Page 58 of Hartley

Jordan growled low, “Jesus fuck, if I wasn’t certain I wouldn’t be here with the two of you.”

“You can’t blame us for asking.”

He sighed. “I know. I’m sorry.”

Oleander’s eyes were big, causing me to chuckle. It never got old watching the guards be surprised by Jordan’s kindness. I would have thought they’d be used to it by now, but nope. The only ones who weren’t fazed were Sheldon, because it took a lot to ruffle him, and Raiden and Reghan because they were on the receiving end of it more than the others.

Reghan stepped ahead to open the door to the room for us. Lane was already sitting inside with Rory standing in the corner.

I ignored Jordan and went to Lane, taking the seat next to him. Forest came into the room last. “Sorry, I was on a meeting that ran over.” He sat across from us.

Jordan glared at me for sitting so close to Lane, but Iignored him. Honestly, I wasn’t afraid of Lane at all. He had plenty of chances to hurt us and hadn’t.

“I brought some photos,” I told him and pushed them toward him. “This is our grandfather over the years. I’m not sure if one of them will jog a memory or not. They go back as far as fifty years to the most recent, which was about a year before he passed.”

Lane flipped through them, pausing on one from about thirty years ago. He placed the others on the table. “Why does he look so familiar? Did he always dress like this?”

I glanced at the picture. My grandfather had on a pair of navy slacks and a light blue button-down tucked in. It was a picture from someone’s wedding. I couldn’t remember who. “No, that was his dressed-up look. He was more comfortable in a pair of loose, worn jeans and a T-shirt. He didn’t like much else. As he got older, he was in cotton shorts or sweatpants depending on the temperature outside.”

Rory picked up another picture. It was a close up where my grandfather’s gray hair was a bit messy, but his eyes were clear.

Sheldon put his hands on the table and leaned forward to look. He was standing beside my brother. Not that there was any shock he gravitated toward him. “Lane?”

“Yeah?” Lane lifted his head to look at Sheldon.

“Um… Has no one else figured this out?”

“What are you talking about?” Forest asked.

“Let me see that.” Sheldon took the picture from Lane then walked around the table so he could hold the picture beside Lane’s face. “Now do you see it?”

I leaned away to look. “Holy shit.” Lane had my grandfather’s eyes. Not only that, but the same nose and the cut of his chin.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” Jordan bit out. “You can’t be serious.”

“Who are you saying that to?” Sheldon asked.

“I don’t even know. Are you not really an Everhart?”

Lane took the picture and stared at it again, his eyes widening as he did so. He pushed his chair back and scrambled out of his seat to stand, which made Raiden and Reghan close in on him. “What the fuck?” Lane yelled, clearly panicking. “How… Why…” Then it was like a puzzle piece slid into place. All of the sudden, he calmed, and his shoulders came down. “This was what she meant.” He put the picture back on the table.

“You’re going to need to elaborate,” Jordan bit out. The anger was pouring from him. He didn’t like to be surprised. Jordan wanted control. The only time he let go was when he was with Vail and me. This had to be driving him crazy.

“Before my mom died, she said cryptic shit. I thought she was just slipping away. She mentioned how one day I’d figure it out. I had no clue what she was talking about. She rattled on about North Carolina and a small house on the sound. It was like a drug-induced haze from what they were giving her, but I guess it wasn’t. She was talking about him.” He pointed to the picture.

“So, Pop had an affair with a younger, married woman?” Forest asked. “That doesn’t sound like him.”

“Really?” I replied. “We were children. How old are you, Lane?”

“Thirty-five. My brothers are… were in one case… older than me.”

“Barely younger than me.”

“He was having affairs?”

“You make it sound like he was sleeping with half the neighborhood. He had to have been lonely after our nanapassed.” I wasn’t even alive when she did. I never got to meet her.

“He could have been for all we know!” Forest’s emotions were getting the best of him, not that I blamed him. This was one hell of a revelation. Forest calmed slightly when Sheldon put his hand on my brother’s shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze.

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