Laces and Lace (Assassins #6) (73 page)

“But what you guys think matters.”

“It shouldn’t. At the end of the day, we are all going to be too concerned with our own lives to be what you need. He’s what you need,” he said and Lacey agreed. She didn’t want to worry about what other people thought, but it was so hard when they were constantly putting him down and cheering for their marriage to fail.

“I just hate how no one supports us except you, and everyone is practically rooting for us to fail,” she said sadly, her heart breaking inside her chest. “I just want to have my family, and I want Karson, and I want it to work. I want the support, the love from my family, and it’s like I can’t have both.”

“And that’s not fair, but it won’t change,” he said as she looked up, wiping her tears. As she met her brother’s gray eyes, he said, “I need to tell you something, Lacey.”

“What?”

“I know you might get mad, but you have to remember, I didn’t want you to hurt anymore.”

Her heart picked in speed as he held her gaze. “What?”

Clearing his throat, he ran his hand through his sandy blond hair, his bicep flexing as he sucked in a deep breath. “Dad has this obsession with you. After he lost Mom, all he had left of her was you. I mean, you are spitting image of her, and you are the closest thing to her.”

She never realized that, but it made sense, and dread filled her gut as she watched her brother shift uncomfortably in his seat.

“No one is good enough for you, and while I agree, I don’t agree with how he has gone about it,” he said slowly. “I never knew about him running Karson off until you told me, but I did know about Ethan.”

Her brows came together. “Ethan?”

“Yeah, Dad always knew that Karson would be the one person to take you away from him. He told me that plenty of times, and that’s why he hates him so much. Well, he decided that if there was someone to replace him, then you’d never leave. So he paid Ethan to be with you.”

Her heart sank as she searched her brother’s eyes. “Are you serious?”

“Yeah, but then he wanted to be traded, so Dad paid him off again to break it off with you so he wouldn’t take you with him.”

“Oh my God,” she said, covering her mouth.

“Yeah, when I found out about it, I lost it,” Grady said, shaking his head. “I saw Ethan after one game, once you’d split up, and I went after him, was about to kick his ass, but then he told me what Dad did. So I confronted Dad and he admitted it, trying to say he did it to keep you close. I don’t know if you remember, but Dad had a black eye and said he got hit with the butt of a stick at practice. That wasn’t true. I hit him, and I’ve had an issue with him ever since.”

“Grady,” she gasped through her hands as tears gushed down her face. She couldn’t believe the words that she was hearing. Her father had either constantly tried to run her life or ruin her; she wasn’t sure which, but it hurt nonetheless. While she hadn’t loved Ethan, she had cared for him and thought he felt the same. To know it was all fake just hurt. It seemed like such a waste of time. Above all though, why did her father keep doing this to her? Meeting Grady’s gaze, she asked, “Do you think he set Karson up?”

Grady nodded. “I have no doubt, and I know he’s been using Rachel as a pawn. She craves attention from him since she has no dad, and I’ve told her repeatedly to stay out of it. But she’s selfish, like him, and doesn’t want you to leave.”

“I didn’t believe him,” she whispered as her body shook with a sob. Closing her eyes tightly, she wrapped her arms around her center, trying to hold herself together. She felt like at any moment she could fall apart. When Grady’s arms came around her, she sobbed into her big brother’s chest and let go. She just didn’t understand why her father would do this. Why would he hurt her like this? The pain was unbearable, but the worst part was that she hadn’t believed Karson. She hadn’t believed in their love.

“Why doesn’t Dad love me, Grady? Why doesn’t he want me to be happy?”

“He does, a little too much, and he doesn’t know how to let go. I love you, a lot, but as much as I want you to stay here, I want you to be happy. He doesn’t understand that. He wanted to control your life and, Lacey, you can’t let him. You have to do what makes you happy, and Karson does that. I’ve always known that, but I thought he was a jackass who ran out on you for the big leagues and I was wrong. I apologized to him for that, but I refuse to sit here and watch you throw him away for some petty-ass reasons.”

“He’s never stopped loving me. Ever,” she cried. “But I’m just so scared.”

“There is no reason to be, though. Like you said, he never stopped loving you in all that time, so why would he now?”

“Because I won’t—”

“Stop with the ‘I won’t,’ ‘I can’t,’ and the other crap you keep saying. If you love him and you want to be with him and you know that life is nothing without him, then you know what you have to do.”

“I have to go home,” she answered as she sucked in a deep breath.

“Yeah, because Chicago isn’t your home anymore. Home is wherever the hell he is.”

Looking up at Grady, her lip wobbled as she tried to smile. He had always looked out for her, always overprotective, and didn’t let anyone get close to her unless he thought they were good people. To know that he was in Karson’s corner meant a lot to her, and she couldn’t help but think maybe he was right. It hadn’t seemed right to break it off with Karson, but her fears were too much to handle. She’d turned into everything she hated, and she’d tried to let go of the one person who had always been her biggest supporter.

Who loved her, no matter what.

Even when she was being an idiot.

“I should call him,” she said reaching for her phone.

“Probably a good idea. I’m going to get a cup of coffee, and I’ll call the airline for you,” he said, but before he could get up, the door was flung open and in stomped in her husband.

“Karson?”

He turned and looked at her before looking at Grady. Pointing back at Lacey, he said, “I came to get her back. You have a problem with that?”

Grady scoffed. “None at all.”

Karson gave a curt nod and then met Lacey’s gaze. Her heart sang for him as her body shook with the need to be near him. He looked like hell, his hair all a mess, he wasn’t shaved, and his clothes were wrinkled, but he was her hell. Her husband.

Before he could say anything, she stood and said the only thing she could think of.

“I love you.”

K
arson wasn’t expecting that.

“What?” he asked, confused as his heart continued to pound in his chest. He hadn’t gotten a wink of sleep, and he’d been on edge the whole flight to Chicago. He’d tried to fly out as soon as he got off the phone with his dad, but the earliest they had was first thing this morning. Deciding he couldn’t sleep in the bed he shared with her without knowing if she’d ever sleep there again, he’d left for the airport and hung out there until his flight. So as he looked into her swimming-with-tears green eyes, he wasn’t sure if he’d heard her right or if he was hallucinating.

Clearing his throat, he looked deep into her eyes as she said, “I love you, Karson. I was wrong. You were right. I should have come home. I’m sorry.”

He almost collapsed to the floor, and he was convinced he would have if she hadn’t wrapped her arms around his middle, pressing her lips to his. Melting against her, he wrapped his arms around her as relief flooded through him. He thought this was going to be a fucking train wreck. He thought he would walk in here and she would kick him back out, but that wasn’t the case. Somehow overnight, she had gotten her head out of her ass.

Thank sweet baby Jesus.

Pulling back, he kissed her lips again and then again, before whispering, “I love you too. So much, but please, don’t do shit like this again.”

“I promise,” she whispered against his lips. “I knew I was wrong, but I was so scared, Karson. I don’t want to lose you.”

“I’m not going anywhere, Lacey. Nowhere. Not unless you are with me.”

Pressing his forehead to hers, he smiled, and when she smiled back, his heart soared. But then he heard a voice he could have gone without hearing at that moment, or ever, really.

“What the hell? I thought she left him,” Nate’s voice boomed.

“That’s what she said,” Rachel said, and when Karson looked over at her, he saw that her brows were pulled together, completely confused.

“Lacey, what is going on?” Nate asked as Karson’s arms tightened around her.

“What are you doing here?” Lacey asked, her fingers locking together around him. He could feel her heart pounding, and he could understand why. This was about to be ugly, but this time, he hadn’t promised anything and he wasn’t going to hold back.

“I came to check on you, honey. Rachel said you two split up,” Nate said, shutting the door and tucking his hands in his pockets.

“We never split up,” Karson corrected. “We just had a misunderstanding. Everything is fine.”

“Are you sure?” he asked Lacey, completely ignoring Karson.

“Yes. I said everything was fine,” he answered back, and this time Nate’s eyes met his.

“I’m talking to my daughter,” he said, venom lacing his low voice.

“Well, I am talking to you,” Karson said, but Lacey laid her hand on his chest, stopping him.

“I think you had the right idea before, Lacey. I thought you were done,” Rachel said, but Grady came over, sliding his arm around her waist.

“This isn’t our business, Rachel,” he insisted. “I think we should leave.”

“It is my business,” she said, pushing out of his arms. Looking back at Lacey, she said, “Lacey, this is not a good idea. Let him go.”

“Yes, listen to your best friend, your father,” Nate urged, but Lacey shook her head.

“No,” Lacey said sternly. “I’m tired of doing what you tell me. I let you and Rachel put doubt in my mind, but no more. I want my happiness, and that’s Karson.”

“No,” Rachel said, shaking her head. “You are making a mistake, Lacey.”

“I’m not.”

“Yes, you are. It won’t work. You two are different people, and he wants kids and you don’t. It won’t work,” Rachel persisted, and Karson decided he really did hate that woman.

“We will work it out,” Karson hissed. “We are still learning. This is new to us, and we can figure it out as long as all of you stay out of it.”

“I told you this is none of your business, and Karson’s right. How do you know what will work between them?” Grady asked Rachel and that surprised Karson. “She is an adult. She can make her own choices. It’s not our life. It’s hers.”

“Whose side are you on?” Nate demanded.

“Hers,” Grady asked. “Or his. Whatever. I just want my baby sister to be happy, and if it’s with that guy, then I support it.”

“You’re insane,” Rachel complained. “He is going to hurt her again.”

“Never,” Karson promised at the same time that Lacey said, “He isn’t the one out to hurt me.”

Karson paused, looking down at her along with everyone else. While she was right, he didn’t understand her statement. Letting go of him, she took a step toward her father but not without lacing her fingers with Karson’s, holding their hands behind her back. “You are.”

“What?” Nate said, his bushy eyebrows shooting up. “I want nothing more than for you to be happy.”

“No, if that were the case, then you wouldn’t continually sabotage me.”

“What the hell are you talking about, Lacey Arielle?”

“He has done nothing but love you,” Rachel added, and Lacey cut her a look that could kill.

“Shut up, you don’t know anything,” she snapped, and Rachel made a face as Lacey turned her attention to her father. “How could you?”

“How could I what? I haven’t done anything.”

But Lacey shook her head, her hand squeezing Karson’s. He moved behind her, wrapping his free arm around her waist to give her support as she said, “You’ve tried to ruin my life over and over again, and I’m done, Dad. We are through. You won’t hurt me any longer, nor will I ever talk to you again.”

“What? I would never. I’ve only loved you.”

“I’m not even going to go back as far as when all the cancer stuff happened or even when you ran Karson off. I forgave you for all that, but paying Ethan to marry me and then cheat on me? That is inexcusable.”