Thirty-One
Branwen
Garrett, like Linc, had aged well. You’d think that men who lived the kind of lives they did would look haggard and old. But nope. It seemed the Hughes and Shephard genes were excellent. There was a touch of gray in his temples, but he still had all his hair, and those bluish-gray eyes of his were still striking.
His wife, like I had already guessed, was stunning and young. The smile on her face was genuine. I didn’t know about the wives in between, but I did know that his first wife had not been a nice person. He’d gotten wiser with age when it came to choosing women.
The pink sundress she wore fluttered in the breeze, as did her platinum-blonde hair that hung straight down her back. She was headed directly toward me, then stopped as she reached Stevie and bent her knees as she lowered herself.
“You must be Stevie,” she said with a thick Southern drawl that I had not expected. Then, she held out a hand to her. “I’m Fawn, and I am so happy you’re here.”
Stevie looked at her hand and grinned, then bit her bottom lip as she glanced over at me. I nodded for her to go on, and she giggled as she put her hand in Fawn’s and shook it.
“You have a weally big house. It’s biggah than my dad’s house, and I thought he lived in a mansion,” she said matter-of-factly.
Fawn appeared to be fighting back a laugh. “Yes, it is very big. But you want to know a secret?”
Stevie nodded her head vigorously.
“I used to live in a camper. Have you ever seen a camper?”
Stevie’s eyes widened, and she nodded again. “I have a Bluey campah, but it’s a toy, and I can’t live in it.”
“I imagine not. But I lived in mine with my daughter, who was once little, like you. We didn’t move into this house with Garrett until she was grown up.”
Stevie’s shoulders rose and fell with a sigh. “She gwowed up alweady?”
I had a feeling she’d been hoping for a friend to play with. I needed to get her to the park or something.
Fawn laughed. “Yes. I feel that way too. I miss having a little girl. But don’t you worry. We will have fun. We have a pool, a theater, and you saw the horses when you arrived. And…I don’t have a little girl for you to play with, but I do know of a little boy who would like to come swim with you.”
She nodded, seemingly happy again. “I like boys! My dad has a pool too!” she said, pointing at Linc.
“Well then, I bet you can swim.”
“Mommy says I swim like a fish.”
“You are going to have to show me while you’re here for sure then,” she said, then stood back up and turned to me. “I’d tell you I’ve heard so much about you, but, well, what I’ve heard was about your childhood. I look forward to getting to know the grown-up.”
She wasn’t an elitist because she’d been brought into this world from what sounded like a much different one. I couldn’t imagine living in a camper with Stevie. I wanted to hear that story.
“I’m intrigued by the camper. I look forward to getting to know you as well. Thanks for having us. Stevie is well behaved, and she won’t be a problem.”
Fawn threw back her head and laughed, then looked back at me. “Then, there will be one well-behaved kid around here. Because when Blaise and Maddy bring those boys over, it’s wildness.”
I grinned, remembering Blaise as a kid. Trev had been little and not around as much. His mother had been Garrett’s second wife and a more involved mother, I thought. I wasn’t sure really.
“I remember what Blaise was like,” I said with a grin.
She blew out a breath. “Whew. I can only imagine.”
“You look good, Branwen,” Garrett said, coming up behind Fawn. “Glad you came.” His voice was deeper, and there was a huskiness to it.
He might have aged well, but the life had changed him. There was a difference in his eyes. As if they’d seen and done things that marked his soul.
“It’s good to see you, Garrett,” I told him.
He chuckled, and his eyes cut to Linc. “She doesn’t look all doe-eyed anymore, ready to follow you to the ends of the earth,” he told him.
He had no idea.
“Don’t,” Linc said, nodding his head slightly toward Stevie, as if that was why he wanted to change the subject.
Fawn turned slightly to him, placing a hand on his chest. I almost choked on my own saliva when the rock on her hand caught the light.
Holy Mother Mary, mother of Jesus! What size was that thing?
“Don’t tease,” she scolded him. “Let’s go sit and visit.”
He stared down at her with a possessive adoration, then winked at her while reaching up to take the hand she had on his chest and kissed it. A pang of envy stung my chest. What must that feel like—to be loved by someone you loved so deeply? It sounded like she’d had a Cinderella story, and this was her happily ever after. Maybe, for some, dreams did come true.
“I’m thinking of buying this horse. The last few races he was in were impressive, but he’s not done one of the big ones yet. Come give me your opinion,” Garrett told Linc. With his hand on Fawn’s lower back, he started toward the sofa they’d been sitting on when we arrived.
Stevie rushed ahead and stopped to look over the table of appetizers and treats that were set out in an array of different serving pieces. Sweets were on two-tiered trays that sat in the center while silver trays surrounded them with savory items. The miniature cupcakes with impressive toppings caught her eye immediately, and she looked back at me with pleading eyes.
“They have cupcakes, Mommy,” she told me.
“I see that,” I replied.
“Ms. Jimmie brought these out for everyone to enjoy,” Fawn said.
“All right, you can have one, but only touch the one you are getting,” I told Stevie.
She studied them as if it were the most important decision she would ever make.
Linc took a seat to the left of Garrett, leaving several spaces between them, after he picked up a glass of what I assumed was whiskey. He hadn’t glanced my way or acknowledged me, so I went over and sat down on the opposite side. Stevie picked up a pink cupcake and came to sit between Fawn and me.
“Would either of you like some mango lemonade?” Fawn asked, reaching for the silver pitcher on the table.
Stevie began to nod her head while chewing her first bite of the cupcake.
“That sounds nice,” I told her while I reached over and took a napkin, then placed it on her lap. I had a feeling she was going to need it.
Some kind of cream was inside of the pink cake, and although Stevie was licking it up before it dripped, that was going to be messy.
“Here you are,” Fawn said, handing me a glass, then placing one in front of Stevie. “I will have Ms. Jimmie bring out one of the kid cups we keep for the boys when she comes out to check on us. I should have thought of it earlier.”
Fawn sat back down, and Garrett’s hand immediately went to her thigh, laying his large palm over it, appearing to grip it, but not painfully. It was more of a possessive way. Fawn sank into the plush cushions, close enough that she was touching him, yet her smile stayed on me. They seemed to move together as one.
Could I have had this with Hudson if only I had loved him? No, because Hudson wasn’t that type of male—the alpha that other men were intimidated by. He was more the polite, easygoing guy that everyone felt comfortable around.
Linc, on the other hand…
I shoved that thought away. He didn’t want me like that. He barely acknowledged me. I had given him what he’d wanted, and now, I was just the mother of his child.
Stevie licked her fingers, then wiped them on the napkin.
“Are you enjoying Madison? Garrett tells me you lived in Nashville. I imagine Madison isn’t as fast-paced as you’re used to,” Fawn said, then took a sip from her glass.
Was I enjoying Madison? That was a loaded question.
“From what I’ve seen of it, the town is nice, but I’ve not really gone anywhere,” I replied, leaving out that Linc didn’t let me have a car to leave when I wanted to.
“There they are.”
Garrett’s voice caught our attention, and we both shifted our gaze to see a couple walking toward us.
I knew immediately who the man was. He looked so much like Linc. The little boy I remembered was long gone. In his place was a tall man with broad shoulders; light-brown hair, pulled back into a man bun; and a short beard. His features were almost identical to Linc’s, except for his hazel eyes.
The auburn-haired beauty, with skin like porcelain, who he held tucked close to his side, was smiling at Stevie. Her green eyes were full of curiosity. She was young, or maybe it was her petite size and smooth, unblemished skin that made her appear so much younger than Levi.
When her eyes lifted from Stevie to mine, her smile deepened. She truly looked like a delicate, fragile doll. Levi, on the other hand, looked like he would make an excellent character on the Sons of Anarchy . There was nothing refined about him. He had the dangerous, hard-edged demeanor coming off him in waves.
He nodded in Linc’s direction before his eyes briefly shifted to me, then landed on Stevie. I wondered what he thought about this. After all these years, having a sibling. Reading his facial expressions was impossible since they didn’t seem to change.
“Levi, Aspen,” Linc said, “I’d like you’d to meet Stevie.” The trace of pride when he said her name made my chest squeeze. “Stevie, this is Levi. He is your brother. Aspen is his wife.” Then, he flickered his gaze to me, as if remembering my existence. “And her mother, Branwen.” There was no pride in that introduction. His voice took on a bored tone, as if to say, Sorry she’s here .
My earlier moment of emotion vanished instantly, replaced by embarrassment. I kept the smile on my face, refusing to react to the way he’d basically dismissed me as an annoyance. My face felt warm, and I couldn’t control that.
“I’m assuming she looks like you did at that age,” Levi said to me. “Because I have a faint memory of a girl down at the stables with those blonde curls.”
“I’d say she’s a replica,” Garrett informed him.
“It’s nice to see you all grown up,” I told him, then shifted my gaze to Aspen. “And you look like you found happiness.”
He bent his head and kissed the top of hers. “I did,” he confirmed.
He was not like his father in all ways, it seemed. The adoration in his face as he looked down at her made my breath catch.
This is going to be fun , I thought pathetically.
I’d get to watch two men who were completely in love with their wives, reminding me of what I still hadn’t experienced at thirty-eight years old.
Maybe they didn’t have all the flaws I did. They were probably not selfish.
“I’ve nevah had a bwotha,” Stevie piped up.
Laughter came from all directions. Even Levi’s lips curled up as his eyes twinkled with amusement.
“You know, I’ve never had a sister,” he told her.
“Weally?!” The excitement in her voice caused another ripple of laughter. Then, she turned back to the cupcakes and looked at them longingly. “Those cupcakes awah yummy,” she told him.
“I bet they are,” he replied.
“I wish I could have anotha one,” she said, sounding so forlorn that I wondered if I should get the kid into acting lessons. She had a natural talent.
“One is e—”
“You can have as many as you want,” Linc told her, cutting me off.
Tensing, I clasped my hands in my lap and glanced over at him.
His eyes went from Stevie, who quickly jumped up off the seat to go over and pick out another cupcake, to me. He had known that I was about to tell her that one was enough. If she ate more sweets, she would be wild, then have a sugar crash, which could get ugly.
He raised his eyebrows at me in a challenge. “What? I missed four years of letting her eat cupcakes. I’m making up for all the lost time.” The taunt and accusation in his tone were clear to everyone.
Going inside and hiding for the rest of this trip wasn’t an option, although I was sure he would be thrilled if I disappeared. I dropped my gaze to my hands and said nothing. Making eye contact with anyone right now would likely make the lump in my throat turn into watery eyes.
I took a deep breath in and let it out. I had survived worse things than this. It seemed Linc was going to take jabs at me and humiliate me while we were here. I needed to toughen up and deal with it. I’d made the mistake of letting the man screw me again, which seemed to only make my presence even more distasteful to him than it already had been.
Aspen stepped forward and bent her knees as she lowered herself to Stevie’s height. She smiled at Stevie, then peered over the foods on the table. “Hmm,” she said, then looked back at Stevie as she picked up some seafood wrapped in bacon. Lobster perhaps. “You know, when I eat too much sugar, it makes my tummy hurt, and I get sad. Sometimes, it even makes me cry,” she told her with a serious expression along the lines of a wide-eyed Snow White. She held up the item in her hand. “Also, bacon is my very favorite. I much prefer it. And it doesn’t give me a stomachache.” She scrunched her nose at the last part.
Stevie studied her closely, then looked at the bacon appetizer as if she was debating the truth in this.
“I like bacon too,” Stevie admitted. “And I don’t like stomachaches.”
Aspen shook her head. “Oh no, those are the worst. I don’t like them at all.”
Stevie glanced over at the tray where the bacon-wrapped seafood items were. “I think I want one of these,” she said firmly, then reached for the stick that it was on and picked it up.
“That’s a very good choice,” Aspen said with a nod, then took a bite of hers before standing up.
Her gaze swung over to me, and a soft smile touched her lips.
If she wasn’t already married to Levi, I might have proposed. She was going to make an excellent mother.