The Bad Son

Beau usually asked her to run with him. Why hadn’t he tonight? Because of Delia—that had to be it. Beau had seemed different earlier. He didn’t have a lot to say and he usually told her all about his business trips. Maybe he was just tired.

Dear, sweet Beau—her knight in shining armor. When everyone else in her life had let her down, Beau was always there. He’d been her best friend forever. She wondered what he’d say if she told him that she’d had a gigantic crush on him when she was a teenager. She and his younger brother, Caleb, were the same age and she’d make all kinds of excuses to see Caleb in the hopes of seeing Beau.

When Beau went to college, he lived in the dorm and when she’d spot his car at home she made sure she got to see him. Then she started college, then nursing school and met Allen. They dated but he graduated and moved on to a job in Baltimore. He worked for a large drug company and a year later they met again and renewed their relationship. Soon they were in love and planning a future. She forgot about Beau and her silly crush.

But at the wedding, when Beau had wished them well, for a brief moment she remembered thinking it could have been you. Because he was older, she was sure he only saw her as the kid down the street.

And she’d thought that Allen was the answer to all her dreams. He wasn’t—far from it. She shuddered and forced herself not to remember. Not tonight.

Fate had landed her and Beau in condos next to each other. It had been a big surprise when they realized they were neighbors again. That had been seven years ago. And not once in all those years had either of them crossed the line of friendship. At times, she wanted to and she couldn’t explain why she hadn’t. She wasn’t a kid anymore, but she sometimes wondered if Beau still saw her that way. She was an adult woman and a part of her needed more. Beau never seemed inclined to change their relationship. That was fine with her. Their friendship was more important.

Was that it? Was it safer as friends? That way she could never be hurt again. She nuzzled Freckles. With animals it was so simple. You shower them with love and attention and they return it tenfold. There were no feelings of rejection—the way it should be with humans.

She’d given her father her love and he’d walked out on them without one word of explanation. He wasn’t happy. Big deal. She never would understand that. How could a man turn his back on his wife? His daughters?

Allen had done the same thing, she reminded herself. He’d left, but at least she’d known why. She was less than perfect and he didn’t want a flawed wife. Tears stung her eyes and she resolutely refused to cry.

Freckles purred and she cuddled her. Would she ever trust a man again? Probably not. But she trusted Beau. That felt strange to her, especially since she’d sworn off men for the rest of her life. Beau was different, though. She knew him inside and out and he was wonderful and nice and sometimes too damn handsome for his own good. He made her laugh and he made her feel good about herself. Then why had she never told him that?

Fear. Like monsters under the bed. You know they’re not there, but when it’s dark and the silence mingles with your breath, your mind believes. If she told Beau her true feelings, the light would come on and expose her for the woman she was. A woman a husband couldn’t love. A young girl a father couldn’t love. She couldn’t take anymore rejections—especially not from Beau.

So where did that leave them? Friends.

As that thought warmed her heart, Beau jogged to his condo. She watched until he disappeared up the walk. Sweat poured down his face and his breathing was labored. She didn’t need to be close to him to know that. That’s the way he was every time they ran and she teased him about his age. He teased her about her frizzy hair. They laughed a lot. Macy needed that and a part of her knew that she needed Beau.

Would she ever be able to tell him? Would she ever be able to expose the monster under her bed?

CHAPTER TWO

BEAU TOOK A QUICK shower, pulled on pajama bottoms, grabbed bottled water out of the refrigerator, and flopped onto the sofa. He wasn’t hungry so he didn’t bother with food. Picking up the remote control, he found a basketball game and settled in for the night. He kept his mind a blank, concentrating on the plays instead of what he had to do tomorrow—tell Macy goodbye.

The sound of the phone ringing woke him. Opening one eye, he looked at his watch—2:00 a.m. Who was calling this late? He quickly clicked off the TV and yanked up the phone.

“Beau, Delia’s in labor. Could you please drive us to the hospital? I’m too nervous.”

“Sure,” he answered without a second thought. “I’ll bring the car to your front door. Be there in a minute.”

He slipped into jeans and a T-shirt. Within minutes he was parked in front of Macy’s condo. She came out holding on to Delia and Beau hurried to help. He hadn’t seen Delia in a while and she looked as bad as he’d ever seen her.

“Hey, Beau,” Delia said in between groans.

“Delia.” He took her arm. “Doesn’t look like you’re feeling too good.”

“Got knocked up. Can you believe that?” A desperate laugh escaped on a moan.

“Yep.”

Delia laughed. “At least you’re honest.” She clutched her stomach and cried out in pain. Between the two of them they managed to get Delia into the backseat. Macy sat with her and Beau crawled into the driver’s seat. They sped toward the nearest emergency room.

Delia continued to scream with pain.

“Take deep breaths,” Macy instructed.

“Don’t tell me what to do,” Delia snapped. “You know I hate it when you do that. And I’m not in labor. It’s too early.” She let out an earth-shattering scream that said otherwise. “Dammit. I can’t have this baby now. Macy, do something. You’re a nurse. Make it stop.”

“We’ll be at the hospital in a minute,” Macy replied in a calm voice, but Beau caught a thread of panic in her tone.

“I can’t have this baby now. Macy, do you hear me?”

“Yes. People three blocks away can hear you. Calm down.”

“Dammit, this hurts.”

Beau pulled into the emergency area and a nurse was waiting with a wheelchair. Evidently Macy had called ahead. Smart woman.

“Beau, thanks,” Macy called as the nurse wheeled Delia away.

He drove around, looking for a parking spot. What was he doing? He should go home and let Macy handle her own life. When he left for Dallas, she would have to. This is where he drew the fictional line in the sand. This is where he walked away.

But Beau had learned something about himself. He couldn’t leave a person in need. His mother raised him to be kind and caring and he wasn’t the type to abandon a friend.

He hated himself for that—for caring too much. Nice guys finished last. Isn’t that what they said?

In the maternity ward, he looked around but didn’t see them. A door opened and Macy, dressed in scrubs, came out talking to a doctor. She noticed him and immediately came over.

“Beau, I thought you’d gone home.”

“No. I wanted to make sure Delia was okay.”

“As much as she denies it, she’s in labor. She’s dilated ten centimeters and it shouldn’t be much longer.”

“Isn’t the baby early?”

“Yes. But who knows? Delia could be further along than she realizes.” Macy tucked a stand of hair behind her ear. Beau noticed her hair was tamed and clipped behind her head. “I’ve asked about the father and all she’ll say is that he’s not in the picture anymore.”

“That explains why she showed up at your house.”

“Mmm.”

“She knows you’ll take care of her and the baby.”

“Yeah. She keeps muttering something about a plan and I don’t have a clue what she’s talking about. When I ask about her plans for the baby, she gets angry.” She glanced toward the hall. “They’re giving her an epidural so I better get back in there. I want to be present when the baby arrives.”

“I’ll wait out here.”

She gave a warm smile that felt as soothing as a towel fresh from the dryer. “Go home. I’m sorry I bothered you, but I didn’t know who else to call.”

“No problem.” He eased onto a sofa in the waiting area. “Let me know when the baby comes.”