Chapter 40
“Let me go in first?”
Deacon and I sit in the car in the backyard of Mum and Dad’s place. They’ll have heard the car and know they’ve got visitors. But I’m not sure how they’ll react to Deacon’s presence.
His disappearance hurt them too.
They knew he was out at the beach—we spoke about it. But neither of them interfered or pressured me either way.
I appreciate at least being treated like an adult instead of their little girl.
Deacon nods. “I’ll be right behind you, though.”
Leaning over, I kiss him softly on the lips. “I know you’ve got my back.”
“Always.”
His eyes search mine. Even with the ring on my finger, I’m still struggling with trust. But he’s trying, and that’s important to me.
I give his forearm a squeeze and step out of the car. Taking a deep breath, I cross the yard and open the back door before stepping into the kitchen.
“Mum? Dad?”
Mum appears in the doorway leading to the living room. “Pippa? Where have you been? Your father and I have been so worried. Lucas said you weren’t at the beach house and that you were safe, but he wouldn’t say anything more.”
I grasp Mum’s forearms. “I’m here, Mum, and I’m fine. There was just something I needed to take care of.”
“And you didn’t think that we would want to know where you were?”
I look back over my shoulder. Deacon stands just outside, staring at his feet.
He looks up and meets my gaze. I nod.
Closing the door behind us, we make our way into the living room. Mum’s moved to stand beside Dad.
“Deacon?” My dad’s face is thunder as he glares at my husband.
Husband.
What a weird word.
I hold out my palm. “Dad. It’s okay. Deacon and I have sorted everything out.”
He frowns. “He broke you, baby girl.”
Nodding, I walk toward him. “I know. But he’s also putting me back together.”
Deacon’s hand runs down my spine until it rests on my lower back, and I don’t have to turn to see how close he is.
“Are you sure?”
I lick my lips, my mouth suddenly dry. “There’s something we need to tell you. Two things, actually. I’m going to need you and Mum to take a seat.”
Dad glances at Mum.
I lead Deacon to the couch, and we sit as Mum and Dad lower themselves into their chairs.
Deacon gives me a reassuring smile and a wink before I start speaking.
“Deacon and I have been working on things for a little while. In fact, he’s bought the house next to ours out at the beach.”
My dad’s eyebrows rise.
“Anyway, we got to the bottom of everything, and I was worried that he might do another runner. So … um …” I hold out my hand with my rings. “We flew to Vegas and got married.”
Silence greets us, and Mum and Dad exchange a longer look.
“Vegas?” Dad asks.
“I didn’t want to give her a chance to get cold feet on me, sir,” Deacon says.
Dad huffs. “Like you did?”
“There’s more to that story, Dad, and we’ll tell you everything. But I just need you to let me share our other news first.”
He leans back in his chair, crossing his arms. “Go on.”
“I’m pregnant. Deacon and I are having a baby.”
“Oh, love,” Mum says softly. “That’s wonderful.”
“That why you married her?” Dad asks.
Deacon shakes his head. “No. I love Pippa more than anything, and I always did.” He takes my hand in his and squeezes. “I know I messed up, and I hurt Pippa when that’s the last thing I ever wanted. But?—”
“Can’t wait to hear this,” Dad says.
“Dad. When we were here at Christmas, I went out shopping with Lucas and we stopped at a cafe for lunch. Deacon’s mother showed up.”
Dad draws in a deep breath. Like everyone else in our family, he hates Elise. And if Lucas has only confided in Deacon, then he doesn’t even know the full history behind what happened.
“She started talking about my relationship with Deacon and I told her where to go. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but she had someone with her—a man maybe about my age. He must have taken photos because the night before the wedding, she turned up to see Deacon and showed him a photo of us at lunch. She told him that she was still seeing Lucas and that we were all friends.”
“What?” Mum gasps. “Lucas told us he hasn’t?—”
I shake my head. “He’s not, Mum. The day they got caught by Deacon and his dad was the last time. She’s so bitter over the way Deacon turned his back on her, she wanted to hurt him. At least, that’s what we think.”
Deacon gives my hand another squeeze. “All these years and I’m still messed up by it. The whole thing destroyed my dad’s life. I shouldn’t have let her get to me, and I should have stopped to talk it out with Pippa, but after Mum left I was a mess. There’s no excuse for what I did, and I will have regrets for the rest of my life over how I handled it.”
Dad uncrosses his arms and leans forward. “You love her?”
“With everything I have.” Deacon slides his arm around me and tugs me closer. “I’ll do my best to never hurt her again. I promise you that. I’ll be a good husband, and a father.”
I smell Mum’s familiar floral perfume before she sits on the couch beside me and grasps my forearm. “I think we should be supportive, Dale. We’re going to be grandparents.”
Dad huffs but slowly nods. “Are you happy, Pippa? That’s what matters to us.”
“I am.”
Mum wraps her arms around my neck and kisses my cheek. “You know I might never forgive you for sneaking off to get married.”
Tears well in my eyes and I laugh. “We’ll plan another ceremony now we’re home. We just wanted to make it official as quickly as possible.”
“But Las Vegas?” she asks, letting go.
“That was my idea.” Deacon grins. “We were going to spend a couple of days there on the way back from our honeymoon, and I wanted to try and make up for Pippa missing the Europe trip.”
My gaze meets his, and he wipes the tears that have fallen onto my cheeks.
“Which we’ll take together at another time, so Pippa can visit all those places she wanted to.”
Dad’s still a little grouchy, but Mum seems to have bounced back. “I’ll make some coffee and you can tell us all about the wedding.”
After reaching into my bag, I pull out a pouch of photos and hand them to Dad. “I’ve got these.”
He takes them, his expression softening as he takes out the first one. “You look so beautiful.”
“I’m sorry if you feel excluded, Dad. After everything that’s happened, we wanted something for ourselves.”
“I’ll cover any costs for the last wedding and our new ceremony,” Deacon says. “It’s the least I can do.”
A glimmer of a smile appears on Dad’s face, and I clamp my lips together to stop myself from laughing.
“He’ll be okay, love,” Mum says from the doorway. “Now you’re talking his language.”
I take Deacon’s hand in mine.
Everything will be fine.