The Weight of Forever: (Grand Harbor: Book Two) Read online

  “Your words and calm demeanor make me feel better.”

  “Speaking of Miles, I wanted to talk to you about him.” She hesitated. “Your father mentioned it, and I think it’s important.”

  “You have my attention.” I was nervous all of a sudden, and I hated that. After the time we spent together, I hoped this wasn’t another cautionary speech about him. I really cared for him. It was too late not to. I couldn’t just shut it off.

  “I don’t know what the fall out will be from Ford being put away. The attorney thought he could be serving at least six months, maybe a year? Obviously Miles was involved with him in some way, however minor - maybe it was just poker and they have no other ties. We suspect his issue with Miles was simply the connection he now has to Richard through you, and it’s probably nothing more than that. But there could still be some negative effects from all of this – people who are mad at Ford who want to get back at his associates or whatever, that kind of thing. I’m not saying anything will happen to him, but just…be careful. You have to let us know if anything comes up. It’s important. If Miles still wants to do business with those people, well, then there’s always some risk. He needs to be cautious and do things right. There’s no other way around that. I was thinking maybe your father could help mentor him in some way. I know that seems like an ironic thing to say, given he’s in jail right now. He may not seem like the ideal subject to learn from, but I think it’s important.”

  “Do you know something?” I narrowed my eyes at her, wondering if she knew more than she was letting on.

  “I don’t. It’s just something we talked about. Just speculation, nothing more. I worry about you anyway, without all of this, simply because I’m your mother and I want the best for you. This may be a frivolous concern altogether, and I hope it is, but I just worry about you anyway. You have a big heart. I can see you love him. That’s obviously important. And after what he did for your father, for no other gain or reason other than to protect you, I believe he is one of the good ones. His heart is certainly in the right place, and that’s a big deal. Just be cautious, that’s all I’m saying. Loving a man with an adventurous heart can be as thrilling as it is nerve wracking. Your father keeps me on my toes, for sure.”

  “How did you know he was the one?”

  “He was fearless. He asked me out and I said no – but he never stopped. That kind of courage is….noteworthy. They say real bravery is being the only one who knows you’re afraid, right? That sums up your father perfectly. That’s what I fell for, and I will never regret that choice. Being fearless is the only way to live. We’ve tried to show you and Seth that – to strive for what you want, to have courage, to be unafraid of big decisions… I’m guessing that’s what you see in that boy. Love is always a risk, Olivia. Always. Choosing love is a fearless act in itself, because you only have so much control over it. There’s a reason why they say ‘for better or worse’ in every marriage ceremony. There’s a lot of truth in that. But a man who’s fearless, who only wants the best for you, no matter the cost – you’ll never regret that life. I know that to be true.”

  I mulled over her words, thankful for these real conversations with her. Miles was all of those things – good, fearless. But the first conversation we’d ever had still loomed in my mind. He started out temporary. I’d told him to stay, and he did, but I also told him to go at one point – and he did. As much as I could see us together in the future – could he? Did he believe that? Or were we just getting by day after day, waiting to see where life led us? On the road trip, we’d talked about Miles’s return to Grand Harbor. He would get an apartment, and even possibly a more stable job given how rocky things were with his current colleague contacts. But could all of that satisfy him long-term? Did either of us truly know the answer to that at this point?

  “Do you want to stay for dinner?” my mom asked, interrupting my thoughts.

  “I can’t, I have to work at the bar tonight since I missed some shifts this week. What time is the hearing tomorrow?”

  “It’s early, nine a.m., but it’ll be nice to get it over with. Do you want me to pick you up?”

  “That would be great. Thanks Mom.”

  I hugged her goodbye, and then headed to the bar for my shift. The music was up loud and there was a bachelorette party already underway when I arrived.

  “Have they been here long?” I made small talk with Gina as I put my purse behind the bar.

  “Yeah, an hour. They scream every time someone new shows up to their party. I’m over it. A few of them are already starting to lose function of their legs after only a few drinks. We need to move them along. I’ll go tell Blaze. He can suggest a new spot for them to head to. Their tips suck too.”

  I washed my hands, threw a bottle opener in my back pocket, and got right to work. Around ten, things finally picked up a bit. I loved when it was busy, because it made time pass by so much quicker.

  “Can I get three M32’s?”

  I looked up from the ice bin as I filled up two Long Island Iced Teas. The voice was familiar, as were his eyes and thick beard. And his tattoos.

  “Yeah, one sec.” I finished the current drinks I was working on, keeping my eyes on him. It was definitely the same guy who was looking for Miles a few weeks back when he was in trouble with John Ford. Was his presence here just a coincidence tonight, or did he want something other than a drink?

  I delivered the Long Islands to the women in front of me, took their money, and then reached into the beer fridge for the cans he requested. I poured them into chilled glasses.

  “Twenty-one is your total,” I said professionally, handing him the drinks.

  He slapped down two twenty dollar bills. “Keep it,” he said with a nod.

  Okay, that was a weird exchange. The guys headed to the back of the room to play pool, and I kept a gaze on them for the next hour or so. One of his friends ordered a few more rounds from Gina, but I had no further interaction with them. I wanted to text Miles, but I wasn’t sure what to say. Technically I wasn’t sure what they wanted the last time they were in the bar asking about him. It didn’t sound friendly, but they didn’t look like overly sociable guys in general. They didn’t mention him thus far, so perhaps it really was just a coincidence that they were in my bar tonight.

  The crowd dwindled down eventually, and as I wiped off the bar counters around one-thirty in the morning, Blaze announced last call. The guys made their way from the pool tables back toward the bar area where I was standing.

  “Can I get you one last drink?” I smiled back at them politely.

  “You’re Miles’s girl, right?” The guy with the thick beard and tattoo sleeve stared back at me as he made conversation.

  “Do you want a drink or not? The bar is closing.”

  “Just looking for some information,” he replied with a shrug. “Is he in town? Do you know where I can find him?”

  “Nope.” I kept it short and to the point. “Blaze.” As I called the bouncer’s name, he walked over to where we were standing, picking up on my hint.

  “Bar’s closed, gentlemen. I’ll see you out.”

  “That seems unnecessary,” one of the other guys chimed in. “We can let ourselves out.”

  “One thing,” the gruff tattooed guy stated as the other two turned toward the door. “Can you pass along a message for me?”

  “Is that what the large tip was for? Because if that’s the case, you can have it back.”

  “Nope, that was for you,” he said with a creepy smirk. “If you see him, just tell him Ryder is looking for him. I have some business to discuss with him.”

  “Enjoy your night,” I said politely with a strained smile, trying not to further engage with him.

  “I’m serious, darling. It would be in his best interest. Trust me.” He winked at me and walked out of the bar.

  As soon as the door closed behind them, I grabbed for my phone, dialing Miles – but there was no answer.

  Chapter 25


  After calling six more times, Miles finally picked up his phone, sounding groggy and disoriented as if he’d been asleep for awhile.

  “Miles, listen to me. There were these three guys at the bar tonight. They were looking for you. They were eerily polite, which is usually a sign of bad intentions.”

  “Maybe they just had good manners,” he said warily.

  “Miles, I’m serious. They stopped by once before after you’d left town a few weeks back when the whole John Ford thing was going on. I don’t know if they were involved with any of that, but it gave me the skeeves. When they asked about you…it didn’t feel right.”

  “Are you worrying about me?” It sounded through the phone like he was smiling as he said it.

  “No. Yes. I mean, a little bit. I know you can take care of yourself. I just thought I should tell you. They gave me a nineteen dollar tip on three beers. Something was off.”

  “So good manners, and generous tippers, and you think I’m in danger?”

  “I don’t know! That’s why I’m calling you. I felt like I needed to warn you or something.”

  “Did they threaten you?”

  “Well, no.” I hesitated. “I mean, he winked at me.”

  Miles laughed quietly. “So he was hitting on you? Doesn’t that happen all the time?”

  “No! I mean yeah, but not like that. I mean he wasn’t hitting on me, it was like a creepy wink. Ominous. Foreboding. Gross, really.”

  “Wow, so winks are out? I always wondered how women really felt about that. Good to know.”

  “Miles, I’m being serious. I’m trying to warn you of impending doom, and you’re making fun of me.”

  “I’m not making fun of you, V. Just trying to calm you down so you won’t worry about it. I don’t want you ever worrying about me. Whatever it is, I can handle it. Am I going to see you tomorrow night?”

  “Yeah, my dad’s hearing is tomorrow morning. They expect him to be released after that.”

  “Do you want me there?”

  “I don’t know, I think it might be best if it’s just family? Seth and I are going with my mom. It might be best if you hang back. I’m not sure who all will be in the courtroom. These guys tonight from the bar, they weren’t sure if you were even in town? So if there’s something going on behind the scenes, maybe it’d be best if we kept that away from the hearing tomorrow?” Maybe that was an irrational request. Perhaps his presence had nothing to do my father’s sentencing in the morning. Either way though, this felt really personal. I imagined my father would just want our immediate family there.

  “I understand,” he said calmly. “After you spend the day with your family, can I pick you up later tomorrow night? Around seven? I want to take you somewhere.”

  “Where could you possibly want to take me? We just drove across the country together. You should be tired of me by now.”

  “That’s an impossibility.”

  “I’m glad you feel that way. Are you going to tell me what we’re doing?”

  “You’ll see.”

  “Okay. Go back to bed. Sorry for waking you up on the assumption you’re going to be kidnapped and brutally murdered. I’m glad you’re dismissing all of it and planning a date,” I said lightheartedly. I was comforted by the fact that nothing really seemed to bother Miles, but it was concerning at the same time. I suppose all I could do was trust him at this point.

  *****

  Just as the attorney had advised, my dad received some pretty hefty fines and he was sentenced to a six month probation period. His businesses would be audited, so there was still a chance for harsher penalties should anything seem amiss beyond what he’d already admitted to, but most importantly, he was released. I felt choked up and emotional, and I was so glad all of this was over.

  We left the courtroom, heading to one of his favorite steakhouses for a family lunch. My dad was surprisingly his usual, jovial self. I wasn’t sure if he would’ve been changed from this experience, but it didn’t appear that way.

  “So, is everything else…okay?” I wasn’t sure how else to ask the question. Ultimately I wanted to know if there was any more trouble on the horizon for him. Could anything else be exposed once his businesses were audited? Could he land himself in more trouble somehow, or was this thing really over?

  “Everything is fine, Olivia.” He sipped his iced tea. “Before heading in, I made sure of it. There’s nothing else, if that’s what you’re getting at. It was one error. It’s been resolved, and I deserve the fines. I’ll pay them, and everything will be just fine. There is nothing else to worry about.”

  We talked and laughed throughout the rest of our lunch as if this was just another family get together, like so many others we’d had in the past. We headed back to the house, and my dad wanted nothing more than to sit by the pool with a Manhattan in his hands and the sun on his skin.

  While sitting around the pool deck, I finally had some time to talk to him alone without my mom and brother listening. They were in the pool, tossing around a Frisbee.

  “So, are there any other repercussions from this?”

  “What’s worrying you? You seemed concerned all through lunch. What’s bothering you?”

  “I don’t know, I just…I want to know everything will be okay. You seem okay.”

  “Is this about Miles?”

  “I guess, yeah. Mom mentioned something earlier about it, and it’s just been heavy on my mind. If Ford, or maybe one of the other guys he’s involved with, wants revenge in some way for all of this…could that affect Miles?”

  “Sweetheart, Miles did nothing wrong. He really didn’t. He won a few poker hands. That’s it. That was his only tie to Ford. He shouldn’t have been involved in any of this. I’m the one Ford has an issue with. Years ago when he got busted and served time, I bought up some of his businesses in a short sale. He’s held that grudge ever since, but he’s never been able to do anything about it.”

  “So why now? Why Miles?”

  “Because he finally had a chance to mess with one of my greatest assets. You. All the money, the businesses – he could never bait me with any of that. It’s just money. I would’ve turned a blind eye to all of that. But once he realized Miles was involved with you – Ford knew what he was doing. Unfortunately Miles got caught in the middle of it, but he did nothing wrong. That kid has some business sense. I’ve talked to some of his associates and I’ve seen some of his books. He needs a little help – some mentoring, if you will. But he has a good head on his shoulders. He’s learning. He just needs to learn from the right people on how to keep it clean. There’s a lot that can go wrong. There’s a lot of temptation out there to break the rules. It’s hard to stay on the straight and narrow when it comes to money. I know that firsthand. But honestly, I could use some help. Especially while my probation is in effect, I have some restrictions. I could use someone trustworthy to help me out with a few things.”

  “You want Miles to work for you?”

  “Are you recommending him?” My dad smiled back at me as he sipped his drink. “I take your recommendations seriously. Look at these sling-back pool chairs. You were right, they are the most comfortable pool chairs in the world.”

  “You’re equating my taste in pool furniture to my taste in business prospects?”

  “I think those things can be somewhat parallel,” he teased. “In all seriousness though, Olivia, he’s a good egg. If he’s interested in working for me, I’d be glad to have him. He is planning to stay around Grand Harbor, right?”

  “I don’t know,” I replied quietly. “I hope so. But then again, he’s never stayed in one place too long. I’m not sure he’s capable of it to be honest. It scares me a bit.”

  “I think he’ll be just fine.”

  “What makes you think that?”

  “Because the right girl changes everything.” He shrugged. “You know how many times growing up in this town I swore I was leaving? I told everyone I knew that I’d be gone by eighteen. There was nothing h
ere for me.”

  “But you stayed.”

  “That’s right. Because of a girl. Suddenly there was everything here for me. It’s amazing how in an instant, all of that can change. Everything you want and dream and desire – it all changes in one single moment. There’s no real explanation for it, it just happens. When you find that person – the person – you can’t walk away. It’s impossible. They set fire to your soul and you can’t put it out. It’s out of your control.”

  “I’d love to think it works like that.” I watched my family splashing in the pool - soaking in the sunshine, laughing about nonsense – and I wanted to believe my father was right.

  Finally, around six o’clock, I said goodbye to everyone and headed back home to shower and clean up before Miles came by to get me.

  “How do you do it?” he asked as he stood in my doorway a few minutes before seven.

  “What?”

  “Spend three and a half days in a Dodge Dart, and still look this beautiful the next day? It defies logic.”

  “Because the car was fancy. It was red for Pete’s sake.”

  He laughed. “That’s right. I mean, it had a spoiler. It doesn’t get fancier than that.”

  He grabbed my hand and led me out to a black Jeep, opening the door for me.

  “What’s this? You got rid of the Audi for good?”

  “Yeah. I sold it to pay back Ford,” he explained. “I wanted to be free and clear from all of that. I settled on something else. It’s not as fancy, but better for the beach.”

  I took that to mean he was planning on staying here at the beach. It was definitely something we needed to talk about. I knew from the beginning he had a drifter’s heart, and I didn’t want to change him, but it made me nervous. I so badly wanted him to feel settled here, but could I give him that feeling? Was I enough to keep a guy like that in one place? He set out to see the world, and in some ways, the thought of holding him back from that weighed heavy on me.

  “So, where are you taking me?”