CHAPTER SIXTY-THREE

NOLAN POV

Wow. I’d met a lot of women who wanted to be my woman, but none had laid it out quite like Mira. What the hell had Sam seen in this woman? Or what had Mira seen in Sam? The only thing I could think of was his wife’s inheritance.

      "I think you overestimate your appeal, Mira, if I may call you that. The truth is, Gwen is the most beautiful woman I've ever met. I have to admit I find it a little bit disturbing that you would try to seduce me, knowing my relationship with Gwen already."

 The agreeable, seductive exterior vanished. Her eyes narrowed. "It's no more disturbing than sleeping with your college-age daughter’s friend."

 I suppose she wasn't wrong, but I wasn't going to take the bait. "The point is I'm not interested in what you're offering."

 She leaned forward, practically sneering at me. "That's fine. It's clear that you're a bit of a pervert, anyway."

 I felt that dig in my psyche, wondering if that was true. Was my love of a woman half my age a perversion? How could it be? She made me a better man. A happier man.

"My goal was to be able to help you manage Gwen and not ruin your reputation,” she said.

 "I don't know where you get off thinking that I need that. Because I don't."

 She sat back, giving me a satisfied smirk. "You might want to rethink that, Mr. Douglas. Once I go to the press and tell them about how the hotshot businessman has slept with his daughter’s friend and gotten her pregnant . . ."

I ground my teeth, wanting to haul this woman out of the bar and out of my life.

 “I wonder if people will continue to do business with you when they learn that your coed lover is pregnant with your child, but she still lives in a hovel.”

      “What do you want?”

 “A hundred and fifty thousand would be nice.”

  "What's going on here?" Watt said, looking from me to Mira. His expression suggested that he thought I was picking up this woman.

 "This is Gwen’s stepmother. She's trying to bribe me or extort me. I don't know which it is, but I know when I talk to my lawyer, he’ll be able to sort it out."

 She looked at me, incensed. "It's all true. I haven't said anything that isn't true."

"I'm not suing you for defamation. I'm suing you for trying to get money out of me to keep you quiet."

“I’m shocked that you’re out with the boys, drinking it up while Gwen is stuck at home with her drunk father. You really are a piece of work. Wait until I tell her.”

My eyes narrowed. "Is Gwen part of this?” Even as I asked, I felt guilty about it.

"You don't think you owe her anything after what you've done to her?" Her response wasn't a yes, but it wasn't a no, either. It didn't make any sense that Gwen would try to get money from me when I spent all my time trying to show her how much I wanted to give her. But maybe that was the answer. Maybe in showing her the kind of life I could give her, she fell in love with the money and not me.

Mira stood. "I'll be in touch for your answer." She turned and strutted toward the bar door.

  "It's a no," I called after her.

  Watt sat down, but I stood up. He looked at me in confusion. "Where are you going?"

      “I need to go talk to Gwen right now."

 Watt stood up, stepping into my path. "Maybe that's not a good idea when you're pissed off. Isn't that the kind of behavior that got you in trouble in the first place?"

 It was, but there was no way I was going to be able to calm down until I knew for sure whether Gwen had duped me.

   "I'm all right. I need to do this."

Watt shook his head, but he moved out of my way. I drove to Gwen’s house, trotting up the front walk to the door. I wouldn't call my knock a bang, but neither was it soft.

 It occurred to me that April was supposed to be here, which was all the more reason for me to contain my anger.

 She opened the door, and her smile was sweet. As if she was happy to see me. Was it real?

      "You just missed April."

  Thank Goodness. "What’s going on with your stepmother?" I tried not to be angry, but my voice was definitely terse.

Her smile faltered. "What are you talking about?"

  "I just had a visit from your stepmother, and she's trying to get $150,000 out of me. Are you a part of that?"

 For a moment, she just looked at me, studying me like she didn't know who I was. And then I could see it in her face, the moment everything inside her shut down, and with it came the panic that once again, I was letting my anger get the best of me.

 I took a breath and counted to five. "I just need to know what’s going on."

 She shook her head and started to shut the door. My hand came out, holding it open. "Listen, if I am wrong, if I'm out of hand, tell me. Tell me what's going on. This thing can't work if you just shut me out."

 She shook her head. "We can't work at all, Nolan."

  "Don't say that. I've been working my ass off so that I can be better. The only reason I'm doing that is for you."

      "You're just doing it for the baby."

      I brought both hands up to my head, grabbing my hair, feeling like I was going to yank it out by its roots.

      "Of course, I love the baby, but all these weeks, it's been an excuse for me to see you. Fucking fuck, Gwen, can't you tell that I'm in love with you?" 

 Her eyes rounded in surprise, and I thought, hoped, that I was reaching her.

      But then she closed down again. "If that were true, you wouldn't be here asking me if I was working with my ex-stepmother to take money from you."

  I'd done it. I had told her what I wanted and how I felt, and it didn't make a difference. My brain buzzed with all sorts of things I wanted to say, most of which would probably make my situation worse. Then again, how much worse could it get? I'd gone as far as I could go, but there was no having the dream that I’d been trying so hard to put in place. The only thing to do was to let it go.

I turned away, heading to my car. When I reached the street and opened the driver’s side door, I looked up toward the house, I suppose, hoping that she would stop me. But the door was closed and the porch light was off. It was a metaphor for my life.