Chapter 15
E ver since Duke had arrived at her door and said the things he did about her, McKenzie felt like her insides were made of champagne bubbles or something equally silly. Everything had changed during those two minutes. If someone had told her that might happen, she would’ve said there was no way she wanted that. But after having experienced it, she couldn’t deny the euphoria he’d stirred or the feelings she had for him.
Or that he apparently had for her.
What a delightful and unexpected development.
Gran used to tell her that when people showed you who they really were, you should believe them. Usually, she meant that in the negative sense. Such as when someone showed you they were an asshole, don’t go around thinking you were the one who could change them or make them better. “People are who they are,” Gran would say.
Duke had shown her repeatedly who he really was, from checking on her after the storm to retrieving some of her belongings from the cabin, to making a special trip to Tiffany’s to bring Mr. Bear to Jax, after having cleaned him up, to offering her a place to stay, to putting her in touch with Mac. He’d been rock solid and respectful and all the things that Gran had told her to look for in a man.
And he was flat-out adorable, regardless of his desire to be seen as menacing. Despite his tough exterior, he was a mush on the inside, and she liked that about him.
As they approached the group outside the marina restaurant, Duke introduced her to Alex and Jenny Martinez and their son, George.
“What a cutie,” McKenzie said of George, who was in his father’s arms. The baby was the picture of his dark-haired daddy. “How old is he?”
“He’s two going on twenty,” his mom said. “How old is Jax?”
“Nine months and soon to be too big for the baby carrier.”
“I miss that thing.” Jenny tucked blonde hair behind her ear. “George is a load to carry around when he refuses to use his feet for what they were made for.”
They were joined by Alex’s brother, Paul, his wife, Hope, and their daughter, Scarlett.
McKenzie was introduced to so many people that her head began to swim with names and faces. They enjoyed a delicious buffet dinner that included clam chowder and other seafood dishes, delicious roast beef, salads of all kinds and yummy desserts.
McKenzie was delighted to meet so many young children, who might become friends with Jax. How nice would that be?
Duke introduced her to everyone, helped her find a seat at a table and got her a plastic cup of ice water. “You want a drink drink?”
“No, thank you. I’m not back to drinking yet.” She could tell he didn’t understand what she meant. “I’m still feeding Jax. What I get, he gets.”
“ Oh , right,” he said, adorably flustered. “Don’t laugh at me.”
Her lips quivered from the effort to hold it back. “I never would.”
“That’s a lie, and you know it.”
McKenzie was trying not to laugh when she looked up and saw Tiffany, Blaine, Ashleigh and Addie outside. “They did come.”
Duke turned to see who she was talking about. “Oh good. I’m glad. It’ll do them good to be with their people.”
Everyone wanted to hug Tiffany and Ashleigh.
McKenzie waited patiently for her new friend to greet the others before she, Duke and Jax went to say hello.
“I’m so sorry.” McKenzie and Duke hugged Tiffany and then Ashleigh. “I wish there was something else I could say.”
“It’s okay.” Tiffany’s eyes and face were red and puffy from crying. “Ash wanted to come to see everyone, and we’re following her lead.”
“I’m glad you came. What can I do for you this week?”
“I’m going to keep the store closed for a few more days. Sorry for the delay in getting you started.”
“Don’t be. Do whatever you need to right now.”
“Thank you for understanding. Strangest thing I’ve ever been through, that’s for sure.”
“I can only imagine.”
“I was thinking about what you told me last week about Jax’s father. I promised to call Dan for you.”
“Oh please, Tiffany. Don’t worry about that now.”
“I am worried about it. Dan has gone to Maine with his wife, Kara. I’m not sure how long they’ll be gone. He was the one I wanted to talk to about your situation. I texted him about it and to tell him about Jim. He told me that Jared James’s attorney sister Kendall is on the island, and you might be able to talk to her.”
“There’s Jared right there,” Duke said. “I bet that’s his sister with him.”
“I’ll find out,” Tiffany said.
She was gone before McKenzie could tell her again not to worry about her problems when she had more than enough of her own to contend with.
“It helps her,” Duke said. “To focus on your thing rather than hers.”
“What’re you, a mind reader now, too?”
Grinning, he shrugged. “I figured that’s what you were thinking.”
“You figured right. I told her about his dad saying he’d had a vasectomy so Jax couldn’t have been his, even though he knew full well I hadn’t been with anyone else.”
“Is it okay to say I can’t stand that guy?”
“More than okay. Tiffany said his bullshit doesn’t excuse him from his obligation to care for Jax, and she wanted me to talk to her friend Dan about it.”
“She’s right. You should talk to someone about it. Dan’s a great lawyer, but I’m sure Kendall is, too.”
“I’m afraid of stirring that hornet’s nest.”
“Don’t be. You haven’t done anything wrong. I hate when people don’t care for their kids, who never asked to be born.”
“I’m sorry if that strikes a nerve.”
“One of those things I try not to think about.”
She gazed up at him, wishing she could take away all the hurt he’d experienced in his life, which was a truly overwhelming thought to have about someone she hadn’t known all that long. “I understand.”
“Talk to the lawyer. You and Jax deserve the best of everything. Why should you have to struggle while he pretends he wasn’t there when that little guy came to be?”
“Thank you for the support.”
“Of course.”
“So wait… You said that’s Jared James, as in Jared James the billionaire?”
“The one and only. Nicest guy you’ll ever meet. We love him around here.”
“Wow, music stars and billionaires.”
“We like to keep things interesting on Gansett. You know Jordan Stokes?”
“As in Jordan and Gigi?”
“One and the same. She’s engaged to and expecting a baby with our fire chief, Mason Johns, and Gigi’s madly in love with the billionaire’s brother Cooper. They filmed a season of their show here. Should be on TV soon.”
“Stop it. No way.”
“Way.”
“I love them. They’re so funny. How did they end up here?”
“Jordan’s grandmother has owned a house here for like fifty years. She and her twin sister, Nikki, who’s engaged to Riley McCarthy, spent summers here when they were kids.”
“Ah, I see.”
Tiffany returned with another woman, who was probably in her early forties. She had reddish-brown hair and brown eyes.
“Kendall James, meet McKenzie Martin.”
McKenzie shook hands with the other woman. “Nice to meet you.”
“You as well.”
“This is my friend, Duke Sullivan.”
Duke shook hands with Kendall. “Nice to meet another James sibling.”
“I’m the classy one of the bunch.”
Duke and McKenzie laughed.
“I understand you’re in need of some legal assistance.”
McKenzie looked at Duke, who nodded in encouragement. “Yes, I am, but I don’t want to bother you at a party.”
“It’s no bother. My brother and his wife are entertaining my sons, so this is as good a time as any.”
“Let me take Jax and show him the boats,” Duke said.
“Are you sure you don’t mind?”
“I’m sure.”
After Duke walked away with Jax in his arms, McKenzie sat next to Kendall. “Thank you for this.”
“It’s no problem. I’m planning to work from here, anyway. I’m the general counsel for my brother’s business, which is mostly on paper these days. So I have time for other stuff. Tell me what’s going on.”
“Well, there was this guy…”
“Why does it always start that way?” Kendall asked, smiling.
“Right? This one was charming and said all the right things. We were together for a year. I thought he might be the one, only to find out he was married with two kids. I found that out after I told him I was pregnant. Then he said he’d had a vasectomy, so there’s no way my baby was his.” McKenzie couldn’t believe that she could still be so outraged after all this time. “That was a lie. I hadn’t been with anyone but him, and he knew it.”
“Ugh, what an asshole.”
“Totally. Part of me wants to leave it alone, but the other part, the one that’s struggled to make ends meet and pay for everything Jax needs, wants to make him do his part.”
“I understand that. Better than you might think. I have to warn you, though, it could get ugly. There’s probably a good chance his wife doesn’t know about you or Jax, and once she finds out, the shit will hit the fan for him. He’s apt to turn that around on you.”
McKenzie swallowed the lump of fear that landed in her throat. “I’m not afraid of him,” she said with more conviction than she felt. “And I’m one hundred percent over him. The minute he lied and said he’d had a vasectomy, I knew he’d never been the person I thought he was.”
“Takes a special kind of guy to be that kind of deceitful. You may be doing his wife and kids a favor to blow the lid off his game.”
“I feel bad about the possibility of hurting innocent people, but I want Jax to have everything he needs. That would be a lot easier with financial help from his father.”
“You’re owed that by law. Let’s remind him of that, shall we?”
“Yes, please.”
Kendall withdrew her phone from her purse. “Give me your number.” She punched it into her phone as McKenzie recited it. “Tomorrow, I’ll reach out to get his name and anything else you know about where we might find him, such as an office or somewhere he might be during the day. I’ll put together a letter that I’ll run by you and then have delivered to him by certified mail. That’ll get his attention. He may propose a settlement that’ll allow him to keep you and Jax a secret from his wife. I’ve heard of that happening in cases like this.”
“I suppose it might be for the best if it worked out that way.”
“We’ll see what happens. I’ll reach out tomorrow about the letter, and we’ll go from there.”
“Let me know how much I owe you.”
“We’ll worry about that if we’re successful. I’ll send you a retainer letter by email and will be in touch.”
“Thank you so much.”
“Happy to help if I can.” She stood to rejoin her family. “More to come. It was nice to meet you.”
“You, too.”
A few minutes after Kendall had left the table, Duke returned with Jax. “How’d it go?”
“Great. She’s going to work on a letter to send him.”
“That’s good news. Sometimes all it takes to get someone’s attention is a letter from a lawyer.”
“Tiffany said the same thing the first time we talked about this.”
“How do you feel about it?”
“Kind of nervous. I hope it doesn’t get ugly.”
“If it does, he won’t have any idea where to find you.”
“That’s true.”
“Try not to worry. You’re doing the right thing for Jax by forcing him to step up. It’s the very least he can do.”
They were joined by Sierra and some of her colleagues from the massage studio, whom she introduced to McKenzie and Jax.
Like before, McKenzie had the same odd reaction to the sexy woman who was obviously close to Duke. She’d never been big on jealousy, as it seemed like a waste of time to want what other people had. But there was no way she could deny that Sierra got to her the way no other woman ever had.
It was so weird to be experiencing a brand-new emotion as she watched Duke chat with his friends.
Sierra was perfectly nice and friendly to everyone, so McKenzie couldn’t explain her reaction to the other woman.
“Are you okay?” Duke asked McKenzie.
“Yes, of course.”
“Where are you from, McKenzie?” Sierra asked.
“Coventry. It’s up by Providence.”
“Oh, I know. I grew up in North Kingstown.”
“Ah, okay. We probably played each other in sports.”
“Maybe. I did basketball and lacrosse. How about you?”
“Soccer.”
“I bet you were good at that,” Duke said.
“I did okay.” When Jax started to get fussy, she put some new toys on the table for him.
Duke stood to greet an older couple with a handshake for the man and a hug for the woman. “Big Mac and Linda McCarthy, meet McKenzie Martin, Rosemary’s granddaughter, and her son, Jax.”
McKenzie, who’d also stood, was surprised when Linda hugged her.
“It’s so lovely to meet you. MK, right?”
“That’s me.”
“Rosemary talked about you all the time. You were the light of her life.”
“Thank you for telling me that.”
“Of course. She’d be delighted to know you’re here.”
“I hope so. She’d be upset about the cabin, though.”
“That can be fixed. I understand you’ve spoken to our Mac about that.”
“I have, and he’s wonderful.”
“He’d better be.”
“He’ll fix you right up,” Big Mac added.
“Everyone has been so nice and helpful here, especially Duke. He’s given us a place to stay while the cabin is repaired.”
“Duke’s one of the good guys,” Big Mac said with a warm smile for Duke. “We love him around here.”
“Aw shucks,” Duke said, seeming embarrassed.
“I only speak the truth.”
“Heard they took Abby to the mainland today,” Duke said. “Any word on how she’s doing?”
“She and the babies are stable and in the best place they could be right now.”
“I’m so glad to hear that.”
“We’ve got their Liam for the time being,” Linda said. “He’s with our daughters-in-law Grace and Stephanie. We should probably rescue them. It was such a pleasure to meet you, McKenzie and Jax.”
“You, too. My grandmother spoke so highly of you and your family. Now I see why.”
“We live in that white house at the top of the hill.” Linda pointed to it. “If you ever need anything, our door is always open.”
“Thank you so much.”
They returned to their seats at the table.
“Such nice people,” McKenzie said.
“They’re the backbone of this island.”
“So Abby is their daughter?”
“Daughter-in-law. She’s expecting quads and went into early labor. They sent her to the mainland by Life Flight.”
“Oh wow. Quads. Gulp.”
“I know. From what I heard, it came as a huge shock to them. They’d been told they wouldn’t be able to have babies, and then pow.”
“Yikes. I sure hope they’re okay.”
“You and me both.”