Page 18 of Fusion (Gravity #2)

Dash/Beau

Dash

One week later

The click of the camera’s lens drew my attention back to reality. Overwhelmed by the emotions assailing me, I glanced at Chandler to see his phone in his hand and him snapping my photo. He sat in one of the two comfortable chairs that Beau and I used while staring out at Lake Michigan. Those were happier times, when I was home more, and life’s joy came from being in the other’s company.

Tonight was meant to be a celebration. Chandler was the only one to make time for me after another case ended in my favor. The multi-million dollar gangbuster trial ended in a fizzle before we ever made it to the courtroom. But wins weren’t the same without Beau here to listen to me regale him with all the details. Though, honestly, it had been a couple of years since I’d included him in my successes, putting the firm above my guy. Shame closed my eyes for a few long seconds.

“It’s a good look on you,” Chandler remarked, his finger air tracing the outline of my body. I assumed he meant the black-on-black slacks and turtleneck sweater I wore and not the shame I’d just had coursing through me. I brought my scotch glass to my lips, doing my best to savor the rich flavor as it lingered like the warmth of the alcohol. Too bad I’d never grown to appreciate the drink.

“Be honest with me,” I said. “Why’re you here?” I stared directly at Chandler. “Are you here on my father’s behalf?”

Chandler was in the depths of his drinks, edging on his way toward drunk, and gave a slight pause, confirming what I suspected. At this point, no matter what was said, I knew the truth, but I needed a friend, even if it came by way of a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

I stood, my mind swirling with concern and anxiety over Beau. I barely thought of anything more than my man. Beau needed to get back here and stop this ridiculous fighting. I’d be celebrating with him tonight, certainly not Chandler. Never Chandler. I headed for the bottle of scotch to top Chandler’s glass off to help his words flow more freely with intoxication.

“Your father suggested I contact you about a position,” he said with a slight slur.

“What did he want to know?” I asked as if he’d answered a different way.

“He didn’t ask for anything,” Chandler said. The bottom of his nose gave the smallest flare revealing his lie. Lessons learned after over twenty-five years of knowing someone. “He was hopeful that you were taking care of yourself and living a happy life.”

Yeah, right. My father never cared if any of his children were happy in their lives, only that they toed the family line. “I find that hard to believe. So, what have you told him?”

“That you’re a badass and I wasn’t going to engage in whatever game he wanted me to play.” His tone changed slightly as that explanation rolled off his tongue as if rehearsed.

I nodded, feeling it was time to retreat and reassess.

“Dash, I’ve never possessed the ‘it’ factor. But you do. That firm we work for could be yours one day.”

“Are you here to stir up trouble for me at the firm?” I asked.

“What? Of course not.” Chandler answered, affronted by the insinuation.

I nodded. “Have you betrayed Joy for her help all those years ago? I suspect she’s firmly on my father’s side now, I haven’t heard from her since then.”

“No, of course not. I assure you. That would incriminate me as well,” Chandler said. “When I arrived in Chicago and saw your success, I was proud of you. I wanted to be a part of it.”

“If you provide my father with proprietary information, it’ll be traced back to me. I’ll lose everything. I’m placing my trust in you.” I delivered the lie without a hint of emotion and with no change in my expression. While I wanted Chandler to leave for the night, I also feared the depth of my longing for Beau. How low could I go?

“Understood,” Chandler remarked.

I nodded, peering down at the condensation from my cocktail glass. “I don’t want to appear rude, but it’s time you headed home.”

“There’s no need to be worried about him…”

“Thank you for your honesty, Chandler.” I cut him off and replied firmly. “I need to be alone. It’s been a long week.”

He didn’t utter another word as he rose and left through the front door in my final test of the night. The Chandler I knew was never compliant with anything. His sassy mouth made sure of that. The low level panic I managed to tamp down most days, surged. This time I took a larger drink of my watered down scotch, my face scrunched under the taste.

“Damn, that’s a terrible drink.” I left the glass behind and went to a side window above the parking garage and entrance to the building. I watched Chandler leave in a waiting taxi. The strong man facade I usually wore was beginning to show its cracks. I’d been in mourning mode. I’d gone seven days without speaking to Beau. My beautiful, unapologetically himself Beau. Regret and doubt replaced the happier memories of our past. Why had I declared that I wouldn’t be the one to make contact?

What might my concessions be when he returned? If he returned. I reached for the arm of a side chair, keeping myself on my feet, bowled over at the suggestion Beau might not come home to me. Where had that even come from? Of course Beau was coming home. I swallowed a lump in my throat before going to my cell phone. I hadn’t allowed myself to sink into a substantial pity party yet. Instead, I distracted myself by drinking into oblivion every night. I should have gone to the Keys with Beau.

As I picked up my phone, an email notification chirped, drawing my focus there. I opened the email app, seeing the first message in my inbox. In slow motion, I opened the thread to find that I had secured Austin Grainger as a client. Both his entertainment company, and his personal attorney. Wow, this was a major win. Austin, one of the most successful actors in the world, had built an empire with his production company. My thumbs danced across the small keypad as I replied, promising to have a retainer agreement and all necessary informed consent documents to them in the morning.

The exhaustion of the last several days of restless sleep and sad feelings swirled through me like the expensive but terrible scotch I’d drank. Tonight, I was changing my drink, and never planned to allow scotch past my lips again. I poured a double vodka tonic and started for the stairs. Even with all my self-pity, I called it a win that I was able to keep from texting Beau. He needed to be here for me as much as I needed to be here for him.

Beau

Five days later

“Uncle Beau, Uncle Beau, catch it,” Dolly, Scott’s second daughter, and sevenish year old middle child, said enthusiastically about the pinfish on her fishing line. She sat at the end of the pier beside me, her legs kicking back and forth just above the water in excitement.

“Hang on, honey. Let me get Daisy’s bait set,” I said, working quickly on Scott’s oldest daughter’s fishing pole. Daisy Mae was eight — an older acting eight year old, who told me to only use her first name, and sat on my other side.

Kailey and Scott’s youngest daughter, Demi, both close in age, were incapable of sitting still for any length of time. All four girls were life-jacketed up and at the end of the dock of the rental property where we stayed in the Keys.

The younger ones celebrated any fish caught with movement and lots of ewws and ahhs . Unsurprisingly, their antics had run most of the fish away, while Daisy and Dolly appeared to have been trained to stay quiet during fishing.

“Beau, get it! Get it!” Kailey called, jumping up and down behind my back, placing me between her and the fish.

I grabbed the handheld net and scooped Dolly’s hand-size fish up and out of the water. “Do you remember what this fish is called?”

“It looks a little different, but is it a pinfish too?” Dolly asked, looking up at me with her mom’s pretty smile.

“Yep, that’s what I think too,” I said. “Wanna touch it before we toss it back?”

Where Daisy was a pro and could handle most of her own catches, Dolly was less tomboy and more girly. She shook her head ardently. Already knowing this answer, I lifted the small fish over my shoulder toward the two youngest girls.

“Do you guys want to touch it?” Just like every other time I’d made the offer, Kailey bounded away screaming. Demi was slower but dashed away too.

“Mommy! Beau’s trying to get me to touch the fish.” I saw Kailey jump into our mom’s lap who sat on the porch in an Adirondack chair beside a sleeping Scott.

Kailey and I were growing closer this trip. Well, as close as a twenty-five-year age gap would allow, but she was simply an adorable handful. She knew I wasn’t going to force her to touch the fish, proving my point by running back to me before I tossed it back into the water.

“They’re too noisy,” Daisy said. I agreed with her wholeheartedly. She got to her feet and handed me her wound fishing pole. “I’m gonna go get a cold drink. My water’s warm.” As if their leader had spoken, all three girls fell in line with her. She glanced back with a sigh. “You don’t have to follow me everywhere.”

“I have some watermelon ready,” my mom chimed in, standing from her seat, prompting a chorus of cheers as the girls sprinted toward the house. Lauren met them at the back door, taking off their life jackets before they went inside.

While my attempt to teach Kailey how to fish ended in a boisterous affair, I was left with two small fishing poles, a smattering of water bottles, and the warm sun beating down on my body. I searched out Scott, wanting him to help me with all this, but I saw he was truly fast asleep. He hadn’t budged as the girls ran past him.

“Hey,” Carter said, approaching from behind me. I’d tried my hardest to avoid being alone with him. Carter always wanted to talk, but I didn’t have anything to say to him. “Want me to take that for you?”

“Are they done for the day?” I asked, already taking measures to end the great fishing experience.

“I believe so. Linda’s going to try to get them down for a nap before we go to the fair this evening,” he said, gathering the water bottles as he came closer. As I reeled in the poles with my back to Carter, I felt his hand clamp down on my shoulder.

“I spoke with Dash. He mentioned that he’s missing you.”

I nodded, trying to swallow that lump of bullshit down. He hadn’t called and he sure wasn’t here with us.

“We truly appreciate the time you spend with us. Both Linda and Kailey really enjoy that you’re here. I do too.”

I nodded once more. My bobblehead skills were impeccable.

“Beau, have I done something to upset you?”

Dammit, that was too direct. I could tiptoe around the question. I knew Dash had told him that I was protective toward my mom and Kailey after the way my father had treated me. What more needed to be said?

“No,” I finally answered, allowing the word to stand on its own merit as I grabbed my fishing gear.

Carter didn’t move, trapping me at the end of the dock. I straightened to my full height to face him. Though I wouldn’t call it face-to-face since he was around five-foot-ten, I had to look down to capture any part of his face in my visual field.

“It’s not that I’m unhappy. I just want my mother safe and for you to continue taking care of Kailey. Outside of that, what I want is irrelevant. It doesn’t matter at all.” That became clearer to me in every part of my life, but I left that thought inside my head.

Since I rarely allowed myself to ponder anything too deeply, the realization of what I was experiencing mentally bowled me over. I hoped my outward appearance remained calm, because inside this head, it was a shitshow. The main problem with my life, Carter and Dash had in spades. Money made me really uncomfortable and created chaos and greed for those who had it. Men like Carter and Dash never settled for more than enough. Hell, the word enough wasn’t even in their vocabulary. I was a basic guy who wanted a basic life. What did Dash even look like in my idea of a good life? I couldn’t envision him there with me.

“Nothing’s wrong. I appreciate what you’ve done for my mom and Dash. You saved him when he needed it.”

There. I’d said it. I was done with this conversation.

“Is that all? You and Dash seem to think you owe me something, but I assure you, you don’t. I feel whole for the first time in my life. Your mom completes me. Meeting you, Dash, and Linda has grounded me in the best possible way. I won’t ever hurt either of them. I cherish our dynamic.”

I nodded but needed time alone to grapple with the vision I had for my life —t he one I wasn’t currently living. No matter what happened, if I followed my dream, I’d cause pain to people I loved. I blew out a breath I hadn’t realized I held.

“Dash wouldn’t have his career without your influence,” I started, and decided to just say what I thought. “I feel like his father’s finally paying attention to his value, which is exactly what he wanted.”

Carter smiled instantly. “Based on what I’m hearing, the elder Richmond’s quite aware of Dash’s accomplishments. Dash told me today that he landed a large client with a sizable portfolio.” Carter’s expression morphed again as he studied me closer. He furrowed his brow. “You and Dash haven’t worked out your differences yet?”

“No, not yet. I’m going inside to lay down for a minute. I’m not feeling my best.” The lie rolled off my tongue as I dropped my gaze again then moved past Carter.

“And we need you raring to go. Those girls are absolutely enamored with you.” Carter went back to gathering the rest of the snack packages and half empty bottles of water. I glanced out at the ocean, different than I’d ever seen it before. The tranquil beauty of the water lapping gently against the dock, and the sun beating down on my naked chest eased my tension.

So there was another item to add to the list of essentials for my life, I needed sun and water. Dash was excelling in the busy city atmosphere. Maybe we could live separately. It wasn’t as if we’d missed talking to each other over the last two weeks. Honestly, we hadn’t done much that couples do in a very long time. Dash was evolving into the image of a true Richmond. It was in his blood. Work and success were all that mattered to him anymore. Somewhere along the way the boy I’d fallen for had faded away, and I had no control over his departure.

I rolled my tense shoulder muscles and placed the fishing gear on the deck leading to the kitchen. The ache in my gut told me I’d known the proper answer to our problems for years now. I didn’t want to face it, but we’d grown too far apart. Apparently neither one of us wanted to throw in the towel, but ignoring it was making us both miserable.

“Beau. Beau. Beau,” Kailey said as I stepped through the sliding glass door. The girls chimed in too, except for Daisy. She was growing up too quickly. The other three were sweet but exhausting.

“He’s going into his room,” Carter said, dropping the mess he’d collected from the dock onto the kitchen counter. “You girls need to be quiet for him. When are we leaving for the fair?”

“A few hours,” my mom answered. “Everyone be quiet. Finish up so you can lay down too. You’re going to be up late tonight.”

I pointed to the stairs then started that way. Change was coming, I felt it in my bones. All I could do was hope for the best.

Dash

The following day

Although the firm’s annual round table discussions didn’t allow for phone checks, I slipped my hand into my breast pocket and retrieved the cell the second it vibrated against my chest. Sadly, it wasn’t Beau. Though it was Beau-adjacent since it was Carter, who was currently vacationing with my guy.

“Excuse me,” I said firmly, pushing the chair backward and rising to my feet while sliding my thumb across the screen. I didn’t speak until I was away from any prying ears. “Hey.”

“You free?”

“Probably not the best time but what’s up?” I said, then quickly dropped the professional act because I had to know. “How’s Beau?”

“He’s fine,” Carter said. “Beau doesn’t speak to me much, but I can tell he’s struggling.”

I closed my eyes, struggling was such a small word to describe the misery my broken heart faced. “I miss him. So what’s going on?”

“I wanted to let you know I’m attending the economic summit this year. Your father will be there.”

My eyes popped open wide at that announcement.

“When?”

“It begins Sunday evening about the same time Linda drops Beau at the airport. She’ll arrive Monday morning, I believe,” Carter said, never too good about remembering his packed schedule.

So Beau had moved his itinerary back by a day, probably to add to the point he was trying to make with me. I quickly sifted through my options of whether I should tell Carter to warn Linda about my parents attending the summit, or not. She’d been in the witch’s brew before with the spouses and girlfriends of the uber wealthy, but I didn’t think she’d ever run into my mom before.

“You’ve grown quiet, Dash. Do you want to fly out and go to the summit with us? I understand the Richmonds will be there.”

I barked out a hard laugh, very unprofessional. “Someday I’ll take you up on that. Listen, my sources say my mother and her group of cronies have been biding their time, planning to give Linda shit when they’re finally together. So watch out for her.”

“I’ll make sure she’s ready,” Carter said.

“Excellent. Keep me posted,” I said, lifting a finger when Penny stuck her head out the conference room door to nod me back inside.

“Will do.” In Carter’s customary way, he disconnected the call without any sort of salutation.

I squared my shoulders and gave a single nod. Time to get back in the game.