Chapter 8
Liberty handed Gabriel a tall soda and sat on the park bench. “How are things going at the shop?”
“I love my job.” Gabriel slurped on his soda before reaching for the bag of food. “Miles is so smart. He knows everything about cars. And I mean everything. Motorcycles too. It’s hard to believe he has that processing thing because there isn’t anything he doesn’t know when it comes to a motor or rebuilding any vehicle.”
“He’s certainly learned to compensate for it. Much like you.” Liberty pulled out her sandwich and opened the wrapper.
“Are we going to stay in Lighthouse Cove?” Gabriel fiddled with his French fry packet.
“We own that house. This is the place I wanted to make our home. Don’t you like it here?”
Gabriel continued to stare at his food. Difficult conversations made it harder for him to make eye contact, even with his big sister, the only constant in his life. “I do really love it here. But sometimes it feels like there’s a storm brewing.”
That was a big analogy for Gabriel to make and she wasn’t sure if it was because Charlie wasn’t coming around and Gabriel was smart enough to know that when he did, it could be bad. Or if it was something else entirely. “What do you mean?”
Gabriel shrugged. “You say things are over with you and Charlie, but are they really?”
She let out a long breath. “I’m so sorry that my divorcing Charlie has hurt you, but yes. He and I are over and we will never get back together.” She took her brother’s hand. “I can’t have him coming around.”
Miles and everyone in his family believed that a little truth wouldn’t hurt Gabriel. If anything, it might keep him safe. And Miles was right. She did tend to treat her brother like a baby.
“Charlie has done some things that I can’t forgive him for,” she said softly.
“Like what?” Slowly, Gabriel lifted his gaze, but it wasn’t to catch hers. Instead, he stared off toward the inlet.
“I don’t know if this is the right time to get into the specifics and it’s not fair for me to pull you into mine and Charlie’s problems. Besides, they’re done. It’s over. All you need to know is that in the end, he was not a good husband to me and he’s not respecting my wishes. I want to start over here and I need him to let us do that. Him moving here and coming around is interfering with me starting a new life.”
“Is that why you filed some order that can have Charlie arrested if does come near you?” Gabriel asked, clenching his fists on his lap.
“How did you know about that?” she asked in a calm voice, even though her insides were raging.
Fucking Charlie.
“And please be honest with me, Gabriel. We’re all each other has. I’m doing my best here not to coddle you or treat you like you’re a kid. But I also don’t want to upset you to the point you go off the deep end.”
“Charlie called me and told me before we got the new phones and you told me not to give him the new number,” Gabriel said. His tone was void of any real emotion, but his body language said something entirely different.
When he was angry, he usually stood, paced, and often tugged at his hair.
But he didn’t do that.
Instead, he rocked slowly, back and forth, with his fists rubbing his thighs.
Fear.
But of what?
“Charlie shouldn’t have told you that,” she said. “I should have and I’m sorry I didn’t sooner.”
“I don’t understand. What did he do that was so bad? I mean… I know… I saw some things and I… I… I… know you cried a lot. But Charlie says he loves you.”
“He doesn’t love me.” Liberty took Gabriel’s hand. “That is not what real love looks like. I get this is confusing and it’s not what I brought you here to talk about, but I’m glad we did.”
“I want to know what Charlie did,” Gabriel said. “Please tell me.”
She nodded. “But not right now. Not here. Let’s do it tonight after dinner.”
“Okay.”
“I’d like to switch gears and chat about something else.”
“Is this going to be heavy too?” He folded his arms. “This is why I feel like there’s a big storm coming.”
“It’s not some big thing, but it is something I wanted to discuss with you before it happened.”
Gabriel sighed. “What is it?” he said curtly, lowering his gaze.
She might as well go for broke. “Miles asked me to go on a date with him.”
“Did you turn him down again?” Gabriel dunked a fry into the ketchup.
“No. This time I accepted.”
He dropped the fry in his lap.
Liberty wanted to laugh, but she refrained. Instead, she handed Gabriel a napkin, opting not to treat him like a child and clean it up for him.
“Why? When?” Gabriel lifted his head.
“Because I kind of like him.” She found herself smiling. “And he wants to take me to dinner tomorrow night. His brothers Rhett and Jameson have offered to take you fishing while this date happens.”
Gabriel narrowed his stare. “I don’t need babysitters.”
“I know. That’s not what this is. They’re going anyway and thought you’d like to come.” For obvious reasons, she left out the fact she didn’t want him to be alone because of Charlie. “It’s up to you,” she added, hoping that would be all he needed to make the right choice.
“I like Miles’ family. And like fishing. It’s fun.”
“Then it’s settled. Rhett will pick you up at the shop when you’re done working tomorrow and bring you home later and I’ll go on a date with Miles.” She bit into her burger.
“He likes you. A lot.”
“And what makes you say that?”
“A man knows these things.” Gabriel waved a fry in the air and smiled a cheeky grin as if he held all the answers. This was the Gabriel she loved. The one who went through life like he didn’t have a care in the world. “Do you really like him?”
“I wouldn’t have agreed to go out with him if I didn’t.”
“You went back to Charlie after you lost the baby and you didn’t like him,” Gabriel said. His words were laced with thick emotion. He’d been the only one to stay by her side when she lost her little girl.
She blinked. They hadn’t talked about the baby she lost in a long time. It had not only been too painful for her, but Gabriel had blamed her for what happened. He’d been poisoned by Charlie’s lies. Gabriel had cried for days over that loss and when he’d finally been able to put it behind him, they never spoke of it again. Of course, she was too scared to bring it up.
“Things were complicated,” she said softly. “We all needed a little time to heal before we could leave.” That was about as good of an answer as any.
“But you still didn’t like him. Or love him.” Gabriel continued to munch on his fries. “And I want to know why.”
She wanted to tell him to eat his freaking burger, but she refrained. This conversation was hard enough. “You’re right, I didn’t love him,” she admitted. “And I’m sorry I put you through all that, but now is not the time to get into this.”
“After you lost the baby, Charlie asked me if you tried to lie to me about what happened. He told me if you did, I was to come to him.”
Liberty froze. She couldn’t breathe if she tried. Her muscles burned. The roar of her blood racing through her body as her pulse pounded in her ears was the only thing she could hear. She swallowed the bile that smacked the back of her throat.
But it didn’t go down.
The bitter taste lingered like three-day-old fish.
“The truth is both Charlie and I lied,” she said behind gritted teeth while she did her best to keep the tears at bay. “Charlie made up a story about how I fell and I never corrected anyone, so the blame was placed on me.”
“I don’t even know what that means.” Gabriel slammed his fists on the table. “Why do you talk in circles or in ways I can’t understand? I can’t make sense of your words. Charlie says it flat out. You climbed up on a ladder and?—”
“Stop it,” she said sternly. “Did you ever think for one second that this might be too painful for me? What happened has nothing to do with you and everything to do with why Charlie needs to be out of my life. He lied about what happened. He knows he did, but I was too distraught to do anything about it. I had just lost my little girl. I was scared and alone and it was all Charlie’s fault.”
“How was it his fault? He wasn’t even there,” Gabriel yelled.
She swiped at her eyes. “But he was there, Gabriel,” she whispered. “I don’t want to talk about this.” She swallowed a guttural sob. “It’s just too painful for me. I can see all the mistakes I’ve made and I’m trying to correct them. But I don’t want to hurt you. Please trust me when I say that Charlie isn’t who you think he is and it’s my fault that you believe he is. I’m only trying to protect you.”
“By lying to me.” Gabriel went back to eating his fries. “I haven’t contacted Charlie. And I won’t. At least not for now. But I deserve to hear your truth so I can make up my mind about all this for myself.”
She blew out a puff of air. Her little brother just surprised the fuck out of her by his response.
Miles.
He meddled.
Fuck.
She wasn’t sure how she felt about that and she needed to have a conversation with Miles because it wasn’t his fucking place.
“Tonight. After dinner.”
“Miles is coming over. And then he’ll stay for some bourbon. He always does,” Gabriel said.
“I’ll ask him to leave, and then I’ll answer all of your questions.” She rested her hand on her brother’s leg. “But this won’t be easy for you to hear and I understand I kept it from you, not because I didn’t believe you could handle the truth, but because it wasn’t your business. It was between me and Charlie. But also because I didn’t want to destroy the bond you had with Charlie with a speeding bullet. I wanted to do it slowly, so that we could move on naturally. Organically. Make a new life for ourselves.”
“The only thing I know is that either you’re lying to me or Charlie is.” He finally lifted his burger and took a bite. “I’ve been listening to Charlie for years about all this. But never you. The only thing you told me was that you didn’t love Charlie anymore and that’s why you divorced him. I’m not stupid. I have eyes. I know there’s more.”
She sighed. “Tonight. The whole sordid story. Tonight.”
Miles reached for the bourbon and two short glasses.
Liberty came up behind him and curled her fingers around his biceps. “Not tonight,” she said. “I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to ask you to leave. I need to have a long chat with my brother.”
“Is everything okay?” Miles asked.
“Not really.” She took the bourbon from his hands and set it on the counter. She yanked him through the kitchen and out the back door. “What the hell did you say to Gabriel about me and Charlie?” She planted her hands on her hips and glared.
If looks could kill, he’d be flat on his back, bleeding out on the grass.
He raked his fingers through his hair, which was in desperate need of a good cut. “I’m not sure what you’re talking about.” But knew exactly what she was referring to, only he didn’t expect it to come back and bite him in the ass so quickly.
“He grilled me at lunch today about me lying to him about why I left Charlie. He demanded I tell him my truth. The words he used were not his own. As if someone coached him on what to say to me.” She cocked her head and pursed her lips.
If she wasn’t so fucking mad, he’d think the look was sexy as hell.
“He grilled me too,” Miles admitted. “It started with asking me if I’d ever been in love before and if I had, why did those relationships end. I had to tell him that I’ve never experienced love before but that I’ve watched one of my brothers get divorced, along with my parents, and a couple end engagements and why those happened. Unfortunately for me, I didn’t get right away where he was going with it. Sometimes, I’m not the sharpest tool in the shed.”
“I don’t buy that for one second.” She poked him in the chest. “You’re one of the smartest, most insightful men I know.”
“Ouch.” He rubbed his pec and narrowed his stare. “It’s the truth. I don’t always see where people are going with things. It’s a processing issue.”
“Bullshit.” She folded her arms. “Don’t hide behind your learning disability for this one. Now I’m stuck having to be honest when I’m not ready. This isn’t only about Gabriel. But about me. I don’t want to relive this shit. I just want to move forward with my life.”
“So does Gabriel, but he doesn’t understand why he can’t be friends with Charlie.” He pressed his finger over Liberty’s lips when she opened her mouth. “After I told him about my parents, he was struck with the concept that they were still friends. That we all still got together as a family. Or how Emmett was still friendly with Melinda, even though their engagement ended kind of badly. Even I’m friends with some of my exes. All he wants is to understand this restraining order. I’m sorry that I overstepped, but I honestly didn’t realize that’s where he was going.”
“What you fail to grasp is what this does to me. There are things I don’t want him to know. Things I don’t want anyone to know. It’s not worth going through the pain, but now you’ve left me no choice.” She glanced over her shoulder before giving her attention back to him. “Don’t meddle again. I don’t care if you mean well or not. This is my life, not yours.” She turned on her heel and marched back inside, closing the door.
Click.
Locked.
Damn.
He pulled out his cell.
Miles: Do you have time to meet me at the café for a cup of coffee and a chat?
Emmerson: I’m picking up Rumor shortly, so sure. But I don’t have much time.
Miles: Understand. See you soon.
He tucked his phone into his back pocket and meandered between the houses and down the street toward the center of town. The café was only a few blocks away and even at a slow pace, he’d be there in fifteen minutes.
As he passed Lucky’s Bar and Grill, he noticed Charlie’s fancy sports car in the parking lot. He paused for a second, contemplating going in and giving that man a piece of his mind.
Or maybe a fist sandwich.
He double-timed it to the café. Getting into an altercation with Charlie wouldn’t do anyone any favors. But he did quickly send a text to every member of his family that Charlie was back in town. He also texted Liberty, letting her know too.
No response.
Deep in conversation, probably.
God, he hoped that went well.
Miles strolled into the Safe Harbor Café and waved to his sister-in-law Rumor, who raced from behind the counter to greet him with her arms wide open.
The woman was a breath of fresh air and the best damn thing that had ever happened to Emmerson. She might have blown through town with drug dealers on her tail and a boatload of secrets. But she landed right where she needed to be and stole Emmerson’s heart and soul. Miles loved sitting back and watching it happen. He knew the second he saw Emmerson with Rumor that his brother was going to marry that girl. So did everyone in his family, even if Emmerson fought it tooth and nail.
“Hey, good-looking.” She hugged him and kissed his cheek. “What are you doing here? I thought you were having dinner over at Liberty’s tonight.” Her face paled a little as she placed her hand over her stomach.
“Just finished,” he said. “But she and her brother have some things they need to discuss, without me hanging around.”
“Uh-oh. You sound a little bitter about that.”
“I’m not bitter,” he said. “Just feeling a little sheepish since I might have meddled where I don’t belong and now she’s pissed.”
“Want to talk about it?” She waved her hand toward the counter.
“I’m actually meeting your husband here in a few minutes.” He pointed to the corner booth. “Mind if we sit over there?”
“It’s all yours. Can I get you a drink to start?”
“Bourbon on the rocks.” He curled his fingers around her forearm. “Are you okay? You look like a ghost.”
“Just tired. Doc said first trimester could be like that.” She smiled. “I’ll bring that drink right out.”
He slipped into the booth, setting his cell on the table, face up. Not only did he want to know if Liberty texted, but the rest of his family. Chris Manzo had been looped in and he was working the night shift, so he would be the one keeping an eye on Charlie.
The bell over the door dinged.
Emmerson entered, proudly wearing his Lighthouse Cove police uniform. He stood a little over six foot and was a broad man.
Rumor greeted Emmerson by resting her head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around his wife and held her close for a moment before kissing her temple. “Give me a few minutes with Miles, then I’ll take you home.”
“Hey, little brother.” Emmerson slipped into the booth.
Rumor brought over a cup of coffee for Emmerson and short glass with two fingers of bourbon for Miles.
“What’s up?” Emmerson lifted his coffee and blew before taking a small sip.
“I might as well jump right in.” He held his brother’s gaze. “You’d think I, of all people, would understand women, but I haven’t a fucking clue.”
Emmerson burst out laughing.
“It’s not funny.”
“I’m sorry, but it’s fucking hilarious.” Emmerson leaned back, lifting his arm over the bench, and grinned like there was no tomorrow. “You know how to charm a woman whom you want to sleep with. You’re an expert at keeping them at arm’s length when you’re with them. You know how to be cash register honest in the sense that you never promise anyone a rose garden. You’re even damn good at letting them down easy so somehow they remain friendly-ish. But you’re right, you don’t believe you know dick about being in a relationship with a woman.”
“You really know how to make a man feel like shit.” Miles lifted his drink and took a gulp. “Is that really how everyone sees me?”
“Yes and no.” Emmerson folded his hands on the table and leaned forward. “You want to get real?”
“Sure,” Miles mumbled.
“The key word in my statement was believe. Ever since you were little, you felt different.”
“Jesus Christ. I don’t need this fucking lecture.”
“Actually, you do. Same way I needed everyone in this family to tell me to stop closing myself off when Rumor walked into my life.” Emmerson tapped his finger on the table. “I’m not going to sit here and discount your learning disabilities. We all know those are real. And because of them, and perhaps the way Mom treated you, which sucked, that gave you a shit ton of anxiety. We all watched it and did what we could to help you. We supported you in your decisions and went to bat for you with Mom.” He raised his hand. “But not because you’re different. We did it because you needed to find your path. The one that would give you the successes and show you that you’re a fucking really smart man. Unfortunately, there are people who have put down your profession, which has only added to your inability to feel comfortable in your own skin.”
“I know I’m good at what I do. I’m just not good at some of the business side of it.” Miles stared at the cubes in his drink. It pissed him off sometimes that he couldn’t manage his own books. That he needed someone else to manage that part of his business. Rhett and Jameson had done it for years. And now Trinity was doing it. That had always remained in the family and he valued and appreciated it.
But it was a constant reminder of what he wasn’t capable of doing for himself.
“We all have our strengths and weaknesses. Look at me. There is no fucking way I’d ever make for a good chief of police. Nathan has always been a good cop, but he’s better in the station managing people and doing the political side of this business. Can you imagine me doing that?”
Miles laughed. “God, no. You’d suck at it.”
“My point exactly. But let’s circle this back to women.” He arched a brow. “We can start with Trixi.”
“What does she have to do with anything?”
“Come on, man. You really liked her. More than any girl you ever dated. One could say you might have been falling in love with that girl. You can tell everyone else otherwise. That you let it go on too long and she got the wrong idea. But the real reason that ended was because her father didn’t like you. More importantly, he didn’t like what you did for a living. He called you a grease monkey. He constantly told Trixi that you weren’t good enough for his little girl and you let that get to you, especially when you learned he planned on cutting her off if she stayed with you.” Emmerson leaned forward. “And then you went and broke her heart.”
Miles lifted his tumbler but ended up setting it on the table instead of taking a sip.
Emmerson was right.
He could lie to himself, or anyone else for that matter, but the truth had just slapped him across the face.
There had been a part of him that had wanted to see if he could go the distance with Trixi. He had strong feelings for her and the word love tickled his brain during the time he spent with her. He had never been sure if it was real; he only knew he’d never felt like that with anyone else.
However, her damn father and his constant snide remarks about how Miles would never fit in with their kind, whatever that meant, haunted his soul. In the end, he ended up hurting Trixi, and she deserved better than that.
“Don’t you have anything to say to that?” Emmerson asked softly.
“Not really.” Miles ran his fingers through his thick hair. “Only, I can’t deny what you’re saying.”
“You’ve got to stop this kind of thinking, especially since I believe this entire conversation started off about you wanting advice about Liberty.”
Before Miles could respond to that jump in topic, Rumor showed up with a few appetizers for the table.
“I thought you boys might be hungry.” She placed a platter of Safe Harbor Café’s finest sampler on the table. She leaned over and kissed her husband’s cheek.
“What about you, babe?” Emmerson asked. “Want anything off this tray?”
Her face went even whiter, if that was possible. “I couldn’t, even though I want to. But then I’d be you-know-where and that’s not fun here at work.”
Emmerson sighed. “We won’t be much longer. I promise.”
“Take your time, honey. You’re the only table I need to worry about. Susie has the rest.” Rumor turned and left Miles and Emmerson alone.
Miles took an onion ring and plopped it in his mouth. He really wasn’t all that hungry, but he took the time to collect his thoughts. Emmerson wasn’t usually so forthcoming with his thoughts.
Or his advice.
He often tiptoed around the topics, choosing his words carefully.
But not this time.
Actually, ever since he fell in love with Rumor, Emmerson not only had a spring in his step, but he had a new confidence.
Miles liked it.
Even in this situation.
A few minutes of silence ticked by after Rumor left Miles alone with his brother.
Emmerson nibbled at the food and drank his coffee, waiting patiently for Miles to say something, only Miles wasn’t even sure where to begin.
“I’m supposed to have an official date with Liberty tomorrow. But after meddling between her and Gabriel, I’m not even sure it’s going to happen. Only, I was too stupid to know I was getting between her and her brother until it was too late.”
“Bullshit,” Emmerson said. “You did what you always do. You listened and then responded. That’s your superpower. But it’s also one of your greatest weaknesses because the reality is, when you care about something or someone, you do it with all your heart. It’s why when Trixi got involved with that asshole, you stepped in and helped. You might not like Trixi that way anymore, but you still give a shit.”
“That guy was a prick,” Miles muttered. “I don’t want to talk about Trixi. That’s over. I don’t know what to do about Liberty. I’m drowning in the deep end and I don’t know what to do. I like this chick and she’s making me crazy.”
Emmerson lifted his mug. “Welcome to the fall hard and fast club. It kind of sucks in the beginning, but once you get to the other side, it’s fucking wonderful.”
“Sometimes you are absolutely no flipping help at all.”
Emmerson laughed. “Look, little brother.” He tapped his temple. “Do yourself a favor and get out of your head. Stop analyzing everything. Whatever you meddled in, apologize and then don’t do it again, unless you have to when it comes to Charlie. I don’t know if you’ve had the chance to talk with Rhett today, but I guess he found a few blemishes that are cause for more concern.”
“I’m meeting him at my house before work tomorrow.”
“Depending on how Rumor is feeling in the morning, I’ll try to be there. I’d like to hear what Rhett has found.”
“Morning sickness that bad?”
“I feel so bad for her because it lasts all fucking day.” Emmerson rubbed his chin. “The moment she blinks open her eyes, she’s making a beeline for the bathroom. She can’t even keep a cracker down and it gets worse as the day progresses. Technically, she called in sick today, but Lucy Ann needed someone for the dinner shift, so Rumor has tried to muddle through, but she’s gotten sick three times being here. Until we figure this out, she’s told Lucy Ann she can’t work.” Emmerson slumped his shoulders. “In one week, she’s lost eight pounds.”
“She’s so tiny as it is.”
“Tell me something I don’t know. She literally has no appetite. She tries to eat, but food is not her friend right now.”
“She needs the calories for the baby,” Miles said.
“We both know that, which is why we’re bringing this up with the doc. She tries to be brave and act like she’s not scared over it, but this isn’t normal morning sickness. We’ve talked to every woman in this family who has had a baby and they all agree that this is something more. Maybe that kind of morning sickness that needs special attention.”
Miles could see the worry etched in his brother’s furrowed brow. “You’re doing all the right things. You’ll get a handle on this and Rumor and the baby are going to be just fine.”
Just then, Rumor appeared at the table with a tear rolling down her cheek. “Emmerson,” she said softly. “I’m spotting. I think we need to go to the hospital.”
Miles was on his feet just as fast as Emmerson.
“I’ll be right behind you,” Miles said.
“That’s not necessary.” Emmerson looped his arm around his wife.
“Necessary or not, it’s not up for discussion.” Miles never knew a time in his life where he couldn’t count on his brothers to be there for him and he wasn’t about to let his brother sit in a hospital while he paced the walls worrying about his wife and child.