Resilience Read online

  He cocked his head, one eyebrow arching. “Yes, it was one of the subjects I taught. I might be a tad rusty. Why?”

  “I honestly don’t know, but please don’t say anything to anyone, not even Ty, until I find out why.”

  “Of course.”

  She typed in a reply.

  Yes, but he says he might be a little rusty.

  Tom sent a thumbs-up emoji and a reply that disquieted her.

  Great. Don’t say anything to Ty. Night.

  Wonderful. Get her all wondering what the hell was going on, leave her hanging, and disappear.

  Fucking time difference.

  Knowing she’d have to send him an e-mail later asking for an explanation, she tucked her phone away and focused on her family.

  The girls had started to give Nevvie the silent treatment earlier when they’d returned from school, until she’d played dirty and made a comment to the air that she supposed she could cancel everyone going to the party Saturday night if she was going to be ignored.

  Yep, she played dirty sometimes. She had to. Like Peggy Kinsey had warned her, the girls would eat her alive if she didn’t keep the upper hand.

  Right now, they were out in the dining room, helping Karen set the table. It was fun seeing the Kinsey and Paulson lines in her children. Adam and Willow looked so much like Tyler and Andrew, with their gorgeous blue eyes. Zoey and Mikey were both Kinseys, brown eyes and brown hair, looking like Tommy and Karen and most of the Kinsey sisters.

  Nevvie’s younger sister, Laurie, was there for dinner tonight, too. She and her long-term boyfriend, Kevin. Laurie had been dating him for nearly two years now. While they weren’t living together, Nevvie recognized a stability and bond between the two that Laurie didn’t have with her past two boyfriends.

  Tonight, Nevvie and Laurie’s mom and dad, Kelly and John, were also there. They’d all gathered around the table when Kevin nervously stood.

  Andrew was seated at the head of the table. Nevvie, seated to his left, immediately sensed what was coming.

  Especially when she spotted Karen surreptitiously filming it with her cell phone.

  “I wanted to do this when Tom and Tyler were here, but I leave next week for three weeks at a course out in Yakima.” He turned to Laurie, who literally looked surprised, and dropped to one knee in front of her. “I love you, and I know this is right. Will you marry me?”

  Laurie let out a squeal and threw her arms around him as she nodded, almost falling out of her chair and knocking him over as she hugged him.

  John, seated across from Nevvie, wore a knowing smile, while Kelly bounced out of her chair with squeals of her own to go hug the couple.

  When John stood to go join the hugs, Nevvie caught his eye and he winked.

  Ah. Sneak.

  She wondered how long he’d known. Well, if Kevin had approached him and asked his permission to propose, she damn sure wasn’t going to object to them getting married.

  After Karen stopped filming, Nevvie cleared her throat even as she smiled at her sister-in-law.

  “I didn’t know. Stop. Before we sat down, Dad asked me to start filming when Kevin talked, but wouldn’t tell me why. I’ll post it to Facebook after dinner and tag Tommy and Ty.”

  Nevvie playfully rolled her eyes and shook her head before she also stood to hug the couple. It never ceased to amaze her how all the surviving Kinsey daughters had not only started calling Andrew “Dad,” but John as well, once he and Kelly moved to Georgia when Nevvie and her men did.

  A large family where they’d all adopted each other and “blood” didn’t matter.

  Only love did.

  Ten minutes later, all the hugs had been given and Laurie was still wiping happy tears from her eyes as they retook their seats.

  The rest of dinner was a joyful occasion, Nevvie’s only regret that her guys weren’t there to see it. Or Adam, but he was at college. At least Adam would be home for the weekend, arriving late Friday afternoon so he could watch Mikey’s game. They’d go out for dinner after.

  Another game Tyler and Tom were missing.

  Once dinner ended and everyone helped clear the table and clean up, Nevvie managed to get John alone.

  “Sneak.” She smiled.

  “He asked if I could stop by his work this morning for a minute. I had a feeling then, but was glad he asked me. He wanted it to be a total surprise. I’m sure your mom will chew me out later for not telling her.”

  “He hadn’t talked to Laurie about it at all?”

  “Nope. He knew he was taking a risk by asking her and not knowing if she’d say yes or not.” He grinned. “Hey, at least I get to marry off one of my daughters.”

  “Yeah, well, that’s all you’ll get. You’ve got two granddaughters you might be marrying off one day. How’s that?”

  “Still not planning to marry either of them, huh?”

  “After almost twenty-five years? Not a chance. Like I always told them, if I can’t marry both of them, I’m not marrying either of them. No one can force me to choose, either.”

  * * * *

  It was nearly eleven o’clock by the time Nevvie and the kids arrived home and she was settled in bed with the house growing quiet around her.

  She didn’t want to send a text and wake up Tom and Ty, so she sent an e-mail, which she knew wouldn’t trip an alert on Tom’s phone if it was set to silent mode. A call or text from her would.

  You want to clue me in on what’s going on? And why the hell I can’t say anything to Ty?

  Love you.

  All she could do was wait for him to reply, which wouldn’t happen until morning their time.

  She set her phone to silent mode and settled in, hating how alone she felt right then and not wanting to contemplate that, with both men older than her, this could very well be a preview of the hopefully distant future.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Tom was determined not to take a pain pill Thursday morning. But when he awoke before Tyler and tried to roll over to get out of bed, he knew that would be a tough battle.

  As he finally limped his way to the bathroom, he peeked out the bedroom curtains.

  Not long after dawn, it was rainy, dreary, chilly.

  Figures.

  One of the drawbacks of moving back to Georgia from Florida after his accident was that winters sucked. Cold, damp air made his bad leg hurt like hell. It was no wonder this weather worked against him, in addition to stress.

  After Tom used the bathroom and swallowed a couple of ibuprofen, he pulled on sweats and headed to the kitchen to get the coffee started, turning up the thermostat on his way. Tyler still slept soundly, which Tom had expected. Maybe in his younger years Ty could have handled three glasses of wine, but not now. Add in stress and the fact that Tom wore him out, and it meant maybe his guy had a good night’s worth of sleep for a change.

  While Tom waited for the coffee to brew, he checked his e-mail on his phone and found the message from Nevvie.

  He wasn’t sure what to tell her yet.

  He finally opted for the bare minimum and replied.

  It’s complicated. Better told in person. Long story. I don’t want Ty stressed out, and he’ll be on top of me all day today.

  Love you.

  He wasn’t even sure there would be a reason to worry yet. Maybe the other letters Marcus had left weren’t full of triggers that might send Tyler’s brain spinning into dangerous territory.

  And maybe pigs will fly.

  It wasn’t a risk he wanted to take. Not when it was Tyler’s peace of mind on the line.

  When he checked Facebook, he immediately saw the tag from Karen and watched the video of Kevin’s proposal to Laurie.

  Well, shit.

  One more way Marcus had interfered with their lives. One more big life event missed. He commented on the video, tagging the couple, too, congratulating them.

  Another wedding.

  Then again, I should feel more grateful. Momma would snatch me bald if she heard me t
hink like that about the guy.

  Marcus was dead. Tom—and Nevvie—got the handsome guy and the happily ever after that Marcus hadn’t.

  Maybe Ty isn’t the only one having trouble getting the guy out of his brain.

  He was watching the BBC morning news and sipping his coffee on the sofa when Tyler emerged from the bedroom. Instead of heading to the kitchen, he walked over to the couch, curled up on it with his head in Tom’s lap, and let out a sigh.

  Tom stroked his hair. “How you feelin’, Evil Genius?”

  “Like a bleedin’ lorry parked on my skull overnight.”

  Tom managed not to laugh. “Sorry, buddy.”

  “It’s my own blasted fault. I should have stopped at one glass of wine.”

  “You want me to call Goossens and postpone today?”

  “No. I want it done so we can perhaps relax tomorrow or even go sightseeing, if you feel up to it.” He looked up at him. “How are you feeling?”

  Tom shrugged. “Not running any marathons, but I didn’t take a pain pill yet.”

  “That’s encouraging.”

  Tom eased a throw pillow under Tyler’s head and got up. “You stay here. That’s an order. I’ll get your coffee and find you something for your hangover.”

  “Thank you, love.”

  Tom retrieved the bottle of ibuprofen from the medicine cabinet in the master bath. After giving Ty a couple of them, along with a glass of water, he poured him a mug of black coffee and took it over to him.

  “Think you can handle some toast?”

  His poor guy looked miserable. “I think I need to. Thank you.”

  Tom fumbled his way around the kitchen, but managed to make Tyler a couple of pieces of toast sliced off the baguette he’d bought. Tom was happy to nuke a plate of leftovers for himself from the night before.

  They ate on the couch. Tyler wore a morose expression as he stared at the TV. “Do you think I’m making a mistake?”

  * * * *

  Tyler almost feared Tom’s answer.

  “What do you mean?” he asked.

  “This.” Tyler waved, indicating the apartment. “Wouldn’t any sane individual be happy to sell it, as-is, and wash their hands of the whole bloody mess? Pocket the proceeds and not look back?”

  Tom smiled. “Any sane person wouldn’t be a writer, sugar.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  Tom’s smile faded. He set his plate on the coffee table and draped an arm around Tyler’s shoulders. “Buddy, listen to me, and I’m only going to say this once—Nevvie and I have your back. We keep this place twenty years, or we sell it tomorrow, it’s your call. Personally, I kind of like knowing we have a place like this. We need to block out a couple of weeks to come back and clean it out and make it our own, though, but that doesn’t have to happen right now. It’s not like we can’t afford it. He left enough money that it’ll pay for the place. Or if you say you want it gone, then it’s gone.”

  Tyler leaned against Tom and closed his eyes. “I love you so much, sweet.”

  Tom kissed the top of his head. “You’d have to love me to put up with me this many years, buddy.”

  Tyler managed to keep the toast down. Once the ibuprofen kicked in, his headache diminished enough he could prepare himself a light breakfast with a little more substance to it. Then he joined Tom in the shower. He wasn’t looking forward to today, being forced to interact with people and focusing on the business end of this whole mess, but he knew the only way through it was through it.

  He and Tom were ready and waiting when Goossens called to tell them he was close by. Tom headed out while Tyler locked the door behind them and caught up with Tom. Tom carried his cane today, but his limp did look less pronounced. It was nearly one o’clock when they finished at the bank, and Tyler now also had a safe deposit box key.

  He hadn’t had the stomach to look through that today. Tom had done it for him, told him there were a few pieces of men’s jewelry in there—four nice watches, several rings, and a couple of necklaces.

  Tom didn’t take the time to read the note placed with the jewelry, or go through the manila envelope with Tyler’s name on it. He’d simply assessed the contents, took a couple of pictures with his cell phone, and closed the box again after taking the manila envelope and the note.

  At this point, Tyler was happy to let him take the lead. He should be at home working on his latest book or going through edits that were due soon, not here.

  Not doing this.

  Goossens offered to take them to lunch and before Tyler could decline, Tom accepted. The restaurant had a nice view of the river and excellent food, although Tyler had to force himself to eat.

  He missed home.

  This city would never be home. Thankfully, it never had been home to him.

  “So you’re poly, hmm? Interesting. Wish I’d known that before. I would have gladly taken you back to Brussels with me.”

  Marcus’ comment to him that night in Seattle wouldn’t quit running through Tyler’s brain.

  How, for less than a second, Tyler’s gut had twisted over the thought that, back then, he likely would have pulled up stakes—again—and followed Marcus to Brussels. Abandoned his job and life and adopted country of America. Without a second thought, if it meant he could keep Marcus in his life.

  Except…Marcus had left without making that offer. And had taken part of Tyler with him anyway.

  And Tyler was a different person now, over a lifetime of growth and change since that night.

  But not now. The Tyler who’d talked with Marcus in Seattle did not even wistfully wish life could have been different and he’d been with Marcus. Not after Tom, and most definitely not after Nevvie.

  Tyler had thought that maybe he’d finished exorcising the ghost of Marcus from his soul for good after that night in Seattle. After getting a chance to talk to him once more and being able to be magnanimous to a lonely old man who’d realized he’d fucked up his life.

  Perhaps that meeting had only been the start, not the end, of a long, laborious process.

  Goossens dropped them at the apartment after lunch and stopping by a store to pick up some empty boxes, packing tape, and garbage bags, so Tyler could begin the process of sorting and decluttering the apartment. There really wasn’t anything else for them to do right now in terms of paperwork. Goossens was designated their local agent and could overnight items to them needing their attention or signatures. It would take several weeks for the other paperwork to be processed through the courts, their version of probate.

  They could wait to pick up Marcus’ cremains, or Goossens could ship him.

  They could go home now, if they wanted.

  Except Tyler wasn’t sure he was ready to leave yet.

  And he didn’t think he could stand the thought of shipping Marcus and Jean-Claude via FedEx.

  * * * *

  Nevvie struggled against her irritation as she read Tommy’s e-mail that morning. Willow and Zoey had been sniping at each other and Mikey, who was threatening to leave for school without them.

  And it was too late for the girls to catch the bus.

  Nevvie was about ready to lose her temper at the kids, and Tommy’s cryptic thread of conversation with her wasn’t helping her mood any.

  As she hid in her bedroom and sipped her coffee while going through e-mails on her tablet, she struggled not to call Tommy and ask what the fuck?

  Except…

  She worried about Tyler. He spent so much time worrying about others that he frequently—nearly always—short shrifted his own self-care.

  The more serious the situation, the more he shoved himself to the back of the line, dead last, both out of his love for family and because he usually didn’t know how to take care of himself. Felt selfish if he engaged in self-care. Another gift that kept on giving from his childhood and his narcissistic mother.

  She opted to send Tommy a text once she’d ventured downstairs and the kids had said good-bye to her and headed out th
e door—together.

  Awake and child-free. Semi-caffeinated and offspring-irritated. Speak with me at your own risk.

  She didn’t even look at the phone when it rang less than a minute later with Tommy’s custom tone. “Yesss?”

  “Hello, angel.”

  She closed her eyes, her breath catching in a good way, the way it always did when Tyler used that tone on her. Her mood also instantly lifted and she didn’t even care why he was on Tommy’s phone. “Hey, sweetie. How you doing?”

  “Missing you like mad and wishing we were home.”

  I will not push. I will NOT push. “How’s the paperwork going?”

  From his hesitation, she already knew he wanted more time there. “Done for now on our end, but still a few loose ends I’d like to get sorted before we return. Can you spare us a little longer?”

  Nevvie was proud of herself for adulting before her second cup of coffee. “Honey, you take as much time as you need. I mean, we go on another month like this and I might get pissy, but yeah, absolutely. Do what you need to do.”

  Ty chuckled. “No, not that long, pet. I swear. Maybe early next week?”

  She didn’t miss that it was a question.

  Still asking permission.

  “Whatever you need,” Nevvie repeated. “Tom e-mailed me some pics. It looks like a neat place.”

  Aaannnd…Tyler was off and running, describing the apartment to her.

  Yep, they were keeping it. She could already tell by how he sounded. No, she didn’t begrudge it, either.

  “Brussels really is a beautiful city, what little of it we’ve actually seen. Between our errands and the blasted weather, we haven’t been exploring at all.”

  “You know, you have edits due in a couple of weeks. If you wanted to stay there until you finish them, I’m okay with that.”

  His soft sigh drifted to her. “I…I don’t know, love. I miss you and the kids so blasted much.”