Page 11 of Beat of Love
Another huge sigh from Amelia. “But what he did waswrong, Mom. If some boy did that to me, took advantage of me,disrespected me,Dad would lay into him.”
She couldn’t refute Amelia’s claim. For all his faults, Rich loved their children and wasveryprotective of his girls. “He would, too.”
“Why …?”
When she had woken up that next morning with Richard beside her, he had been as freaked out as her. And very apologetic. “I cannot lay all the blame on him, baby girl. We both had too much to drink.”
“He never … forced you?”
“Never.” Not that she recalled much from the incident, but there had been no forcing involved. She would have rememberedthat. Besides, Rich might be a dick, but he wasn’t a rapist.
“Do you regret it?”
Brandy tightened her arms around her girl and leaned her cheek against Amelia’s head. “How can I? That’s how I ended up with you, Pres, and Livvie. I willneverregret the three of you.”
“But … youhadto get married. Because of that night. Because of me,” she added in a soft, little-girl voice.
Oh, Amelia. My poor baby.
“Not to gross you out, Mimi-girl, but you weren’t conceived that night. And any subsequent … encounters took place with both of us sober.”
“Oh.”
That single exclamation was laden with emotion.
“But even if you were, I’d’ve loved you just the same. You’re my firstborn, honey, and my very special Mimi-girl.”
“Really?”
“For sure. And one day, when you hold your first baby in your arms, you’ll understand. But” — she pulled back and looked her girl square in the eye — “not for many years. Andnoteenage pregnancies. Yeah?”
“Mom!”
“Just saying. I’m far too young to be a grandma. And I still need to survive y’all’s teenage years.”
Amelia straightened and giggled. “Can you imagine Dad with ababy?”
Brandy laughed. Karma had certainly kicked Richard’s ass.
3
Blotting messes
Arms resting on the kitchen table, Rafferty morosely stared at the dark, freshly poured liquid in the mug. Sleep had been elusive, leaving him exhausted. Nightmares — old and new, intermingled with a relentless need to find oblivion from the constant companion of pain and shame — had kept him tossing and turning till just before dawn, only to be woken by the damned roosters a short while later. He’d fallen back into a fitful slumber, waking foggy-brained and bone-weary. After drinking half of the cold coffee he’d found on the bedside table, he’d stumbled to the bathroom, desperate for a shower. He’d been doing a lot of showering lately, but no matter how many times he scrubbed his body, he couldn’t rid himself of the bone-deep filth and shame.
He harrumphed.What did you expect, Trick? For the stain on your soul to magically dissipate once back home?
He let out a rueful sigh and lifted the mug to his mouth. At least the tremors had abated this morning, and he could drink without worrying about messing coffee all over the table. He closed his eyes in appreciation at the first taste. Just what he needed to kickstart his engine. The coffeemaker was ancient, but damn, the brew it produced was topnotch.
The side door slammed open, crashing against the doorstop. Rafferty jerked and liquid sloshed over the side of the ceramic and onto his hand. He shot a startled gaze toward the French doors leading to the side veranda.
Aidan stepped across the threshold. “You’re still here.” His growled words were as accusing as his hostile stare.
Rafferty lowered the mug to the wooden surface and reached for the nearby dishcloth, slowly dragging the cotton over the back of his fingers. He bunched the material in his left hand, lifting the mug in his right.Fuck. His hand shook like a fragile leaf. He swabbed at the ring on the table, wiped the bottom of the ceramic, and carefully placed the mug down.
Aidan stalked across the room, his boots thudding on the planked flooring. He gripped the back of a chair opposite Rafferty and gave it a shove. It knocked against the table. “You stay away from my family,brother. I don’t want you near my children. Understood?”
Heart pounding, not from fear, but from acute regret at the disdain in Aidan’s voice, he summoned every iota of calmness. “Loud and clear. Brother.”
