Page 91 of I'll Carry You

“I looked Jason Cavanaugh up before you came to me that day at the precinct asking me if I could investigate him. And I didn’t tell you I’d already found out he was Kevin’s brother. I had already paid him a visit and asked him not to tell you about his connection to Kevin.”

“Wait, what?” Jen stiffened. She remembered Dan’s reassurances when she’d gone to the police station. That he couldn’t use his position to look into people like that.That was a lie, too?

Dan gave her a squinty-eyed look. “He said he was leaving. That he was in town to see Millie Price. And I didn’t want to bring up Kevin because, well, you know. You were doing a lot better with that whole thing, and I figured you’re old enough to make your own decisions.”

“Mommy, watch!” Colby cried, clamoring at the top of a twisting green slide.

Jen didn’t bother to look at Dan, going closer to Colby as he slid down it. “Wow, bud. That’s a tall slide.” She helped him off and he ran around to the ladder to go back up. She felt Dan come up behind her. A heavy feeling weighed down her chest.

Jason’s face flashed in her mind. She couldn’t allow herself to think of him. To think of the time they’d spent together. Jason’s wife—with all her beauty and glamour—haunted her dreams. The lies from his lips mocked every memory that snaked its way into her brain. Her mistake had been to think she knew him when really, she didn’t. Just like she’d never really known Kevin. So many things she didn’t know. “So you told Jason not to tell me anything? Or threatened him?”

Dan turned her to face him, then set two brotherly hands on her shoulders. He ducked his chin, frowning. “A bit of both. But I’m starting to realize you don’t need protection. Not really. And my interference probably made a confusing situation even worse. Jason told me he was going to tell you everything. And I told him not to. I didn’t know about the inheritance stuff, of course. No way to know about that. So I still feel like he wasn’t honest about what he was doing here in town.”

“And you didn’t tell me about this sooner?” Jen pulled herself free from his grasp as irritation bubbled inside her. “Dan, if I had known who Jason was from the start, things could have been really different.” Honestly, she didn’t want to think about how things would be now. She wasn’t over Jason—not by a smidge—and it was too easy and unrealistic to think about what might have happened if he’d told her the truth when they’d met. She could never really know that.

After catching Colby at the bottom of the slide, she set him down on the ground. He ran over to a climbing pole with a grin.

“I thought I was doing the right thing. I shouldn’t have looked him up, really. I knew how mad it might make you. But then once I knew the truth, I felt stuck.” Dan motioned toward Colby. “I love you guys. You know I’d never let anyone hurt you, but I think it’s time for me to hang up my hat as the enforcer of that. So I wanted to tell you the truth. Start with a clean slate.”

Jen crossed her arms, grinding her teeth. “It was an awful thing to do, Dan.” She checked the playground to make sure they were relatively alone. Only another mom appeared to be in the vicinity, but she was busy swinging her kid on the swing set. “And I’m having a hard time believing you’re being sincere about not interfering in my business. But I’m also really, really sick of being mad right now. It’s Christmas, and I don’t want to be fighting with my big brother. So if I let you off the hook this time, swear to me this will be the last time.”

Dan’s broad shoulders fell as he released a sigh. “I promise, Jen. You know, Warren and I really took the news of you being our baby sister seriously. Probably because we were so excited to be part of a normal family. And you’re the one who brought us all together in a way. But you’re not a baby anymore. You’re not even the girl you were when you got pregnant.”

He gave Colby a fond smile as he ran by to the other side of the playground set. “You’re really admirable, Jen. Hell, I think it’s pretty safe to say you’re a lot more mature and smarter than I am. Look how much trouble I’ve caused you.” He reached out and squeezed her shoulder once more. “So I swear it. You don’t need me trying to look after you. You’re doing just fine on your own. And I’m not the only one who thinks so. Mom and Dad wouldn’t be offering to help you with that bakery if they didn’t believe in you just as much as I do.”

Jen’s eyes misted unexpectedly at his words. “I don’t know about that.”

“I’m serious. How many other people do you know who could juggle two jobs, do an amazing job raising a baby all on your own, and be a hot-shot baking contestant on a television show while charming the pants off a billionaire?”

“Multimillionaire.” Jen winced.

Dan winked. “After five figures, you’re talking about zeroes most people have and will never see in their bank accounts. It’s all relative.” He slung his arm around her shoulder, drawing her in for a bear hug. “You’re doing great, Jen. We’re all proud of you. You just have to believe it for yourself.” Dan kissed her temple and then released her. “I should get back to work. I have a whole town to look out for instead of you.”

As Dan walked away, Jen felt a surprising tug of loneliness in his absence. Almost how she pictured one of those scenes from the movies where the parents helped their college student pack up the car and waved goodbye while they left. Dan had been towering over her all of her life—and not just because of his tall stature. Despite their age gap, he was the big brother who took the time to play with her. Who watched over her when she got home from school.

His uniformed figure retreated down the sidewalk, and she fought the urge to call him back. Maybe she needed him more than she thought, after all. Hadn’t she just shown she wasn’t the best judge of character . . .again?

And here I am, considering trying to run my own business.I keep letting minor obstacles steal my security.

“Mommy, look!” Colby was groping for the monkey bars and Jen’s heart dipped with worry. She crossed the space to his side in a flash and then helped him across. As he reached the last bar, he let go and slid into her waiting arms.

“I did it!” His babyish voice was filled with excitement, his innocent joy melting her heart. He didn’t care whether she’d helped him or that he’d basically taken a trust fall in the end, which still had her palms feeling slick. He was still proud of his attempt.

Maybe that’s how things are supposed to be with the people you can count on.

Colby’s arms were tight around her neck as she set him on the ground. She kissed his forehead and decided right there. “You know that building I was showing you when Uncle Dan showed up?”

“Yeah?”

“That’s going to be Mommy’s new bakery.” She swiped a cookie crumb from his collar that she’d missed. “I still have to fix it up. But I’m going to have someone make it pretty and paint it. What color do you think it should be?”

Colby grinned. “Yellow!”

“That sounds good to me.” She searched his eyes, knowing he couldn’t possibly understand entirely what she meant. She didn’t know if she would succeed, but she knew she wasn’t alone, even if she’d never met another man again.

Or if she’d ever have another baby.

She didn’t know if this bakery would work or how to manage childcare while running a business.

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