A Man's Promise

Eleven

Shana grinned over at Jace. They were on their way to her father’s home, and he’d gotten quiet all of a sudden. “If I didn’t know any better, I would think you were nervous, Jace.”

He took his eyes off the road when he brought the car to a stop at a traffic light. “I am. It’s not every day I meet the father of a woman and tell him I got his daughter pregnant and ask for her hand in marriage in the same meeting.”

Shana smiled. “Take it easy. Dad’s a swell guy. Besides, he’s wanted grandkids for the longest time...as well as a son-in-law. Now he’ll get both. But you better be glad my sister, Jules, is out of town and won’t be here. She would give you a hard time just for the hell of it.”

She paused a moment and then said, “Your family seems to have taken the news well. Except maybe for Dalton. It was obvious he was kind of put out about it.”

“You should know Dalton by now. Dalton is Dalton,” Jace said as the car moved forward again. “The thought of my having unprotected sex was beyond his comprehension.”

“You didn’t tell him what happened?”

Jace shook his head. “No. It’s none of his business. Let him think whatever he wants, which is Dalton’s way.”

“Caden seemed preoccupied with something last night. Is everything all right with his band?”

“Yes, everything is fine with the band. It’s an issue concerning Shiloh Timmons.”

Shana’s brow bunched. “Timmons? Where do I know that name from?”

“Probably from seeing it in the listings of all our shareholders. Samuel Timmons was her father, but he died several months ago. All his shares in the company went to Sandra Timmons, her mother. In our board meeting a few months ago, when Titus Freeman tried to take over Granger Aeronautics, Shiloh saved the day by casting her mother’s votes our way.”

“That was pretty darned nice of her.”

“Yes, it was. Without those votes going our way, we would have been prevented from running the company the way my grandfather wanted us to.” He paused a moment and then said, “If Samuel Timmons had been alive, he would have voted with Freeman and, to this day, I don’t understand what happened.”

She looked over at him. “What happened about what?”

“My parents’ relationship with the Timmonses. They used to be close friends, and we all did things together...which is why their son, Sedrick, and I were close while growing up, and why Shiloh and Caden were close. But after my mother was killed, they, like everyone else, were convinced my father was guilty. They even testified at Dad’s trial about overhearing one of my parents’ arguments when Dad threatened to kill Mom.”

Jace paused a moment and then said, “Caden, Dalton and I overheard a similar argument. The night before Mom died. But we knew he was upset with her and that it was an idle threat.”

“Even when she was murdered the next day?”

“Yes. We were confused about a lot of things, but I think, deep down, none of us really thought Dad was capable of killing Mom.”

“Not even in the heat of passion like the prosecutors claimed?”

“Not even then. We knew Dad. As far as I’m concerned, the Timmonses should have known him equally well, and that he’d made an idle threat. It seemed as if for some reason Samuel Timmons wanted everyone to think Dad was capable of killing Mom.”

He paused again and then said, “And then after Dad was sentenced, the Timmonses and some of the other neighbors—the country-club gang—treated my brothers and me like we had the bubonic plague. They refused to let any of their kids associate with us.”

“That’s awful.”

“Yes, it was,” Jace said. “I lost my best friend, and Caden lost his.”

“So what’s the problem now?”

Jace took a few moments to tell her what Caden had told him. Retelling it made Jace realize just what a genuine ass Samuel Timmons had been. “Caden realizes he made a mistake and is determined to get her back.”

“I hope that he does.”

“Me, too.” They were silent again, and then when they came to another traffic light, Jace glanced back over at Shana and said, “Prepare me for your dad. What am I to expect?”

She smiled. “Ben Bradford is an ex-cop who raised his two daughters after the wife he loved with all his heart passed away of pancreatic cancer. Mom knew she was dying, so she prepared us somewhat. She made Jules and me promise to be good girls, and we tried to keep that promise. Dad made it easy by being such a terrific father. He worked during the day while we were in school and made sure he was home at night. At one time he was promoted to detective, but when he saw it was interfering with his time at home, he gave it up and went back to being a street cop. He said money wasn’t everything. It was more important for him to spend quality time with us.”

Jace nodded. “And he never remarried?”

“No. And he never brought a woman home for us to meet, although Jules and I know he was sexually active.”

“How could you and your sister know something like that?”

“Because we found condoms in his dresser drawer once. That’s where he kept extra money for special things like our hair appointments and school trips and stuff like that. As we got older we knew what the condoms were for. I guess he didn’t think when he tossed the packet into that particular drawer. He’d forgotten we went into it from time to time.”

“And now he’s dating Mona, the blind woman.”

“Yes. They’d only known each other a short while, and now he says he’s in love with her.”

“True love. There was a time I didn’t believe in it.”

“Yes,” she said, grinning. “I recall you once saying that.”

“Things have changed, and I hope you don’t find it hard to believe that two people can fall in love quickly, Shana. We’ve known each other a short while, and I know for certain that I’m in love with you.”

“And I’m in love with you,” she said, smiling over at him. “But...”

“But what?”

“I guess I’m overprotective of Dad, yet at the same time I want to see him happy. He deserves it.”

“Then let him be happy.”

Jace pulled the car into Shana’s father’s driveway and killed the ignition. He glanced over at her. “He is expecting us, right?”

Shana smiled. “Yes, he’s expecting us, and please relax, Jace. My father is nothing like Samuel Timmons.”

Jace let out a deep breath before smiling over at her. “Hell, I hope not.”

* * *

“Yes, Sedrick?” Shiloh asked, connecting to the incoming call on her phone.

“Everything is all set for Saturday night. I’ve made dinner plans at the Matador.”

“All right.” The Matador was a very nice restaurant in town.

“Wallace wants to come pick you up. Do you have a problem with that?”