“My dad was an asshole, too. He wanted to live through me. He expected me to do all the things he wasn’t able to and he didn’t care if I got hurt in the process. My last concussion put me in the hospital. My dad was there when I woke up, calling me a pussy and telling me to get my sorry ass back out on the field. I refused. He won’t talk to me anymore. He didn’t want a son, just a star athlete. He was a horrible role model. He taught me nothing about being a good parent. But he showed me exactly what not to do. I can figure out the rest because I’m going to love that kid like I love his mother.”
Kellan set the beer down. “I don’t know what to do. I…I care about Belle. I really do. You and Tate are the brothers I never had. I don’t want to lose you all, but I don’t trust it either. I couldn’t make a lasting relationship with one person. How do I do that with three of you? If it falls apart, it will happen in spectacular fashion because of me.”
Eric couldn’t help but roll his eyes. “This will work because we all want it to. We’re stronger than you think. Yeah, we’re all broken, but we need each other. We prop each other up. Where one of us fails, the others take over. Belle needs all three of us. This family needs all of us, but you have to be willing to try, put some faith in yourself and us. More than anything, you have to forgive yourself or you will never move forward.”
“I don’t know that I can. How did I miss the signs? Hell, I knew the marriage wasn’t normal. I knew I didn’t even love her. I didn’t even want to. Maybe that’s the worst part; I wanted an easy marriage. We had the same goals. I wanted her to be a good political wife. I wanted her to be a good mom, but I expected any kids we had would be raised by nannies and likely go to boarding schools. I wanted us to have good sex. In exchange, I was willing to support her career goals. I thought we’d make a good team.”
Eric couldn’t imagine such a cold exchange of loyalties. He’d always known he wanted a real marriage, even if it was messy and hard. Before he’d really understood what love was, he’d wanted caring and kindness in his life. “I know you think you wanted that, but I firmly believe you would have found it empty and left anyway in the end.”
“What if that kind of marriage is all I’m capable of? This is the first time in my life I’ve ever had a relationship with someone who wants something real from me. Not money or power. Not connections or my family name. Belle doesn’t want a teammate. Belle doesn’t care that I can take care of her financially. I sure as hell don’t think Belle is going to want the same kind of childhood I had for our kids.”
Eric ached for his friend, but he had to be utterly honest. “None of us wants that, man. What Belle requires from you is simple. She wants love and honesty. She wants to love you back and won’t accept anything less than your all. But here’s the thing: she’ll give you everything she has in return. Always. She won’t ever leave us. She won’t cheat or stab us in the back. She would never whore herself for money or fame or anything the rest of the world can give her. Belle will love you for you. She’ll do it whether or not you’re brave enough to try. Just because you walk away, doesn’t mean Belle will love you less.”
“The sharing thing could make us all outcasts,” Kellan countered.
Eric was done with that argument. “I don’t give a shit what others think. We’ll make a great family. There will always be people who don’t understand. I won’t live my life by their standards. I want to live my life so fully that I have no regrets at the end. If you leave now, do you honestly think you’ll never regret it.”
“And if I fail? What if I’m only really built for the type of one-sided relationship my parents had?” Lines of worry creased Kellan’s face as he spoke, the heavy weight of his fears apparent.
“How many close friendships does your father have?” He had to get Kellan to see he wasn’t his dad. It was the only way they had a shot at moving past this problem. Kellan wasn’t his father any more than any of them were the sum of their parents.
Kellan suddenly found his glass infinitely fascinating. “None. My father believed in allies and he would be loyal until he no longer needed them. Then he would walk away and never look back.”
Rather like Kellan had done after law school. He’d found the woman he thought would be a perfect mate and he’d left Eric and Tate in the dust. He hadn’t even invited them to his wedding. They had been the best of friends in college until Kellan had found a new life.
He would have been alone from that point on if Eric hadn’t reached out to him after the divorce because Tate had found the article about it online. Tate hadn’t called because he’d assumed that if Kellan needed him, Kellan would say something. Eric had known better, so he’d been the one to reach out. The two of them had worked together to help Kellan in his time of need.
Friendship was a delicate balance. Today proved it all over again.
“Is that what you’re planning on doing? Walking away and never looking back?” Eric knew the answer, but Kellan needed to figure it out for himself. Then what?
After a long pause, Kellan turned his way. “I might not be able to live the kind of life Belle needs, but I can’t just walk away. Whatever you need, all you have to do is call me. I’ll stop whatever I’m doing. If I’m somewhere else, I’ll come to you. I will never let you down. I’m done with that.”
Because they were family. “Come home with me. If we’re all committed, we’ll work it out. Just give it some time.”
Kellan finally nodded. “All right.”
* * * *
Belle answered the door, eager to get the evening’s meeting over with. The contractors had come and gone, and nothing had been settled. No one had tripped the cameras, so they still didn’t have any evidence. Belle found the not knowing so frustrating, especially when all she wanted to do was bask in the glow of her new future, glimmering just over the horizon.
Of course, that future would be dimmer if she couldn’t have all of her men.
Eric had left a while back. Perhaps he would find Kellan and bring him home. Then they could talk everything out. Or maybe she would just make love to the man until he couldn’t walk. She could completely exhaust him so he couldn’t run. That would be one way to keep him close.
“Annabelle Wright?” The woman was younger than she’d seemed on the phone. Somehow, Belle had thought she would be more like her mother’s age. The face that stared back was perhaps a year or two older than her own. She was dressed in a business suit and carried a briefcase. Her blonde hair was in a careful bun.
All in all, not what she’d thought a medium would look like.
“Yes. Won’t you please come in?” The faster she got this started, the quicker she could set the scene for Kellan. Seduction might be the best way to go. She’d been honest with him about what she wanted. He knew the score. She could see if an enormous amount of really filthy sex would help him see that she could be his kind of woman. Now that she knew exactly what she wanted, she found herself eager to start making a home with her men.
The medium stepped through, her nose wrinkling delicately. “I’m Helena Rhodes. So you’ve been having issues with the house. I’m really not surprised. It’s a bit infamous. Rumor is, there’ve been several suicides here, and some people who owned the house afterward complained of disturbances and unexplained activity.”
Belle was fairly certain some of her issues were entirely human, but she couldn’t ignore the feelings she got in the house. There was no way the shadow that had passed through her the night before had been human. There was definitely a presence or two in the house. Hopefully between the nanny cam Tate had set up to catch whoever was trying to scare her away and Helena, she could finally get some help on the ghost front. “Yes, we’ve had several incidents. There are cold spots all over the house and I can hear whispering at night when I sleep in the master bedroom. It always stops the minute I get out of bed. Did Tate explain what happened last night?”