Page 3 of Ashton’s Mountain Man (Men of Fire Mountain #5)
CHAPTER 2
West
When I first walked into that bar, I was expecting a fun night of shots, a lot of laughter, and waking up with a hangover from hell the next day after celebrating the birthday of my stepbrother’s partner for the evening. It was the perfect opportunity to not only unwind, but also catch up with the two of them, especially as the time between actual visits could span quite far and an actual telephone conversation never quite hit the mark. After the grind of the week and after having Wyatt for Maisie three nights this week as he struggled through those terrible twos and teething issues, I’d never been so thankful for a night away, to be honest. One thing came true from that initial plan for this weekend—I did end up with the hangover from hell, but the rest of the night became a complete shitshow when Ashton Parks appeared.
The one guy I had hoped would turn back up in Fire Mountain Ranch years earlier and admit his mistake.
The guy who’d once been a loyal friend, but was now someone I despised with every fiber within me. The guy who had destroyed so many lives because he couldn’t deal with his own—running away from the situation, rather than dealing with it.
My best friend, Maisie's, son's father. The guy who was meant to raise and protect him—not disown him.
I was pissed, angry—fucking frustrated was an understatement. I’d lost it at the bar, and now—well, in twenty minutes, Ashton and I will have finished our silent journey together and will be driving up that long mountain before pulling up outside Fire Mountain Ranch, to my place where Maisie will be waiting for me to arrive back from my weekend away. I’d told her I needed to talk and that if she could see if Indie, her colleague and local babysitter, wouldn’t mind having Wyatt a little longer today. I had weighed up what to do originally about the situation but Ashton was fucking right and I hated that fact more than anything in the world—he needed to talk to her and Wyatt needed his dad in his life. It didn’t stop the pang of pain in my chest, though, as I’d been the solo male figure in his life the last few years—the only stable male figure Maisie had allowed to be part of his life, and now everything would change.
I wouldn’t allow him to waltz in and hurt the two of them. I didn’t care if that made me the evil fucker in this scenario, but that little boy was innocent in this… Why should he end up with discord and problems because I casually bumped into his dad and called the fucker out?
Surely…he’d understand that when he was older. Maisie… I don’t know. Ashton, though…fuck him.
“Ashton.” I forced his name out through my teeth, tightening the grip of my hands on the steering wheel as I concentrated with all my might on my vision on the road ahead. “I need to warn you that Maisie doesn’t know that you’re going to be turning up with me.”
I heard his exhale of breath. I knew if I turned my head away from the road, even from a second, his gaze would be thunderous staring back at me—the heat I felt blazing against my cheek at the moment was evident.
“I know Maisie, and if I’d pre-warned her…” I took a breath and steadied myself for his reaction, uncertain whether Ashton’s fuse would explode or continue to simmer away beneath the surface. “I don’t know if she would have waited.”
“You mean, she could have fucking run, man,” Ashton hissed. “Maybe just hit me with it, straight and hard, rather than messing around, trying to spare my feelings.” He cursed under his breath. “West, I’m not the monster here. I’m not saying Maisie is either.” He winced. “But think about it. I never had a clue about any of this. I never knew a thing.” Ashton let out in a pained tone. “Maisie may have more answers than?—”
“I know,” I uttered. “You deserve to know if she did. I hope she didn’t,” I replied truthfully, hoping the woman I called my best friend hadn’t done the one thing I dreaded in the pit of my stomach. That she hadn’t hidden her pregnancy and could have revealed all prior to him leaving all that time ago. I couldn’t bear to think of that scenario being true. “I just want you to be able to clear the air.”
“I want that,” Ashton said firmly. “I want to be able to be on amicable terms with you all, as that little boy is the top priority here.”
“That’s one thing I totally agree with you on.” I slowed the car to the stop on the street corner, a few houses away from where the answers would soon be revealed. I gave myself a second and glanced over at Ashton, instantly noticing his uneasy gaze and pale complexion as he fiddled with the dial watch on his left-hand wrist—turning it anti-clockwise and clockwise back and forth—a habit he’d done since I’d known him when he’s been nervous. “Ashton?” I questioned him. “Are you ready to do this?” I tilted my head to the side, reaching my palm to cover his and stopping him mid-motion.
I watched Ashton’s gaze drop lower as he sucked in a large breath and lifted his head to meet my gaze.
“As ready as I'll ever be,” he whispered. “I am ready,” he tried to reassure himself.
“You are, man and I’m with you every step of the way.” I replied with certainty. “Let’s do this for him—let’s do this for Wyatt.”
I hated being the guy who’d caused the grief-stricken look that crossed Maisie’s face when she saw who had walked through the door behind me. I’d never seen such a multitude of emotions spread across someone’s features in such a short period of time—shock, nervousness, frustration, and ending in pure terror. I’d been grateful that Ashton was silent when he entered the room and didn’t go in shouting or screaming with an agenda at hand and therefore igniting Maisie’s fight-or-flight mode. Unfortunately, I’d experienced first-hand Maisie’s need to have to fight for what she needed for that little boy over the opportunity of running away, and in this instance, it had given her a few moments to compose herself.
“West—” She bumbled the word out, turning to address me and search my face. My expressions were always so visible and easy to read between the two of us. The issue of being close friends. I hated watching her fighting her emotions as she blinked back the tears, trying her best to not let her tears fall and show an ounce of weakness as she pointed a shaking finger at Ashton. “I—uhm. What’s he doing here? What’s going on? Does he? Fuck!” She rambled a pile of questions before shaking her head and making her way toward the comfort of the sofa, slumping backwards, allowing her hands to cover her face as she tilted her head toward the ceiling.
I instantly walked across and crouched down between her legs, placing my hands on her thighs, which made her freeze and pull her hands away from her face as she narrowed her gaze on me, ignoring Ashton as he hovered nearby. I had to concentrate on Maisie, knowing that Wyatt wasn’t at any risk, and if that meant hurting Ashton’s feelings, then I had no other option.
“This wasn’t planned at all,” I stated slowly. Maisie needed the facts first before anything else was hurled in her face. “It’s a long story, but Ashton’s here, and yes, he knows he has a son who he had no idea about.” I continued watching Maisie’s reaction closely. “I wasn’t going to call you and just mention it over the phone. This was definitely a face-to-face type of conversation for us to have.”
“Yes,” she whispered slowly. “I know it is.” As Ashton walked across and took a seat next to her, she sobbed harder. My heart shattered at how he was thinking about her and not himself at this moment. If the roles had been reversed, I don’t know if I would have been so understanding or caring. “I always wanted to reach out—” she started, but then paused, her gaze flitting between the two of us before finally stopping on Ashton. “If you want to talk alone…”
“No,” Ashton uttered before biting down on his lip and shaking his head. “Sorry, I just think having someone here will make this easier for us all.”
I took a second to understand what Ashton was saying and understood it immediately. He needed to ensure that whatever was mentioned wasn’t thrown back and potentially retracted in his face—basically, I was the go between. I sighed, thinking how I had managed to get myself mixed up in this mess, but then thought about the little boy who was completely innocent in all this. He deserved the chance to get to know his dad, whether Maisie thought he did or not. Ashton was a good man and could bring some additional stability into his life.
“I did ask,” Maisie began as she again flitted her gaze between the two of us. My gut instantly churned, wondering why the fuck she kept doing that. “I didn’t know I was pregnant at first and definitely not until after you’d planned to leave,” she admitted as I noticed Ashton’s shoulder’s slump forward at the news—she hadn’t held back—the one panic he’d held close to his heart. “I did find out a couple months ago where you were living and working after deciding to go searching for you.”
“What?” Ashton cried out, his features strained at that news. “Why didn’t you come to me and tell me? Maisie, he’s my son?—”
“He’s right, Maisie. You never said….” I uttered, in pure shock, wondering why the hell she’d say this and admit something that would cause uproar in a situation that required such a delicate touch. “I?—”
“I came to the city. I’d hired a private investigator to get me all the information I needed.” Maisie let out a laugh as I blinked twice and watched the way Ashton’s jaw twitched away. “I can’t believe I’m saying this… I discovered you out at Jumbugs that night.”
Ashton’s face morphed from anger to pure surprise as I tried to remain neutral and not freak out. I knew the place—fuck, I’d visited once and loved it. It was somewhere I knew I belonged, but Ashton—was he gay? I don’t know. I mean, he could have been there with friends.
“I heard your conversation and then left. I heard what you said about West,” she whispered before dropping her gaze. “I couldn’t throw this into the mix too.”
“Maisie,” Ashton choked out. “I’d always step up and be the father Wyatt needs. I should have known when you found me.” He continued. “He’s my blood—yes, I may be overwhelmed being back around West, but that doesn’t mean I’ll never not be there for him.”
“What do you mean by that? Ashton, why would you be overwhelmed around me?” I asked, turning to face Ashton. “I need to know what the fuck I’m missing here. We were close back then. We worked together?—”
“I’ll leave you two to it,” Maisie whispered, before nodding at me. “Talk to him. Admit the truth,” she implored. “I’ll go and collect Wyatt. I think it’s time he meets his dad. Don’t you?”