know right now is that you and I need to have a little chat.” She grabbed him by his thick biceps and immediately wished she hadn’t. Sparks flew from his skin through her fingertips and right to all her girly parts.
Not a sensation she welcomed.
She dropped her hand to her side as she made her way to the front steps and plopped down on the last two. “Why are you dressed in jeans and a T-shirt? I thought you were at your brother’s wedding.”
“I changed.” He shrugged before planting his ass on her porch steps. “What has you so upset?”
“Many things, but only one that I’m going to discuss with you.” She reached behind her head and tugged on her ponytail. “Look. I do really appreciate everything you’ve done for me. For Gabriel. You’re so good with him and I value that. It’s so nice to know that he’s got a job that he’s thriving in because…” She swiped at her eyes, fighting the tears. “…well, he’s never been able to have one before. And it makes me having one that much easier.”
Miles rested his hand on her knee and squeezed. “All he needs is a little understanding and for people not to freak out on him when he makes a mistake, which all of us do anyway. He’s no different in that regard.”
“Yeah, but most don’t see it that way.”
Damn Miles and his fucking understanding ways. She really resented his calm demeanor. It was as if nothing ever rattled the man.
“Did I do something wrong?” Miles asked. “Because if I did, I’d like to know what that was. My intentions are not to hurt him or you.”
“That may be true, but you sure know how to get under my ex-husband’s skin.” She sighed.
He chuckled.
“It’s not funny. All it serves is to make my life harder.” She turned, catching his gaze. His damn sea-blue eyes sucked her right in.
If she were any other woman, she might fall for his charm.
“How so?” he asked, his hand still on her leg.
She should bat it away, but she didn’t. It felt too nice. Too comforting. And that was dangerous. “It’s not really any of your business, but I’m going to tell you anyway.”
“Okay,” he said softly. “I’m listening.”
“My divorce was kind of ugly. Charlie didn’t let me go easily. He comes from a rich and powerful family and I wanted out. I took a small settlement and once the divorce became final, I took Gabriel and moved up here. I thought that would be the end of it. But I should have known Charlie would be back. He doesn’t like to lose. Why he still wants me, I have no idea. But he does. Your presence is making it more of a challenge for him. More like a game. It’s compounded because of how Gabriel feels about you.”
“Are you telling me that Charlie believes there’s something going on with us?” Miles had the nerve to wink. And smile.
She poked him in the arm.
“Ouch. That hurt.”
“It was supposed to,” she mumbled. “You’re making light of this situation and I don’t appreciate it when I’m trying to be real.”
“I’m sorry.” He leaned back on his elbows, thankfully releasing her knee. “I’ll be honest, I don’t like your ex-husband and I certainly don’t like some of the things Gabriel has told me about him.”
She snapped up her head and shifted. “What? Gabriel has spoken to you about Charlie?”
“For the last two weeks, I’ve spent almost forty hours a week at the shop with Gabriel. We’ve chatted about a lot of things. Charlie is one of them.” Miles sat up taller. “For the record, I’m not the one who brought up the topic, Gabriel did. All I did was listen.”
“What did he say?” She couldn’t believe it. Gabriel struggled to discuss any emotions. Even with her. They always came out sideways. When he got really upset, he often resorted to hitting his head with his fists. A few times he even threw things. It was why she had to keep her house so calm and why she put up with so much shit from Charlie in their marriage the last few years. Charlie had used it to keep her, something she never did understand, when it was obvious he didn’t love her, not even one little bit.
He said he did, but the only thing that man loved more than himself was his money, power, and having his fill of other women.
That, she’d seen firsthand.
“I’d be breaking a confidence. His trust. And that’s not something I’m willing to do to him as his friend and his boss,” Miles said.
“Seriously?” She glared. “I’m his sister. His caretaker. The one person on this planet who loves him more than anything. I think I should know what he’s thinking.”
Miles reached out and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. “I can see how much he means to you and what you do for him. I know you’re only trying to protect him. I get that. I do. But trust me when I say that Gabriel is more than conflicted when it comes to Charlie. Gabriel has eyes. And ears. But he can’t process and or distinguish between what Charlie does to you and how he treats Gabriel.” Miles arched a brow.
“What the fuck are you implying?” Liberty had always had a bit of a truck driver mouth, something that Charlie and his family had tried to beat out of her. Charlie hated it. He wanted a lady. A woman to fit into his country club ways and for over ten years, she tried.
But it was like she was one of Cinderella’s ugly stepsisters trying on the glass slipper. No matter how hard she tried, she just couldn’t wedge her foot in that shoe.
And now it felt so good to just say every cuss word in the book.
“How dare you accuse me of not understanding my own brother. I practically raised him myself,” she said.
Miles pressed his finger on her lips. “I didn’t accuse you of any such thing.”
“That’s not what that sounded like to me.” She pushed his hand away.
“Let me ask you this. Do you want Charlie in your life? In Gabriel’s?” He lowered his chin. “And be honest with me because this is about you, not me. I can handle that either way.”
“I divorced the man,” she mumbled. “I believe it’s obvious I don’t want him around anymore. But with Gabriel, that’s complicated. When he forms a bond with another human, ripping that away from him can cause problems. I have to be delicate in how I do that. You pushing Charlie’s buttons is making it harder for me to ease that man out of our lives.”
“Don’t poke me again, but it’s not me that’s the problem. It’s you.”
She pursed her lips. “And why the hell do you say that?” she asked behind a tight jaw.
“Because you won’t tell Charlie to fuck off. When he’s around, you’re all unicorn and rainbows in front of Gabriel. You act like it’s okay for Charlie to waltz in and out whenever he wants. That’s part of the confusion and in a nutshell, that’s what has Gabriel questioning what’s really going on.”
She opened her mouth, but Miles silenced her with his damn fucking sexy finger again.
“Gabriel loves you. You’re the one constant in his life and all he wants to do is please you. And yeah, he doesn’t have the same emotions we do about people, but he’s not dumb. He knows on his own level that Charlie hurt you. I would bet the golf cart he and I have been working on that if you sat Gabriel down and let him know that you didn’t want Charlie coming around anymore, he’d get through it. He has you to lean on and an entire community that has embraced him. I don’t know a single person in Lighthouse Cove that has come across Gabriel who doesn’t adore him or want to see him thrive here.”
Well, fuck if she couldn’t agree with that logic. Every time someone came into the Safe Harbor Café where she worked, they all raved about what an awesome human Gabriel was, making it easier for him to assimilate to his new surroundings.
It hadn’t been like that in Palm Beach.
Not before she married Charlie.
And certainly not after.
Everyone always treated Gabriel differently.
But not here.
“I’m not saying I’m going to take your advice, but let’s play hypotheticals here.” She fiddled with her thumbnail. “If I tell Charlie never to come over again, not even if he calls first, what happens if he does? What do I do then? Or if he calls Gabriel. He does have his own phone.”
“Simple.” Miles yanked his cell from his back pocket. “You call one of my cop brothers and let them handle it. You file a formal complaint, it becomes harassment, and they will make him go away. I’m sending you their personal numbers. I’ll let them know I did that,” he said. “As far as Gabriel goes, just make it clear he needs to tell you and show you the messages. Then call one of my brothers. Emmerson or Emmett would be the best ones to reach out to.”
“But isn’t Emmerson the one who just got married? Won’t he be going on a honeymoon?”
Miles shook his head. “Not for a couple of weeks, and maybe not even then. His wife has morning sickness.”
“Oh. Well, too bad for the honeymoon, but congrats to the happy couple.” She lifted her hand but immediately dropped it to her lap. She would not let the horror of losing her baby bubble to the surface. What happened had nearly destroyed her, but in the end, she had to accept that being tied to Charlie forever that way would have been the worst fucking hell.
“They are so ridiculously happy it’s almost disgusting.” Miles laughed, but it was cut short by the sound of a roaring engine.
Charlie.
“He’s not going to be thrilled to see me,” Miles muttered.
“Nope. He’s not.” She jumped to her feet. “Can you do me a favor and ask Gabriel to do something with you. Anything. If I don’t talk to Charlie now, I might not have the nerve again.”
“Happy to.”
She turned. “One more thing. Gabriel might need a friend after I talk to him. Can you be available tonight after that?”
“Of course.” Miles nodded.
“He could freak out. In that case, he won’t be coming into work tomorrow.”
“Whatever you and he need.”
“Thank you.” She smoothed down the front of her jean shorts. Time to take her life back.