The Brightest Sunset

“Yeah,” I replied, curling the mug of coffee into my chest.

“He had to be exhausted,” Mom added.

“Susan, you mind if I have a minute alone with Charlotte?”

Her gaze flicked to mine in question, and I gave her a short nod.

Crossing her arms over her chest, she looked to Brady and asked, “Are you going to be an asshole?”

Yep. That was my mom.

Brady chuckled. “Wasn’t planning on it.”

“Then I suppose I can give you two a minute. You want some coffee?”

“I’d love some,” he replied, a small smile playing at his lips.

“Okay, then. Be nice and don’t make me hurt either one of you on such a joyous day.” Pressing up onto her toes, she pecked my cheek and then patted Brady on the chest before strolling away.

Brady moved to fill her empty space in the doorway. “Are you doing okay?”

“Yeah. Of course,” I answered. “What about you?”

His green eyes warmed. “It’s weird. Ya know? He’s my son, but he’s also this little stranger.”

“I know. I get nervous every time he so much as looks at me,” I confessed and immediately felt awkward about it. “I mean—”

“He looks a lot more like you than I was expecting. In all the age progression photos they made over the years, he always looked like me.”

I smiled and swallowed hard. “He’s got your chin.”

He chuckled and scrubbed his jaw. “Poor guy.”

I took another sip and turned my attention back to Lucas, allowing the silence to linger between us. Though there was nothing comfortable about it.

“Thank you,” Brady rasped.

With wide eyes, I snapped my gaze to his. “For what?”

He cleared his throat. “I felt like I was going to die this morning when you had to give him that breathing treatment thing. I literally couldn’t breathe the whole time.”

I patted his arm. “Hey, it’s okay. He’s fine now.”

“You jumped right in, while I stood there, paralyzed by fear that I’d just gotten him back and I was already going to lose him again.” His voice cracked as he covered his mouth.

“Brady,” I whispered, my chest tightening. “That’s my job. It’s different for me. I’ll teach you. It won’t be so scary next time.”

He nodded. “I don’t want there to be a next time.”

“I don’t either, but unfortunately, there are going to be a lot of next times. He’s sick, Brady. Really sick.”

He hooked his arm around my shoulders and gathered me into his side. My body was stiff, but I allowed him the contact.

But it was all for him.

What I wouldn’t have given for it to be Porter’s strong arm. His reassuring words in my ear. His lips pressing into the top of my hair. His warmth enveloping me.

As though he could read my mind, Brady said, “I know, which is why we need to talk about Porter Reese.”

My heart lurched. Stepping away from his side, I caught the doorknob. Silently pulling the door shut, I left Lucas peacefully sleeping inside.

“What about him?” I asked.

“I don’t want my son having anything to do with that asshole.”

And just like that, our moment was gone.

I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms over my chest. “Jesus Christ, how many times are we going to have this conversation? I agreed to the protection order, didn’t I?”

“You did.” He took an ominous step toward me. “But then, an hour later, you let our son text that man.”

My back shot straight. “How do you know that?”

“The same way I know that Porter was blowing your phone up in the middle of the night.”

Now, that was news to me. I had no idea where my phone was. When I’d last seen it, it was on the end table in the living room. But, after Lucas had woken up having difficulty breathing, I’d lost track of basically everything else. Clearly, Brady had not.

“You went through my phone?” I hissed.

He cocked his head to the side and leveled me with a scowl. “Tell me you understand.”

“You went through my fucking phone?” I semi-repeated, stepping forward until we were nose to nose.

My mom suddenly appeared between us. “No way. Break it up, you two. We are not doing this today.” She took my coffee from my hand when I refused to back down.

“Say it, Charlotte,” Brady demanded.

“You had no right!” I snapped.

“And neither did you. He’s our son. Both of ours. You do not get to make decisions by yourself.”

“Hey. Hey. Hey,” Tom said, wading into what was about to escalate into World War III. “Enough.”

Brady and I continued our stare down around them, neither of us willing to concede.

Ultimately, it was a knock at the door that finally broke the tension.

With my teeth clenched, I dragged my gaze away from Brady and marched to the door. My footsteps were almost as heavy as the anger brewing inside me.

I snatched the door open and then froze.

Topaz-blue eyes.

Short, blond hair.

Strong jaw covered in scruff.

Bright, white smile.

“Hi,” he said softly.

My mouth dried and everything slowed, tears I should have long since run out of filling my eyes.

It wasn’t Porter. But he looked close enough to cause my heart to splinter.

“Oh, honey,” Rita said, gliding past Tanner and wrapping me in a hug. “You should have called.”

“I…uh…” I stammered, my eyes still locked on Tanner.

Secretly, I flashed my gaze over his shoulder, searching—and hoping—for any sign of Porter. There was none.

And, when Brady’s presence hit my back, I was suddenly relieved.

“You are not here right now,” he growled at Tanner.

Tanner kept staring at me. His handsome smile, which matched his brother’s, never faltered as he stated, “I brought some of Travis’s things.”

Brady cut around me and snatched the bag from his hands. “Leave.”

“Oh, give it a rest,” Rita snapped at Brady. Then her tone became sweet as she asked me, “How are you doing, honey?”

I kept staring at Tanner as I bit my lip and shook my head.

“You overwhelmed?” she whispered.

I sucked in a sharp breath and nodded.

She palmed either side of my face. “Well, don’t you worry. I’m here now.” Then she was gone.

Or, more accurately, she was now gone from my face and up in Brady’s.

“All right. Listen up. Tanner was just leaving. I, however—”

She didn’t get to finish what was probably going to be an amazing speech because she was interrupted by the sound of a little boy’s glee-filled shriek.

“Uncle Tan!”

“Fuck,” Brady growled and started to turn toward him.

Snaking a hand out, I caught his elbow. “Don’t you dare!”

“Charlotte,” he warned.

“His world has been flipped upside down. Let him have these few minutes of comfort. I’ll toe the line about Porter after this. But he’s already seen Tanner. You are not taking this away from him.”

For several beats, he scowled at me, but he finally tipped his chin and stepped to the side, allowing Lucas room to get to the man he’d grown up thinking was his uncle.

Our boy didn’t slow until he crashed into Tanner’s front.

I’d only met Tanner Reese once. So I wasn’t exactly an expert on his repertoire of expressions. But there was no mistaking the tangible pain that flickered through his features before he was able to conceal them with a smile.

“Hey, Trav,” he murmured.

God. I was so sick of my heart hurting all the time. But it did. At every turn.

And it seemed I wasn’t the only one. Porter would be destroyed. But his whole family had been affected too.

“What are you doing here?” Lucas asked, craning his head back, his eyes sparkling with tears. “Did Dad come with you?”

Tanner squatted low and wrapped him into a hug. One so deep that even I felt the love packed inside it. “No. I’m sorry.” He lowered his voice. “He told me to tell you that he loves you so much and that he’ll see you as soon as he can.”