Chasing the Runaway Bride (22 page)

He knew he and Piper were the hot topic of conversation, but for some reason or another, it was fine. The news about the marriage was out. News about the pregnancy was out. Bridesmaids had been chosen, Ellie and Ashley. His brothers were going to stand up for him. A few well-wishers had sent her mother sympathy cards. Bunny Farmer was so excited at work, she virtually vibrated.

His mother went shopping with Ellie for a new dress. “Blue, but not like the blue I wore for Finn’s wedding,” she explained when she called him after she and Ellie returned home from shopping. “It’s a fall blue.”

He’d said, “Sounds great.”

But that night as he and Piper pulled down the blankets on her bed, he said, “Who knew there were seasonal colors?”

“Every woman on the planet.”

He peered across the bed at her. “Really?”

She laughed. “Yes. My goodness, Cade. The light is different every season. Colors look different. Plus what looks good in a hot sun doesn’t work when it’s chilly.”

He laughed, and a strange feeling filled him. Happiness so profound it made him pause. And when he paused, the feeling was eclipsed by a feeling he was more familiar with…the sense that this was too good to be true.

That another shoe would drop.

That the rug would be pulled out from under him.

Because he was happy. But it wasn’t the controlled kind of happy he was accustomed to. It was sharp and stupid at the same time. It was fun and scary.

And it was iffy. He had a bad past. His family had just inherited a boatload of money. His father was an ass. Her mother hated him. Technically, he and Piper didn’t really know each other.

How the hell did he think this was going to work?

…

They kissed good-bye in the morning, parting because she had to go to O’Riley’s and he intended to spend time with Devon, looking at their assets. At two, they kissed again, switching places. He took a seat at the computer to order produce and she headed out to finalize the menu with the Dinner Belles.

It all seemed ordinary, routine, but that was just it. It might be ordinary. But it wasn’t his routine. He was a rancher. How could he be so happy when his life plan to run a ranch had gone out the window? Not only was he agreeing to stay and help Devon manage the estate, but now he was getting married. Most likely going to remodel his grandfather’s house.

None of that had been in his life plan.

He almost didn’t drive to her apartment that night, if only because he didn’t want her to see his misgivings. No matter what he felt, he had a child to raise.

He pulled into the space he now considered his in front of Buzz Hanwell’s house, and walked up the steps to her apartment door. He didn’t knock. They were no longer lovers. They were a couple. Couples didn’t knock.

The scent of cinnamon and sugar hit him immediately and his mouth watered. If that was a new bubble bath she was using, he intended to lick the scent off her. He loved cinnamon.

Before he could head back to the kitchen, she walked toward him holding a plate of cookies.

“What’s this?”

She grinned. “Snickerdoodles. Your mom told me today they were your favorites.”

His mouth well and truly watered as he reached for a warm, soft cookie. “You called my mom?”

“There were some planning things we needed to coordinate.”

He bit into the cookie and his breath paused, then sped up. He had a flash of memory of his mom baking cookies and his dad coming home and calling her worthless as he threw them in the trash.

He cleared his throat. “How did it go?”

“I love your mom.”

When he didn’t say anything, she smiled. And that was when it hit him just how nice, just how wonderful, Piper was.

And it scared the hell out of him.

Before he could process that, his cell phone rang. He fished it out of his pocket and saw Devon’s number on the screen. “Hey, what’s up?”

“Dad’s coming over here.”

“Here?”

“Finn and Ellie’s. Mom doesn’t know, and we sent Ellie out to get coffee with Barbara Beth.”

“It’s after nine.”

“And we have a chance to finish this with Dad. I think it’s something we all need to handle. Get your ass over here.”

He disconnected the call and glanced at pretty Piper in her jeans and T-shirt, wearing an apron, holding cookies she’d made for him. The sweetness of the gesture collided with the happy routine of it and the absolute certainty in his gut that he didn’t deserve her, and he was suddenly relieved for an opportunity to leave. “I gotta go. Dad’s on his way to Finn’s. Devon thinks we can end this.”

She smiled and nodded. “Go.”

As he drove to Finn and Ellie’s, he wouldn’t let himself think about the memories that had flooded him at the sight of those cookies. He raced to Finn’s house, jumped out of his car, and walked up to the front door.

He could hear his dad’s voice coming from inside the house and let himself in. From the foyer, he could see his dad sitting on one of the two parallel sofas in front of the fireplace. Finn stood by the big window. Devon sat across from their dad, leaning in, clearly intending to end this standoff once and for all.

“The thing of it is, we aren’t divorced yet.”

“But you’re in process. You’ve been separated for more than a year,” Devon said, cool, calm, collected in a way that astounded Cade. “And Mom’s inheritance from Pap isn’t included in the marital assets.”

His dad made a face. “My lawyer says it can be argued that from the time I married your mom, I’d been anticipating an inheritance, part of her family money.”

“No one really knew Pap had money.”

He waved a hand. “Are you kidding? At the very least I knew we’d get the value of the grocery store.” He smiled without a trace of humor. “But I also run the bank. I knew the kind of money your grandfather was putting into stocks. I
knew
—I always knew—he was worth a bundle.”

“That doesn’t change the fact that you were separated for a year before Pap died.”

He shrugged. “As I said, my lawyer believes differently.”

“Then we’ll see you in court.”

Finn’s reasonable voice led to an uncomfortable silence. At least uncomfortable for Cade.

Finn turned from the window, as calm and cool as his voice had been. Devon casually made notes on a legal pad. But there wasn’t a calm cell in Cade’s body. Fury coiled through his gut and washed out to his limbs like the raging tide of a flood. He’d never felt like this before. Even in Afghanistan, his emotions remained under wraps as he worked to do what needed to be done. On the ranch, he was known for his cool efficiency. Yet, something about his dad brought out an evil beast, dangerously thirsty for blood.

Devon rose, tossed his yellow legal pad into his briefcase, and snapped it closed. “As Finn said, we’ll see you in court.”

His dad bounced from his seat. “I’m willing to negotiate.”

“We’re not negotiating. That money you want is part of an estate…family money. It doesn’t belong to Mom. It doesn’t belong to any one of us. It belongs to all of us.” Devon smiled professionally. “I believe a judge will see it our way.”

“You can buy me off and avoid the trouble of a trial.”

Finn shrugged. “Why? Mom has a job that provides for her needs. Ellie and I make a king’s ransom with our business ventures. Devon’s pretty much wealthy on his own. Cade over there owns half a grocery store that’s thriving now that the feud is over. We can wait this out.”

“I don’t think so. With appeals, I can tie up your money forever.”

Devon laughed. “Have at it. Maybe I’ll countersue. Our inheritance didn’t become active until a year after your separation. Which means I can go after half of everything
you
own because most of that was accumulated through the life of the marriage.”

Jeb leaped off the sofa, his hands out, as he dove for Devon’s throat.

Cade’s muscles hardened. His hands coiled into fists. His legs made ready to spring across the room, but Devon dropped his briefcase and shook his head.

“Is this really how you want to do it? You assault me, I don’t fight back, and you go to jail again?”

Their father backed up a step. “You little bastard.”

But the heat of anger still burned in Cade’s blood. He wanted a fight. He wanted a release for the years of frustration, the years of longing to be able to defend himself against a man twice his size who beat him ruthlessly. His father stood before him, egging them on, begging for a fight. If ever the time was right—

“You think you know everything, Mr. Big Shot Lawyer,” his father spat. “From the time you were a kid you got in my way. Took punches meant for your brothers. And all you ever got out of it was hurt.”

“I saved my own, took care of my own.”

“You did nothing but get yourself hurt.”

“Yeah, well, I’m different now. Smarter. I know enough to keep you away from Mom and to keep you from getting any of her family’s money.” He flopped his briefcase on the coffee table, opened it, and pulled out the agreement again. “This agreement allows you to keep every cent of money you have. Mom gets nothing from you. It’s a sweetheart of a deal. Take it or we drag your name through the mud.”

Jeb stood frozen, his breath coming and going in angry puffs that matched Cade’s.

Finn quietly said, “You are not getting another cent, and you are going to lose half of what you have if you make us go to court. Plus, Ellie has some friends in Pittsburgh who’d be more than happy to add you to a profile they’re doing on abusive homes. See how much your lofty Pittsburgh golf buddies love you once it’s out you beat your wife and sons.”

“You’re going to be sorry.”

Devon actually laughed. “I don’t think we are. I think you are.”

And that’s when Cade saw it. While Finn and Devon remained cool and logical, Cade and his father burned with rage. Their muscles stiffening. Their jaws jumping. His dad obviously longed to take a swing at the sons who could now easily beat him, and Cade longed to be given the opportunity.

He might be unflappable and efficient when it came to work and money, but he had inherited their father’s temper.

Chapter Nineteen

That night, Cade was quiet with Piper. She totally understood. She might not have had a confrontation with an angry, abusive parent, but she knew what it felt like to face trouble. To look it in the eye. To wonder why you were chosen to be put in this spot.

When they went to bed and he turned away from her, her heart jolted with fear, but she knew that he loved her. He might not have been able to say the words, but given his past, she’d resigned herself to the fact that he might never be able to say them. And she was okay with that. His actions spoke much louder than words.

So when he turned away, she turned in to him, spooned herself around him, offering the consolation that his past might have been traumatic, but she intended to give him a wonderful future…she and
their baby
intended to give him a wonderful future.

When she awoke the next morning, he was gone. Deciding to give him his space, she ate a leisurely breakfast, took a long shower, and dressed the way he liked to see her. Hair shimmering down her back. Tight jeans.

She arrived at the grocery store just in time to see Myrna Feodore starting another fight—this one over bread. Cade watched Myrna and Bunny Farmer get into a tug of war, with the plastic wrapped bread stretching between them. His eyes narrowed, then shifted. He shook his head, turned, and walked away.

Piper raced over to Myrna and Bunny. Grabbing the bread from both of them, she faced Bunny. “You’re a store employee. You should know better.” She whipped around to Myrna. “And what about you? Are you going to do nothing but fight? Are you trying to get a reputation for being a crazy old bat?”
“I had it first!”

“Who gives a crap! There are fourteen identical loaves on that shelf. Take. One. Of. Those.”

The entire store quieted. Bunny stepped back with a hiss of disbelief, and Piper’s heart stuttered in her chest.

Myrna gasped. “Did you just yell at me?”

Something inside of Piper shifted and clicked into place. Gone was her horrible fear of offending anyone. And in its place was a sense of right so strong, yet so mellow, that she actually burst out laughing.

“Yeah, I yelled at you. And I’ll yell at you every time you get into a squabble with someone. This is a grocery store. Not a bar. And you keep ruining stock.” She presented the stretched and bunched loaf of bread. “I can’t sell this to anyone now. Just like the head of lettuce you let bounce off the floor. So behave yourself or I’m going to call your son.”

Myrna’s eyebrows rose in shock.

Piper sucked in a breath. “That’s right. If you’re going to keep doing things like this, I’m going to assume you want attention, and I’ll call your son and tell him he needs to give it to you.”

“He’ll make me come live with him.”

Piper softened her voice. “Maybe that’s what you need.”

Myrna shook her head. “I like it here.”

Piper put her arm around Myrna’s shoulder. “Of course you do, and we like you. But maybe you do need to talk to your son about visiting more or maybe letting you visit him.”

“I do miss my grandkids.”

“How old is the oldest one now?” As Piper took Myrna’s attention away from the fight, she motioned with her head for the small crowd to disburse. Everyone trickled off in different directions, some going back to shopping, some heading for checkout lanes.

Myrna sucked in a breath. “He’s seven.”

“I’ll bet he’s cute.”

…

Cade watched Piper from the cashier’s cage. He’d walked away from the fight because his muscles had hardened the way they had in the confrontation with his dad. In his head, he knew that was a normal reaction. He saw a fight. He had to prevent it. His body ramped up.

But he couldn’t stop thinking about how he’d felt with his dad. How angry. How eager to pop him one. While his two brothers remained perfectly calm, he’d wanted just one punch.

On the ranch, his men respected him. There was no need to come to blows. Everybody knew he could take any man on his crew. The feeling that he’d had the day before, with his dad, was so foreign it had frightened him.