“It got you married in the end.”
Rick shrugged. “What of it? I didn’t marry any old woman Mom shoved in my face. I married Kendall, the right woman for me, not Mom. So did Roman. But you, big brother, are still running.”
“That’s a crock of shit,” Chase muttered. “I haven’t run from a damn thing in this lifetime, starting with my responsibilities to the two of you.”
“Those are long finished, Chase. But they’re a damn convenient excuse for you to use every time you want to avoid thinking about your feelings for Sloane.” Roman cleared his throat. “And it’s those responsibilities you’re running from.”
“What was your major in college, again?” Chase asked, not hiding his sarcasm. “Because I don’t recall you taking psych.”
Roman rolled his eyes. “It doesn’t require a rocket scientist to figure you out.”
“Oh, boys!” Pearl’s high-pitched voice interrupted their conversation as she burst through the front door.
“I thought you were at Raina’s,” Rick said, watching as Pearl made her way up the stairs and into the kitchen.
“I am, but you had rushed me before and I forgot my plate of brownies.” She perched one hand on her full hip and wagged her free finger in front of Rick’s nose. “What kind of houseguest doesn’t bring a thank-you gift to her host? Raina’s putting up with me in her not-so-healthy condition, so I came back here for my brownies. Because I’m grateful,”
she continued rambling. “And because Charlotte’s so very pregnant and craving chocolate.”
“So where are the brownies?” Rick asked, eyeing her empty hands.
Chase figured Rick was angling for food.
“In the car out front. With Eldin, who’s waiting.” Pearl gestured outside. “But you should know, Samson’s gone. He’s not in the house where you told him he should stay. And when I realized he was missing, I didn’t want to be arrested for being an accessory to a crime, for not reporting his disappearance.” She nodded her head, certain she’d done the right thing.
Which she had, Chase thought. Even if her reasons made no sense and were completely skewed.
Rick placed an arm around her shoulder and started walking her toward the front door.
“You did the right thing,” he assured her.
She nodded again. “There’s one more thing I should have mentioned earlier.”
Rick tipped his head to one side and stopped in his path. “What is it?”
“Samson’s been mentioning that someone keeps asking him for directions. The same man popping up in different places where he’s been. When we suggested he tell you, he said he wasn’t concerned. That the man had had many chances to take him out, if that’s what he wanted to do.” She twirled her fingers into her housecoat. “But Samson’s stubborn and doesn’t trust people to help him. He hasn’t for years.” Hanging her head low, she said, “I just thought you should know.”
Chase sucked in a deep breath, then forced a calm release. While Rick walked Pearl to the car, Chase was forced to admit two things. His brothers’ lectures had distracted him from watching the window and the guesthouse to make sure Samson didn’t sneak out on them. And with Samson on the loose, Sloane could no longer be alone. It wasn’t safe.
Because if her father went looking for her, Sloane, like Samson, would be a walking target.
The smell of fall permeated the air in the old tree house. Wood walls prevented the biting wind from whipping around, but a small window let a cold draft inside. And Sloane was freezing. Not that it mattered. She had no place she could go, and so she’d been alone here for the last few hours.
Curling her legs beneath her, she shut her eyes and leaned back, when without warning, the sound of someone climbing the rickety ladder leading to the tree house took her by surprise.
So did her visitor.
Samson eased his body into the small doorway and sat down beside her. She eyed him warily, unsure why he’d seek her out after rejecting her earlier. Refusing to make any overture, she tightly hugged her knees and waited.
“You deserve better than someone like me to be your father.”
She clenched her hands at her sides. “It’s not up to you to decide what’s best for me. And besides, we don’t determine our gene pool. Fate does that.” And she’d take the man fate had provided for her.
He wore an oversize army-green jacket and wrinkled khakis. His straggly white hair was windblown and his bearded face possessed the ravages of a life that hadn’t been kind to him. But in his eyes, she saw a depth of emotion and caring she hadn’t noticed before. He was obviously a man who hid his emotions well, letting them out only when he trusted the response.
And since Sloane had already reached out to him, maybe he trusted her now.
“So you’re stuck with me.” He shoved his hands into his jacket pockets and rocked in place.
“That’s one way to look at it.” Sloane’s lips lifted in a grin. Drawing a deep breath, she decided to extend the olive branch once more. “I prefer to think fate has blessed me with two different but very good men as father figures. You’ve just come to me later in life, that’s all.”
He tilted his head to one side. “Why are you being so nice about all this? About me?”
“Why wouldn’t I be? Besides the obvious reason that we share bloodlines, we also missed out on a lot. I want to catch up. Get to know my real father.”
“And what a stand-up man he is.” Samson gestured to himself in disgust. “Can’t compare to the senator, can I?”
She shook her head, noticing yet again the self-deprecating way he spoke about himself, making her wonder about a life that had beaten him down so badly. But she also noticed his change in tone, manner, and speech. No longer the country bumpkin with incorrect grammar, he spoke to her like a more educated man would. The kind of man Jacqueline would have been attracted to, Sloane thought.
“I never thought to compare you to Michael any more than I like being compared to my sisters or my stepmother. We’re different people. I came looking for you and I’m not disappointed in what I found. Are you?” She met his wary gaze.
“Of course not.”
Giddy relief flowed through her, but she wasn’t about to ruin the moment by throwing herself into his arms. Yet. They still had too much to learn about each other. She’d discovered enough about Samson to know that if she got emotional, he’d bolt. So she decided to switch subjects.