Starting Over (20 page)

“Who cares what
some judge says, Alex? Eve still loves you, and it’s obvious you
still love her. Why aren’t you back in Richmond fighting for her?
You’re going to have a baby together. Do you want your kid to grow
up without a father?”

“That’ll never
happen,” he said fiercely. “No matter what, I’m going to be a part
of his or her life, I can promise you that.” He couldn’t believe
Eve would really try to keep him from their child, no matter how
angry she was.

“But wouldn’t
it be better if you could raise him together… as a family?”

He’d love
nothing more. He didn’t know how to get there though. It seemed
almost hopeless. At least before his outburst, they’d had a mutual
love and respect, a strong foundation of friendship. He’d managed
to screw that up with his hair-trigger temper and wild
accusations.

“Well?”

“Of course it
would, but how the hell are we supposed to get there when she won’t
even talk to me?”

“Go there. Camp
out on her doorstep. Do whatever it takes to make her listen to
you.”

“Her ex just
threatened me with a restraining order,” Alex said, pondering
whether Eve would ever resort to such drastic steps.

“I saw the look
on Eve’s face when she saw us together.” Gloria laughed. “She
thought you and I were a couple.”

Alex smirked,
finally finding humor in something. “She must have been delirious
from the long drive.”

“I know,
right?” Her eyes sparkled with suppressed laughter. “Couldn’t she
see you’re old enough to be my father?”

“Hey, I’m not
that old!” He smiled though, grateful she had found the words to
lighten his dismal mood.

“My point is
that woman still loves you, and you’re a fool if you waste any more
time sitting here talking to me. You need to be talking to
her.”

“You’re right.”
Alex slid out of the booth and reached for his helmet as he kissed
her cheek. “Thanks for everything, Glo. You’ve been a good
friend.”

“My pleasure.”
Her eyes went misty. “I hope everything works out for you guys.
Every kid deserves to have two parents who love him.”

Alex reached
into his pocket for his leather-bound check book. He wasn’t in
hiding any longer, so he could spend his money freely again. “Got a
pen?”

“Why?” Gloria
asked warily as she handed one over.

He wrote a
check for thirty-five thousand, leaving the top space blank when he
realized he didn’t even know for sure that Gloria shared her
father’s last name. “This should be enough for you to buy a decent
set of wheels and pay your rent until you can finish school and
land a nursing job.”

She gaped at
the amount when he handed her the check. “Are you insane? You can’t
give me this kind of money. You barely even know me.”

“I know that I
like you.” He secured his helmet and grinned. “Besides, my little
buddy deserves to drive around in style and so does his mama. Give
him a kiss for me, will ya?”

She reached for
his hand when he turned to walk away. “Thanks, Alex. No one has
ever done anything like this for me. I don’t—”

“Hey, I’m just
trying to restore your faith in men. Just because Jacob’s dad was a
jerk doesn’t mean all guys are. You’re going to find someone
amazing. Someone who will love you and that little boy the way you
deserve to be loved.”

She smiled. “I
hope Eve realizes how lucky she is to have you.”

“I just hope I
can make her believe that I finally know how lucky I am to have
her.”

***

Alex walked
into his parents’ house and took it all in. He felt like he was
seeing it with a new set of eyes as he saw images flash through his
mind. The evidence of the amazing childhood he’d had in that home
was everywhere: in the photographs on the walls, the height markers
inside the coat closet, and the basketball hoop still in the
driveway. He wanted that for his son or daughter—a lifetime of
memories without ever having to question how much his parents loved
him or each other.

Marianne
rounded the corner, looking stunned when she spotted him.

“I hope you
don’t mind I used my key?” he asked.

“Of course
not,” she said softly, wringing her hands as though she wasn’t sure
how her son would respond if she reached out to him. “It’s so good
to see you. We’ve been so worried.”

He reached out
to her. She needed the physical connection to know he’d forgiven
her. “I know. I’m sorry.”

She stepped
into his arms and clung to him. Her voice broke when she whispered,
“You have nothing to be sorry for. I was so wrong. I should have
talked to you before I made that deal. That company, it really
belonged to you and your father. I just—”

“Sssh.” Alex
stepped back, taking her hands in his. Looking into his mother’s
eyes, he saw the grief his absence had caused. One day in the
not-too-distant future, he could be the one asking his own child
for forgiveness. “You didn’t do anything wrong. You were only
thinking about what was best for me and Eve. I get that now.”

“You do?”
Marianne asked, squeezing his hands. “Really?”

“Really.” He
released her hands and put his arm around her shoulders to lead her
into the comfortable family room that was the hub of the large
home. “You made the right call. It was time for me to step back
from the company. I just needed a little distance to figure things
out.”

“And now you
have? Figured things out, I mean?” Marianne looked hopeful. “Does
that mean you and Eve—”

He knew he
couldn’t ease the shock of the truth, so he’d decided to just say
it. “We’re going to have a baby.” Marianne’s eyes were wide as her
hand flew to her mouth. Alex smiled, knowing she’d prayed for that
almost as long as Eve had. “I’d say the man upstairs has a twisted
sense of humor, wouldn’t you?”

“Oh, Alex!” She
grabbed him in a tight embrace. “I’m so happy for you, for both of
you. But why would you agree to the divorce if—”

“I didn’t know.
Eve found out about the baby the day the divorce was finalized.”
Alex nodded at his mother’s look of dismay. “I know, talk about
lousy timing.”

“When did you
find out?”

“Just a few
days ago. I guess you know she tracked me down?”

“She told me,”
Marianne said, sighing. “I got the impression it didn’t go well,
but I had no idea…” Sitting on the sofa, she held out her hand,
inviting Alex to join her. “How did you react when she told you she
was pregnant?”

“Like an
idiot.” Alex knew there was no other way to describe it. “I was in
shock. I said things I shouldn’t have, jumped to conclusions I
shouldn’t have…” He leaned forward, letting his head drop. “I made
a real mess of things. I wouldn’t blame her if she never wanted to
see me again.”

“Couples argue,
son,” Marianne said, laying her hand on his back. “That’s just a
part of life.”

“Yeah, except
we’re not a couple anymore. The only thing holding us together is
this baby, and I’m afraid she’s going to do whatever it takes to
shut me out of their life.”

“That doesn’t
sound like Eve,” Marianne said gently. “She’s not the type to hold
a grudge because of a few harsh words spoken in the heat of the
moment.”

“It’s more than
that, Mom.” Alex propped his elbows on his knees and linked his
hands in front of his mouth. “I accused her of trying to get
pregnant. I even told her I wanted a paternity test.”

Marianne
gasped. “Oh my God, what were you thinking? You know Eve would
never—”

“I know that.”
Scraping his hands over his face, he squeezed his eyes shut. “I
wasn’t thinking. I just reacted.”

“Have you tried
reaching out to her to apologize?”

“Of course I
have. I’ve called her at least ten times, sent her a dozen text
messages. Hell, I even sent her flowers. She won’t talk to me.”

“So go there.
See her in person. You two are having a child together. She needs
to face you sometime.”

“I know. I’m
headed there now. I just wanted to stop by and ask you a favor
first.”

“Anything. You
know that.”

He said, “I
contacted the realtor. I’m putting my house on the market. Can you
drop your extra key off at her office in the morning?”

“Are you sure
you want to do that? I mean, if you and Eve can’t work things
out—”

“No matter what
happens, I won’t be coming back here.” He shifted to face his
mother. “Even if Eve doesn’t want me anymore, I need to be close to
my baby. I want to see him or her every day if I can, not just on
weekends and holidays.”

“I’ve already
transferred your share of the sale into your bank account,”
Marianne said, looking down at her hands. Even after all these
years, she still wore her wedding ring.

Alex looked at
his own bare hands. He’d taken off his wedding ring too soon. He’d
given up on his marriage too soon. He just hoped it wasn’t too late
to rectify his mistakes. “I don’t know exactly what I’m going to
do. I have an idea, but I need to talk to Eve before anyone
else.”

“I understand,”
Marianne said, patting his knee. “You’ll let me know as soon as you
can though, won’t you?”

“Of course.
Tell me something,” Alex said, hesitantly, “how did you know?”

“Know
what?”

“That it was
time for me to step away from the company.”

“I saw how much
it had changed you, and not in a good way.” She glanced at a
picture on the end table. Alex was wearing his cap and gown, his
arm around his mother and little sister as his father snapped the
picture. “You lost sight of what mattered. I knew you just wanted
to make your father proud, but Hugh was always proud of you. No
matter what you did, he knew you would give it everything you had,
and that’s all he ever asked.”

“Yeah, I
know.”

“He loved Eve
like his own daughter,” Marianne said, reaching for his hand. “He
made me promise that if something happened to him”—she cleared her
throat—“I wouldn’t let you get so lost in building that business
that you let it destroy your marriage.” A tear slid down her softly
lined cheek. “I couldn’t keep my promise to him. I failed you and
Eve. I should have taken action sooner—”

“Hey,” Alex
said, pulling her close, “this isn’t your fault. I did this. I
ruined my marriage, and it’s up to me to try to make things
right.”

“Do you really
think you can?” Marianne asked, pulling back to look him in the
eye.

A smile teased
his lips. “You know me, Mom. I’m gonna give it everything I’ve
got.”

The first person Alex
saw when he walked into the Lakeside Inn later that day was Jane.
He didn’t know whether he should be relieved or concerned that the
only person standing between him and Eve was her mother. “Hi, Jane.
How’ve you been?”

Pursing her
lips, she looked at him for an endless moment. “Better than my
daughter, that’s for sure.”

Eve and her
mother had obviously come a long way if she was so fiercely
protective of her. That knowledge put Alex’s mind at ease. She
needed her mother, especially with Sharon gone and a baby on the
way. “Speaking of your daughter, where is she?”

“Why should I
tell you?” she asked, straightening a stack of glossy
brochures.

“She told you
about what happened?”

Jane glared at
him. “Yes. She didn’t want to, but I finally got it out of her.”
She leaned over the desk and lowered her voice to a whisper so the
guests passing through the foyer wouldn’t overhear their
conversation. “How could you accuse her of lying to you about—”

“I was way out
of line. I know that. That’s why I’m here—to apologize.” His mouth
tipped up at the corner, and he hoped she could see he was being
sincere. “And to beg forgiveness.”

“Why should she
forgive you?”

Alex knew it
was time to call Jane out. He looked her in the eye. “Because we
both know she’s a loving and forgiving woman, don’t we? If she
wasn’t, she wouldn’t have welcomed you back into her life.”

They stared
each other down before Jane gave him a begrudging smile. “Okay,
point taken.”

“Does that mean
you’re going to tell me where she is?”

“She’s down by
the lake. I insisted she take some time to put her feet up after
dinner. She’s been working too hard. It’s not good for her… or that
baby of yours,” Jane said pointedly. “I hope you can talk some
sense into her. Convince her she needs to rest and get more sleep
and make sure she eats—” Jane smiled when she caught herself
rambling. “I really do sound like an over-protective mother, don’t
I?”

“You wear it
well,” Alex said, smiling. “But don’t worry, I’m going to make sure
she takes care of herself and our baby.” He winked at her. “You
have my word, Grandma.”

Jane’s eyes
filled with tears. She reached for his hand when he stepped away
from the desk. “She loves you, Alex. That’s why this is so hard on
her, because she loves you so much.”

“Trust me, the
feeling is mutual.” He kissed Jane’s hand. “If it takes the rest of
my life, I’m going to make it up to her. I wasn’t the husband I
should have been—I know that—but I will be the father our baby
needs.”

“I believe
you,” Jane said, smiling. “You just have to convince my
daughter.”

***

Eve was sitting
by the water—enjoying the soft lull of the waves as the setting sun
streaked the sky with a soft umber—when she felt someone behind
her. Turning around slowly, she was almost afraid to look up. Only
one person could make the hairs on the back of her neck stand up
like that…
Alex.

“Go away.”
Gripping the arms of her chair, she vowed she wouldn’t let the
crushing disappointment she’d been wrestling with for several days
rise to the surface. The stress wasn’t good for her or the baby,
and since peace had been hard to come by lately, she was determined
not to let him steal that too. “I have nothing to say to you.”