Page 4 of Ashton's Mountain Man

“I know Maisie, and if I’d pre-warned her…” I took a breath and steadied myself for his reaction, uncertain whether Ashton’s fuse would explode or continue to simmer away beneath the surface. “I don’t know if she would have waited.”

“You mean, she could have fucking run, man,” Ashton hissed. “Maybe just hit me with it, straight and hard, rather than messing around, trying to spare my feelings.” He cursed under his breath. “West, I’m not the monster here. I’m not saying Maisie is either.” He winced. “But think about it. I never had a clue about any of this. I never knew a thing.” Ashton let out in a pained tone. “Maisie may have more answers than?—”

“I know,” I uttered. “You deserve to know if she did. I hope she didn’t,” I replied truthfully, hoping the woman I called my best friend hadn’t done the one thing I dreaded in the pit of my stomach. That she hadn’t hidden her pregnancy and could have revealed all prior to him leaving all that time ago. I couldn’t bear to think of that scenario being true. “I just want you to be able to clear the air.”

“I want that,” Ashton said firmly. “I want to be able to be on amicable terms with you all, as that little boy is the top priority here.”

“That’s one thing I totally agree with you on.” I slowed the car to the stop on the street corner, a few houses away from where the answers would soon be revealed. I gave myself a second and glanced over at Ashton, instantly noticing his uneasy gaze and pale complexion as he fiddled with the dial watch on his left-hand wrist—turning it anti-clockwise and clockwise back and forth—a habit he’d done since I’d known him when he’s been nervous. “Ashton?” I questioned him. “Are you ready to dothis?” I tilted my head to the side, reaching my palm to cover his and stopping him mid-motion.

I watched Ashton’s gaze drop lower as he sucked in a large breath and lifted his head to meet my gaze.

“As ready as I'll ever be,” he whispered. “I am ready,” he tried to reassure himself.

“You are, man and I’m with you every step of the way.” I replied with certainty. “Let’s do this for him—let’s do this for Wyatt.”

I hated being the guy who’d caused the grief-stricken look that crossed Maisie’s face when she saw who had walked through the door behind me. I’d never seen such a multitude of emotions spread across someone’s features in such a short period of time—shock, nervousness, frustration, and ending in pure terror. I’d been grateful that Ashton was silent when he entered the room and didn’t go in shouting or screaming with an agenda at hand and therefore igniting Maisie’s fight-or-flight mode. Unfortunately, I’d experienced first-hand Maisie’s need to have to fight for what she needed for that little boy over the opportunity of running away, and in this instance, it had given her a few moments to compose herself.

“West—” She bumbled the word out, turning to address me and search my face. My expressions were always so visible and easy to read between the two of us. The issue of being close friends. I hated watching her fighting her emotions as she blinked back the tears, trying her best to not let her tears fall and show an ounce of weakness as she pointed a shaking finger at Ashton. “I—uhm. What’s he doing here? What’s going on? Does he? Fuck!” She rambled a pile of questions before shakingher head and making her way toward the comfort of the sofa, slumping backwards, allowing her hands to cover her face as she tilted her head toward the ceiling.

I instantly walked across and crouched down between her legs, placing my hands on her thighs, which made her freeze and pull her hands away from her face as she narrowed her gaze on me, ignoring Ashton as he hovered nearby. I had to concentrate on Maisie, knowing that Wyatt wasn’t at any risk, and if that meant hurting Ashton’s feelings, then I had no other option.

“This wasn’t planned at all,” I stated slowly. Maisie needed the facts first before anything else was hurled in her face. “It’s a long story, but Ashton’s here, and yes, he knows he has a son who he had no idea about.” I continued watching Maisie’s reaction closely. “I wasn’t going to call you and just mention it over the phone. This was definitely a face-to-face type of conversation for us to have.”

“Yes,” she whispered slowly. “I know it is.” As Ashton walked across and took a seat next to her, she sobbed harder. My heart shattered at how he was thinking about her and not himself at this moment. If the roles had been reversed, I don’t know if I would have been so understanding or caring. “I always wanted to reach out—” she started, but then paused, her gaze flitting between the two of us before finally stopping on Ashton. “If you want to talk alone…”

“No,” Ashton uttered before biting down on his lip and shaking his head. “Sorry, I just think having someone here will make this easier for us all.”

I took a second to understand what Ashton was saying and understood it immediately. He needed to ensure that whatever was mentioned wasn’t thrown back and potentially retracted in his face—basically, I was the go between. I sighed, thinking how I had managed to get myself mixed up in this mess, but then thought about the little boy who was completely innocent in allthis. He deserved the chance to get to know his dad, whether Maisie thought he did or not. Ashton was a good man and could bring some additional stability into his life.

“I did ask,” Maisie began as she again flitted her gaze between the two of us. My gut instantly churned, wondering why the fuck she kept doing that. “I didn’t know I was pregnant at first and definitely not until after you’d planned to leave,” she admitted as I noticed Ashton’s shoulder’s slump forward at the news—she hadn’t held back—the one panic he’d held close to his heart. “I did find out a couple months ago where you were living and working after deciding to go searching for you.”

“What?” Ashton cried out, his features strained at that news. “Why didn’t you come to me and tell me? Maisie, he’s my son?—”

“He’s right, Maisie. You never said….” I uttered, in pure shock, wondering why the hell she’d say this and admit something that would cause uproar in a situation that required such a delicate touch. “I?—”

“I came to the city. I’d hired a private investigator to get me all the information I needed.” Maisie let out a laugh as I blinked twice and watched the way Ashton’s jaw twitched away. “I can’t believe I’m saying this… I discovered you out at Jumbugs that night.”

Ashton’s face morphed from anger to pure surprise as I tried to remain neutral and not freak out. I knew the place—fuck, I’d visited once and loved it. It was somewhere I knew I belonged, but Ashton—was he gay? I don’t know. I mean, he could have been there with friends.

“I heard your conversation and then left. I heard what you said about West,” she whispered before dropping her gaze. “I couldn’t throw this into the mix too.”

“Maisie,” Ashton choked out. “I’d always step up and be the father Wyatt needs. I should have known when you found me.” He continued. “He’s my blood—yes, I may be overwhelmedbeing back around West, but that doesn’t mean I’ll never not be there for him.”

“What do you mean by that? Ashton, why would you be overwhelmed around me?” I asked, turning to face Ashton. “I need to know what the fuck I’m missing here. We were close back then. We worked together?—”

“I’ll leave you two to it,” Maisie whispered, before nodding at me. “Talk to him. Admit the truth,” she implored. “I’ll go and collect Wyatt. I think it’s time he meets his dad. Don’t you?”

CHAPTER 3

Ashton

My gut screamedthat I’d made a huge mistake and that I should have made West leave Maisie and I alone when she asked the question earlier. But my damn pride and fear of looking like a fool, or like someone who couldn’t make a solid decision in front of West, weighed heavy in my mind. The thing is, I wanted him to see me as decisive and strong, but instead, I now feel weak and pathetic. Why didn’t I go with what my gut screamed at me, rather than what my stupid heart was singing out? It had now steered me in a direction. I wasn’t ready to confront Maisie about it, let alone the man it concerned.

How could I? I’d run away from my life and where I’d been raised, just to escape every emotion and feeling that coursed through me because of what? I laughed internally at the thought. I was scared, embarrassed, and afraid of rejection. Now I had another human being who needed me. He’d rely on me and, ironically, in the first few years of his life, the one person he’d leaned on was the guy I wanted. How could I add any more confusion to his life than was already about to hit his fragile mind? This moment was going to be for the both of us, and I couldn’t be digressing with thoughts of potential love andhappiness for myself in the process. What type of person would that make me?

I couldn’t do that…

I just…

---