Before Sunrise (40 page)

“
It’s not your business.
None of it is your business. I don’t care what the world wants to
know about my marriage, about Liam or Phil. I would never go on
television and air my laundry! All I care about is putting my life
together the way it should be.”

Gail slowly smiled. She softened. She
approached Kennedy and cupped her face into her hands. “Fine, baby.
That’s what I want for you. Phil has been so good for—”

“
With Liam.” Kennedy turned
from her mother’s touch. It felt cold and controlling, not loving
and understanding like her father’s. “Liam is my husband. He was
the day he left. He was my husband the five years they tortured and
kept him from me. And he was again the moment he walked back
through my door. We’re a family again, mama. The way we should
be.”

“
What about Phil?” Gail
stepped back.

“
Phil moved out. it’s over.
Liam and I will be starting our life together. So we don’t need you
addressing the press or updating strangers on us. In fact, you stay
away from them. If you make one statement, if you say anything to
the press or Liam that is out of line you have to go.”

“
I can’t believe you are
still this foolish! I’m sorry that he was hurt. Thank God he’s
alive Kennedy, the man had to have been through hell. But you have
a daughter to consider. Are you saying you would put Liam over
Mackenzie? You can get angry, but I have to say it. That man ruined
your life. He ruined your future. He destroyed our family. He’s
back to do it again! And finally you got a chance at
happiness—”

“
GAIL! That’s enough!”
Andrew’s stern voice boomed behind his wife.

Gail whirled on her husband, shocked. She
shook with anger and tears. She looked from Kennedy to Andrew with
her mouth curled in anger. “This is your fault, Andrew. All of it
is your fault. Do you see! Do you see what you’ve done to her, by
enabling her?”

“
I told you in the car that
we’ll leave if you do any more damage here.”

“
Damage? She’s our daughter.
You have never stood up for her. You handed her over to that…that
man, and you’re still doing it!” Gail stormed out of the room.
Andrew watched her go as if he wanted to follow her. He looked
stricken. One thing Kennedy knew for sure was that her father
adored her mother. Why and how, she never understood, but if Gail
was upset so was he. She loved her dad and how complete and giving
his heart was. She also felt a lot of guilt over the pain she
inflicted on her parents. Kennedy put her hands to her face and
sucked in a deep breath.

“
I’m sorry, honey.” Andrew
comforted her, rubbing her shoulders.

“
It’s not your fault, daddy.
Mama can’t forgive any of us for hurting her. I get that. And I
love her, daddy, I love her so much but I won’t let her take me
back there. I made my choice at seventeen. There’s no undoing it.
All these years she’s helped me start again with Phil as if that
could be what I wanted. What I want, daddy, is Liam. It’s all I
ever wanted. Why can’t she see him the way I do?”

Andrew turned Kennedy and lifted her chin
with his finger. “Hey, look at me. You and your mother are so much
alike. You love hard. This is just her way of protecting you.
Remember, I told you she took the same chances on love with
marrying me that you did with Liam. I worked hard to give her the
life she deserves, and in the process she has forgotten what we
sacrificed to gain our family. In her own way, she thinks she’s
protecting you. She thinks she’s responsible for your choosing
Liam. That we didn’t protect you.”

“
I caused you two problems,
didn’t I? When I ran away and you helped us. She hasn’t forgiven
you completely, either, has she?”

“
Daddy’s a big boy. And I
never regretted one day of helping you find happiness. I in believe
in you, Kennedy. I always have. I always will.”

“
Thank you, daddy. I love
you too.”

Chapter Seventeen

April 1995

Each time Liam heard the chimes ring above
the glass door of the Denny’s, his heart dropped. He stared down
into his coffee, waiting. A cup of coffee was all he could afford.
He hadn’t eaten last night. He bought Kennedy a burger and fries.
He said he wasn’t hungry, and to be honest he wasn’t. His nerves
were shot. The waiting was the worst. He had no idea what to expect
or if his plan would work. He just knew that he had to try.

“
Liam?”

Liam’s eyes lifted to a tall black man with
powerfully set shoulders and a deep scowl. He felt ten years old
under Andrew Washington’s hard gaze. Liam eased out of the booth
seat and extended his hand. “Hi Mr. Washington, sir. How was your
flight?”

Andrew looked down at Liam’s hand, then up
into his eyes again. Liam lowered his hand. He understood why his
handshake was refused. He and Kennedy had been gone for three
months without a word to her family. Sierra updated them on
whatever she could find out. The police were looking for them at
first, but now they’d classified Kennedy as a runaway. Andrew
Washington had hired a big detective agency to hunt for them. They
almost caught them in DC. That’s when he had to sell his car and
get the bus ticket that led them to Texas. But the money was out
and so were their options. He only had one option, and it would
require help.

“
Please, sir, sit
down.”

Andrew sat stiffly in the booth. His gaze
never left Liam’s. Liam nervously checked his watch. He had left
Kennedy in the dirtbag motel, asleep. He didn’t like the people
hanging about and wanted to get back to her as soon as he could.
He’d walked the three miles to the Denny’s to wait for her
father.

“
Where’s my daughter?”
Andrew asked, his lips barely moving.

“
She’s safe.”

“
Where is she?”

“
Close. Um, sir, look.
First, I want to apologize to you. I never properly introduced
myself to you and your wife. My name is Liam Flanagan—”

“
I know all about you,”
Andrew said.

He had that darkness in his eyes that Liam
knew well. The same look his stepfather wore before he’d beat and
kick the shit out of him. Liam never feared violence. He had
endured his fair share, and a little more to keep the evil bastard
off his mother and his sick sister. However, Andrew Washington’s
glare reduced him to feelings of unworthiness. As if he were some
cradle-robbing pervert. It cut him deep. Inside, he wanted this
man’s respect.

“
I’m sure you’ve heard about
my troubles in the past. But that’s changed. I mean it’s all in the
past. I’ve changed. To be honest, sir, I changed because of
Kay.”

“
Kay?” Andrew
frowned.

Liam managed a weak smile. “I call her Kay.
She’s so special. I mean, special in the way she’s showed me I can
be different. We um, we want to get married.”

“
That’s not going to
happen.” Andrew sat back coolly.

Liam leaned forward. “It will happen, sir.
You can’t stop it. I didn’t make her run away. She chose to. She
wanted to be with me. She loves me.”

“
She’s a kid. But you know
that, don’t you? A kid that has no idea what gutter you came out
of, you punk.” Andrew slammed his fist on the table. The cutlery
and his cup clanked on his saucer. Two diners looked
over.

“
She’s not a baby anymore
and in three months she’s eighteen. Sir, in three months she will
be my wife and you can’t stop it. I don’t want to do it that way. I
want your permission—”

Andrew scoffed. “You must be insane. No. I
must be insane. To come here and not tell my wife. To think I could
convince you to give me my child back. I’ll just go to the police,”
Andrew said, flinging himself out of the booth.

“
And we’ll run. You’ll never
see her again.”

Andrew’s large hands clenched into fists.
The veins in his neck bulged. Liam feared he’d pushed the man past
his limits.

“
Hear me out, sir. Please
hear me out. It’s important.”

Andrew remained tense, on the edge, but he
eased back into the vinyl seat. Liam swallowed down his fear and
summoned his fearlessness. “She and I love each other. I didn’t
plan it. And I don’t want her to suffer because of it. I want to
join the military. Naval Air Station is here, so I went there and I
met with a recruiter. Thing is, I have to be married to take care
of Kay. We can wait. We can bum around for three months and do it
then. But I don’t want her to suffer. I don’t want her to have to
go without anything because of me. I can’t let that happen. She
loves you and her family. She needs you, sir. If you can support
us, give us your consent, you will have her and so will I. The way
I see it, a compromise means we both win and I get to keep her, I
mean, love her. I thought about this long and hard before I called
your office to set up this meeting. I thought about what I would
say to you. How I would convince you that this here is real. That
I’m for real. All I can do is tell you the truth. She’s my entire
world. She’s everything to me. Please. Give us your blessing.
Please.”

Andrew closed his eyes. “She’s my baby girl.
She has a bright future. Since she’s been gone her mother cries
herself to sleep. I can barely get her out of bed. And her sister…”
Andrew’s voice choked with emotion. “Her sister cries herself to
sleep too. Do you understand what you have done to my family?”

“
Yes, sir. I am so sorry. I
am so sorry for all of it. I handled it wrong. We both did. But
when you forbid us from seeing each other—”

“
She’s seventeen!” Andrew
yelled.

The entire diner went silent. Every eye in
the place turned to them. Liam couldn’t back down from the
accusation in that statement. He’d taken her virginity on a picnic
table at a beach, stolen her away on weekends to drink and have
sex. Snuck into the Washington’s house and laid with her and filled
her head with fantasies. He was no hero. Hell, he was a selfish
bastard just like his stepfather, only seeing what his needs were.
But the truth was if he let her go he wouldn’t want to live. He was
sick of his shitty life, of his existence. She was the only person
keeping him alive.

“
I love her,” Liam said. “I
love her, and I can’t change that.”

“
I want to see her. I want
to hear from her that this is what she wants.”

Liam frowned. “If you bring the police, if
you take her from me she won’t forgive you. You can lock her up,
you can force us apart, and she will blame you. And unless they put
a bullet in me, I won’t stay away. I won’t stop trying to be with
her. Then she will be eighteen, and she will come back to me. It’s
only three months away, sir. You can talk to her and she will tell
you. I’m asking you to please help us.”

“
Take me to my daughter.
Now!”

“
Yes, sir. Yes, okay.” Liam
dug in his pocket and pulled out the last three dollar bills he had
left. He put them on the table. This had better work. If it didn’t,
he didn’t know what they’d do next.

Kennedy gurgled then spit sudsy paste into
the sink. She let the tap rinse it down the drain. Turning it off
she heard the door open. She had good news. She’d woken to find
Liam gone. Possibly to get them breakfast. She’d wanted to shower
and clean up their room. The motel was $139 a week, and the service
was pretty lacking. She’d dressed and gone to the front desk to ask
for clean towels, which is where she saw the help wanted sign for a
maid. She asked if they were hiring and they were. Now she could
work, and that would help. Liam was so upset about money. This
would surely turn things around.

“
Liam!” She grinned,
hurrying out of the bathroom in panties and his T-shirt. Kennedy
froze. Standing in the motel room was her father. He looked her
over and then, over their meager surroundings. She could see his
eyes well with tears.

“
Daddy? How did you find
us?”

Andrew walked over and lifted Kennedy into
an embrace. Her dad’s hug was so tight she burst into tears from
both relief and sadness. She held on to him. She tried not to think
of her family. Tried not to miss them. She lied to Liam and said it
didn’t hurt and didn’t matter. But from one roach motel to the
next, it did, because she loved them so much and she knew what
she’d done had hurt them deeply.

“
I’m so sorry, daddy. I’m so
sorry.”

“
Shhh sweetheart, it’s okay.
Thank God you’re okay.” He stroked the back of her head. “I got you
now.”

Kennedy let go of him but Andrew held her a
little longer before releasing her. He touched her face, wiped off
her tears with his thumb. “Are you okay, sweetheart?”

“
I’m fine, daddy. How’s
mama, and Harper?”

“
They miss you, Kennedy. You
scared your mother to death. You scared me to death. Three months
and no word from you. How could you do that? Do you know what you
put us all through?”

“
I’m sorry,” Kennedy said
softly.

Liam opened the door to leave. Kennedy
pushed away her father’s hands. “Liam, don’t go. Did you do this?
You called my dad? Why? Why would you do that?”

Liam closed the door. “I had to, Kay. I want
him to give us his blessing. I did it for you.”

Kennedy’s heart leapt. She turned and smiled
at her father. “Is it true? Will you help us?”

“
Leave us alone,
son.”