Page 67 of Assigned

Chapter Thirty

Riley

Isink farther into the mattress and pillow, my eyes focused on the envelope lying on the nightstand. Its contents didn’t hold words of sympathy or love or understanding. Just legal jargon that the annulment was official. Yet, the letter cut deep. If only those words included information on how Lucas’s custody issues were going maybe I’d feel better. Maybe I’d feel justified in my actions.

But I don’t know and therefore, no relief exists from the nagging feeling I made the wrong decision.

“Get the hell out of my house!” My father’s baritone voice reverberates all the way into my bedroom upstairs and pulls me from my melancholy stupor.

“What the heck?” I get out of bed and head toward the staircase curious as to who the hell he is yelling at. Though, also because I need a distraction from rereading the letter for the twentieth time in less than twenty-four hours. My father growls loudly and I swear the grand chandelier shakes. Daddy is clearly fixing to open a full can of whoop-ass on whoever is the target of his wrath. But who could have him so worked up? Maybe one of the horse trainers?

I freeze on the landing, gripping the banister, when a familiar voice catches my attention. A low growl whose rumble I feel in my very bones. “There isn’t another man who will love her as much as I do.”

Lucas.

My heart beats faster. I suck in a breath and head down the steps toward the ground floor.

“Love doesn’t pay the bills, young man. It doesn’t make sure she gets to the best doctors and has access to the most up-to-date treatments and medications. It doesn’t sit by her hospital bed after a surgery or nurse her until she’s back on her feet,” Mom says.

They’re all down there together.

I take a second before turning the corner that leads from the foyer into the living room. When I finally do, air rushes from my lungs. He’s here. He’s actually here. Lucas. He’s come back for me. His broad shoulders make the living room look considerably smaller. I inch closer, partly because I’m in shock, and partly because he and my father are still squaring off with one another. Part of me wants to step in and settle this between them, but they need to work out their issues. The two of them need to come to terms with each other without me playing referee.

But the floorboard squeaks and the three of them spot me. Lucas slips his hands into his pockets, his gaze shifting from me to the floor and back again, as if he’s struggling to keep it focused.

“Lucas.” When I say his name, his gaze rests on me and heat rushes through my body. His handsome face, always so serious, stays turned to me even as his shoulders hunch a bit. For a second, I see Mason too. I see the bit of boy inside the man and my heart nearly bursts.

“Riley, go back upstairs. Your mother and I will handle this,” Dad says, turning away from me, probably assuming I’ll do as I’m told.

Lucas goes rigid, but remains silent. We were in this exact same circumstance years ago. I made the mistake of sending Lucas away, then. Not this time.

“No.” I step closer until I’m standing at Lucas’s side. “I told you when it comes to Lucas, this has to stop. It was my decision to leave, and that does not make him a bad guy.”

“You didn’t have to leave, Riley. You should have given me a chance.” While the timbre of Lucas’s voice is warm, his words are shaky.

I face him and meet his gaze. “I didn’t want to be a burden. I needed another surgery and there was always a chance I’d need another surgery after that. Lisa lost it when I had Inara pick Mason up one time. What was she going to do when she found out I might be in and out of the hospital for a while? That I might never be able to always be there. That there are limitations to what I can do. It’s bad enough putting you in a position where you might have to take care of me. To have my illness also mean that you might lose all custody of Mason was more than I could bear.”

“Your father and I still don’t know why you signed up for such a program.” My mother makes a tsk-ing noise, then narrows her eyes and turns to Lucas. Her voice grows sharp and mean. “Did you put it in her head? Was there some benefit you got out of this?”

My hand flies up, palm in my mother’s line of sight. “Mom! Enough!”

Lucas takes that hand in his, then lowers it, and takes a deep breath. “No. I didn’t put anything in your daughter’s head. Riley told me she joined the program because she needed health benefits.” He holds his hand up when my mother opens her mouth to speak. “Said you both were suffocating her instead of letting her live the life she wants. She didn’t want to take anything more from you, and joining the program was a way to get the insurance she needed without relying on you.”

My father growls while my mother rolls her eyes. “Ridiculous.”

It wasn’t though. Even being back home, it’s difficult for them to truly understand. How do you get someone to see that you want their love and support, but still need some autonomy? I can yell, talk to them rationally, or even write a letter about it. But at the end of the day, until they can come to accept it, to recognize it on their own, it’s like fighting a never-ending battle.

Lucas squeezes my hand. “There was no guarantee she’d end up with me. She didn’t even know I was in Virginia. But it happened. And I fell in love with her all over again.”

He reaches out and turns my chin with his fingers to make sure our gazes are locked. I tremble at the way those words shake me at my very core. But Lucas isn’t finished.

“You are the only woman I’ve ever truly loved. You’re a great stepmom to my son. You should have told me what was going on. You didn’t even give us a chance to work it out. To come up with a plan together.”

“But Lisa—” I start, only to have Lucas cut me off.

“Lisa understands. She didn’t have all the facts before. Made a judgement based on prior knowledge, one I can understand that I contributed toward. At the end of the day, she only wants the best for Mason. Just like you and me.” He pulls me a step closer to him and warmth rolls off his body.

I look down at my feet, still not quite ready to meet the heat of his gaze. “I can’t always be there for Mason. Crohn’s is unpredictable. I don’t always know what’s going to set off a flare-up or when a doctor’s appointment is going to run long.”

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