The Man She Should Have Married (15 page)

I kept my promise of silence for a long time. But now that I'm facing my own mortality, I think I made a mistake. All these years, you and I and Thea could have known one another, and I could have perhaps made your life easier. I'm sorry I didn't come forward sooner, but I hope that doing so now will make a positive difference in your life. If others are hurt by this disclosure, I'm sorry, but the truth needs to be told, for many reasons.

I admire you and respect you and think you are a wonderful mother. Please tell my granddaughter how much I love her and how proud I am to know I am responsible for some of her genes.

With much love,

Jonathan P. Kendrick

Olivia's eyes were moist when she finished reading the letter. He sounded like such a lovely man. How she wished she'd known about him sooner. And yet, she couldn't help feeling bad for Hugh. Did he have any idea Vivienne had been unfaithful to him? That Mark was not his son?

And Matt.

Did Matt know? Suspect? She didn't believe he did; he would have told her if he had. Especially since he'd freely admitted to her how much his mother had favored Mark. Even Mark had told her about Vivienne's favoritism and how uncomfortable it had made him, because Mark had loved and respected Matt. The brothers had been close, despite Vivienne's adulation of her youngest son.

And now Olivia knew why that adulation had existed. Vivienne must have still loved Jonathan Kendrick, even though she chose to stay in her marriage. Olivia could almost feel sorry for Vivienne. Almost. But nothing excused the unhappiness Vivienne had caused in other people's lives. It especially didn't excuse her recent behavior.

Still...no matter how or why Vivienne had become the person she now was, Olivia didn't want to be the one responsible for exposing her sins to the world. After all, she was
still
Thea's grandmother. Still Mark's mother. And still Matt's mother. And even if Olivia were willing to face off with Vivienne, the truth might destroy Hugh.

I can't do that to them.

Olivia was still thinking about the letter and its ramifications when Austin and Ken Standish came back into the office.

“I've made a decision,” she said.

Both men looked at her.

“I don't want to use what we've learned today as a weapon against my mother-in-law.”

“But, Olivia—” Austin said.

“No.” Olivia shook her head. “I won't be persuaded otherwise. You said yourself we have a strong case. I don't want to expose her. I don't want to hurt Hugh...or the rest of the family.”

“We do have a strong case, and actually, I received a phone call from the investigator I hired to look into all of Vivienne's so-called evidence while Ken and I were giving you privacy to read your letter, and he's turned up something potentially very good for our case. But you could still lose. There's no telling how the judge will rule. And once a ruling is made, it will be very difficult to change.”

Olivia shook her head. “You can't use the information about Mark's paternity. I won't allow it.” Making this public would ruin Vivienne. It would ruin Hugh. And it would completely ruin any chance of any kind of reconciliation with the family. “When Thea's older, she'll have to be told the truth, but not now. Not like this. No matter what she's done, I won't destroy Vivienne's reputation.”

“Olivia, be sensible. They are trying to destroy
yours
. They're lying about you, using any means at their disposal to try to take your daughter away from you. You have to fight back.”

“I will fight back, but not that way. I can't. Tell me what our investigator found.”

Austin sighed. “Vivienne is the reason Thea wandered off during the festival. I know we all thought it was a kitten or some other animal that drew her attention, but it wasn't. Our investigator found out Vivienne did it on purpose, just to make you look bad.”

“How could the investigator possibly know that?”

“Because she was seen doing it. He has a sworn eyewitness statement.”

Olivia was stunned. Did Matt know his mother was behind Thea's disappearance? She remembered the way he'd called his family after finding out Thea was missing. How he told her he hoped the custody case could be settled without dragging all of them through the mud. He must have, at least, suspected.

And he'd never said anything.

But almost immediately after thinking all this, she was ashamed of herself. How could she doubt Matt, even for one second? He couldn't have known. Not Matt.

He would have told her.

Chapter Fifteen

M
att couldn't concentrate on
anything Saturday morning. He went into the office to catch up on paperwork, but
he accomplished very little. He kept waiting for his phone to ring, willing each
call to be from Olivia. When, at one o'clock, she still hadn't called, he
finally texted her.

Austin will call you
,
she texted back.

Austin? Why couldn't
she
call him?
What the hell was going on?

Twenty minutes later, Austin called.

Matt listened without interrupting as Austin told him what
they'd learned in Ken Standish's office and then what his investigator had
turned up concerning Thea's disappearance from the Fall Festival.

“I'm frustrated, because Olivia has forbidden me to use the
information about your brother's paternity, which, on top of what the
investigator found, would ensure she'd keep custody of Thea.”

Matt wasn't shocked by the information about his mother luring
Thea from the festival—it was exactly the kind of thing she
would
do and he was surprised he hadn't suspected her.

Nor was he really shocked about Mark. He'd always known Mark
was the favorite of his mother's children, and now he finally understood why.
He'd also known about the problems in his parents' marriage. They'd been evident
from the time he was old enough to understand. But he had always imagined his
father might be the unfaithful one, not his mother. In some ways, knowing this
made her seem more human.

“Look, Austin,” he said, “Don't worry. I'll take care of
this.”

“How? Olivia said—”

“They're my parents, not Olivia's.”

“She said she couldn't live with herself if she exposed your
mother.”

That was like Olivia. “Like I said, I'll take care of
this.”

As soon as the call ended, Matt packed up his briefcase and
headed out. He drove straight to his parents' home.

“You have your nerve, coming here like this,” his mother said
when he walked into her sitting room.

“We have to talk.”

“We have nothing to say to one another.”

“Is Dad here?”

“Your father is golfing. Now please go.”

Matt suddenly felt sorry for her. Her entire world, the one
she'd built so carefully, was about to fall apart. But he hardened his heart. He
couldn't afford sympathy. Not when so much was at stake. “I'm not leaving until
we talk about Jonathan Kendrick.”

Her face stiffened with shock.

“He died last week. Did you know that?”

“J-Jon died?”

Matt saw the way her hands trembled as she clutched them in her
lap, but his resolve didn't waver. He explained the circumstances of Kendrick's
death as Austin had explained them. And then he told her about the will and the
letter Kendrick had written to Olivia.

“Austin Crenshaw wanted to present this information to the
judge on Monday, but Olivia—the same woman you have done your best to smear—told
him she couldn't be a party to something like that. I, however, have no such
qualms. So if you don't want the world to know about you and about the
circumstances of Mark's birth, you will go to court Monday morning and drop the
custody suit. Because if you continue with this vendetta against Olivia, I will
expose the truth.”

By now, his mother had recovered her aplomb and the sorrow he'd
glimpsed earlier had disappeared. She was once again the regal ice queen ruling
her kingdom. “You wouldn't dare.”

“Yes, Mother, I would.”

“You'd be ruining your own life. No one will vote for you for
dog catcher if you go ahead with this.”

“I honestly don't care.”

“You're bluffing.”

“I'm dead serious.”

She stared at him. “You mean it.”

“I do.”

“I won't forgive you for this.”

Matt suddenly felt exhausted. “You only have yourself to blame.
I'm just the messenger. And the son you always considered second best.”

“That's not true.”

“Which part? The blame? Or how you've always looked at me?”

When she didn't answer, he said wearily, “All of it
is
true, but you know what? It doesn't matter anymore.
Because I know exactly how you can make it all up to me...and keep your
reputation intact.”

She didn't interrupt as Matt told her he loved Olivia and
intended to marry her, if she'd have him. “And you will not do anything to
oppose our marriage or to make her unhappy. We don't have to play happy families
all the time, because we won't live in Crandall Lake. Since I'll be working
there, and I know Olivia wants to go back to school, I plan to buy a house in
San Marcos. But no matter what, you will, at all times, be civil and you will
not say one word against my wife, to anyone, ever. Do you understand? Because if
you do, I promise you, you will never see Thea again, and every bit of what I
found out today will be made public.”

In her eyes, he could see acknowledgment that she was beaten.
“So I have your word that you will call Jackson Moyer today? And instruct him to
drop the custody suit?”

“Yes,” she said through gritted teeth.

“And you agree to the rest of my terms?”

She nodded curtly.

Matt felt as if the weight of the world had been lifted from
his shoulders as he walked out the front door. He couldn't remember ever feeling
happier, and he couldn't wait to tell Olivia she no longer had to worry about
anything.

* * *

Olivia was overjoyed when Austin phoned to tell her
Jackson Moyer had called him to say that the Brittons were dropping the custody
suit.

“You're sure?” she said.

“Yes. Apparently, after I called him, Matt convinced your
mother-in-law dropping the suit was in her best interest.”

Olivia had barely hung up from the call with Austin when her
phone rang again and Matt's photo popped up on the screen.

“Hi, Matt,” she said, answering.

“Hey. Did Austin call you?”

“Yes.”

“Good. I just wanted to be sure you knew. Listen, I'm at my
office. I have a couple of things I need to wrap up, then I'm coming over.
Okay?”

Olivia looked at her watch. It was three o'clock. “Okay. I'm
going to take Thea to my mom's. I'll be back by four.”

“See you then.”

Her mother hugged her fiercely when Olivia told her the good
news. “Oh, honey, I'm so happy this nightmare is over. Do you know why the
Brittons backed off so suddenly?”

“Little pitchers,” Olivia said, glancing at Thea, who'd gone
into her mom's living room and had already pulled out the toy box her mom kept
for her visits. “I'll explain everything later, okay? Right now I need to go
back home.” In a lower voice, she said, “Matt is coming by. We need to settle
some things.”

“I understand,” her mother said. Then she smiled. “Give him my
love.”

Olivia nodded, but inside, her stomach clenched. Vivienne may
have dropped the suit, but she would still hate her. In fact, she probably hated
Olivia more now than she ever had. And no matter what concessions Matt might
have wrung from Vivienne, she would find ways to make Olivia's life even more
miserable than she had in the past. There was no way she and Matt could marry.
No way they'd ever be the kind of close, loving family Olivia craved. It
exhausted Olivia even to think about years and years of drama and stress.

Wouldn't Olivia be a lot better off accepting Eve and Adam's
offer and moving to California? Sure, she'd miss Matt terribly, but she'd get
over losing him. After all, she'd gotten over losing Mark, hadn't she? Wouldn't
they all be better off if she and Thea made a fresh start far away from the
Brittons?

As she drove back home, that question hounded her.

She just hoped when she finally saw Matt face-to-face today,
she would know the answer and be brave enough to accept it.

* * *

Matt put on his favorite Sirius station and sang along
with the radio as he drove the fifteen-mile distance between San Marcos and
Crandall Lake. He felt jubilant. Although he'd always believed there would be
some way to allay Olivia's fears and force his mother to accept his choice of
wife, he knew now he'd always had a small particle of fear lodged down deep.

But no more.

All fear was gone. His mother no longer had any power over him
or Olivia. They were free to declare their love to the world. He grinned.

Free to be together.

Free to marry.

Free to have other children, sisters and brothers for Thea.

Happiness made him laugh out loud. He couldn't wait to see
her.

* * *

Olivia got back home by three forty-five. Knowing Matt
would probably be right on time, she hurriedly changed her flannel shirt for a
bright red sweater, ran a comb through her hair and freshened her lip gloss.
Even though things might not turn out happily for them today, she still wanted
to look her best.

She heard his car turn into the driveway two minutes before the
hour. Her heart immediately accelerated, and she swallowed. She took several
deep breaths and by the time he rang the doorbell, she felt as ready as she'd
ever be.

It hurt to see the happiness on his face. It hurt to know she'd
doubted him, even for an instant, because she could see the truth in his eyes.
He had never lied to her, not even by omission. He
did
love her. But was his love enough? That had always been the
question.

The smile on his face faded as their gazes locked. “What's
wrong?”

She shook her head. “Let's go into the living room and
talk.”

He sat on the sofa, and she purposely sat across from him in
one of the side chairs. His frown deepened. “Has something else happened that I
don't know about? I would have thought you'd be jumping for joy.”

In that moment, everything seemed so clear to her. But how to
begin? “I'm happy about the custody suit being dropped, of course. And I'm
grateful for what you did to make that happen, because I couldn't have allowed
Austin to expose your mother to the world. But I've been doing a lot of thinking
in the past few days. And it all boils down to this—your mother is going to
resent me even more now than she ever did before. I'm sorry, Matt, but I just
don't see how there will ever be any future for us.”

He shook his head. “My mother won't give us any more trouble. I
can promise you that.”

“Why? Because you blackmailed her? Threatened her? You must
have. She would never have backed down otherwise. I—I don't see how we can have
any kind of future together that's built on that kind of foundation.” Olivia
willed herself not to cry, even though she wanted to weep at the expression on
his face. She knew she was hurting him terribly, yet how could things be any
different?

“This is crazy talk,” he said, jumping up. “You can't really
intend to allow my mother to rule the rest of your life. To ruin what we have
together.” Coming over to where she sat, he took her hand and pulled her to her
feet. Gathering her in his arms, he held her close.

She could feel his heart beating and she closed her eyes.

“Olivia, I love you and Thea more than life itself. Life won't
be worth living if I can't live it with the two of you.” He stopped for a
moment. “The question is, do you love me? I feel you do, but I need to hear you
say it as if you mean it.”

“Yes,” she whispered. “I do love you, Matt. So much.”

His arms tightened around her. “Then that's all that's
important. Everything else can be worked out.”

“But—”

Ignoring her attempt to interrupt, he said, “Listen to me. We
don't have to live in Crandall Lake. We can live in San Marcos. Or, if you feel
it's best to get away from my parents, I'm willing to relocate anywhere you
want. As long as I'm with you, nothing else matters.”

“But your life is here. Your job...”

“Is just a job. I can work anywhere.”

“How? You're licensed here in Texas.”

“I can take the bar in another state. Hell, I can do something
different if I want to. I've invested my inheritance from my granddad Britton.
Plus, my intended is a wealthy woman, isn't she?” He laughed to show her he was
teasing her. Then he became earnest again. “I know how much you want a close and
loving family. I've always known that. I want that, too, Olivia. But think about
it. We'll have each other. We'll have Thea, and we'll have more children, won't
we? We have your mother, your sister, my sister, Eve and her family. If my
parents want to be a part of this, they can be. And if they don't, that's their
choice, isn't it?”

Yes, she thought, it
was
their
choice. Matt was right. He was right! Blinking away her tears, she looked up.
Oh, God, she loved him so. “And, if necessary, you'd really consent to move
somewhere else? For me?”

“I'd do anything in the world for you. I've told you that
before.”

Their eyes held for a long moment.

And then, smiling, he dipped his head and kissed her.

She sighed into the kiss.

They stood together for a long time. And when kissing was no
longer enough, he scooped her up and carried her into her little study. This
time, when they made love on the daybed, they didn't have to worry about being
quiet so as not to disturb Thea. And they didn't have to hurry.

As their lovemaking reached its peak and they came together in
a joyous blend of bodies and hearts, Olivia knew she had finally found the home
she'd wanted for so long. “I love you, Matt.” Now that she'd said it without
fear and doubt, she wanted to keep saying it over and over again.