Page 56 of Losing Hope

Chapter Twenty-One

Four Months Later

Gage flinchedand swore under his breath as a firm knock on the door broke his concentration. He was trimming a photograph, prepping it to be matted, and he’d just sliced off a fraction too much. He slammed his fist down on the table and drew in a deep breath to calm himself. It didn’t take much to anger him thesedays.

He dropped the knife on the table and walked to the door. Three more hard knocks sounded on the other side just as he grabbed the handle to pull it open. “Chill the fuck out! I’mcom—”

His eyes widened in surprised disbelief, and if it was even possible, his boiling point rose to a precarious edge. “What do youwant?”

“I’d like to talk if you have a moment.” He watched as Robert Yorke shifted uncomfortably in his doorway. “I think it’s long overdue.”

“I’d say it was about six years overdue.” Shaking his head in disgust, he stepped back out of the doorframe and motioned for Robert to come inside. As much as he didn’t want to be within ten feet of this man, he was curious as hell to hear what he had tosay.

“Thank you.” He walked past and gasped out loud, “Oh!”

Gage regarded the man’s shocked expression and shrugged. “It’s the only way I can be close to her.” His gaze swept around the room, following the path Robert’s eyes took. Every wall was covered in framed photographs of Hope—her laughing, looking straight at him, on the bridge, of them on the hill together, her sleeping. She was everywhere.

The older man’s eyes fell back on him. “You loveher.”

“Does it matter?”

“Very much indeed.” He walked further into the room, unbuttoning his coat before shrugging it off. He moved to set it over a chair and then pulled another one out to sit in. “MayI?”

Gage waved his hand in the air to indicate he should do as he pleases. “What can I do for you, Mr. Yorke?”

“Please, call me Robert.”

“I’m not planning on getting friendly enough to be on a first name basis with you, so let’s just keep this formal.”

He watched a small frown appear on the man’s face as he nodded curtly, and Gage was surprised at how amenable the man was attempting to be, causing his curiosity to grow. “Again, what do youwant?”

“I’d like to explain. Something I should have done a long, long timeago.”

Scoffing loudly, Gage moved to stand across the table. “Why now? I begged you years ago, and you would tell me nothing.”

“Something I regret very much and have come to learn was the wrong thing to do. I thought I was protecting the ones I love, but, well, it seems I’ve done much more harm than good.” He motioned toward the chair Gage was leaning on. “Won’t you sit down? This might take a little while.”

Curiosity getting the best of him, and his desire to finally have more information about what happened to his sister, had him sliding down into the seat. “I’m listening.”

Gage focused all his attention, his emotions swirling in different directions, as Robert Yorke detailed the same story he had told Hope back in October. When he was done, both men sat in silence, each taking the other in across the table.

“Why are you finally telling me this now? Why couldn’t you have told me this yearsago?”

A long, exhausted sigh fell from Robert. “I truly thought I was protecting my wife. She didn’t deserve to have her name dragged through the mud because her husband’s lover was in the car with her… Let alone, her husband’s pregnant lover. Can you imagine what the newspapers would have done if they’d gotten hold ofthat?”

“Do you actually think I would have gone to the papers if you’d told me and my family the truth?” Gage spat out angrily.

“At the time, I couldn’t see past my own immediate family and needs. I had no idea that you knew your sister and I had a relationship, or that you knew the baby was mine. Then, when you confronted me, I did what I always did in that situation. I lied, and for that, I’m sorry. I’m very sorry that I’ve caused you and your family the pain I did. But, son, it was an accident. We all lost that day, and I do know that it may be hard to swallow, but I, we, would have done the right thing by Faith. My wife would have it no otherway.”

Gage stood up and paced around the room, not sure where this conversation was supposed to be headed. He turned and faced Robert. “What are you looking for then? Forgiveness?”

“No, not today. Maybe someday, though. I know this is something that may never come, or at the very least, something that has to be earned.”

Gage watched as Robert stood and walked to one of the photographs of Hope. She was in the canoe and staring out at the water, a look of serenity on her face. “She’s beautiful, isn’tshe?”

He nodded but said nothing.

“She hasn’t quite forgiven me yet. But, I think, well, I hope, perhaps maybe soon. She did let me visit her for Christmas.” Gage watched as the older man turned back to face him. “She’s living up at the house in Vermont now. Did you knowthat?”

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