The Mischievous Mrs. Maxfield (79 page)

“I’m sorry, Charlotte,” he murmured softly, his brown eyes anguished.

“I would’ve preferred the harsh truth to the years of endless questions,” I told him with a casual shrug even as I felt the sting that forever lingered. “I’d rather a quick stab to the heart than a slow, agonizing death, but then, that’s just me.”

I grinned at his horrified expression, brightening up. “Hey, it’s a cautionary tale—not an instruction manual.”

Reluctantly, he smiled back. “Alright. I’ll brave it and enter a den packed full of protective Maxfields.”

I snorted. “It’s about time you showed some balls—metaphorically speaking, of course.”

Jason choked on a laugh as he held the door open for me. “Let’s hope they don’t go straight for them—literally speaking.”

The party was still in full swing when we came back in. We stood by the doorway to survey the crowd until Jason picked out Anna who had no trouble standing out.

“There’s no training wheels from here on then so best of luck to you, bud,” I told him with a firm smack on his back before I turned around and walked away.

Sweeping a quick glance around, I spotted Brandon and Martin in a corner, shooting hoops with the children at one of those basketball arcade games. The men were engrossed in conversation even as they took turns helping Mattie, Rose and Zach shoot balls through the hoop.

Both men wore relaxed, smiling expressions and I felt a surge of relief that there seemed to be no notable damage to the relationship between father and son despite the wide berth they gave each other in the past couple of weeks.

I left them to catch up further and headed for the bar.

I had just asked Jenny for another fizzy drink when Tessa appeared by my elbow.

Her brows were drawn in with disapproval, her lips pursed in a frown. “Is my eyesight going or was that Jason Reid who just walked in with you?”

“I didn’t check for ID but I’m pretty sure that was him,” I told her with a smile as I hoisted myself up on a stool and happily accepted the pale blue mocktail Jenny handed me. I surveyed the crowd and found Jason talking to Anna at a corner booth, out of earshot from the other guests. “The sulky look on Anna’s face confirms it.”

“What is he doing here?” Tessa demanded in a hushed tone that concealed none of her outrage. “I went through the guest list and he was nowhere on it.”

“I’m sure he wasn’t,” I answered calmly. “I saw him outside with his nose practically pressed against the window like a hungry kid watching people having fancy dinner.”

Tessa scowled. “While I usually admire your charitable nature, Char, this particular recipient of it is a cheating, lying bastard who shouldn’t be anywhere near Anna. He’s hurt her from day one and he’s going to keep doing it.”

I understood Tessa’s anger. I truly did. 

“I’m not sending them off to elope or anything like that, Tess,” I said in a placating tone. “It’s a conversation—one that’ll hopefully bring this whole episode with Anna to a close.”

Tessa’s eyes widened. “You think he’s here to break up with her for good?”

I shrugged. “Or fight for her this time around. Who knows? Either way, he needs to conclude this once and for all.”

Tessa fell into a thoughtful silence as she sat next to me at the bar and watched Jason and her sister. “Even if he chooses Anna, how do you know he can be trusted to stay faithful to her when he obviously failed at that with his wife?”

“I don’t know that,” I answered quietly, stirring my drink with the short straw. “I can’t really say for sure that a person who’d done one wrong is forever wired to do it over and over again, or that someone who’d made one mistake after another can’t just clean up his act one day and start living right.”

“Then how do we know who we can trust?” Tessa asked softly, cautiously.

I glanced at her in the corner of my eye and saw that her gaze was no longer narrowed at Anna and Jason but at the tall, blonde, grinning man who stood by one of the tables, talking to Bobby and a couple of girls, Macy and Becca, who worked for Marlow’s.

His animated expression and hand gestures told me he was having a good time in the conversation but I was certain that while he may not be oblivious to the adoring looks the girls were casting his way, he wasn’t encouraging them either.

But to Tessa, the sight was probably like tossing fuel to the fire. 

“It’s called trust, not insurance,” came my wry answer which caused Tessa to frown. “If you have a safety net for every risk you take, it’s not much of a risk, is it?”

Jake chose that moment to glance our way and when he saw us, he smiled broadly and gave a little wave before Macy touched his arm lightly, drawing his attention back to his group.

“It’s not so much as insurance at it is simple research,” Tessa said with an unmistakable hint of bitterness in her voice. “I like to know exactly what I’m going to be investing in. A company’s history speaks a lot about its stability and profitability.”

God, if Jake could just hear how Tessa was comparing him to a stock market investment, he would pull his hair out and eat it.

“Tess,” I started slowly. “Have you ever liked someone from afar before? Someone you’ve watched be with someone else and wondered what the hell he’s doing with a girl you didn’t think was right for him?”

She turned to me with a startled expression, blinking for a moment before nodding. “Yes. Haven’t we all done it?”

I grinned. “Oh, totally. I used to think that each time I read something about your brother’s love life on the papers.”

Tessa smirked. “He was quite notorious. It only slowed down a little as he got older and became more focused on work.”

I eagerly nodded in agreement. “I used to think he was going about it the wrong way. He was with women who were, yes, all beautiful and fabulous, but they didn’t quite have that extra special something that will make him happy. Of course, I’d mutter out loud that I had that extra special something but he wouldn’t quite know until he stopped looking where he was always looking and look at me instead. You know what I mean?”

Tessa smiled and rolled her eyes but nodded anyway. “Yeah. You keep thinking, he wouldn’t know what he’s missing until he takes a chance on you. Yeah, I totally get it.”

I reached out and took her hand in mine, giving it a reassuring squeeze. “Sometimes, the guy looks up and past the usual types he’s often surrounded with, and does exactly that—taking a chance on you.”

It only took a moment for my meaning to dawn on Tessa and she visibly swallowed, her eyes lowering. She knew that I knew but knowing how surprisingly stubborn she could be, my little pep talk probably helped Jake very little.

It’s funny how we get exactly what we want and we don’t know what to do about it.

“He’s just suffering from a high dose of guilt and misplaced honor,” Tessa said shortly. “He’s determined to do right by me because I happen to be his best friend’s younger sister. If it were any other girl, he would’ve forgotten her name by now and moved on to the next conquest.”

I scrunched up my nose in thought, analyzing as I went. “I’m not sure that makes the most sense. You’re his best friend’s younger sister which puts you in the off-limits category. If he’s not serious, the last thing he’d want is to make a big fuss and potentially risk exposing the truth to Brandon. If he’s not serious, he’d hate having to be put in a position to lie to placate your furious brother and salvage their friendship. He has a lot at stake, and the fact that he’s willing to take chances despite all of that should somewhat indicate that what he has to gain in being with you far exceeds what he has to lose.”

Tessa’s mouth had hung open somewhere in the middle of my pondering and I resisted a smile as she blinked rapidly and tried to regain her composure.

I knew I’d hit a nerve and I was happy to leave it at that.

I didn’t like telling people what to do but sometimes, one had to point out something they intentionally took for granted because ignorance felt safer than being absolutely aware of what was going on and having to make a decision about it.

“If someone takes a chance on us, shouldn’t we return the favor?” I told her with a smile and a peck on her cheek before I slid off my stool and headed for the basket ball arcade to join the kids.

Just as I was about to reach them, Felicity popped out of nowhere and grabbed me by the wrist, pulling me to a discreet corner.

“What’s up, buttercup?” I asked her as I leaned in to sniff at her drink because it smelled strongly of something like candy. Alcohol wasn’t openly served but if one showed ID at the bar, they could get a discreet drink. “Is that a gummy worm in your shot glass?”

Felicity moved away her drink after I tried to pinch the candy out of it and steered me not-so-discreetly in the direction of the door.

Well. It looked like I was going to have more than one party-crasher today.

“I’m guessing from the way you’re severely scowling right now that he’s not on the guest list,” I said to Felicity as I tossed back the rest of my drink and handed her the empty glass. “Keep an eye on my husband in case he comes charging like an angry bull about to gore his cousin open.”

Felicity didn’t look reassured. “Char, I don’t think it’s a good idea...”

I patted Felicity on the shoulder. “He’ll be fine. I promise not to break any of his bones.”

Felicity lifted a brow at me. “I wasn’t worried about him.”

“I think that’s his problem,” I murmured thoughtfully as Francis slowly swung his head around to survey the crowd before he locked gazes with me. “He doesn’t have enough people who care. I’ll be right back.”

As I strode toward Francis, I scanned the party in the corner of my eye, spotting Nicole talking to Armina and Aimee over drinks at a booth in a far corner, with her back mostly turned to us. 

Perfect. 

The last thing I needed was for her and Zach to be within striking distance of the a man who detonated like a self-replenishing land mine.

“I hate to disappoint you but this isn’t my funeral, if that was what you were hoping to attend,” I said gamely, inwardly surprised at the lack of resentment I expected to feel meeting face to face again with the man who’d hung Brandon and I out to dry. “If it makes any difference, there are sandwiches and coffee.”

Francis’s blue eyes flickered with an emotion I couldn’t name before he smirked and shook his head. “I suppose the world needs to keep a balance. Infernal optimists like you compensate for the hardened cynics like myself.”

I snorted. “I would hardly call myself an optimist. I’m really more of a pragmatic sort. I don’t care if the glass if half-full or half-empty—I’m just glad to have something to drink.”

“People underestimate you because they think you’ve come from nothing,” he said with a serious tone, and what I suspected was a hint of reluctantly-felt respect. “The most formidable foe is one who has nothing to lose.”

A strange, unnameable sort of understanding came between me and Francis as we measured each other up in the pause that came after his last statement, which was both a compliment and a complaint.

My smile was sincere this time as I said, “Which is why you nearly destroyed me the moment you ratted me out to everyone. Since the moment I agreed to that mad scheme with Brandon, I’d begun to care. I stood to lose everything and everyone that mattered to me with one revelation.”

Francis glanced around the room, his eyes narrowing slightly. 

We’d probably already drawn everyone’s attention and while not all of the guests were privy to the fact that Francis and I were not so chummy, they’d notice the tension of those who knew and kept an alert watch on us. 

The music was still playing and a faint murmur of chatter continued to float over the room but I could feel several pairs of eyes burning holes through my back.

In the corner of my eye, I could see Brandon trying to brush past Felicity who was as successful as a little butterfly trying to keep away a growling lion. He only stilled when Martin laid a hand on his arm.

“I say, you haven’t lost a single damned member of your legion of loyalists,” he remarked dryly as he met the direct gaze of everyone looking at him. “Most of them are looking at me as if they’re contemplating imaginative ways to kill me slowly.”

And so I asked the obvious question, “Why did you come then?”

His mouthed tilted at a corner in a half-smile. “Because a man who has nothing to lose only has everything to gain.”

I frowned but before I could say anything, Francis’s eyes flickered to the side and touched on Nicole, who’d come to stand by Martin, her hands protectively settled on little Zach’s shoulders.

The boy was merely observing the whole spectacle, his big hazel eyes round with open curiosity as he stared in our direction.

“After what you did last time, Brandon’s mad enough at you that he’ll throw you out himself if you come within six feet of Nicole and Zach,” I told Francis with a sigh. “Jake will probably help.”

Determination glinted in Francis’s steely blue gaze. “They can try. At this point, I’m all out of aces. I’ll do whatever the hell it takes to get my family back.”

My eyes narrowed at Francis as curiosity nagged at me. 

His words simply reminded me of how desperate he was. Why? That was still a mystery.

“What do you think you’re doing, showing up here?” Brandon demanded in a low growl as he came to stand beside me, half of his body wedged in the space that separated me from Francis. “You’ve got nothing else to hang over our heads, Francis. If you do anything stupid, God help me, I will hurt you for real.”

Francis’s inscrutable eyes bore into Brandon’s, his shoulders squaring as if daring my husband to make good on his threat. “I will not apologize for outing a scheme you should’ve never cooked up in the first place. Not that it did me any good anyway. It only served to humanize you more to people who already worship you like a golden hero—a role I’ve lost complete interest in. You can have all of it, Brand.”

I said a mental prayer of thanks when the music blasted and Anna hopped up on stage to announce that she was singing with the band (she could actually carry a tune), drawing the rest of the curious guests’ attention away from our trio. I was grateful for the forgiveness I was granted by the people who found out about mine and Brandon’s farce but I didn’t want to have to tell more people about it. I wanted it shut and sealed off forever.

“I’ve decided that I prefer being a regular human to being a hero in everyone’s eyes,” Francis continued, a fleeting smile ghosting over his lips. “That way, when I fall, I don’t take everyone else down with me. I don’t want that on my conscience.”

Some of Brandon’s barely restrained fury eased, but he still spoke with gritted teeth. “Then don’t fall.”

The smile on Francis’s face stuck this time around. “We can’t live forever.”

Sensing an altogether different kind of turbulence in Francis’s deceptively calm demeanor, I put a hand on Brandon’s arm and gave it a light squeeze.

“Francis wants to see Nicole and Zach,” I said quietly. Francis hadn’t said the words outright but there was no doubt as to why he was here despite the hostile reception he knew he was going to get. “If Nic’s amenable to it, I think... we should let him.”

Brandon swung his head over to me, looking quite perplexed. “Why the hell would we do that?”

I met my husband’s fierce gaze. “Because a raging storm often destroys the landscape while a light, steady rain coaxes the flowers to bloom.”

I knew this because once upon a time, when I was an angry kid, a wise, patient man with big blue eyes sat down with me and showed me a better, happier way. His advice had done its job of saving me. It was time to pass it on. Maybe it can save someone else. Maybe it can save a big part of his family this time.

Brandon’s brows gathered into a frown as my words sank in.

“She’s troublesome but I’d credit your wife a wisdom she probably earned too early in life,” Francis commented to Brandon gravely and I instantly opened my mouth to say something in automatic defense before I realized that he’d actually just complimented me.

I couldn’t help a crooked smile. “Do you know why villains rarely win in stories?”

Francis arched a brow, humoring me despite the complete randomness of my question. “I wouldn’t supply an answer you clearly wish to provide.”

I looped my arm through Brandon’s, my smile deepening. “Because in becoming villains, they create the need for heroes. And do you know who can fight the best? Those who are forged from the fire the villains left in their wake.”

I could've been the ashes my parents left behind when the smoke cleared. I didn't come out of it unscathed but I was mostly intact. 

“It’s alright, Charlotte,” was Brandon’s soothing whisper against my ear as he pulled me close. “You’re done fighting now.”

We’re never done fighting. It’s only over when we’re dead.

“Don’t worry, Charlotte,” Francis sighed. “I’ve drunk my own poison.”

I surprised myself by grinning and patting him on the shoulder. “Nah, poison’s no fun—death and all that, you know? Yuck. Go get a drink or something in the bar. I’ll talk to Nic and see if she can stand the sight of you. Be right back.”

And before anyone else could say anything, I steered Brandon away and headed for Nicole who warily stood from the sidelines, still clutching her son’s shoulders.

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Brandon murmured as we walked. “Francis can’t be trusted to look after anyone’s interest but his own.”

“I agree, one hundred percent,” I said as I waved at Zach who looked up and gave me a gap-toothed grin. “Which is why I think he’ll be able to look after Nicole and Zach, after all. I think they’re his only interest, believe it or not.”

It was hard to explain but I understood something about Francis somewhere in that five-minute conversation we had. I’d always been a decent judge of character. I had to trust my gut on this despite all the obvious red flags.

Somehow, his coming here meant more than just facing the woman and the child he’d abandoned a few years ago. He could’ve avoided the crowd but I had a feeling he had specific reasons for choosing to have an audience.

Nicole’s lovely face was pale and anxious as we came up to her.

“What does he want?” she rasped out in a shaky breath. “If he’s here to make a scene about Zach—”

“I think I’ve given him plenty of opportunities to make a scene in the last five minutes that if he’d wanted one, he would’ve had it by now,” I told her, hoping to God that I wasn’t wrong in taking a chance on Francis. “He wants to see you and Zach. I think he wants to meet his little boy.”

My voice was low enough that Zach wouldn’t have heard from a few feet below us but I glanced down at the boy and smiled. If he were my kid, I’d move mountains too, to meet him.

“It’s your choice, Nic,” Brandon said, running a hand through his hair. “If you want to talk to him, we’ll give you some privacy while still keeping an eye on you. If you don’t, we’d walk you through the back door and get you into a car so you can get away from here without delay.”

“I’m not sure what to do,” Nicole whispered, biting her bottom lip. “I thought I did but after what he did last time...”

“You’ll never know the worth of a man unless you give him a chance to act upon his mistakes,” Martin, who’d been standing with Nicole after Brandon walked over to my side earlier, said quietly. “Sometimes their worst mistakes are their best chances at redemption.”

Ah, Martin. And here I thought I know all your lines. 

“If he does anything funny, you know where he’s vulnerable,” I told Nicole in a mock-whisper, winking as I pointed down to my knee. “Pull it all the way back and thrust it up straight. If your skirt’s an issue, just grab and twist.”

Her mouth dropped open for a second before she burst out laughing with the rest of our group. 

“Don’t worry, it’ll distract him enough trying to figure out what you’re doing that we’ll have enough time to come up and bash him in the head for you,” I teased further, jabbing her lightly on the side. 

Martin gave me a wry look of amusement. “I think I now know how you keep my son in tow.”

“Oh, don’t worry,” I reassured Martin. “I don’t pose any threat to the family jewels. The Maxfield legacy is safe. I have other means.”

Brandon choked out a laugh. “I’m glad to hear it, honey.”

“I think we’re going to go talk to Francis now before Zach hears more things he shouldn’t,” Nicole said with a flushed face as she slowly drew her son out of our protective circle and led him by the hand toward the food bar.

“Should I escort them there?” Brandon asked as we stood to watch mother and child slowly approach Francis who had hoisted himself up on a bar stool in the corner. “You know, deliver them along with a firm promise that I will really bash Francis’s head if he does anything stupid.”

“Nah, we’ll give him some room,” I said, smiling slightly when I saw Francis practically leap to his feet when he saw Nicole approach, his arms stiffly tucked on his sides as he rolled back and forth on his heels, waiting. “Nicole is stronger than we give her credit for. We don’t have to hold her hand in this but we’ll be here if she needs back up.”

“You’ve always been the trusting kind, even after all the reasons people have given you not to be,” Martin remarked as he slowly bumped my arm with his to get my attention. “I’m glad it hasn’t changed.”

I glanced up at him and felt a surge of affection for the old man and the kind smile on his face. “Let’s just say that some people gave me more reason to be trusting. I can’t fail them now by changing my mind—especially since they continue to trust me even when I’ve given them sufficient reason not to.”

“I will never deny, to my last breath, that I schemed to get the two of you together,” Martin said as he put an arm around my shoulders and another around Brandon. “I’ve never known anyone more deserving of happiness than the two of you. I don’t really give a damn how we all got here—just that we did.”

Brandon grinned. “Dad, you could’ve just given me her number, you know? You could’ve said, hey, I know this great girl. I think you should date her. Here’s her number, give her a call.”

I raised a brow at Brandon. “As if you would’ve ever called me! You’d know straight away that Martin’s just hounding after you to get married and have babies and you would’ve run in the opposite direction the instant he hinted at you about a girl.”

“He’s gotten away with dating his heart out in the past,” Martin said with a smirk. “It’s his pretty face, I think.”

“Thanks for the ringing endorsement, Dad,” Brandon said wryly. “I’m just not sure that Charlotte’s sold on the pretty face alone.”

I smiled serenely and flicked a hand in an up and down motion. “Of course, not. There’s the hunky rest of you too.”

Martin let out a hearty chuckle. “At the rate you two are going, I’m starting to wonder how soon I’d get those grandchildren you mentioned earlier.”

I must’ve turned beet red but we got easily distracted when we heard a burst of laughter from the corner where Francis had been waiting for Nicole and Zach.

The man had gone down on his haunches so he was eye-level with the boy and he was laughing lightly at something Zach was saying. The boy was extending him a small giraffe stuffed toy he’d won earlier from one of the arcade games and Francis carefully accepted it, patting the toy animal’s limp head.