Read Online For the Sake of Their Son by Catherine Mann - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Catherine Mann
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built forts in the woods, comforted each other during countless crises and disappointments. He’d been her best friend...right up to the moment he wasn’t. Where had this crazy attraction between them come from?
The wheels of the stroller whirred along the walkway as fast as the memories spinning through her. That night eleven months ago when they’d been together had been spontaneous but amazing. She’d wondered if maybe there could be more between them. The whole friends-with-benefits had sounded appealing, taking it a day at a time until they sorted out the bombshell that had been dropped into their relationship: a sexual chemistry that still boggled her mind.
And yet Elliot’s reaction the next day had made her realize there could be no future for them. Her euphoria had evaporated with the morning light.
She’d woken before him and gone to the kitchen to make coffee and pile some pastries on a plate. The front door to his suite had opened and she’d assumed it must be the maid. Anyone who entered the room had to have a key and a security code.
However, the woman who’d walked in hadn’t been wearing a uniform. She—Gianna—had worn a trench coat and nothing else. If only it had been a crazed fan. But Lucy Ann had quickly deduced Gianna was the new female in Elliot’s life. He hadn’t even denied it. There was no misunderstanding.
God, it had been so damn cliché her stomach had roiled. Elliot came out of the bedroom and Gianna had turned paler than the towel around Elliot’s waist.
He’d kept his calm. Apologized to Gianna for the awkward situation, but she’d burst into tears and run. He’d told Lucy Ann there was nothing between him and his girlfriend anymore, not after what happened the night before with Lucy Ann.
But she’d told him he should have let Gianna know that first, and she was a hundred percent right. He’d agreed and apologized.
That hadn’t been enough for her. The fact that he could be seeing one woman, even superficially, and go to bed with another? No, no and hell, no. That was something she couldn’t forgive. Not after how all those men had cheated on her mom with little regard for vows or promises. And her mother kept forgiving the first unfaithful jerk, and then the next.
If Elliot could behave this way now, how could she trust him later? What if he got “swept away” by someone else and figured he would clue her in later? She’d called him dishonorable.
And in an instant, with that one word, a lifetime friendship crumbled.
She’d thrown on her clothes and left. Elliot’s engagement to Gianna a month later had only sealed Lucy Ann’s resolve to stay away. They hadn’t spoken again until the day he’d shown up in Carla’s yard.
Now, after more impulsive kisses, she found herself wanting to crawl right back into bed with him. Lucy Ann powered the stroller closer to the party and their quarters, drawing in one deep breath of salty air after another, willing her pulse to steady. Wishing the urge to be with Elliot was as easily controlled.
With each step, she continued the chant in her brain, the vow not to repeat her mother’s mistakes.
* * *
Wind tearing at his tuxedo jacket, Elliot watched Lucy Ann push the stroller down the planked walkway, then past the party. He didn’t take his eyes off her or his son until he saw they’d safely reached the palace, even though he now had bodyguards watching his family 24/7. His family?
Hell, yes, his family.
Eli was his son. And Lucy Ann had been his only real family for most of his life. No matter how angry he got at her for holding back on telling him about Eli, Elliot also couldn’t forgive himself for staying away from her. He’d let her down in a major way more than once, from his teenage years up to now. She had reason not to trust him.
He needed to earn back her trust. He owed her that and so much more.
His shoulders heaving with a sigh, he started toward the wedding reception. The bride and groom had
The wheels of the stroller whirred along the walkway as fast as the memories spinning through her. That night eleven months ago when they’d been together had been spontaneous but amazing. She’d wondered if maybe there could be more between them. The whole friends-with-benefits had sounded appealing, taking it a day at a time until they sorted out the bombshell that had been dropped into their relationship: a sexual chemistry that still boggled her mind.
And yet Elliot’s reaction the next day had made her realize there could be no future for them. Her euphoria had evaporated with the morning light.
She’d woken before him and gone to the kitchen to make coffee and pile some pastries on a plate. The front door to his suite had opened and she’d assumed it must be the maid. Anyone who entered the room had to have a key and a security code.
However, the woman who’d walked in hadn’t been wearing a uniform. She—Gianna—had worn a trench coat and nothing else. If only it had been a crazed fan. But Lucy Ann had quickly deduced Gianna was the new female in Elliot’s life. He hadn’t even denied it. There was no misunderstanding.
God, it had been so damn cliché her stomach had roiled. Elliot came out of the bedroom and Gianna had turned paler than the towel around Elliot’s waist.
He’d kept his calm. Apologized to Gianna for the awkward situation, but she’d burst into tears and run. He’d told Lucy Ann there was nothing between him and his girlfriend anymore, not after what happened the night before with Lucy Ann.
But she’d told him he should have let Gianna know that first, and she was a hundred percent right. He’d agreed and apologized.
That hadn’t been enough for her. The fact that he could be seeing one woman, even superficially, and go to bed with another? No, no and hell, no. That was something she couldn’t forgive. Not after how all those men had cheated on her mom with little regard for vows or promises. And her mother kept forgiving the first unfaithful jerk, and then the next.
If Elliot could behave this way now, how could she trust him later? What if he got “swept away” by someone else and figured he would clue her in later? She’d called him dishonorable.
And in an instant, with that one word, a lifetime friendship crumbled.
She’d thrown on her clothes and left. Elliot’s engagement to Gianna a month later had only sealed Lucy Ann’s resolve to stay away. They hadn’t spoken again until the day he’d shown up in Carla’s yard.
Now, after more impulsive kisses, she found herself wanting to crawl right back into bed with him. Lucy Ann powered the stroller closer to the party and their quarters, drawing in one deep breath of salty air after another, willing her pulse to steady. Wishing the urge to be with Elliot was as easily controlled.
With each step, she continued the chant in her brain, the vow not to repeat her mother’s mistakes.
* * *
Wind tearing at his tuxedo jacket, Elliot watched Lucy Ann push the stroller down the planked walkway, then past the party. He didn’t take his eyes off her or his son until he saw they’d safely reached the palace, even though he now had bodyguards watching his family 24/7. His family?
Hell, yes, his family.
Eli was his son. And Lucy Ann had been his only real family for most of his life. No matter how angry he got at her for holding back on telling him about Eli, Elliot also couldn’t forgive himself for staying away from her. He’d let her down in a major way more than once, from his teenage years up to now. She had reason not to trust him.
He needed to earn back her trust. He owed her that and so much more.
His shoulders heaving with a sigh, he started toward the wedding reception. The bride and groom had
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