But damn, Beau should trust me by now. I’d never do anything to hurt him.
“They’re formally sanctioning you,” Lon said quietly from behind me. That was a much stronger punishment than I’d ever been given before. I will be on probation for the next year. My senior partnership goals were now in question until I served my time. “This time, you’ll be given a discipline mark with a probation time and a substantial fine.”
“For Beau,” I admitted aloud in defeat. There had been countless discussions regarding Beau’s appearance, his demeanor, and how the firm wished to present itself. When I was promoted from associate to junior partner, my agreement dictated that my life revolve around the firm twenty-four seven. This wasn’t the first time I faced discipline over my guy, and he and I had talked about what the firm required from him. He’d agreed to try his best, but when I saw him today, looking quite lumberjack-like, I’d gone with it. His wardrobe choices were a bold statement. He’d grown into an incredibly stubborn man. He gave me no choice but to try to enjoy the hour we shared andtake the hits when they came. I had sacrificed so much due to him.
Before entering my shower stall, I stopped, my finger and thumb went to my temple, rotating against the stress building there. I had given Beau a pretty good life and he resented me the entire time.
“Have I mentioned to you that I was married to my high school sweetheart?” Lon asked but didn’t pause for a response. “She was the love of my life. We managed to make it through college together and law school. But once I started working here, everything changed. She was alone most of the time, while I poured myself into my job, day and night. She left and I never looked back. I’ve never been certain which path would have been better. Professionally, I’ve found success, but what would my life have looked like with a pretty, wholesome wife, a pack of children, living the middle class dream”
“I can’t see you as a family man,” I finally said.
He came forward, his palm clamped on my shoulder. “This place molds you, makes you into a different man. I’ve never regretted my decision. This place is my life. I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished.” He squeezed before he passed by.
He’d made my predicament even more dire. Naturally, I didn’t really want to lose Beau. No matter the differences between us, Beau knew how important this job was to me. After I worked Chandler out of the company, and I became a senior partner, my time commitments would ease, no more late nights, a day off every weekend, Beau would again become my first priority. At least that was how I wanted it to be.
Beau had landed in Northern Virginia a few hours ago, and I hadn’t heard a word from him. Lon’s life scenario could be a possibility for Beau and me, but I was determined to have Beau meet me halfway. He had to fight for us too, understand that there were two of us no matter how I’d placed him firstthroughout our lives. We had rocky times ahead of us if he didn’t.
I needed food, not a shower, then some rest. Time would lead my decisions. Beau was my soulmate. I was his. He’d make the right choices, allowing me to do so as well. I had faith in us.
Beau
The following morning
“Beau. Beau. Beau. Beau. Beau.” My sweet, willful little sister Kailey hopped around the kitchen on both feet, chanting my name with every leap she took. Dressed in a bunny costume she wore with pride, she’d been at it for several minutes, never tiring and promising to leave a trail of candy egg treats behind for me to find. At four years old, she hadn’t quite grasped the realities of biology, insisting that in fact, she was a rabbit.
“Kailey, go bounce around in the living room. I’m making breakfast,” my mom instructed her.
In response, she burst out with a new chant while jumping out of the room. “Cereal. Cereal. Cereal. Cereal.”
I sat at the kitchen table, nursing my cup of coffee, when a pretty significant yawn escaped. I slept restlessly last night as I fought my urge to text or call Dash. Staying off my phone took serious effort until I reasoned that he hadn’t made contact with me either. Once I realized that, it became surprisingly easy to set my phone aside and drift off to sleep at about four this morning.
The only problem with that was Kailey sneaking in my room before seven and pouncing on me to wake up. At least someone wanted to spend time with me.
“She’s full of energy all the time,” my mom said, preparing a Michelin-star-worthy continental breakfast.
On the large farmhouse table she had eggs, meats, cheeses, a variety of cereals, jams, jellies, and so much more. Right now,she was slicing bagels which she placed next to small bowls of different spreads on a silver platter. This was my first visit to her new home on the Potomac River. From this vantage point, they had a beautiful view of the river in a cozy yet modern kitchen. My mom had such a knack of making a house a home. She made me feel like I belonged here. These days the only time I felt that way was with my mom.
“Hey.” Carter greeted us as he entered the room with Kailey scooped up into his arms, sitting on his hip. He went to my mom. I watched her beam happiness at him as she whispered a good morning to him before placing a light kiss on his lips.
“Good morning. Good morning. Good morning,” Kailey started, bouncing in her father’s secure hold. She placed both hands on his cheeks and turned his face toward me. “Daddy, say good morning to Beau.”
“Good morning, Beau,” Carter said with a smile. I had to give it to him, he loved his girl. The entire scene warmed my heart for my mom. She truly deserved to be cherished, and those two did love her as much as I did.
I raised my cup, grinning at my little sister who beamed at me. “She’s full of energy.”
“Would you like a fresh cup of coffee?” Carter asked, putting Kailey on her feet. “Go to the table and wait for mommy.”
She did a full run, climbing into the seat she’d arranged next to mine. Her chair had a bolted booster seat, and she climbed in closer to me. “I wanted to sit next to you. You’re mybigbrother. Mommy’s sitting on the bench with Daddy.”
“Need a refresher?” Carter asked again. I lifted a finger to the carafe on the table. Carter nodded. “I should have known. Your mom thinks of everything.”
It had been several years since Carter and my mom had gotten together. They’d tied the knot about eighteen months after that first date. During that time, I’d had ample opportunityto see how well they complemented each other. I wanted my mom to be happy and appreciated for everything she brought to a relationship. Carter shared stories about the lives of the rich and famous and the pretense that accompanied such a lifestyle. He appreciated the way my mom anchored him to the life he had always wanted to live.
Great for them.Woo-hoo. However, I still didn’t let him off the hook. I couldn’t shake my distaste for him.
As I grew older, the more I wanted to become a self-made man. I wanted to live and thrive on my own accomplishments. While I had allowed Dash his taste for luxury, I ensured that I still managed my own path. Since Carter was insecure about his and my relationship, he was always offering some sort of financial help. I didn’t want it, and I couldn’t make him understand why. In that same vein, I wanted to appear strong and tough so Carter always treated the females in my life with the respect they deserved.
He hadn’t lost sight of that one time. Not that I saw. But neither had my father…until he did. Though, that wasn’t entirely true either. My distrust of the men in my mom’s life naturally put us at odds with one another.
