Page 114 of The Lilac River

They didn’t interrupt. They just waited.

I took a breath. “Your dad found out about mine. My father... he was in prison. For murder.”

Silence.

“He told me he’d ruin my mom if I didn’t walk away. Said Nash would hate me if he knew. That it would kill any chance he had at the NFL. He said it was for the good of the family.”

Gunner’s jaw clenched. “Manipulative bastard.”

“I thought I was doing the right thing,” I whispered. “But I didn’t just lose Nash. I lost both of you too.”

“You weren’t just Nash’s girl,” Wilder said, his voice uncharacteristically soft. “You were our sister, and our father only does stuff that is good for him.”

“Wild is right, nothing about what he made you do was for anyone’s benefit but his.”

“I know that now, but I want you both to know that I missed you,” I choked. “Every birthday. Every stupid holiday. I wondered what you were doing. Who you were becoming. I hated not being there.”

“Well,” Gunner said, throat thick. “You’re here now.”

“And you’re stuck with us,” Wilder added, giving my arm a bump.

I wiped my face with the edge of my sleeve, smiling wetly. “Good. I’m not going anywhere.”

Just then, Nash reappeared, a book tucked under one arm.

He scanned our red-rimmed eyes. “What’d I miss?”

“Just made Lily cry,” Gunner said with a grin. “Telling her all about the wild birthday parties she missed in ten years.”

Nash came to my side and slid his hand into mine like it was second nature. “I’ll make sure you never have to miss anything again.”

I believed him.

“Okay,” he said, kissing my temple. “Let’s sit and talk about our darling Daddy.”

“Ugh,” Gunner groaned, pulling out a chair at the table for me. “I may just bring up my dinner.”

“Is it good news, like he’s not really our dad or something?” Wilder asked.

“I could be good news,” Nash said. “I think we have a way to stop him.” He took the seat next to mine and draped an arm along the back of it. Protective. “Dougie found a hole in the records. The lavender field—Mom’s field—it might not legally be his. Which could be why it wasn’t mentioned in her will.”

My breath caught. “But how’s that good news? If it isn’t his, then whose is it?”

“It was hers,” Gunner stated without question. “Had to be. She started it when she was nine. But that doesn’t explain why it’s not listed.”

“So, we need to find that deed,” Nash said. “To be able to fight the sale.”

“And how do we find it?” Wilder asked.

Nash shrugged and raised an eyebrow. “We break into his apartment.”

Wilder laughed. “You’re not being serious?”

“As a heart attack,” Nash deadpanned. “We’re going to break into his apartment, find the deed and save the farm.”

“And if it’s not there, what then?” Gunner leaned forward waiting for Nash’s response.

“Then we break into his Mayoral office. Or maybe Wilder will because…”

---