The Best Man's Baby (15 page)

“But first, you and Jake are getting married,” her father said. “Then I’m going back to Africa, and your mother is coming with me.”

Claire’s mouth dropped open. “You’re going to
Africa
?”

Her mother nodded, fidgeting with her fork. “It will be nice for your father and me to do something meaningful together.”

“I’m looking forward to it,” her father said. “But of course, we’ll be back long before that grandbaby is due.”

Claire smiled at both of them.

Chapter Twelve

Jake ignored the giant knot in his stomach and knocked on the door. He stared at the wreath, feeling like it was just yesterday he stood here waiting to ask them for advice about Claire. How much had changed in just a few weeks. He was standing here, prepared to blast away the last of his demons. He was here, not hiding anymore.

He wasn’t surprised to see Evan’s BMW in the driveway.

The door opened and Jake held his breath. He let out a little sigh of relief when Holly appeared, smiling gently at him. “Hi, Jake,” she whispered, ushering him in with a wave of her hand. “I was hoping you’d come over,” she said and gave him a hug. Jake hugged her back, saying a silent prayer of thanks for bringing her into Quinn’s life. He knew neither brother would be welcoming him with a hug right now.

“Thanks, Holly,” he said gruffly, feeling awkward.

“Come outside. Quinn and Evan are on the patio, Ella’s napping,” she said, already walking down the hall. Jake followed her, feeling like he was on his way to his own execution. And maybe he was. Maybe Claire was wrong about people and love and forgiveness. But tonight he’d find out. This was his first step in trying to be the person he needed to be, for himself, for her, and for their baby. He knew he needed to be with her. He knew she was the only woman he ever wanted. But he needed to finish this chapter in his life before he could begin a new one.

Holly held open the French door for him and he followed her outside. Quinn and Evan were sitting in the Adirondack chairs that were deep in the yard, close to the forest that bordered the property. Their backs were to them and he could see they were deep in conversation, each of them holding a beer. Jake stopped for a moment, gripped by the feeling he was an outsider. The urge to run consumed him until he felt like he was choking with it. He didn’t want to face this. He didn’t want to face them. But he didn’t want them to think of him as a traitor. What would be worse—what they thought of him now, or what they’d think of him a few minutes from now when he was done explaining? He took a deep breath of the crisp night air. Normally, the smell of the clean forest air would be invigorating. Tonight he barely noticed it.

“Come on, Jake,” Holly said with a half smile and nudged him along.

He gave her a nod.

“Hey guys,” Jake called out as casually as he could as he neared his brothers. They both turned around in unison. Quinn broke eye contact fast and Jake’s step faltered for a second, but there was something in Evan’s strong gaze that urged him on.

“I, uh, came because I owe you both an explanation,” Jake said, standing in front of them.

Quinn pointed to one of the empty chairs. “Have a seat,” he said, taking a swig of beer.

“I’ll go inside and give you guys some privacy,” Holly said, turning to leave.

“No, Holly, I want you to stay too.”

Holly smiled at him and went to sit in the chair beside Quinn. Jake didn’t really feel like sitting—it would be too comfortable and right now he was so tightly wound, he thought he’d snap if he had to sit in one spot. He shoved his hands in his pockets and looked down at his brothers. Both of them looked guarded.

“I, uh, I want to explain why I did what I did.” His brothers thought they knew everything about him, but this was going to shock them. “But before I get to that, I’ve got to tell you guys something about Mom and Dad.” He took a deep breath. “Did you guys ever notice how differently they treated me?” he asked. He already felt a burning sensation in his throat. He hated talking about this.

Evan frowned. “You mean the way they disciplined you because you were always doing something stupid?”

Jake fought his knee-jerk reaction to swear at Evan and walk away. That’s how his brothers saw him, and he’d let them think that for years. Jake clenched his teeth, forcing himself to stand still and shook his head. “Yeah, that’s what I thought for a long time, and then one day I figured something out. They treated me like that before I started getting into trouble. They treated me like that from day one. You remember that day we were fishing and I asked you what Dad said to you at night?” Jake asked, directing his question to Quinn.

Quinn’s eyes bore into his, and the flash of recollection entered his eyes.

“Vaguely,” Quinn said, leaning forward, frowning.

“When I was ten I overheard Mom and Dad yelling about something. I was by myself in the house with them and listened in the hallway. Dad was yelling something about not listening to Reverend Holbrook.” Jake watched the confusion rip across his brother’s faces. “Mom kept saying there was no way she could do it. Then Dad said…” Jake paused, took a deep breath, and looked straight ahead into the forest, his eyes zeroing in on the deep, green velvet of trees instead of the expression he was about to instigate on his brother’s faces. “‘What do you expect me to do? I look at him and all I see is you being raped. You kept a baby made by a devil. I told you to have an abortion. Now look.’”

Silence. Not a sound. Not even the wind interrupted the moment. He slowly tore his eyes away from the trees to look at his brothers. Quinn’s and Evan’s faces were white.

Jake took a deep breath. He had done it. The worst was over. The truth was finally out.

He slowly, haltingly explained the rest.

…

Jake let the wind pummel him, knowing it couldn’t knock him down—nothing could anymore. In the last day he had shed his demons, fought against the memory of his past, and emerged victorious, and now he was on his way to claim his destiny.

Claire had been right about everything. His brothers didn’t blame him, and they didn’t look at him differently. Actually, it looked like they finally, truly understood him. Quinn and Evan had stood and the three of them had awkwardly embraced. And then Holly, who had been inconspicuously wiping away tears with her sleeve while he spoke, gave him the biggest, warmest hug. Quinn understood why he bought William’s company, but then his brother insisted that as of Monday morning, he was having the legal name of the company changed to Manning Brothers Construction. Jake agreed and followed up by saying he’d make W.W. Custom Homes a division of their company, and he’d be a partner with Quinn.

Jake could never remember feeling such peace, and he knew it was because nothing was hidden anymore. He was accepted for who he was. His family loved him despite everything. And the only thing missing when he was standing there with his brothers was Claire. Claire had shown him that acceptance and forgiveness were easy with genuine love, and she had been right.

Now he had to tell her he loved her.

He didn’t love her out of duty, because there was a baby on the way, or because he was attracted to her. No, he loved her with everything he had, with pieces of him he didn’t know existed. He wanted to love her like she needed to be loved. He wanted to love her like the man he was supposed to be, the man he felt like when he was with her.

The man she saw in him.

…

Claire looked over the employee work schedule one more time. She was trying to find a way to alter her store hours with minimal impact on everyone. Unfortunately she was operating with just half a night’s sleep. Her bed had felt empty without Jake in it. She wondered how she barely made it through one night without him, when she had made it her entire lifetime without him, because now she was in love with him.

She stared at her red marker and almost smiled, remembering the night she’d shown Jake her plan A and plan B charts. Had that really only been a few weeks ago? Everything had changed. A few weeks ago, she thought Jake was a just a man looking for a good time. She couldn’t have been more wrong.

She put the red cap back on her marker with a sigh. It was time to go home. She wasn’t accomplishing much anymore. Claire gathered her coat and purse and slowly made her way to the front of the store.

Her feet and her heart skidded to a screeching stop. Jake was across the street, looking straight ahead, into the window. She tried to ignore the painful throbbing of her heart. She wanted to run out into the street, wanted him to say he loved her and take her to the house he’d found for them and start fresh. She wanted him to bury the past.

She kept walking until she reached the door, holding his gaze. He gave a quick wave. Maybe it was in the way he was standing. Maybe it was in the unshaven appearance or the haggard look on his otherwise handsome face, but she knew he needed her. She opened the door. Warm spring air greeted her as she stepped out onto the street. With trembling fingers she locked up and turned around. Jake was making his way across the street. Claire met him halfway.

“Hi,” Jake said, his voice sending her heart into autopilot.

“Hi,” she replied, letting her eyes travel over the length of him. He didn’t look well. He looked…tired.

“Will you come with me?” he asked, the vulnerability in his face appealing to her heartstrings. Her eyes darted around the nearby parking spaces. His bike was nowhere to be seen.

She gave him a puzzled frown. “Where are we going?”

“I thought we could go to the house again.”

Claire looked away.

“Come on. You’ve got to at least listen to what I have to say,” he said in a low voice.

“Of course I’ll listen to you.”

He didn’t say anything. She shifted from one foot the other, waiting.

“I really wish we weren’t standing on the road,” Jake mumbled, looking from side to side. They moved closer to the curb.

“Fine. Where’s your Harley?”

A twinkle appeared in his eyes. “My Harley is in the garage.”

“Well, how did you get here?”

“This,” Jake said, nodding with his chin toward a black SUV.

“What’s this?” Claire asked, raising her eyebrows.

“Ours.”

She looked at the black Range Rover he was standing beside.

“I bought it. This is the closest I get to minivans,” he said, cocking his head in the direction of the shiny SUV.

Claire smiled at him. “I hate minivans.”

“We were meant to be together, Claire,” Jake said, reaching out to grasp her hand. She unsuccessfully tried to ignore the way her entire body responded to his touch and his words.

“Because we hate minivans?”

“Well, that helps, but no,” he said taking her hand, sending a delicious warmth through her body. “When I saw you walk down the aisle at Holly and Quinn’s wedding, the second your eyes locked onto mine, I felt something happening. When we danced together, I knew I was in trouble, I knew I wasn’t going to be able to ever let you go. And then we went back to that hotel room, I knew I’d never get enough of you,” he said, his voice turning husky as he moved closer to her. Traffic buzzed by them, but she felt as though they were in their own world. She stared at him, needing more.

“And then we created a life, and God, we did it all backward, but the only thing I would have changed in all of this is the pain I caused you from not telling you everything at the beginning,” he said, his eyes sparkling with emotion.

Claire stepped closer to him until she could feel the heat from his body, smell the fresh scent of his cologne, of him. “I’m glad you told me.”

He drew his brows together. “Do you ever think there is a reason for everything?”

She shook her head pityingly. “You’ve been getting advice from Holly, haven’t you?”

Jake smiled before growing serious. “No. A long time ago, I met a man who took me in and showed me I wasn’t worthless. He saved me.”

Claire’s heart started aching as she heard the emotion, as he spoke of his relationship with her father.

“And now, years later I fall in love with you, his daughter, and you save me,” he said thickly. His eyes searched hers. She blinked rapidly, past the tears that pooled in her eyes. “This baby we made was meant to be,” he said, his eyes drifting from hers, to her abdomen, back up to meet her stare. “The other night I wanted to tell you what you needed to hear, but I needed to be sure I could be the man you deserved. I told my brothers everything. I wanted to start with a clean slate. I didn’t want our future to be tainted by the past anymore. I wanted to be as whole as I could be. I love you, Claire.”

She walked into his arms and was crushed gently against his chest. She felt his hands in her hair, felt his lips on her head. She felt his heart, pounding rapidly against her ears. And she felt his heart bind itself to hers. She had his heart. And he had hers.

“I love you too,” she said, lifting her face to meet his waiting lips. He kissed her with a passion she could taste and a promise she trusted. Jake leaned back against the car, pulling her with him as his mouth slanted over hers, as though he were incapable of letting go. Claire was vaguely aware of Mrs. Jacobs’s Mini Cooper slowing, beeping, and then zooming past them.

“I love you more than I ever thought I was capable of loving someone,” Jake whispered into her ear.

“I know the feeling.”

“And I was wrong about something else.”

“Really?”

“I’d wear a tux for you. And for the record, I so deserved that pregnancy stick in my burger.”

Epilogue

Jake trod softly through the darkened hospital room, wincing as the paper bag of takeout crinkled when he placed it on the small dresser beside the bouquet of pink roses. His eyes darted over to Claire, who still slept soundly. He paused for a moment in the middle of the small room, heavy emotion anchoring his feet to the ground. His eyes went to his wife, who looked tired and pale, but still lovely. And then his eyes went to their son, who was beginning to stir in the bassinet beside the bed.

Jake had been a father for less than twenty-four hours, and a husband less than a year, but there were a few things he was already certain of. There wasn’t anything greater than the love he felt for Claire or his son. He also knew the two people in this room had changed him profoundly. Their son didn’t know it yet, but he’d blessed Jake and Claire with an even deeper love. The very knowledge of his existence had spurred Jake to heal the pain of his past, and his arrival had entrenched the need for him to be the best man he could be.

He approached the bassinet when Michael Holbrook Manning’s sturdy arm wrenched itself free of the blue swaddling blanket. Jake paused for a moment, took a deep breath, and then reached out to pick up his son. And that strange, thrilling emotion pummeled through his body as he gathered the baby in his arms. He slowly rocked him back and forth as the nurse had shown him hours earlier, and gently tucked the blanket around Michael again, fixed the little knit hat, and looked at him. He could do this all day, he thought.

As Michael drifted back to sleep in his arms, Jake admired his son. His eyes wandered over the tuft of dark hair peeking out from under the hat, the full, round cheeks, and the bright-blue eyes that blinked once before finally shutting. He felt the innocence, the purity, the perfection in his small body, and he wondered how anyone could ever blame a baby for anything. There would be nothing anyone could ever say to him that would change his love for his child. He knew with every breath he took that Michael would be loved by him and Claire unconditionally. He walked over to the window, careful not to jar his son awake, and looked outside at the snow-covered ground.

…

Claire opened her eyes, slowly emerging from a deep sleep, vaguely aware Jake was in the room. She didn’t say anything when she spotted Jake standing next to the window, Michael in his arms, wanting to enjoy the beautiful sight of them for a moment. Her throat tightened with emotion as she watched her men together. Jake bent to kiss their son so gently she wondered how she could have ever doubted his ability to be a father.

Michael Holbrook Manning, named after her father, had entered the world in the wee hours of the night, and already bore a striking resemblance to Jake.

Her parents had been the first to visit this morning, bringing a bouquet of white and yellow tulips. They had finished their work in Africa and had been home for the final few weeks of her pregnancy. It was the nicest moment she’d ever shared with her mother when she’d handed over little Michael for her mother to hold. And the tears in her father’s eyes when she’d told him that they had named their son after him made it very clear how honored he was.

She continued to admire Jake from the hospital bed. He had obviously gone home and showered after their long night at the hospital. His light-blue crew neck was a startling contrast to his bronzed skin, and she knew exactly what that color did to his eyes.

“Hi,” Claire called out softly. She smiled as Jake turned around and walked over to her.

“Hey, I hope I didn’t wake you,” he whispered gruffly, and leaned down for a gentle kiss before sitting on the edge of the bed.

“No,” she said, peeking at Michael, who slept soundly. “He’s beautiful, isn’t he?”

Jake nodded. “I still can’t believe we’re here. And he’s here.” The tenderness in his handsome face took her breath away as she watched him look from her to their son.

“He’s so perfect. I feel so blessed,” she said, emotion tightening her throat again.

“We are blessed,” he agreed, looking at Michael again. “How are you feeling?”

“Let’s just say the euphoria of Michael being here, combined with whatever drug cocktail the nurses have me on, is making me feel pretty good.”

She saw the worry in Jake’s eyes and waved her hand. “Seriously, I’m fine. Who would have thought your one night of seduction could lead to us getting married and having a baby?”

Jake’s eyes sparkled. “Uh, who seduced who?”

“Details, details.”

“For the record, you can seduce me anytime, baby,” he said gruffly. “Oh, before I forget, I brought you a coffee,” Jake said, slowly standing and walking to the dresser. Claire noticed the ease with which he moved, even with the baby in his arms.

“Coffee. Have I told you how much I love you? I have been waiting months for this day.” She sighed as he handed her a paper cup.

“Yeah, I believe I owe you a coffee, don’t I?” His eyes locked with hers and Claire remembered. How long ago that night seemed. Jake had been almost a stranger to her, more fantasy than a reality. They had been on a journey of discovery together.

“It was all worth it.”

Jake nodded, somehow looking even more attractive to her now, unshaven and tired, than ever before. He had layers to him she never could have imagined and a gentleness that always amazed her. In the last seven months, he had proven to her every day how important she was to him. He had worked tirelessly on their home, determined to have everything ready before the baby arrived. With Holly’s help, the old Victorian house had been restored to its former glory. It reflected their personalities and it exuded the warmth of a happy family home, something neither of them had as children.

“So any idea when we can leave this place?” Claire said, taking a sip of coffee and sighing with unbridled delight at the flavor. She was desperate to get out of the uncomfortable hospital bed and tiny room.

Jake shook his head.

Claire groaned. She was dying to get home and begin their new life together. The nursery was decorated in yellows and greens and was connected to their bedroom, all ready for their return home.

“Have you heard from your family?” she asked.

“Early this morning. The whole brood came by a while after your mother left, but you were sleeping and I told them to come back in a couple hours,” Jake said.

“I didn’t hear anything.”

“Yeah, I figured if the noise they were making didn’t wake you, you should sleep. Evan flew in last night.”

“How is he doing?”

Jake shook his head. “You know Evan. He’s pretending he’s fine, but I know he’s going crazy inside. The damage to his arm and hand is pretty bad. He doesn’t look any better now than he did last month.”

“I feel so bad for him. What a freak accident,” Claire said, thinking of the car crash he’d been involved in.

“He hasn’t said anything, but it’s not looking like he’ll ever be able to operate again,” Jake said, voice trailing off as he looked over to the door. Claire heard voices coming from the corridor too. There was a knock followed by the exuberant entry of Quinn, Holly, Ella, and Evan.

Little Ella immediately wanted to be held by Jake, and Jake obliged, gently handing Michael over to Claire.

Holly gave a muffled squeal, jumping up and down. “Congratulations, I’m so happy for you guys,” she whispered. Holly raced over to Claire’s side, giving her a big hug, and then looked at the baby.

“Claire, congratulations,” Evan said, bending down to give her a kiss. He reached out to touch the baby’s face with his right hand and then quickly lowered it, stuffing it back into the pocket of his jeans, but not before Claire saw the blistering, red scars, the tremor in the hand that should have been steady. She pretended not to notice, knowing he wouldn’t want her pity.

“Thank you, Evan,” she whispered, looking into his blue eyes, so similar to Jake’s. She saw the pain in them and almost felt guilty for being so happy.

“Congratulations, he’s a beautiful baby. Looks nothing like Jake,” Quinn said, breaking the tension, making her laugh as he gave her a kiss. She loved her brothers-in-law. They had welcomed her into the family with such warmth that she immediately felt like part of the group.

“You’re really funny, Quinn,” Jake said, smiling. Claire laughed, her eyes filling with tears as her friends and family filled the room. Michael would know how very much he was loved, Claire thought as everyone’s excited, hushed voices bounced around.

“Okay, I must officially say this is the cutest little boy I have ever seen,” announced Holly in a theatrical whisper, as she held out her arms. Claire handed her best friend the precious sleeping bundle. “And, I’m going to say it. Only once, but I’m going to say it. I told you so,” Holly announced smugly, looking around the room, making sure she had everyone’s attention.

Claire raised her eyebrows, waiting for her friend to continue.

“I told you everything happens for a reason and…”

In the midst of the chaos, in the midst of Evan cutting into Holly’s speech, Jake handed Ella over to her dad and leaned forward, smoothing the hair from Claire’s face, his lips hovering a few inches from hers, and Claire’s heart still skipped with glee and excitement at his nearness, at the feeling glittering in his eyes. “I love you more than you’ll ever know, Claire,” he said, bending down to capture her lips in a sweet, gentle kiss.

She looked into his eyes, knowing she had found the best man she could have ever dreamed of. Claire smiled. “I know how much I’m loved. I know it every day I’m with you, Jake. You’ve made all my dreams come true,” she said, her chest tightening as she watched her husband’s eyes become clouded with emotion before he kissed her again.

Look for Evan Manning’s story in Indulgence this winter, book three in the Red River Series! We even have a sneak peek for you.

… turn the page!