Never Say Never (23 page)

“You defended him, because he was the one that defended you. I know.” She nodded.

“Exactly.” Lucas nodded. “Don’t I deserve some loyalty points for that?”

“I guess so.” Hayley nodded slightly. “I’m sorry too.”

Lucas looked at her and tilted his head slightly.

“I also made all the wrong assumptions about you, accusing you of trying to trick me, and the way I spoke to you was completely unacceptable.”

“I probably deserved them.” Lucas slowly walked over to her and took her hands in his. “But you never deserve to be spoken to in such a way, no matter what the situation. I never meant to make you feel disrespected, because I respect you more than you will ever know. You raised Owain all by yourself, regardless of who his father was, or what he did to you. You are the epiphany of strength and character, Hayley.”

Hayley looked into his hazel eyes and felt the warmth of his skin against hers. The smell of him filled her nostrils and she smiled slightly.

“I want to be with you, Hayley. I want to wake up next to you every morning, and watch you drift off to sleep every night. I want to sing Sesame Street songs with Owain and watch him grow up. I love you, and Owain, more than you will ever know.” Lucas looked at her.

Hayley could see the honesty in his eyes and felt a tear run down her cheek. “Even if
he’s your brother’s kid.”

“I’ve never seen him as Ric’s kid, Hayley. He’s yours, and I always saw him like that. He’s a part of you.” Lucas said.

“And if Owain asks about his dad?” Hayley asked.

“Then we’ll tell him the truth. The censored truth at least.” Lucas said. “It’s not complicated, Hayley. We’ll figure it out, together.”

“You’re willing to do that?” She frowned at him.

“Of course I am. Haven’t you been listening to a word I’ve said?” Lucas gave her a crooked smile.

“Mom?” She heard Owain’s voice behind her and she whirled around.

Owain was standing beside them and Hayley saw Grace running towards them. “Sorry, Hales, I tried to keep him occupied.” Grace was out of breath and panting.

“It’s okay.” Hayley shook her head and chuckled at Grace.

“For a kindergarten teacher you are really unfit.” Lucas laughed.

“Yeah well, its summer vacation, give me a break.” She panted and pointed her finger at Owain. “He’s a fast one.”

Hayley and Lucas laughed and Grace looked
at them. “Everything okay over here?”

Hayley looked at Lucas and then back at Grace. “Everything is good.”

“Good.” Grace nodded.

“Mom?” Owain asked.

“Yes, baby?” Hayley knelt next to him.

“Are you two back together now?” He asked.

Hayley’s eyebrows shot up and she almost lost her balance.

“That’s a good question, Owain.” Grace smiled at him.

“Luke?” Owain looked over at him.

“Only if your mom says so.” Lucas winked at him.

“Mom?” Owain frowned.

Hayley stood up and looked at Lucas. She smiled slightly and looked back at Owain. “I think so.”

“You think so?” Owain asked and she nodded. “Luke, did you apologize like I said you should?”

Hayley and Grace chuckled at Lucas’ face as Owain stood in front of him.

“I did.” Lucas answered.

“And did she forgive you?” Owain asked.

“I forgive him, Owain.” Hayley walked over and put her hand on Owain’s head.

“That’s the best news ever.” Owain nodded
and smiled slightly. “Good job, Luke.”

“Thanks little man.” Lucas winked at him.

“Come on, Owain. Let’s give them some privacy.” Grace held her hand out at Owain.

“Yes, it’s gross when they kiss.” Owain nodded and took Grace’s hand.

Hayley laughed as Grace took Owain back to the front yard and she looked at Lucas.

“He thinks it’s gross?” He smiled at her.

“Apparently.” She nodded with a slow smile. “Luckily I don’t.”

“That really is the best news ever.” He walked over to her.

She tilted her head and looked up at him. He cupped her face with his hands and kissed her. She wrapped her arms around his waist and held on to him. He was the first to pull back and looked at her with a crooked smile.

“What?” She narrowed her eyes playfully.

“I’ve missed you.” He smiled and tucked a strand of blonde hair behind her ear.

“I’m actually glad you came.” She smiled at him.

“What do you mean? I wasn’t going to miss the party of the year.” Lucas grinned.

Hayley smiled at him and looked over at the yard. Owain, Grace and Heather were playing on the grass, and Patrick and Steve were sitting on the lawn chair chatting intently.
She smiled at Owain’s smiling face and looked at Lucas. “You know what?”

“What?” He looked at her and put his arm around her shoulder.

“I’m really lucky to have such a wonderful kid.” She smiled at him. “And with you around, he’ll grow up to be more than amazing.”

Lucas gave her a slow smile and kissed the top of her head, feeling truly happy for the first time in his life.

Epilogue – Nice to meet you, Dad

Lucas looked over at Hayley as the car came to a stop and watched as she bit her lip, deep in thought. He reached over and placed his hand on her thigh. She looked at him slowly and her lip slid out from between her teeth.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Lucas asked, his tone soft and hushed.

“Yes. I am sure.” She nodded.

“Because you don't have to.” He said to her.

“I want to.” She nodded.

Slowly, she turned in her seat and looked at Owain sitting on the backseat. His head was down and he was playing on his Nintendo, furiously pressing the buttons on the controller.

“Owain.” Hayley said and Lucas also looked at Owain.

Owain slowly raised his face to them and Lucas' eyebrows shot up. He immediately saw Ric in Owain and smiled slightly.

“You're right. He looks just like him.” Lucas whispered and Hayley nodded.

“I look just like who?” Owain asked.

“Your dad.” Hayley said to him.

“I look like my dad?” Owain asked.

“Yes, baby.” Hayley nodded.

“Oh, okay.” Owain looked at her and shrugged slightly. Suddenly becoming aware of his surroundings, he looked out the window and frowned. “Where are we?”

“We want to show you something, buddy.” Lucas said after a few seconds.

Owain looked at the two of them and frowned, placing his Nintendo on the seat next to him.

“What is it?” Owain looked at them.

“You know when I told you that your dad died?” Hayley asked.

“Yes, when you shouted at me.” Owain frowned.

Hayley raised her eyebrows apologetically and nodded. “Yes. Well, I thought that you wanted to come see where he was buried.”

“You brought me to visit my dead father?” Owain frowned again.

“Yes.” Hayley nodded.

“That's creepy.” Owain pulled a face and looked at Lucas. “Why would you bring me to see him, you told me that he was bad.”

“I thought he was bad, baby.” Hayley sighed.

“Buddy, we all thought he was bad.” Lucas frowned. “Turned out that he wasn't.”

“How do you mean?” Owain looked at Lucas.

“He tried to make things right, I just didn't know about it.” Hayley said.

“Did it work?” Owain asked.

“In a way yes.” Lucas nodded.

“You knew him, didn't you, Luke?” Owain asked.

Lucas cleared his throat and looked at Owain. “How did you know?”

“Because you knew exactly where you were going, and Mom told me that she didn't know where he was buried.” Owain said and Lucas looked at him with slight disbelief.

“You're right, baby. Lucas knew your dad.” Hayley said and looked at Lucas. “He knew him really well.”

“Was he your best friend, Luke?” Owain asked.

“In a way yes.” Lucas nodded sadly.

“I don't understand.” Owain frowned and looked at his mother.

“Your dad was Lucas' brother.” Hayley said slowly. “Do you understand, baby?”

Owain looked at Hayley and Lucas, as if he couldn't believe what they just said. “Have you known the whole time?”

“No, we didn't.” Lucas shook his head.

“We would have told you if we did.” Hayley
said.

“Okay.” Owain nodded and looked at Hayley. “So if my dad was Luke's brother...”

There was a moment of silence in the car as Hayley and Lucas watched as Owain thought things through in his mind.

“That makes Luke my uncle.” Owain said eventually.

“Yes. Lucas is your uncle.” Hayley nodded and looked at Lucas.

“I never thought of it like that.” Lucas looked at Hayley and she smiled at him. He looked at Owain and raised an eyebrow. “But you're not allowed to call me Uncle Luke, okay?”

“I won't.” Owain chuckled and looked at Hayley. “What was his name?”

“It was Richard, but everyone called him Ric.” Hayley answered and looked at Lucas. Lucas gave her a slight wink and smiled.

“Can I go talk to him?” Owain asked.

Hayley nodded at him. “Of course you can, but only if you want to.”

“I want to. I have a lot to say to him.” Owain nodded and reached for the door handle.

Lucas took her hand as Hayley watched as Owain walked over to the charcoal grey tombstone. The gravel crackled under his
sneakers and he stopped a few feet from it. He dug his hands into the front pockets of his hooded sweatshirt and looked at the writing engraved on the stone.

“I wonder what he is thinking.” Hayley whispered as Lucas put his arm around her and pulled her close.

“Honestly, I think he's still processing.” Lucas said and kissed the top of Hayley's head. “What about you? What are you thinking?”

She let out a soft sigh and rested her head on his shoulder. “I'm glad that he knows, now I don't have to lie to him
anymore. I am just wondering how he will handle all this. It's a lot to process, and he's only six.”

“You know what I think?” Lucas asked.

“What is that?” Hayley looked up at him.

“I think he's going to be perfectly fine.” Lucas whispered.

Hayley nodded and looked over at Owain, still standing by the tombstone.

“Come on. Let's go say hi to Ric.” Lucas said and she nodded again.

As they walked closer they heard Owain start talking.

“I'm very mad at you, you know.” Owain said.

Hayley and Lucas stopped abruptly and looked at one another. “That sounds like something Ric would say.” Lucas smiled slightly.

“Really?” Hayley frowned.

“Oh yeah. When he was twelve he used to tell that to everyone.” Lucas smiled sadly.

Hayley gave him an encouraging smile and put her arms around his
waist and they looked at Owain.

“You missed my birthday.” Owain continued. “Luke was there, and your mom and dad, but it's okay. It would have been nice to know you. Mom says I am a lot like you. I don't know about that, though. I won't ever leave her, like you did.” Owain frowned and crouched down onto the gravel. He scooped up a handful of pebbles and slowly dropped them one by one. “Mom said that you tried to make things right for leaving, so I guess you're not as bad as they thought. At least you did something.” He frowned and stood up again. “I really like Luke, and I am glad that we're family. And I hope it's okay if I call you Ric, instead of Dad.”

Owain was quiet for a few seconds and he walked closer to the tombstone. He placed his hand on the engraved angel and Hayley felt a tear run down her cheek.

“I want to tell you something.” Owain whispered
, leaning closer to the granite. He paused for a few seconds and smiled slightly. “Luke is a real clever guy, he passed all my tests, and I don't think there is anyone else that can take better care of me and my mom than him. But I think you already knew that. That's why Luke was in the store that night, because you sent him there. So thanks, Ric.”

Owain heard Lucas and Hayley's shoes on the gravel and he looked over at them.

“Are you okay, buddy?” Lucas asked.

“Yes, I was just talking about stuff.” Owain nodded. “He's a really good listener.”

Hayley and Lucas chuckled softly and Lucas knelt next to him. “He always was.”

“Does this mean I have to change my name to Donovan?” Owain looked him straight in the eyes.

“You don't have to if you don't want to.” Hayley said to him.

Owain looked at her for a few seconds and looked back at Lucas. “I'll think about it, but I think
Ric would have liked that.”

Hayley wiped a tear from her cheek and looked over at the tombstone. Lucas looked at Hayley and stood up.

“Mom, do you want us to leave so you can talk to him alone?” Owain asked.

Hayley looked at Owain with a smile and knelt next to him. She pulled him close and
held him tightly.

“That's definitely a yes.” Owain muttered as he tried to pull free from Hayley's tight embrace.

“I love you baby.” She whispered to him and loosened her hold on him.

“Love you too, Mom.” Owain nodded at her and she ran her fingers through his hair.

“We won't be too far.” Lucas said as they stood up together and she nodded. He gave her a swift kiss on her lips and walked down the gravel footpath with Owain.

Hayley took a deep breath and looked at the gravestone. “I hated you for a long time, but you know why I did.
I kept thinking to myself that you got exactly what you deserved, not knowing what exactly happened. It's not as if I wanted to know either. When Lucas gave that letter to me, it was as if all the memories of you came back and I remembered the kind person that I thought I saw in you. Turns out I was right about you.” Hayley spoke slowly, sadness evident in her voice. “Life never turns out the way that we think it will, or hope it will, and even though all those things happened, you gave me the most valuable thing in this world. He's the best thing in my life and I can't imagine my life without him.” Hayley wiped a tear from her cheek and crossed her arms. “I'm sorry for portraying you as the villain all this time. I never thought that I would ever say that.” She walked closer to the tombstone and lightly ran her fingers along the rough edge. Two more tears ran down her cheeks and she let out a soft sigh. “You should give yourself more credit, regardless of what your dad thinks. You have a son that is mind-blowingly smart. He challenges me every day, which is good. He's also a Spiderman addict, and sometimes, when he looks at me, he reminds me of you. A lot actually. He's definitely a Donovan.” Hayley frowned and looked around her. “I wish you could have met him. He's such a great kid.” Hayley burst out into tears and sobbed her heart out. “I'm so sorry. About everything.”

She felt Lucas p
ut his arms around her and she cried against his chest. He slowly ran his fingers through her hair and whispered in her ear. “It's okay.”

She pulled away and looked at him, as he wiped her tears with his thumb.

“Mom?” She heard Owain next to her and looked at him. “Everything is going to be okay.”

She smiled slightly and pulled him against her. “I love you so much.”

“I know.” He nodded. “I love you too, Mom.”

“And I love both of you. A lot.” Lucas said.

“We know.” Hayley looked at Lucas and winked at him.

“Mom, I'm hungry.” Owain said and Lucas and Hayley look at him.

“I know how you feel, buddy.” Lucas chuckled.

“Come on then, boys.” Hayley motioned to the car.

As the three of them walked towards the car, Owain stopped and turned to the grave again.

“Bye Ric! See you later!” Owain called out with a wave.

Hayley and Lucas exchanged looks and Lucas smiled slightly. Hayley took his hand, brought it up to her mouth and kissed it softly. Lucas smiled and looked at her, knowing that everything will be better than he ever imagined, because he had Hayley and Owain beside him.