Chain of Title (13 page)

“I’m
sorry, but I love you both.  I see what it’s doing to Dad and I don’t like it. 
I don’t understand after all that time together how it couldn’t bother you. 
How you just stop loving someone like that.”

Shayna released an
exasperated sigh.  She understood Danielle’s need to have her parents be who
she wanted them to be, who she thought they were.  How many years had she
struggled with those same desires.  Making up all kinds of stories in her head
as to why Abigail left, waiting for her to come home as she promised.  Secret
missions.  Clandestine operations.  Matters of national security.  It must’ve
been something so much bigger, so much more important than just her husband and
children.  That’s what she’d convinced herself of as a young girl.  And then...she
found the letters in that unlocked metal box at the back of her father’s
closet.  Sometimes she wished he hadn’t forgotten to lock it.

Better not to know.

Easier to live with the lie.

“Mom?  What’s the matter?”
Danielle asked with genuine concern.

Shayna felt the sudden return
of air to her lungs, and she shook the old painful memories from her head.  “Oh,
nothing.  Really.  I’m fine.”  She stood and walked over to peer out at the
lakefront view from Danielle’s tenth floor balcony.  She felt Danielle move to
stand beside her.  “I know you love your dad and me, sweetheart.  But you can’t
do that to me again.  And don’t let your dad put you in the middle like that,
either.  Life just doesn’t always turn out the way we want it to.  You and your
dad need to accept that, and move on.”  Shayna paused.  “And I don’t want you
thinking that I hate your father.”

She turned to look directly
at Danielle.  “I will always love him, if for no other reason than because of
you.  No matter what we did wrong as a couple, we always have you to remind us
of the good.  But I don’t love him the way I used to, not the way I need to in
order to be married to him.  It’s over.  It’s done.  And I’m
not
changing my mind.  End of story.  Period,” she said softly, reaching out to
stroke her daughter’s cheek.

Tears threatened to drop, but
Danielle held them back and nodded in defeat.  Danielle spoke softly. “Okay, Mom. 
I’ll stop.  I just want you to be happy.  Really.”

The sincerity was evident in
her eyes, and Shayna pulled her into a much-needed hug.  “I am happy, love. 
Really happy.”  Danielle pulled back to look at her mother.  Shayna nodded. 
“Happier than I’ve been in a very long time.”  Danielle’s expression turned
quizzical.

“It’s that Sean guy you’ve
been seeing, isn’t it?”

“He’s part of it, but not all
of it.”

“What do you mean not all of
it?”

Shayna repositioned herself in
a comfortable chair on the balcony.  “This last three years is the only time in
my life that I’ve ever been on my own...without a man.  That may seem like an
odd way to define it, but it’s true.  Growing up there was, of course, your
Grandpa Ben and Uncle Jack and Uncle Scotty.  Then I went to college and met
Wes my very first week.”  She blushed a little from the old, visceral memory,
and glanced to Danielle sitting across from her.  “I told you about him,” she
said wistfully.  Danielle nodded sadly.  “And then I met your father soon after
that at the law firm, during all of the settlement negotiations for Wes’
wrongful death suit.”

Shayna chewed at her lip and
stared off into the distance above the railing.  “This last three years it’s
just been me living in that beautiful house high up on the hill, overlooking
Lake Indigo.  I’ve had time to get to know myself.  Time to relax.  Time to
think about what’s ahead of
me
and not just play a part in a man’s life
or dreams.  And, yes, Sean is part of that.  He’s part of
my
dream, and
I love him, Dani.”  Danielle’s eyes bulged and she swallowed hard.  Shayna
smile shyly.  “He makes me feel like I did the first time I fell in love...when
I was eighteen.”  She sighed softly.  “I never thought, never expected to feel
like that again.”

“Are you going to marry him?”
Dani asked in a hushed tone.

“I don’t know.  I really
don’t even think about it.  I just want to savor the moment.  Squeeze
everything out of it that I can.  Understand?”

Danielle smiled bashfully and
nodded.  “Yeah, I do.  I know how you feel.”

Shayna grinned in
acknowledgement.  It had been clear for some time that her daughter was head
over heels in love with Harper Stevens.

“I hope you don’t get mad
when I say this, Mom, but can I have some time...before I have to get to know
Sean?  I just need to sort it all out in my head first.  I know I was a bitch
the first time he met me and...” she trailed off and closed her eyes, shaking
her head.  “God, I’m really so sorry about that, Mom.”

“I know.  It’s been hard for
all of us.  There’s been a learning curve, but I think we’re getting there.  You
can have all the time you need, love.  No rush.”

Danielle smiled and nodded.  “Oh,
I almost forgot to tell you, Uncle Jack called me yesterday.”

“That’s great!  I’m so glad
he keeps in touch with you.  I hope you never take it personally that your
Uncle Scotty doesn’t.  It’s nothing to do with you.  It’s just the way he’s
always been.”

“I know, and I love him
anyway—the old goofball,” Danielle said, with a little snort and a laugh.

“So, what’s your Uncle Jack
up to these days?”

“Well, he’s invited me for a
get together in a few weeks.”

“Oh, well, that’s nice.” 
Shayna wondered if she would get an invite, but held her tongue.

“Yeah, he wants me to meet,”
she held her mother’s eyes apprehensively for a moment, “
Grandma Abigail
.”

Hard cold steel immediately displaced
all of the warmth in Shayna.  She did her best to control her breathing and
reaction.

“Does he, now?” she breathed
out tightly.

Danielle looked nervous.  “Mom,
I haven’t said yes yet.  I wanted to tell you first.  I know how you feel about
her.”

“Do you want to meet her?”
Shayna asked coolly.

Danielle swallowed and shook
her head.  “I don’t know.  I’m not sure.  I know she really hurt you.  I can’t
say I’m excited about the idea.  But maybe she’s changed, I don’t know what to
think about it.  What do you think I should do?”

Maybe she’s changed
.  It took every ounce of strength not to spew the
venom boiling up inside her.  She didn’t want any of this directed at Dani. 
She had to remain calm.

“It’s your decision,
sweetheart,” she responded stiffly.

“Mom, come on just tell me
what you think, please.”

Shayna assessed her beautiful
daughter and felt trapped, cornered by a dark shadow from her past.  But that
was the intention, after all, wasn’t it?

“Biologically, she’s your
grandmother and my mother.  Personally, I want nothing to do with her, but this
is really your decision, Dani.  You’re not going to hurt my feelings if you
want to meet her, if that’s what you’re concerned about.”

Danielle exhaled loudly and
fell back against her seat with a strained, indecisive expression.  “I’ll think
about it,” she said quietly.

Shayna closed her eyes and
inhaled deeply before rising to stand.  “Lunch was great, sweetheart.  You whip
up a mean Greek salad,” she said, winking at Danielle and giving her a hug and
kiss on the cheek.  “But I need to go now.  Let me know what your schedule is
like and when we can get together again, okay?”

Danielle nodded with a smile
as Shayna started to exit the balcony.  Then she grabbed her mother’s hand.  “So,
we’re really okay, Mom?” she asked cautiously.

Shayna turned to look at her
and smiled affectionately.  “
Always
,” Shayna responded emphatically, squeezing
her daughter’s cheek and giving her another peck.

****

It
was a beautiful starry night and Shayna drank in the view from the private deck
off her owner’s suite.  Sean had called earlier to say he would be late, some
dust-up at the restaurant that he didn’t want to get into over the phone.  So
she lounged on the chaise, her arms stretched up over her head and hooked over
the back of the cushioned seat, a lightweight throw shielding her legs from the
cool evening breeze.  She finally made her decision and picked up the cell
phone that was lying beside her.  She dialed a number.

“Hey, squirt!  I was hoping
you’d call.”

Shayna’s brows pinched.  That
was a surprise greeting.

“Why?  Was that the only way
I’d get an invitation to your family gathering?” Shayna asked coolly.  The
phone went silent and she heard her eldest brother sigh.

“So, you’ve talked to Dani
then.  Listen, squirt, I did plan to invite you—
believe it or not
, just
hadn’t gotten around to it yet.  Em and I think it’d be really good if we could
all get together.  Scott’s even coming.  Don’t know if he’ll bring the
flavor
of the month
with him or not, but I told him he could.”  He paused.  “You
could bring Frank...” he trailed off hopefully.

Shayna imagined him holding
his breath and bracing for a fiery response.

“I’d rather bring
my
flavor of the month if you don’t mind,” she replied sarcastically.

“Seriously?” he said
incredulously.  He hemmed and hawed.  “I guess that’s okay.  I wish you’d
reconsider.”

“Why?  Because it’d help
grease the wheels on your business dealings with Frank?”

“Jesus Christ, Shayna! 
That’s uncalled for!  It’s got
nothing
to do with that.  I’ve already
told you I think you made a mistake.  That’s all it’s about.  If you wanna bring
some
new
guy—
fine
, do it,” he snorted.

Shayna stared blankly across
the lake.  “I want Abigail’s number, Jack,” Shayna stated placidly.

“What?  Why?”  He sounded
nervous.

“I obviously know that she’ll
be at your get together.  I’d like to talk with her—in private, before that.”

He stammered and seemed
caught off guard.  “Well, I can have her call you, if you want,” he offered
hesitantly.

“No.  I said I want her
number. 
I
will call
her
.”  Jackson’s reluctance perturbed
Shayna.  She spat out, “Do you really want me there or not?”

He huffed into the phone.  “Yes,
I do.  We all do.  Em and the kids miss you.”

“Then give me her number.  I
want to sort some things out with her before I pretend we’re one big happy
family.”

“Christ, this is exactly why
I hadn’t called you yet.  I
knew
you’d get all pissy about it.”

“Listen to me Jack, I can get
pissy
in private, or I can get
pissy
at your house.  Which would
you
prefer?”  She heard his hand drag down the stubble on his face and he exhaled
loudly.

“
Fine
.  I’ll give you
her number,” he relented begrudgingly.

Shayna
and Sean had exchanged keys awhile back, so she decided to surprise him with
breakfast this morning.  He’d had to cancel the night before, because of some
problems at the restaurant that he still hadn’t told her about, so she was
anxious to see him and find out what kept him away.  Riding up the elevator,
the thick aroma of bacon and eggs had her stomach growling.  In the other bag
she had fruit crepes, Greek yogurt with honey and granola, and a small
breakfast quiche.  All bases covered.  She smiled at her reflection in the
elevator door.

As the brushed-nickel panels whispered
open, she heard the timbre of multiple male voices coming from the living
room.  Oops!  Should’ve called first, she thought, grimacing.

“I don’t want her involved in
this in any way.”  She heard Sean say as she stood with one foot out of the
elevator, trying to decide if she should just leave.  Then she heard his muted tone
silence the group.  Just as she turned to make her exit, Shayna felt a hand on
her arm.

“Hey, what are you doing here?”
Sean asked with a hint of unease in his tone.

She looked up at him
apologetically.  “I’m really sorry I didn’t call first.  I was just going to
surprise you with breakfast,” she lifted the bags up to show him, “but it
sounds like you have company already.  I can just leave this stuff if you
haven’t eaten.”

He grinned down at her,
shaking his head.  “You’re not going anywhere.  We’re almost finished.”

Shayna motioned to the
elevator with her head.  “I’ll just wait downstairs then.”  Before she could
move he grabbed the handles of both bags with one hand and wrapped his other
arm around her waist, guiding her swiftly into the kitchen.

“That’s ridiculous.  We’ll
set the food down here and I’ll get this meeting wrapped up.”  He didn’t give
her time to answer before placing the bags on the counter and whisking her down
the hallway.  She glanced over her shoulder and saw three men in the living
room looking nervously at one another and then at her.  Sean took her into his
home office, tilted her chin up and gave her a quick kiss.

“Just give me about ten
minutes, okay?”

She nodded and watched as he
left, closing the door behind him.  Something felt odd.  It was as if she was
the topic of conversation and everyone suddenly fell quiet at her unexpected
entrance moments ago.  Sean seemed to want to shut her in his office as quickly
as possible, too.  She shook it off, feeling embarrassed for showing up
unannounced and interrupting what appeared to be a business meeting.

She linked her hands loosely
behind her and circled around his office.  The framed pictures caught her
attention and her lips widened into a slow smile.  Photos of Sean in the navy
hung on the wall.  Boy-oh-boy, did he ever do that uniform justice.  She
reached out and smoothed her fingers over his strong, virile image.  What she
would give to have known him back then.  She sighed wistfully, her eyes skipping
to other pictures of him, and settling on one that caught her attention.  She
edged closer.

Sean, wearing fatigues, standing
authoritatively beside a group of men, some shirtless, some stooped with one
arm resting on a bent knee, others with cigarettes slanting off their lips. 
All with rifles, rounds of ammunition and other weapons, the sheen and grime on
their flesh, along with their worn expressions, telling the story of a hard-fought
day.  However, Sean’s expression unnerved her; he looked hard and
vacant—remorseless.  What had happened to him that day?  What had he done?

She thought about the old
scars she had seen on his body, had traced with her lips and fingers, and the
way he had dismissed her questions about them.  Her imagination played games now,
and she squeezed her arms tightly around herself to slow the shiver that raced
up her spine.

Shaking the image from her
head and moving from the military pictures, she scanned his family’s faces—aunts,
uncles, cousins, grandparents.  Sean Parker couldn’t have turned out as
anything other than a handsome man, because his gene pool simply wouldn’t have
allowed it.

The Parkers made a stunning
couple in their sharp contrasts.  Rex had been a tall, blond, blue-eyed man
with a masculine, angular face, determined eyes, and a strong athletic body. 
He had a roguish quality that seemed to jump from the photos, and Shayna smiled
reflexively at his image.  She had a feeling she would’ve really liked him.

In comparison, Concetta was a
petite, brown-eyed, dark-haired beauty with a Mediterranean skin tone and soft
aura that Shayna was certain masked her underlying strength.  She had a
knockout smile and killer figure that must’ve turned a lot of heads in her day.

Then her eyes dropped down to
focus on the picture of them in their later years.  They were still a stunning
couple.  Rex, with a thick head of wavy white hair that highlighted his bright
blue eyes, and Concetta, with her brilliant smile and dark hair pulled softly
back to reveal a face blessed to withstand the test of time.  Above all else,
they looked happy together, even after all those years.

She didn’t have one picture
like that of her parents.

Her smile turned to somber
reflection as she pivoted and walked over to stand at the window, watching cars
and pedestrians below.  The sound of the door opening and Sean moving quickly
to join her at the window yanked her from the past.

“You hungry? Because I’m
starving and ready to tear into those bags,” he said, grabbing her hand and leading
her back to the kitchen.

Shayna sat at the other side
of the counter from Sean as he pulled plates and silverware out for them.

“Everything okay at the
restaurant?” she asked.

His back immediately
stiffened.

“Yeah, it’ll be just fine,”
he replied curtly.

Shayna tried to catch his
gaze.  It was obvious that it wasn’t fine.  “What happened, Sean?”

He exhaled loudly and passed
her a plate full of food while he remained standing on the other side of the quartz
counter.

“We’re going to be closed for
a few days.”  He looked circumspectly at her.  “Didn’t pass inspection.”  He
bit at his lower lip and waited for her reaction.

Her brows raised and her
mouth dropped slightly.  “Has that ever happened before?”

“Never,” he bit out.  “I run
a tight ship, and Skip and his crew are meticulous.”

She nodded her assent, as her
stomach lurched.  Did Frank have anything to do with this?  Surely, he wouldn’t
stoop that low, would he?  She swallowed the unsettling feelings, trying to rid
herself of the transient thoughts.

“So, what happened?”

Sean huffed derisively.  “He
wanted money to pass it.”

Shayna exhaled sharply. 
“Well, that’s obviously illegal.  Have you reported him to the agency?”

Sean snorted scornfully and
shook his head.  “He’s their highest rated inspector.  My word against his, and
unfortunately I wasn’t there until the end.  But my bases will be covered next
time.”

“How so?”

“I have an old friend who
owns the top security firm in the city.  I had him install an upgraded system
last night, cameras, that kind of thing.  When that sonofabitch comes back,
I’ll catch him with his hand out, or planting evidence.”  Sean continued to
assess Shayna. “Don’t even think about it, Shay,” he remarked ominously, clearly
suspicious who she was crediting with this problem.

Her eyes flicked up to meet
his hard stare and she felt herself shrink a bit.  “What’re you talking about?”
she muttered.

“I know what you’re thinking. 
It’s written all over your face.  Don’t even think about talking to him.  You
promised me you wouldn’t see him.  I’m holding you to that, Shay.”  Her eyes
squeezed and she huffed, shaking her head.  Sean purposefully marched around
the black island counter and swiveled her seat to face him.  He gripped her
face in his hands and forced her to look directly at him.  “Stay out of it,
Shay.  You don’t know that he had anything to do with it, any more than I do. 
Just leave it alone. 
I
will handle it.”

She could see it in his
eyes.  He knew.  He
knew
Frank had set him up.

Shayna relented, reluctantly. 
“Fine, but we have—”

Sean silenced her with his
finger pressed to her lips, shaking his head.  “I know you two have a daughter
together.  You really think he won’t use her to get to you, to find a way to
spend time with you, find a way to create doubts about your split—about
me
?”

Now her stomach began to
bubble with worry.

“Just a few days ago you said
I should think about hearing him out, for
my
benefit.  What happened to
that?”

“I said I changed my mind. 
It’s a bad idea,” he warned with growing agitation.

“Jesus, Sean.  Just tell me
what’s going on.”

He seemed to be considering
it.  Then he sighed resignedly.  “I told you things might get rocky for a while,
but they’ll smooth out, I promise.  Just hang in there with me.  Just do this
one
thing
I ask.”  He rubbed his nose softly against hers.  “And then we’ll
have all kinds of time to plan for the future—our future.  Okay?”

His tone and expression
softened considerably and he gently stroked her cheek.  She could’ve sworn she
heard the echo of her heart beat in his expansive loft.  She breathed out and
nodded.  In a hushed voice, she answered, “Okay, I won’t confront him about
this.” 
For now
, she thought.

The tension written on his
face eased and he bent down, kissing her hungrily.

Pulling up to look at her
with a satisfied smile, he said, “Now, let’s eat up.  Then we need to make up
for missing last night,” he growled against her lips.

She smiled and smoothed her
hand along his jaw line, nodding softly, then turned back to her food.  Sean
was already across from her, heaping generous helpings of the breakfast smorgasbord
onto his plate.

“I saw Dani yesterday,” she
commented, while sorting through her food.

Sean’s brows raised and he
nodded while chewing.  He swallowed and asked, “So, is everything okay between
the two of you?  No more set-ups?”  He eyed her expectantly.

She glanced up at him nodded. 
“She understands.  She won’t let him put her in the middle again like that. 
We’re good.”

Sean continued shoveling in
food, watching Shayna carefully.  His eyes tightened in a suspicious squint.  “What
else, Shay?”

Her brows pinched and she
looked up at him quizzically.  “Excuse me?” she said, as if pulled from a fog.

“There’s something else.  I
can tell.  What is it?”

His eyes locked onto hers,
and she sighed quietly, placing her fork on the plate and laying her napkin on
the counter next to it.  She had already lost her appetite earlier.

“My brother’s having a get-together
in a few weeks.  I’m invited.”

“Jack?”

She nodded.

“Well, that’s great.  Isn’t
it?” he asked hesitantly.

Shayna bit her lip, her eyes drifting
to the raindrops lazily sliding down the panes of the kitchen windows.

“Shay?” he questioned
tentatively.

Her eyes skipped back to his. 
“Abigail’s going to be there,” she said solemnly.  Sean’s face dropped in
understanding and then tightened in concern.  “I had Jack give me her number. 
I’m going to call her ahead of time.”

Sean breathed out slowly,
assessing her demeanor.  “Hearing her out?” he asked apprehensively.

“No,” she said coolly.  “She’s
going to hear
me
out.”

Sean placed his plate on the
counter and pressed a napkin to his lips.  He watched as Shayna stood, grabbed
her purse, and moved to leave.

“Hey, Shay, wait.  What’re
you doing?  Where’re you going?” he asked impatiently, striding out of the
kitchen to catch her at the elevator.  She pushed the button and waited for the
doors to open.  “I didn’t even get to see you yesterday.  I thought we could
stay in—
here
for a while, today.”  He gestured around the loft.

She glanced up at him, then
shook her head.  “I need to go.  I have things to do today.  I’m meeting some
friends for lunch and I have several stops to make before that.  So, I really need
to get going.”

Sean’s hands firmly circled
her upper arms and he turned her to face him.

“What
stops
, Shay?” he
asked pointedly.

She read his expression and
huffed in perturbation, yanking away from his grip.  “Honestly, Sean, I’m a
grown woman.  I don’t need to have my daily schedule approved by you or
anyone
.” 
Just then, the doors slid open and she stepped inside.  “If you and Frank want
to play a game of who has the bigger dick, then go right ahead.  I have no
interest in it,” she said angrily as the doors closed on his crestfallen face.

****