Page 6 of The Locksmith’s Promise (The Promise Duet #1)

Revelation

M aggie

Sunday morning, I woke up hours earlier than usual. On my second cup of coffee, I braced my bare feet on the coffee table and looked at my painted toes.

My one vice.

What colour would I choose today?

I stared out the window and watched the sky lighten with the new day.

Corwin had been uncharacteristically silent since coming home yesterday. At first, he ventured a few questions, but when I told him I needed to think, he backed off.

His bedroom door creaked open.

Sandy hair standing on end, curious eyes intent on my face, my time of reckoning had come.

I cupped my hands around my sturdy, handmade mug full of life-sustaining coffee and smiled. “Good morning, honey.”

“Hi Momma,” he mumbled as he padded barefoot across the old-fashioned parquet floor.

With the dropping of the temperature, I’d pulled out his winter pyjamas. The pants that dragged along the floor last year now flapped around his skinny ankles.

He looked more and more like Baxter with every passing year. One day, God willing, he’d grow to be just as tall and strong.

And kind.

Despite Baxter’s father and the sharp turn his life took at the age of ten, he had always been unfailingly kind.

Increasingly wild as the years rolled on and his father’s abuse worsened, but good to his soul.

I fell in love with him long before I got boobs, but I never told him.

All through high school, if Baxter wasn’t with me, which wasn’t often, he was down by the docks smoking pot with Jenny Davis. Not that I ever went looking for him down there. Catching him with his tongue down her throat once was one time too many.

It still didn’t bear thinking about.

But even then, when his life was a mess, it was his kindness that drew me in, his kindness that earned my trust, and it was my complete trust that made his ultimate betrayal so utterly unbearable.

And unforgettable.

Was Corwin ready for this revelation?

The story I’d planned to finish telling him since deciding to move back to Moose Lake suddenly seemed a terrible idea. I thought I’d have more time to get in touch with Baxter and ask him if he wanted to know his son.

Explain to Corwin that people sometimes needed time to heal before becoming parents.

I’d planned to be gracious. Not only because I wanted Corwin to know the best of his father, but because Baxter had been handed a raw deal and deserved a little grace.

All my self-indulgent planning amounted to nothing because it was based on a lie. No matter how unbelievable it seemed, Baxter hadn’t known about Corwin.

And there was nobody in Moose Lake who knew to tell him.

Until two months ago? I’d never been back.

And knowing what was at stake, my parents never revealed Corwin’s father.

Corwin shuffled closer and leaned his hip against my shoulder.

I wrapped my arm around him. “You hungry?”

He shrugged, blinking the sleep from his eyes. “A little.”

Closing my eyes, I braced myself for what was to come. “Want to sit down at the table and I’ll make you a grilled cheese sandwich?”

He nodded and padded to the table as I turned to the fridge.

Squat and beige, it was a far cry from the stainless-steel behemoth we used to enjoy in our place in the city. I bent down and pulled out butter, cheese, and fresh, thickly sliced bread.

“Who is Baxter?”

I froze for half a breath, then dropped the makings for his sandwich on the counter, walked to the table, and sat down beside him.

“You know most of the story,” I began, watching his face for the moment the gears clicked into place.

“I fell in love with my very best friend in the world. His father, who would have been your grandfather, was a terrible, terrible man. Because of him, when I found out I was pregnant with you, Grandma and Grandpa helped us move away where he wouldn’t be able to hurt us. ”

He nodded slowly, those dark eyes I knew better than my own steady on mine.

“That awful man died a few months ago, around the same time Grandpa called and asked us to consider moving home to help him and Grandma.”

He nodded.

“That man was Baxter’s father. And Baxter is yours.”

He nodded easily, having already put the clues together. He knew the story. Knew I’d fallen in love with my best friend. There weren’t a lot of gaps to fill in.

He jerked his chin toward my faded, over washed sweatshirt, the one I’d told him was my best friend’s. “So that’s his?”

I nodded shortly.

“Why didn’t he come with us?”

I grimaced. “Well, see, that’s where the story gets complicated. Because while I was sure he knew about you—”

“He seemed surprised yesterday,” he interrupted.

I raised my eyebrows and slowly bobbed my head. “He was.”

“So, he didn’t leave us?”

I shook my head. “No. He didn’t leave us.”

He just left me.

“Does he want to know me?”

The look on Baxter’s face when we made it back through the woods as he told me he wanted to get to know his son left no doubt in my mind.

“He wants that more than anything,” I admitted.

A slow smile spread across his face. “I have a dad.”

Grief welled up in my throat at what my fear had cost him, but I smiled and nodded. “You have a dad.”

“Can we see him today?”

I huffed out a short laugh. “You’re not going to believe this, but I don’t have his phone number.”

At that moment, my cell phone dinged. Angling the screen to see it, my heart leapt into my throat.

Unknown: It’s Bax. Miller gave me your number, I hope that’s okay. Can we talk?

To give myself a minute to think, I saved his information.

Looking up into my son’s expectant gaze, there was no question. I held up my phone. “Bax just messaged me. You want me to invite him over?”

There was nothing slow about his smile this time.

Ducking my head, I ran my thumbs over the keyboard.

Maggie: Corwin wants to meet you properly. Want to come over after dinner?

Bax: You told him.

Maggie: I did.

Bax: How did he take it?

Maggie: He’s happy. Excited.

Bax: How? How is he not angry?

Maggie: He’s only ever heard good things about you. I’d planned to tell him everything now that we’re here in Moose Lake. I just didn’t expect you to show up unexpectedly.

Bax: I’m not sorry, Maggie.

I sighed. Because as it turned out, he had nothing to be sorry for. Not in relation to Corwin.

Maggie: I am. I should have known you wouldn’t turn your back on him.

Just me.

I cleared the tears from my throat.

This was not about us.

A lifetime ago, I might have taken him back even after everything went sideways.

A lifetime ago, I couldn’t imagine life without him.

A lifetime ago, I didn’t want a life without him.

He could have found me at any time, but he didn’t.

And I survived without him. I built a beautiful life without him.

I gave my head a little shake as my thumbs flew over the tiny keypad to send him our address.

Maggie: We’ll see you soon.

I put the phone face down on the kitchen table, turned to my son, and forced a smile. “Your dad is coming after dinner today.”

“My dad,” he breathed. “Do you think I should call him dad?”

I shrugged. “I think that’s your call, but it’s something you can work out with him. Why don’t you go have a quick shower and I’ll make your breakfast. It’ll be ready by the time you come out.”

And so will I.

For once in his life, he hit the shower without an argument. There was a time, back when his limbs were soft and pudgy, I couldn’t get him out of the tub.

Bax had missed so much.

I crossed my arms on the table and laid my head in their cradle.

Rocking my head back and forth, I breathed deep.

Today I was helping my parents rearrange their kitchen to better serve my mom, so I needed to pull myself together.

“It’ll be okay,” I murmured.

It had to be.

Hours later, working to contain my emotions and Cor’s anticipation, I wasn’t so sure.

When Baxter knocked on the door, anxiety sent me soaring across the room to open it.

“Hi.” Seeing him stripped me raw. I swallowed, hard.

Those dark eyes I loved so much searched mine. “Hey. Is everything…”

He was as nervous as we were.

Old instincts kicked in, and I sought to put his mind at ease. “It’s good, Bax. He’s excited and he wants to know you.”

Some of the tension eased from his shoulders and he reached out a hand. “Mags…”

If he touched me now, every nerve in my body exposed as they were, the agony of it would surely kill me.

I danced back on my bare feet and swung the door open wide. “Come on in.”

His mouth tightened, but he dipped his head and crossed the threshold.

I waved around the entranceway. “It’s not much. We’ve only been here for a couple of months, and I haven’t really had time to do anything with it.”

This wasn’t a case of false modesty. Other than the basics, my bookshelf, mini-greenhouse, and our large-screen TV, the place was bare. I cleared my throat and carried on. Where the hell was Corwin?

“All of our things are still in boxes. We’re not planning to stay here long-term—”

He cut in sharply, his voice dropping. “You’re leaving Moose Lake?”

My gaze snapped to meet his. I shook my head. “We’re staying in Moose Lake. My mom and dad are getting older, my mom has some health issues, and I want Corwin to grow up with people who love him.”

He nodded. “Is your mom okay?”

I nodded slowly. “She will be. It’s not life-threatening but has the potential to be serious.”

I gave my head a shake before I found myself drifting into a long-winded explanation of everything that was going on in my life.

He crossed to my greenhouse. “You still love flowers. What have you got going on in here?”

“I’ve got a few bulbs I’m coaxing to come out, and these little guys are succulents.”

“Are tulips still your favourite?” he murmured.

His question slid over me like a lover’s caress even as my mind went on red alert.

Because he remembered.

I raised a trembling hand to my lips.

“Tell me more about this key. Does it come with a house and a door?” I teased.

He smiled. “Sunshine yellow. Do you want a flowerbed?”

“Tulips and wild roses,” I murmured.

He nodded. “Consider it done. We’ll have two kids, and a dog named Jeff.”

“Mags,” he whispered.

Whirling away from him, I exclaimed, “I don’t know where Corwin got to. You want to sit down?” I continued shrilly as I gestured toward the couch. “We’ll give him a few minutes and then I’ll check on him. He might be nervous.”

Without waiting for his answer, I curled up into a ball on the chair.

He settled his large frame onto my couch and pushed his sleeves up, revealing strong, corded forearms.

Arms that had wrapped around me.

Hands that had touched me in places and ways no one else ever had, before or since.

My breasts tightened with longing, and I swallowed hard, unable to tear my eyes away.

“And what about you, Mags? Are you nervous?”