Forever My Love: A Christian Romance (The McKinleys Book 2) Page 5

  “Uncle?” her mom said as her gaze went back to Lucas. “I do see a family likeness.”

  Lucas nodded. “My twin brother, Lincoln, was his father. I contacted Brooke this week to let her know that he had passed away. They were mentioned in his will.”

  “Oh my.” Her mom’s eyes rounded at the news, and her gaze shot to Brooke before going back to Lucas. “You have our condolences for your loss.”

  “Thank you.”

  “We’d better be on our way, dear,” her dad said as he slipped his arm around his wife’s waist.

  Brooke wondered if there would ever be a day when she would be able to look at her parents together without her stomach twisting. To this day—twenty-some years later—she still didn’t understand how her mom had been so forgiving of what he’d done to her.

  It wasn’t like he’d been, say, a dentist or bank teller who had slept with some random woman with no connection to their lives. No, he’d gotten involved with someone her mom had known. Someone who had been part of their large circle of friends and co-workers in the mission. Worst of all, the woman had been their teacher. So there hadn’t just been the humiliation of having her husband cheat on her, but to know that all the people they worked with knew exactly who it was. And then he’d had to confess and apologize before being sent back to the States where speculation had run rampant about their abrupt departure from Africa and subsequently their mission. Humiliation on top of humiliation, and still she’d taken him back.

  Brooke couldn’t understand it. That’s why even though she’d been involved with Lincoln physically, she hadn’t loved him. The trust required for love hadn’t been there. Her upset with him came from his treatment of Danny. Their son had deserved better. She hadn’t cared that he’d skipped out on her. She had actually expected that he would eventually.

  Her mom gave her a hug. “We’ll see you at the rehearsal, right?”

  “We’ll be there,” Brooke assured her. She wasn’t entirely sure how, but she would make sure that Danny was there to perform the duty he’d been given. He had been thrilled when Eric and Staci had asked him so she would do what she had to make he wasn’t disappointed.

  She walked with them to the front door.

  “Any chance you two might come for dinner one night and bring Danny’s uncle?” her mom asked, trying with little success to hide her blatant curiosity. “We’d love to get to know him since he’s practically family.”

  Knowing better than to outright refuse, Brooke would also never commit. “I’ll see what he says.”

  “Okay, I’ll give you a call.” One more hug and her parents were walking across her front lawn to where their car was parked.

  Brooke watched through the screen until the car pulled away from the curb. She turned to see Danny and Lucas behind her in the hallway.

  “I’d love to,” Lucas said.

  Brooke glanced up as she walked past him to the kitchen. “Love to what?”

  “I’d love to go to dinner at your parents’ place.”

  She spun around to face him. “Uh. No. That’s not going to happen.”

  “Why not? Like your mom said, we’re practically family.”

  Brook looked from Lucas to Danny, who stood at his uncle’s elbow. The mischievous grins they both sported were unnervingly similar. “No. She’s no doubt noticed you’re not wearing a ring. Dinner would be a matchmaking affair. She has two single daughters, after all.”

  “Two? I thought you said there were three of you.”

  Danny snorted in laughter. “Grandma doesn’t try and match Mom up with anyone anymore.”

  “Yes, she knows better than to do that now,” Brooke said with a grin at Danny. She liked to think the matchmaking catastrophes had been as much about the men her mother had chosen as they had been about her aversion to dating, in general.

  Lucas looked down at Danny. “You’re going to have to tell me about them sometime.”

  Danny was vigorously nodding his head as Brooke said, “No.”

  Again they both looked at her with those grins. This did not bode well for her future. Already Lucas had found an ally in Danny. Eric and her dad tried to make time for him, but Brooke sensed that Danny had found a connection with Lucas that had been missing with them.

  “No,” she said again as she marched toward the kitchen. The bags from her parents still sat on the counter awaiting her attention.

  Trying to figure out how to keep things from spinning out of her control, Brooke pulled a couple cans of soup out of the first bag. Lucas and Danny joined her as she opened the cupboard to put them away. She stared at the nearly empty shelves and quickly shoved the cans in and shut the door.

  “Want some help, Mom?” Danny asked.

  “That’s okay, sweetie. Why don’t you and Lucas go and chat? You could show him your room.” She looked at Lucas. “If you have the time.”

  His gaze went from the bags on the counter to the cupboard and then to her. “Sure, I’ve got lots of time.”

  She watched him rest his hand on Danny’s shoulder as they walked toward his room. How had everything changed so fast? Just four days ago, thoughts of Danny’s father had been the furthest thing from her mind. As far as she had been concerned, Lincoln Hamilton was in her past and that was where he was going to stay.

  Only he hadn’t. Even in death, he was back in her life. And she didn’t know what to do now.

  Returning her attention to the bags on the counter, she quickly put their contents away. As much as she struggled in her relationship with her parents, they never allowed that to stand in the way of offering her help. She might be more reluctant to accept the help if it wasn’t for Danny. What she might be willing to endure herself was far different from what she’d make her son suffer through.

  Maybe it was time to look for a real job. Goodness knows no one considered her art as a steady income. And though it had been in the past, that certainly hadn’t been true lately.

  Lucas looked around Danny’s room. Though it was obviously a room that belonged to a pre-teen boy, it lacked the trappings he and Lincoln had had at that age. Their rooms had been expansive with big beds, and they’d each had a television and a game console along with a computer.

  Danny had a single bed pushed into one corner of the room, neatly made with a spread featuring the DC characters he seemed to favor. He had a simple desk under the window that was completely bare. No doubt being out of school meant no books or papers that needed his attention. There was a dresser next to the desk and posters on the wall.

  “I got some medals from track last year.” Danny opened the bottom drawer of his dresser and pulled out a box.

  “You like to run?” Lucas moved to his side as he set the box on the desk.

  “Yep.” He gave him a sideways glance with a grin so much like his father’s that it took Lucas’s breath away. “They weren’t for big track meets or anything. But next year when I’m in middle school, I hope to be able to make the team.”

  Lucas took the medals Danny handed him, not too surprised to see that most of them were for first place. “Your dad liked running, too. But he didn’t really like to be on teams. He just wanted to run.”

  “I like to race.” Danny’s eyes sparkled. “And win. Mom says doing my best is important and while I don’t have to win every single time, I need to want to win every single time.”

  “Your mom is smart.” Lucas handed the medals back to Danny. There was a part of him that just wanted to shower this kid with everything, but something told him Brooke wouldn’t appreciate that. And honestly, it didn’t appear that Danny lacked anything of true importance in his life.

  The doorbell rang, and Lucas heard the murmur of voices. A moment later, Brooke appeared in the door of the bedroom, a young man at her side.

  “Jeff!” Danny hurried to where they stood.

  “I told Jeff you two could ride down to the park for a bit.” Brooke grasped Danny’s upper arm. “Remember the rules. And Jeff, you have your phone?”<
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  The other boy nodded. “Text when we get there and when we’re on our way home.”

  “Perfect.” She gave Danny a quick hug. “Just for an hour though, okay?”

  “Yep.” Danny looked at him. “See ya.”

  Lucas smiled. It did his heart good to see his nephew had friends to spend time with. Running off to play with boys in their neighborhood hadn’t been something he and Lincoln had been able to do. They hadn’t gone to a public school so it wasn’t like there had been classmates who lived next door. They had friends, but spending time with them had meant coordinating schedules and utilizing chauffeurs since riding bikes anywhere off their property had been out of the question. Not that they hadn’t done it on occasion, but the times they’d gotten caught hadn’t made it worthwhile. At least not for him.

  Left alone with Brooke, Lucas decided to revisit a couple of things. “So, I’m serious. I’d like to have dinner with your family.”

  Brooke shook her head before turning around and walking back toward the kitchen.

  Lucas followed her. “Why not?”

  “It’s just not a good idea.”

  He sat down on the stool at the counter and leaned his arms on the smooth surface. “Why is that?”

  “I already explained it.”

  “So you’re worried your mom’s going to match me up with one of your sisters? Maybe one of them is my soul mate? Maybe this is supposed to be.” It probably wasn’t nice to jerk her chain, but it was kind of fun.

  CHAPTER SIX

  LUCAS tried not to grin as Brooke’s mouth opened then snapped shut. She glared at him before turning to open a cupboard and pull out a couple of glasses. “Did you want something to drink?”

  “Sure. Just water is fine.”

  Brooke took a large bottle of water from the fridge and poured it into the glasses. As she slid one across to him, she said, “For the record, I don’t believe in soul mates, so I’m not too worried you’d find one at my mom’s dinner table.”

  “You know, if you find the idea so abhorrent, you don’t have to join us. I could just pick Danny up and bring him back after dinner is over.” He took a sip of the water, grateful for the coolness of the liquid in the warmth of the kitchen. “It’s not like I wouldn’t meet them all at the wedding anyway.”

  “Why don’t we talk about setting up something for Danny to meet your mother?”

  Well, that hadn’t been what he’d set out to get from her but it was a nice result of her efforts to avoid the discussion of dinner with her family. “Sure. When would be a good time for you?”

  “I did say Danny needed to agree first.”

  “He agreed,” Lucas said as he traced a finger through the condensation on his glass.

  Brooke’s brows drew together. “What? You asked him?”

  “Not really. When you came inside, he asked me if I had parents. I assured him that I did—the same set his dad had.”

  “And he asked if he could meet them?”

  “He said that he liked your parents and would like to meet his dad’s parents, too. Of course, then I had to tell him that my father had actually passed away.”

  Brooke graced him with a sympathetic look before she sighed. “So, I guess we go ahead and set something up then.”

  “It won’t be that bad. My mom is really quite nice. My sister, on the other hand…”

  “Is…?”

  Lucas grinned. “Kind of like you. I figure you two will either hit it off or hate each other on sight.”

  “Well, she’s got something going for her right off the bat.”

  “What’s that?”

  “She’s not a guy.”

  He laughed. “That she’s not, but don’t ever tell her she can’t do something because of it. More than one person has ended up eating their words after such a statement.”

  Brooke let out a long breath. “Okay. Our schedule is pretty flexible with it being summer. The only days that won’t work this week are Friday and Saturday because of the rehearsal and the wedding.”

  “How about dinner on Tuesday night? I have to work but can swing by to pick you up afterward.”

  She hesitated then nodded. “Can I bring anything?”

  Lucas almost laughed until he realized her offer was sincere. Considering his mother probably wouldn’t even lift a finger to prepare the meal, he hadn’t thought about Brooke helping out in any way. “How about you and Danny whip up something like those muffins you made the other day? They were delicious.”

  Brook nodded. “We can do that.”

  He could see she was distracted by something, but didn’t press her. And for now he’d leave the topic of dinner with her family on the back burner. He drained the rest of the water in the glass and stood up. “I guess I’ll leave you to your day. Tell Danny goodbye for me.”

  Though he wasn’t in any rush to leave, Lucas knew with Danny gone there was really no need for him to linger. When he’d decided to find them, he’d imagined he’d be most interested in getting to know Lincoln’s son, but now he found that he was equally interested in getting to know Danny’s mother.

  “Thanks for stopping by.” Brooke picked up his glass and set it next to the sink. “Sorry Danny keeps disappearing on you.”

  “It’s quite alright. I’d rather get to know him on his terms, which means I don’t want you to force him to hang with me when there’s a better option available to him. I was a ten-year- old boy once. I would much rather have hung with my friends than an uncle.”

  “Thank you for understanding. I’m trying to let him fit this into his life in a way that’s comfortable for him.”

  “Is he doing okay with it? I’m not sure how to ask him that.”

  “All things considered, I think he’s doing pretty well. The mourning he’s doing is for more of an idea than a person. He’s never had a father. My dad or Eric would step in if things popped up where a father-figure was needed. Sadly, in this day and age, he isn’t the only kid with an absentee father.”

  “Well, for the record, I don’t think the decision Lincoln made regarding Danny was the right one. And while I’m not looking to fill my brother’s role in Danny’s life, I would like to be there for him in whatever capacity he might need.”

  Brooke nodded. “For now I’ll leave it up to him to determine what that might be.”

  “Is there anything you need or that I can do for you?” Lucas asked.

  “No.” Her answer came without hesitation and with a shake of her head.

  “Okay. If that changes, let me know. Otherwise, I’ll be here Tuesday around five thirty to pick you up.”

  Lucas didn’t prolong the visit after that. Though he wouldn’t have minded spending more of the afternoon there, he knew he’d probably pushed his luck by just showing up in the first place.

  As he pulled away from her house, his mind went to the week ahead. First up on Monday would be a visit to the gallery where it appeared Lincoln had bought his paintings. Though he’d never paid much attention to art before, he was about to become the proud owner of at least one Brooke McKinley original.

  Brooke stared at the number on the display of her phone. It had been far too long since she’d received a call from Dorie Kennedy. She just really hoped the woman wasn’t calling to ask her to pick up the paintings that hadn’t sold. It had been months since the last sale. Before that, every two to three months a sale would come through. Dorie never identified the buyer, just said that they would name their price, and it was always way more than Brooke had hoped her paintings would fetch.

  “Hello, darling,” Dorie greeted her when she answered.

  “How are you doing, Dorie?” Brook sat down at the table, bracing herself for what was to come.

  “Just fine. Well, I could do with a little less heat, but other than that, certainly can’t complain.”

  Just spit it out, Brooke wanted to tell her but she indulged in the chitchat Dorie always enjoyed.

  After five minutes of updating Brooke about the la
test antics of her furbabies and the cruise she was planning to go on in December, Dorie finally circled around to the point of her call. “Listen, darling, it’s been a few months since you last made a sale.”

  Six months, two weeks, and five days to be exact. “Yes, I’m sorry about that.”

  “No need to apologize, darling. And I didn’t call you to make you feel bad. I was actually calling because someone came in this morning and bought the three paintings I had on hand. So…you need to bring me some more.”

  The air whooshed from Brooke’s lungs. Someone had bought all the paintings?

  “Darling, you there?”

  “Yes. Sorry. Just kind of surprised. One person bought them all?”

  “Yep. One person.”

  “Is it the same person who’s bought my other paintings?”

  Dorie paused. “No. This is a different buyer. This one wants to remain anonymous as well though.”

  Brooke supposed it was too much to expect that she had two buyers who would be willing to pay the big bucks for her stuff. Even having one had been a one-in-a-million. She did some quick math in her head. If they paid what Dorie had priced them at, she’d be good for a few months at least. And this time around she would get off her duff and be proactive about her finances. She’d put all her eggs in one basket and was two weeks away from being out on the streets. No way could she let that happen again. Even with an inheritance pending, she just couldn’t count on that any more than she could count on the sale of her paintings.

  “I figure you might be anxious for the money, so I’ve sent the check over with a courier.”

  “Really? Oh, Dorie, thank you.”

  “You’re welcome, darling. And when you’ve got some new pieces, give me a call. I have some holes to fill now.”

  After she hung up, Brooke sat staring at the phone. Last night she’d lain in bed, worried about what was to come if she didn’t find a reliable source of income. Lucas had mentioned her and Danny being in Lincoln’s will, but she didn’t feel comfortable taking the money for herself. For Danny, sure, but she wasn’t entitled to anything. She had provided for her son by herself for ten years now, and she would continue to do so. Whatever inheritance he was due to receive from Lincoln would be for his future. What had her most worried, however, was the present.