Trade Off (20 page)

“That’s nice,” Muriel said, smiling. “Give them our love.”

“I will.” He reached for one of the homemade oatmeal raisin cookies on the plate. “You know how much I missed these?”

She laughed as she stacked several on a plate and handed it to him. “I remember you and Danny used to polish off an entire batch while they were still on the cooling rack.”

“You could’ve put Mrs. Field’s out of business with these.”

“I don’t know about that.” Her cheeks flushed at the compliment. “I do a lot of baking for church fundraisers though. I enjoy it. It keeps me busy and it’s nice to help a good cause. Besides, our church has always been there when we needed support.”

Peter Clarke came down the stairs and paused in the doorway to the kitchen, opening his arms to Aiden. “Get over here and gimme a hug, boy.”

Aiden laughed, never questioning whether he should do what he was told. Mr. Clarke was one of those teachers whose genuine interest in all of his students and his low-key demeanor made him a favorite among students and faculty. He didn’t shout or command respect. He didn’t have to. People respected him because they liked him, and they knew he would go the distance to help someone who was struggling. “It’s great to see you.”

“It’s been too damn long,” Peter said, slapping his back as he claimed the seat beside Aiden. “You forget where we live, or what?”

“No, I just didn’t want it to be awkward, you know, because of Neil.”

Peter accepted the mug of coffee his wife offered with a grateful nod. “You were always family. You know that.” He looked Aiden in the eye when he said, “We thought it was a travesty when our little girl decided to marry him instead.”

“I’m beginnin’ to understand why she felt she had to do that.” Aiden knew he had to tread lightly. Her parents were bound to have some strong opinions about what tore them apart, and the last thing he wanted to do was alienate them. He needed them in his corner, and more than that, he wanted them back in his life. “I’ve talked to both of them about what happened…” He cleared his throat, trying to find a delicate way to introduce Sela’s pregnancy.

“You mean the baby?” Peter clarified.

“Yeah.” Aiden wrapped his hands around his coffee mug as he searched for the words to make them understand. “I want you to know… if I’d known that she was having my baby, I would’ve been here for her, without question.”

Peter released a gusty sigh. “We know that, son. We wanted to tell you. So many times, I had that phone in my hand, so did Muriel, but we just couldn’t bring ourselves to go against our daughter’s wishes.”

“I understand. It was her place to tell me about the baby, not yours. I don’t blame you.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” Muriel said, reaching for his hand. “Do you still blame Sela for the choices she made?”

That was the million-dollar question. Would he ever be able to forgive her or trust her again, or was she right? Would this remain the insurmountable issue that kept them apart? “I’m tryin’ to understand what she was goin’ through. I know it couldn’t have been easy on her.”

“You have no idea,” Muriel said, quietly. She shared a look with her husband. “Our whole family was going through a rough time then.”

A sense of dread captured Aiden. If there were more secrets, he wasn’t sure he wanted to know. “What do you mean?”

“Right around the time Sela found out about the baby, the doc told me I was sick… real sick.” Peter reached for his wife’s hand. “Prostate cancer.” He smiled at Aiden. “Don’t look so shocked, boy. I got through it just fine, thanks to my family.”

Aiden needed a moment to process the news.  He could only imagine how Sela must have felt when she found out she could lose her father. Her parents, like his, had always been a strong source of support for her growing up. He hated to think she had gone through that without him by her side to help her through it.

“Does that mean you’re in remission?” Aiden asked.

“Yes, thank the Lord,” Muriel said, smiling at her husband. “Now we realize it was a blessing. If anything, it made us appreciate what we have even more.”

Aiden cleared his throat. “Yeah, losing someone you love, or in your case, almost losing someone you love, makes you realize what really matters. What I don’t understand is why Sela didn’t tell me you were sick.”

“She didn’t want you to take pity on her,” Muriel said, smiling at him. “Whether you believe it or not, she was trying to do what she thought was best.”

Peter frowned. “We tried to help her make the right decision, but I’m afraid we just made matters worse. If we hadn’t put so much pressure on her about puttin’ the baby up for adoption, maybe she wouldn’t have felt as though she had no choice but to marry someone who would support her decision to keep the baby.”

“It still hurts like hell, knowin’ she carried my baby and didn’t feel like she could come to me.”

Muriel patted his forearm. “Honey, you had your whole life ahead of you. The career you’d always wanted was finally within your grasp. Sela didn’t want to do anything that would take your focus off the team.”

“I know. I get that. I do. She was thinkin’ about what was best for me, but how could she think that passin’ my kid off as his would be the best thing for our baby?” He raked his hands through his hair. It was maddening. Just when he thought he’d uncovered the truth, he learned there were more secrets. “Sela should have told me you were sick. She knew how important you were to me.”

“She was so young, you both were,” Muriel said. “She clearly made mistakes, but does that really have to define the rest of your lives? Her marriage is over now—”

“Long overdue if you ask me,” Peter muttered.

“I’m surprised to hear you say that,” Aiden said. “I know how you feel about divorce.” So many times over the years, Aiden had heard Peter’s lecture about the sanctity of marriage around the dinner table. How appalled he was that people seemed to dissolve the union with so little regard for the consequences of their actions.

“I’m a reasonable man, Aiden. I don’t promote divorce as an option for people who are too lazy to try and work through their problems, but in my daughter’s case, it seemed like she was just stayin’ in that marriage to punish herself for her sins.”

“Peter, please,” Muriel said, quietly. “It’s not our place to judge.”

“He has a right to know the truth, Muriel. The choices she made impacted his life in a big way. I didn’t have the courage to level with him when all this happened, but I feel I owe it to him now.” He looked Aiden in the eye. “I blame you and Sela both for not takin’ the proper precautions for ensurin’ somethin’ like that didn’t happen in the first place. You should’ve known better.”

“You’re right, sir. We should have. I accept full responsibility for that.” He wouldn’t tell them he thought they were protected against unplanned pregnancy. The least he could do was accept his share of the blame.

“Fact is, it did happen, and I know you were the kind of man who would have been there for her. That’s what upset me so much. Eventually, I came to terms with the fact that she was gonna keep the baby no matter what we said, but when she married him instead of tellin’ you the truth, I couldn’t accept that.” He cleared his throat as his eyes shone bright with unshed tears. “Maybe if we hadn’t pushed her so hard, she wouldn’t have lost that baby.”

Muriel squeezed her husband’s hand. “We’ve asked forgiveness for that, Peter. We can’t keep punishing ourselves.” She reached for Aiden’s hand as well. “None of us can. We all need to find a way to let go of the past so we can move on.”

“That’s what I want,” Aiden said, quietly. “To move on, with Sela, but she doesn’t think we can get past this. She doesn’t trust that I can forgive her.”

“Can you?” Peter asked.

“I want to. I’m tryin’ to.”

“Maybe you’d best give it some time to figure out how you really feel before y’all start makin’ decisions about the future.”

Sela had already driven by Aiden’s new house twice, hoping the cars crowding the driveway would disappear so she could deliver her housewarming gift in private, but when it was obvious she wasn’t going to get her wish, she found the courage to ring the doorbell.

Three weeks had passed since she asked him to let her go. She pleaded with him to give her the freedom to move on with her life, but instead of moving on, she remained stuck in neutral, replaying their last conversation in her mind, over and over again. She went through the motions of packing up her house, moving into her new condo, and filing for divorce, but making all of those changes felt more like running away than moving forward.

Aiden opened the door just as she contemplated a quick get-away. When she saw the surprise and confusion on his face, she cursed her impulsive plan to show up on his doorstep. For all she knew, he could be having a party, entertaining a date…

“Hi, I, um, know you have company, I just wanted to give you this.” She thrust a bottle of wine into his hand. “It’s just a little something to thank you for your business.” When he said nothing, she felt compelled to fill the awkward silence. “I… uh… give them to all of my clients, not just you. I was going to have it delivered, but…”
I had to see you.

“Oh my God!” Brianna shrieked. “Is that who I think it is?” She pushed her brother out of the way and hurled herself at Sela.

Brianna had been two years behind Sela and Aiden in school, but Sela was their cheerleading coach, and because of her relationship with her brother, the two girls became fast friends. “It’s good to see you, honey,” Sela said, hugging her friend back with as much enthusiasm as she could muster with Aiden looking on. “How have you been?”

“Just tryin’ to get through law school without having a nervous breakdown,” Brianna said, holding both of her hands as she stepped back. “Look at you. You’re still gorgeous. No wonder my brother never found anyone else to measure up.”

“Bri,” Aiden growled, reaching out to grab his sister’s shoulder. “Why don’t you invite her in instead of embarrassing her?”

Brianna winked. “He’s just afraid you’ll get away on him again.”

“For God’s sake,” Aiden muttered. “You just don’t know when to shut up, do you?”

“Oh, relax,” Lexi Cooper said, grabbing her son’s arm. “You know your sister lives to tease you.” She winked at Sela. “I’m sure you remember some of the fights these two used to have, don’t you?”

“I sure do.” Sela reached out to Lexi, hoping Aiden’s mother wouldn’t reject her show of affection. She had spent so much time at Josh and Lexi’s house when she and Aiden were teens, they had become surrogate parents to her. Just seeing them again reminded her of how much she lost. It wasn’t just her relationship with Aiden or the baby they could have had. She also sacrificed their plans for the future and the family she grew to love almost as much as her own. “It’s so good to see you, Lexi.” Aiden’s parents always insisted Sela call them by their first names, and while it felt awkward at first, they continued to tease her mercilessly until she finally relented.

“You too, honey,” Lexi said, opening her arms to her. “I’ve missed you.”

“We both have,” Josh said, taking his turn embracing her.

“I hear you have a big cruise planned for your anniversary?” Sela asked.

“We do,” Lexi said, wrapping an arm around her husband’s waist. “We leave at the end of next week. I can’t wait.”

“Well, well, well,” Ryan Spencer said, coming out of the kitchen. “Isn’t this is a surprise?”

Brianna winced at Ryan’s obvious perusal of Sela. “Ignore him. He can’t help himself. He’s drawn to beautiful women like a mangy old mutt to a rawhide bone.” She stuck her tongue out when Ryan glared at her. “We’re all hoping he’ll grow up one of these days, but so far, no luck.”

Ryan’s brother Evan stepped in from the deck off the kitchen just in time to hear Brianna’s insult. “You must be talkin’ about my brother.”

“Who the hell asked you?” Ryan shouted over his shoulder before treating Sela to his dimpled grin. “Ignore them,” he said, taking her hand. “They’re just jealous because I get all the attention when we go out together.”

Sela laughed as Ryan kissed her hand. He and his brother were two years behind she and Aiden in school, but even then, he’d been one of the most popular kids in school. Everyone loved Ryan Spencer. The guys liked him because he was a good athlete, and the girls liked him because he was gorgeous. Apparently, he hadn’t lost any of the charm that helped him to gain recognition back in school.

“It’s good to see you guys,” she said, extracting her hand from Ryan’s so she could shake his brother’s outstretched hand. “What have y’all been up to?”

Ryan rolled his eyes. “Tryin’ to force the old man into retirement so we can start runnin’ the show the way we want to.”

Evan snorted. “Hell, if you had your way, you’d run that business into the ground.” Evan hooked a finger at his brother. “Wait’ll the big boss sees his expense report this month. He’ll bust an artery.”

Ryan shrugged. “It’s my job to entertain the talent. It takes money to keep ’em happy.”

“Oh please, they’re usually peelin’ your sorry ass off the floor by the end of the night.” He smirked at Sela. “He never could hold his liquor.”

“I can’t hold my liquor? I’ll have you know—”

Josh put his arm around Ryan and started leading him toward the door. “You guys can have it out on your own time. I promised your father you’d be at his place by eight, and you’re already late. So, quit talkin’ and start movin’.”