Chapter 55
NOLAN
55
All of this morning’s drama at the courthouse left me with an adrenaline buzz that lingered for most of the day. But now, the agreement has been finalized and the ink is dry and I have sole custody of my daughter.
This feels surreal. Strangely calm. Peaceful. For once, I’m not waiting for the other shoe to drop. I’ve got both feet solidly planted on the ground. I feel stable and secure. I feel safe.
Now, I’m working my usual Thursday night shift. Inez wanted to come with me, just to sit at the bar and hang out while I work, she’d said. But this is Inez we’re talking about. The girl who never sits still.
So I banned her from The North Node for tonight. I forbade her from coming down here and doing any bartending on her week off from filming. She’s had a crazy past few months. She deserves to relax a bit.
Of course she put up a fight—because she’s stubborn like that. But I could tell she got a little turned on from being bossed around by me. I intend to fully investigate that theory later on when I get home.
She opted to stay home with Stella while I’m at work. And tonight, when I call at bedtime to say goodnight to my little girl, the three of us get on the phone. Stella requests a song and the three of us sing In My Life together. We’re painfully off-key. But it just feels…right.
I’m not usually a sentimental guy but—fuck—it hits me in the chest. I have everything I’ve ever wanted. Everything.
Just a few months ago, I wouldn’t have even dared to imagine I could be this happy. So, I’ll protect these two girls with my life. I’ll do anything to make them happy.
During the lull after the dinner rush, I approach Darius who’s seated in the corner booth, working from his laptop and sipping on a cold beer.
“I accept,” I announce to him.
He lifts a brow, scratching his forehead. “You accept what, little brother? You’ll have to be more specific.”
“I accept your offer to invest in renovations for the bar.”
“Oh, that offer. The one I made like a year ago?”
I sigh. Of course he’s going to make this difficult on me. “Yes, that offer. Are you saying the offer is no longer on the table?” My stomach tightens with anxiety.
Sitting silently, my brother observes me.
Then he bursts out laughing. “I’m just shitting with you. Of course the offer’s still on the table. Sit down. Let’s talk.”
I stare back at the busy counter and shake my head. “I can’t tonight. But I just wanted to tell you that I’m ready to move forward. I’m no longer in survival mode. It’s time to accept some help and focus on making the most of what I’ve worked so hard for.”
“That’s what I like to hear.” He grins.
Shit—he’s actually really happy about this. He wants to help me. He doesn’t feel forced or obligated to. Knowing that makes this agreement feel less like a hand-out and more like a business deal that could benefit us both.
Still grinning, Darius stretches his arm out. We seal the deal with a very official fist bump.
He glances around the busy tavern. “With this business investment, you should be able to hire a general manager to run this place. Then you won’t have to work so hard.”
One corner of my mouth curves into a smile at the thought. “And I can spend more time with Stella, travel occasionally to where Inez’s filming, and maybe—just maybe—actually enjoy life.”
“Sounds good.” He takes a gulp of his beer.
“You should enjoy life, too, man,” I say to him. “What’d you say I help you meet a nice girl? I’m willing to bet that Inez has a single friend from work she could introduce you to.”
Darius holds a hand up in my face. “An actress?! Why would you do that to me? Why are you trying to torture me?” He scoffs, getting more and more worked up at my simple suggestion. “You know what? Save your ‘bet’. Forget this whole business deal. It’s cancelled. I can’t work with you.” He folds his arms.
“The business deal is still on, fuckhead.” I smack the back of his skull. “One day, you’re going to wake up and find yourself wanting more than the stacks and stacks of cash in your bank account.”
“Yeah, well, until then, let’s stick to business. Leave my love life the fuck alone.”
Snorting a laugh, I get back to work, the rest of my shift easy and quiet. At the end of the night, I’m eager to kick my patrons out and close down the place as quickly as possible. I’ve got the most beautiful woman in America waiting for me in my bed, after all.
When I creep through the front door, I find Inez balled up on the living room couch, eyes riveted to the television screen, watching the celebrity gossip channel. The house is dark and I’m assuming that Stella is fast asleep.
“Come, come, come!” Inez whisper-yells, frantically motioning me over as the colors of the TV play across her pretty skin.
I groan out loud the moment I see that Vance Cavendish’s face is being flashed on the screen.
“Why are you watching that garbage? Why are you doing that to yourself?” I grit out as I pad over to the couch and drop down beside her. I want to snatch the remote back, change the channel and burn the thing in the trash.
But this time, the news story is different. This time, Vance Cavendish is not the glittering star of some fake ass interview. This time, he’s the subject of the gossip.
There’s a breaking news ribbon rolling across the bottom of the screen. Sabrina Arborelli pregnancy scandal, it reads.
Oh, tell me more.
A gossip reporter rambles as a social media post pops onto the screen. It’s a sentimental statement that Sabrina and her husband posted just last week to announce their pregnancy.
Then the screen cuts to a grainy video. I squint my eyes at the footage of Sabrina in the backseat of an SUV in a parking garage. A man’s head pops out from under the hem of the shocked TV host’s dress.
My mouth drops open as I stare in disbelief. “Oh shit! That’s Vance Cavendish!” And he’s certainly not clothed.
When the camera zooms in, the so-called heartbroken bachelor flings the TV host across the leather seats and scrambles to roll up the SUV windows.
Inez claps a hand over her mouth as we watch the footage. “I remember the night Sabrina wore that purple dress. The reality show was still filming. Jesus—the two of them were having an affair this whole time!”
According to this gossip show playing on the TV screen, there are rumors circulating that Vance may be the real father of Sabrina’s unborn child. Apparently, Mr. Do No Wrong is not so squeaky clean after all. Ha!
Inez and I sit side by side, watching the news unravel. It’s like a wreck on the side of the road. We can’t look away.
“Wow,” Inez whispers, her eyes wide. “That’s kind of…unexpected.”
“Yeah. Heartbroken, my ass,” I mutter, annoyed that Vance and Sabrina went to those lengths to make Inez look bad when they were hooking up all along.Fucking hypocrites!
She scoffs. “Guess I’m not such a heartbreaker after all, huh?”
I reach out, squeezing her hand. “Or more like, he’s a better actor than everyone gave him credit for. You really dodged a bullet there.”
Inez shudders. “Right?”
My fingers weave with hers. “How do you feel?”
She laughs softly, her shoulders relaxing. “Vindicated. Everybody said I was crazy not to marry him. But I couldn’t ignore my intuition. I just knew something was off.”
“Glad you followed your gut. ‘Cause now, you get to be mine.” Pulling her close, I kiss her forehead.
She snuggles against me and exhales deeply. “I still can’t believe how this whole mess played out.” She shakes her head from side to side.
“What can’t you believe?” I question.
“I left this town, put myself out there, went on a reality show looking for love…only to realize that the real thing was right in front of me all along.” She smiles at me.
I hold her tighter. “I was just as blind as you. But now, you’re all I see, Carolina. You’re all I need.”
She faces me, reaching for my cheeks with her soft hands. She sweeps her lips over mine and makes a contented little sound. “I see you, too, Theodore. I love you.”
“I love you,” I respond.
Inez starts to blush, but she hides it with a bright grin. “And you’re so good at loving me.”
“I really hit the jackpot with you.”
“You did. Congratulations, Brighton.” She winks.
I kiss her again. “Yay, me! Butt stuff to celebrate?”
She roars out a laugh and then buries her face in my neck to stifle it. When she recovers, she pinches my cheeks. “You’re such a romantic. A classic loverboy.”
“Only because you’re so easy to love, Stargirl.”
She rises from the couch, taking both of my hands in hers. She starts backing down the hallway and pulling me along with her.
“Come on, big guy.” She gives me a saucy look. “Butt stuff to celebrate.”