Page 21 of One More Kiss

“I hated the man. I begged my mother to leave him—leave everything. I was old enough to work. We’d start over. She couldn’t…at least, she wouldn’t. Then…then, one night, my father. He…he wouldn’t stop hitting me. I must have blacked out. I don’t know. When I woke…” He choked. Huffed. Swallowed thickly. His arms trembled, but he clutched me tighter, yet still with tenderness.

“When I woke, it was light outside. My mother was next to me on the living room floor. He’d beaten her to death.”

He’d said that before, on my porch all those months ago. “Oh, Steve.” I swayed a little, just as I used to do with the boys and Kate, now with Cash. He moved with me, and I hoped the slight motion soothed him.

“He must have gotten in the car and left. My guess is he thought he’d killed us both. Knowing him, he wasn’t going to own up to his crimes. He disappeared. I spent a few weeks in the hospital, then I split.”

I turned and pressed my nose into his sternum. “I’m so sorry that happened to you.”

He cupped my shoulders. “I went back to the house, to see it.” His eyes held shattered bits of memories deep inside. “It’s smaller than I remember. A family lives there. I saw them together—what that house has now is so different from the heinousness. And then…” He dropped his gaze. “I was too scared to step out of the shadows and tell that scum-sucker to leave Nash alone. Brad was poison and he made Nash feel small and weak. I knew what that was like, I knew what that did to Nash’s mind, but I couldn’t save him from Brad…not while the world—I—believed Brad was Nash’s son. Just like I couldn’t save my mother.”

He whispered the last words as though he were admitting a terrible sin.

“Well, my husband emotionally abused Camden for years. Then, he had an affair with Cam’s first wife. He was a mean, selfish son of a gun, and I never stood up to him, pretending that everything was just fine because my boys were well-fed and that man doted on Kate. So, he couldn’t possibly be as bad as I knew him to be. I lied to myself, and that hurt Cam. It hurt Kate, too. That’s on me.”

I slid back enough so that I could cup Steve’s cheeks. His nose and eyes were red.

“I’m not perfect. I’ve made more messes of my life than done good. But I keep trying to do better. My kids know I love them—just as Nash knows you love him.”

“I have that monster’s blood in me. I failed my boy.”

“Listen to me, Steven Lincoln. Your boy knows you care about him. He knows you fought for him when he’d given up on himself.” I used my stern voice and Steve dropped his lids, shielding his eyes.

“My point was that I’m not good enough for you,” he said.

I smiled. “And my point is that I’m no prize myself.”

His lips quirked a little. “I think you are.”

“And I think you are. So how about we start there? This is between us, now. Not the past.”

A haunted look passed over his features. “I don’t know how to love someone.”

“I call hooey on that steaming pile.” I smoothed my hair and tugged on my skirt. “Now, I’m about to be all gussied up with a nice-looking fella that I actually want to see and with whom I’d sure like to be seen. Pretty please.”

He chuckled even as he shook his head. “What is it with Southern women?”

I went to the kitchen, found a vase, and filled it with water. I settled the flowers into it, touching the soft petals as a thrill shimmered through me.

“I’m nothing you can’t handle,” I said.

“I might well beg to differ.”

He looked lighter, as if a heavy weight no longer pinned him.

“You got a destination in mind?” I asked.

He shook his head. “I figured you’d throw me out and we wouldn’t get to dinner.”

I tsked.

“But I’ve been wanting to eat at that new place on the lake—the one Nash mentioned that’s Southern-vegan fusion.”

I raised an eyebrow. “I’ll try it but I’m going to tell you if I don’t like it.”

Steve whipped out his phone, probably to text Nash about getting a table.

“Good thing we know some people who can pull a few strings. I’d like a table with a good view of the lake.” I grabbed my purse and headed toward the door.

“You’re bossy,” Steve said.

“Nope. This is me, re-exerting my will on the situation.”

He rocked back on his heels, a thoughtful expression on his face. “Fair enough.”

“Anyway, you like me taking charge,” I tossed over my shoulder.

I thought I heard him murmur, “Damned if I don’t.”

---