Forever My Love: A Christian Romance (The McKinleys Book 2) Read online

  “She’s good. I always wondered why Linc bought these paintings. The style is very similar so I knew they were all by the same person. I asked him about them once. He just said something about supporting a budding artist and that they were an investment.”

  “They were. An investment in his son.” Lucas stood up and walked to the desk where Lincoln’s desktop computer sat. There was a scattering of papers on its surface. “I’m just a bit concerned if Brooke has been relying on the money from those sales. My guess is he bought them fairly regularly, but now it’s been at least four or five months since he last bought one. Could explain…”

  Lindsay came to stand next to him. “Could explain what?”

  “Why she didn’t have her air conditioning on today. That house was like a furnace. She said it was a lifestyle choice when I asked her if it was broken. I’m wondering if it’s actually because she can’t afford to run it.” Lucas dragged a hand through his hair.

  “She’s going to have plenty of money soon,” Lindsay commented as she picked up a piece of paper from the desk then set it down again.

  “Not soon enough if she needs it now. Processing the will could end up taking more time than she has.” Lucas sat down at his brother’s desk. “I need to figure out where Linc was buying those paintings.”

  “I thought we were going to go for a swim,” Lindsay said as she perched on the edge of the desk.

  Lucas slid open the main drawer. “I think this is slightly more important. We can swim later.”

  “Okay, let me help.” She grabbed a handful of the papers on the desk and began to shuffle through them.

  Lucas smiled as he bent to pull files from the drawer. She might talk a tough line, but in the end, she would do what she could for the nephew she hadn’t even met yet.

  Brooke sat on the back porch, hoping that the gentle breeze would kick into something more like a gale force wind. Worry ate at her as she stared out at the small patch of land she claimed as her back yard. Her garden was dying with the heat and lack of rain, and she couldn’t justify spending the money to water it.

  It had been a long time since she’d been this short of cash. Given that she’d chosen to paint as her career, she’d learned early on to budget any money that came in, to not spend anything extravagantly. But this dry spell had taxed even the reserves she’d had in place. When her mom had called to ask her to come to church—as she did each Saturday—Brooke had said no as usual, even though she wouldn’t have been able to go even if she’d wanted to. She was pretty sure she would have run out of gas on the way.

  Though it was an excuse, it wasn’t the real reason she declined every week. They would have given her a ride if she’d expressed an interest because they came each Sunday to pick Danny up for Sunday school and church. While she wasn’t thrilled with church and the faith of her childhood, when they’d offered to take Danny, she’d left it up to him if he wanted to go or not. He’d said yes and hadn’t missed a Sunday since.

  She knew her parents hoped that one day she’d come with him, but Brooke wasn’t sure if that would ever happen. Right then she was in need of a major miracle, and so far God hadn’t come through for her. After paying rent, she had barely enough money for one more week’s worth of groceries and that was even buying much less than she usually did.

  Lucas had said that she and Danny had been mentioned in Lincoln’s will which no doubt would involve money at some point, but the problem was she needed the money now.

  In the meantime, she had to connect with Lucas again about the wedding. She still wasn’t sure what had prompted her to invite him. Maybe it was to shock her family. Maybe it was to put him on the spot. Either way, she had a feeling it was going to end up biting her in the butt.

  She picked up her phone from beside her on the porch step. Text or call?

  Text. Definitely.

  Seeing his picture on his contact page made her smile again. Trying not to dwell too much on that, she brought up the screen to text him a message.

  Wedding is next Saturday at 4 PM. Need to be there by 3. Semi-formal. Reception is at 6.

  She kept a grip on the phone, waiting to see if he replied. As the minutes ticked by with no response, Brooke laid down on her back on the porch. She stared up at the roof, trying to find the desire to paint. She knew she needed to keep working, but it was hard to find the motivation when her other paintings weren’t selling. She had three at Dorie Kennedy’s gallery that had been there now for almost eight months.

  Any day now she was sure Dorie was going to call her to come and pick up the paintings. And then what would she do?

  Brooke pushed herself back up to a sitting position. This melancholy funk she’d been in for the past few days wasn’t like her. Rarely did she let things like money get her down. She always tried to keep an optimistic outlook on their life for Danny’s sake.

  But since Lucas Hamilton had shown up two days ago, there had been no way to put a positive spin on Lincoln’s death. She wasn’t sure how to deal with all the feelings that were mixed up inside her since she’d heard the news. What they’d had hadn’t been about love between them. They’d loved life. They’d loved the thrill of adventure. Yes, they’d shared a brief—very brief—physical intimacy, but it had never been a heart connection. Still, he’d been a friend and even though she’d hated him for how he’d treated Danny, he had given her the greatest thing in her life. She wouldn’t do anything differently if it meant giving up Danny.

  She pulled her legs in, wrapping her arms around them and bent her head down to rest on her knees. Hot tears dripped onto her thighs. She grieved for a man lost too young. She grieved for a friend with whom she had shared the most thrilling adventures. But mostly she grieved for her son who would never have the chance to get to know his father.

  Danny hadn’t cried again since that first day—at least around her—but she’d seen him looking through the small album of pictures she had of their time together. Pictures of them on the tops of cliffs. White water rafting. Bungee jumping. Parachuting. All the adventures they’d shared.

  She couldn’t bring herself to look through it yet. Not because of anything she felt for Lincoln—that had long since gone—but it was painful to think it was that zest for life that had led to his death. At least he’d died doing what he loved. Gallivanting around the world on another adventure.

  “Brooke?”

  She jerked her head up to see Lucas standing a few feet away from her. Looking down at her phone still clutched in her hand, she said, “You didn’t text me back.”

  “I was driving home from church when I got your text. Thought I’d just come by.”

  Well, that explained why he was once again dressed in what she’d call business casual. His hair was perfectly styled, and he had the beginnings of a five o’clock shadow. The white heavy cotton shirt set off his hair and tanned skin.

  Why was she even noticing these things?

  “Danny’s not here.”

  He came to where she sat and settled down next to her. “Are you okay?”

  “What?” Lifting her hands to her cheeks, she swept the wetness away. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

  When she glanced at him, she saw that he didn’t look convinced, but apparently he was a smart man because he didn’t press. “So where’s Danny?”

  “He’s with my parents. They pick him up for church each Sunday.”

  “You don’t go with him?”

  “Nope. God and I aren’t on the best of terms.”

  “Why’s that?”

  “Why are people ever not on the best of terms with God?”

  He paused then said, “Usually has to do with people assuming that God is responsible for all the bad things that have happened to them.”

  Brooke shot him a look. There was no judgment in his words and surprisingly, none in his expression either. “Something along those lines.”

  “But you still let Danny go to church?”

  She shrugged. “When my parents offered t
o take him, I let him decide to go or not. His choice was to go.”

  When Lucas didn’t respond, Brooke didn’t bother to try to fill the silence. The stillness of the hot afternoon was broken only by the distant sounds of cars and children at play. Brooke loved afternoons like that. Heat aside, she loved to be outside and to hear the world alive around her.

  Lucas leaned his elbows on his legs, his fingers intertwined. He wore a watch with a thick leather strap on one wrist, but no other jewelry.

  “You’re not easy to find information on.”

  He turned to look at her. “What do you mean?”

  “I did a little searching after you left on Friday. There isn’t much info on you and even less on Lincoln.”

  Lucas nodded. “That’s the way it’s supposed to be. My dad was more visible, but there’s been no need for that for me or Lincoln. Both of us preferred to keep a low profile. Since our names are really only associated with the overall company—Hamilton Enterprises—and not the individual companies we own it’s much easier to keep from being too interesting.”

  “When Lincoln mentioned he had family money, I just assumed it was something like an inheritance from old money. But he did actually work for his money, right?”

  Lucas nodded. “He had a deal with my dad that as long as he stayed in touch, he would only have to work four months out of the year. The rest of the time, he could wander the globe as he wanted. He actually ended up working a lot more than that because he took his work with him.”

  “What did he do? Danny would ask me, but I had no idea.”

  “He designed computer games. Or rather, he designed the games that people go online to play with other gamers. He oversaw one of the largest MMORPG’s on the internet. With a group of other programmers, he designed a huge virtual world and then wrote a storyline with quests and stuff like that. I never really understood it, to be honest. I’m not a gamer myself.”

  “Danny enjoys computer games, but I keep a close eye on what he plays.”

  “As you should. I’m pretty sure the game Lincoln helped develop isn’t appropriate for kids Danny’s age.”

  “Good to know. I try not to let him spend too much time on his computer or gaming systems. My brother bought him one for Christmas along with a couple of games.”

  “I was always surprised that Lincoln enjoyed something that actually required him to sit still for any length of time. He told me that there was a thrill in creating things like his virtual world that while not an adrenalin rush like his other adventures, was exciting and gave him a sense of satisfaction.”

  “Maybe you could show Danny what Lincoln did. Not that I’ll let him play it, but just to give him another perspective on his dad.”

  “I can do that,” Lucas said with a nod of his head. “In return, could I ask you to do something as well?”

  Brooke was leery to commit to anything, but surely it couldn’t be too bad. “What would that be?”

  “Bring Danny to meet my mom.”

  She stared out at the back yard. It was hard to remember that Danny had had another family. Another set of grandparents and aunts and uncles. It had been just her side of the family for his whole life. She looked back at Lucas. “I will do that as long as you agree to a couple of things.”

  “Okay. What are they?”

  “First, I will let Danny make that decision. He’s dealing with a lot right now. I want to make sure he feels up to it.”

  “I agree with that.” Lucas arched a brow. “And your other thing?”

  “I want him to be treated as himself. I know he looks an awful lot like Lincoln, but he’s not. He’s very different from his dad personality-wise. I need people to respect that and treat him special because of who he is, not because of who his father was.”

  “That’s reasonable. It’s not like my mom doesn’t already live with someone who looks like Lincoln.”

  Brooke stared at him, trying not to smile. “You live with your mother?”

  CHAPTER FIVE

  BROOKE’S heart skipped a beat when Lucas grinned at her question. “Well, yes, actually I do.”

  “That must be quite the draw for the females you come in contact with.”

  “It’s not generally what I lead with when conversing with women,” Lucas admitted. “But I do actually have my own place. I’ve just been living with my mom and Lindsay since we got word about Lincoln. I imagine I’ll move back to my condo at some point.”

  “You don’t have a girlfriend?” Brooke wasn’t sure why she asked the question, but if she was going to spend time off and on with him, she’d rather have a heads up if there was a potentially jealous lover in the picture.

  “No. I haven’t had time recently to devote to a relationship. Before that, I seemed to lose most of my girlfriends to Lincoln.”

  “What?”

  “They seemed happy enough with me until they met him. One told me it was like being with a more vibrant alive version of me.”

  “Well, that’s a horrible thing for someone to say.”

  Lucas smiled. “Not really. The first time it happened it hurt because I wasn’t expecting it. After that, I didn’t let myself get too involved with a woman until she met Lincoln. If she was still interested in me after having Lincoln turn his charm on her, then I was willing to consider a more serious relationship.”

  “You make it sound like you and Lincoln would put the women to the test.”

  “I guess you could say that. It was bad enough that some of them were simply there for the money. Our little test was a good way to weed out the shallow gold diggers.”

  Sitting there beside Lucas, Brooke couldn’t imagine a woman choosing Lincoln over him. But then she was looking at it from a completely different perspective. She’d already had Lincoln in her life and experienced the not-so-attractive side of his personality. The stability Lucas showed was far more appealing at this stage in her life.

  Not that he was offering it to her. And not that she was wanting it. She hadn’t been on a serious date in years and planned to keep it that way. She had no interest in having just a sexual relationship with a man anymore but also had no interest in marrying one either. Basically, she had no use for a man in her life. So why bother dating? The few she’d gone on had been to appease her mother and Mrs. Davis.

  “You mentioned you have a brother,” Lucas said. “Do you have any other siblings?”

  Brooke fought the urge to roll her eyes. Of all the subjects… “Yes, I have a sister, Victoria. She’s a few years younger than I am.”

  “Is she married?”

  “No, my brother is the only one in a serious relationship. Victoria jokes that her dating pool is a little shallow so she hasn’t found anyone she’s interested in dating yet. She’s a little person.”

  “A what?”

  “A little person. She was born with dwarfism.”

  “Really? Does that run in the family?”

  “If you’re asking if either of my parents have it, the answer is no. But, strangely enough, my brother’s daughter also has it. It isn’t hereditary in that way, and it’s extremely rare for two people in the same family to have it without being a direct relation. Victoria has a good chance of having a child with dwarfism, but the likelihood of my brother and his girlfriend—soon-to-be wife—having another child with it is rare.”

  “So it’s the three of you?”

  “Sort of.” It had been almost six months, and Brooke still wasn’t sure how she felt about Alicia.

  “Sort of? That’s an odd response.”

  She shrugged. “We have a half-sister that we just found out about a few months ago.”

  “It sounds like there’s a story there,” Lucas said.

  “Yep. But not one I really like to talk about.”

  Before Lucas could say anything more, Brooke heard Danny’s voice calling out for her.

  She stood up just as the back door flew open. “Hey, sweetie.”

  Danny wrapped his arms around her in a quick
hug. His gaze went past her as he stepped back. “Hi.”

  “Hey, Danny. How’s it going?”

  “It’s going good.” He looked back at Brooke. “Grandma and Grandpa are inside.”

  “Really?” Of all days. Usually, they would just drop him off since they always said hi when they picked him up. She’d asked Danny not to say anything about Lucas and the news of Lincoln’s death. But as she looked toward the screen door leading into the house, she knew it was too late.

  She walked to the door and opened it, immediately spotting her parents where they stood together in the middle of her hot kitchen.

  “Hello, darling.” Her mom came and gave her a hug, the scent of her perfume wrapping around Brooke like a familiar embrace. “We were at the store and picked up a few things for you.”

  Brooke saw the bags on the counter that looked like more than just a few things. They did that every once in a while. She had a feeling Danny had mentioned something about their rather bare refrigerator. “You didn’t have to do that.”

  “I know,” her mom said with a smile. “But we like to be able to help out.”

  She knew the moment the door from the porch opened and fought back a groan. It had been too much to hope that Lucas and Danny would have just stayed out on the porch. Her mom’s eyes lit up, a curious expression on her face.

  Brooke turned to see Lucas standing just inside the back door with his hands on Danny’s shoulders. The similarity in their appearance was striking, and Brooke knew she was likely hoping in vain that her parents wouldn’t notice it.

  “Hello.” Her mom was heading in Lucas’s direction, her hand held out. “I’m Caroline, Brooke’s mom. And this is my husband, Doug.”

  Lucas took her hand and shook it and then took the one her dad offered as well. “I’m Lucas Hamilton.”

  A smile still on her face, her mom turned toward Brooke as if looking for more of an explanation.

  Brooke sighed. If she didn’t tell them the truth, they would likely assume he was Danny’s father, given the resemblance and the last name. She had just hoped for a little more time although his presence at the wedding would have raised questions as well. “Lucas is Danny’s uncle.”