Butterfly Madness [Loving in Silver 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (29 page)

“It’s your father. You knew Gray would be running a check on him to see if he’s been up to anything?” She nodded, feeling her face pinch with emotion. “Please don’t be mad at him, baby.” Roarke hurried back to her. He took ahold of her shoulders as he looked down at her. “He thought it was a little too much of a coincidence that your parents were here in Silver during Callie’s show. He knows what you thought, that they were just here to be in the limelight as her parents. But Gray gets these little feelings that he just can’t get rid of. He made a few inquiries and discovered your father is wanted for questioning in a series of thefts in South Beach.”

“What kind of thefts?”

“Jewelry mostly.”

“And my mother?”

“She’s still at the motel. Gray told her not to plan on going anywhere just yet. He’s trying to determine if she had any knowledge of her husband’s activities.” She noticed Roarke had switched from saying “your father.” She appreciated his effort to protect her. His eyes were so full of love and sorrow. He knew hearing all this was hurting her. “It seems they have seen quite a lot of each other over the years.”

“But they’re divorced,” she protested weakly.

Roarke shook his head. “I’m sorry, baby, but they’re not. Your mother confirmed it when Gray asked her.”

“They have to be divorced. Because if they aren’t that just makes the last twenty years all that much worse.” She wasn’t going to cry.
She wasn’t.
The pain of complete betrayal ripped through her. “They’re married,” she repeated to herself as she went toward the back door. “I have to go. Please, talk to Dave. Tell him to call if he needs anything. We’ll be here first thing in the morning to begin preparing everything for delivery.”

“Sure thing, baby. Just wait here. I’ll go find him.”

Roarke disappeared up the stairs where they had put the furniture she wasn’t going to use at the house. She had decided she would make a little “love nest” upstairs for lunch visits with her men during her work day. Dave was utilizing it while he waited for the guests to leave.

As she waited for the men to return, Marley wondered how she was ever going to get beyond this new betrayal. She doubted Callie had any idea about their parents’ relationship status. She was one of the most honest people she had known. If she had known, or had discovered, that their parents were still married, that their mother was still seeing their father, Callie wouldn’t have kept it to herself.

Anger began to burn inside of Marley as she waited for Roarke to return. Old hurt and resentment fed it. It was bad enough her father had been absent from their lives all these years, but to learn that their mother had been seeing him, had some kind of twisted relationship with him? It was incomprehensible! It was unforgiveable. Just when she didn’t believe she could possibly think any less of her mother, she found that she could. The woman was a complete stranger.

Roarke waited as Dave set the alarm. The men nodded at one another before the guard closed and locked the solid steel door.

“Come on, baby. Let’s get you home.”

He was obviously trying to distract her, but she only had one thought in her mind. She wanted to see the people who cared so little they had lied for more than twenty years. But why? There seemed to be no logical answer she could think of. When she had been a little girl she had thought the world revolved around her father. All her early childhood memories were wonderful. Phillip Jacobson had always been there, always made her feel so loved and special. Even her mother had been a different person then. While not overly affectionate, she had seemed to love her.

Then her father had left and only returned the one time. Or so she thought. Now she saw it for what it was, one huge lie, a deception so great she didn’t know how she could possibly forgive it. Not only had they hurt her, they had hurt Callie. Her sister had never complained about the lack of a father, but it was still there. Unspoken hurts and deep wounds were easy to hide. Now she knew why the woman had never dated, had never married again.

“I can’t,” Marley told Roarke. “I have to see them.”

“Do you think that’s a good idea?”

“It’s the only thing I can do right at this moment. I have to finish it. Otherwise I’m always just going to have this need to have my say about what they both did.”

“You’re going to forgive them?”

“I have to. I’m not carrying that burden around with me.” She looked at him, a genuine smile curving her mouth. “I have a bright, promising future here in Silver with two very handsome, fabulous guys. I don’t want something like this hanging over it. I want it behind me for good. Do you understand?”

Roarke lifted her hand to his mouth. “I understand, baby. Let’s go see Doreen and Phillip and get this over with.”

Gray’s heart had clenched when he got the phone call from Roarke telling him that Marley wanted to see Phillip Jacobson. Though it wasn’t his decision, he knew what he would do if he had a choice. He would keep the two of them apart, hopefully preventing her more pain.

The reality was he had no right to prevent it. Oh, professionally he could at least delay the meeting. The man had already requested a lawyer, which prevented him from questioning him beyond what he had initially. They had just finished processing him, fingerprinting and photographing him, searching him for contraband, before giving him an orange jumpsuit and slippers. Other than a lawyer, he wasn’t allowed visitors yet.

The fact that he’d been the one to arrest the man really sucked. Marley would always know that and he hoped, no, he prayed, it didn’t put a barrier between them. He loved the woman so much, as much as he loved Roarke, and he didn’t want anything to shadow their future.

When Marley came into the sheriff’s office with Roarke she was pale and appeared fragile. He could see she had been crying, but knew he would have to wait to get answers about it. It distressed him to know she had been upset. He wanted to hold her, kiss her, and make everything better for her.

How had things changed so fast? Just hours ago she had been happy as one painting after another was sold and Callie’s dream was coming closer to becoming a reality. The answer was an easy one. It was his fault. If he hadn’t followed his instincts about Phillip Jacobson, he would be at home at that moment celebrating with his lovers.

Sighing, Grayson took Marley and Roarke to an interview room to wait until Jacobson was brought out from his cell. It took less than five minutes and in that time he did something which could get him fired, if not jailed. He slammed the man against the wall and glared down at him.

“You’ve already proven you’re one cold bastard. Giving up being a father to two wonderful girls is one of the worst things I can think of. You’ve done the damage. There’s no going back. And you came here and caused more. Don’t add to it. If you do, I’ll make it my personal mission to make the rest of your life hell,” Grayson told the man, the last words little more than a snarl.

Jacobson paled, but managed a nod. They were alone in the hallway and he suspected Tim and Cherry were making certain it remained that way. Grabbing the man by the back of the jumpsuit, he all but shoved him down the hall until they came to the interview room.

“One wrong word…”

“I got it. You don’t have to worry.”

Then they were in the room. The door closed behind them. He knew the camera and recording devices were off. This meeting was completely off the record. Jacobson sat down in the chair across the table from his daughter. Roarke stood against the wall behind her. Grayson stood in front of the door, watching, listening.

“Why?”

One word. Marley only spoke the one word, but it held a wealth of meaning. She wanted to know why a man who seemed to have everything, wealth, education, position, and a family, had given it all up.

Jacobson shrugged. “I wasn’t cut out to be a father and a husband.”

“As I remember, you started out just fine. I thought you were a wonderful father.”

“I had things to do. They didn’t include a wife and children.”

“I suppose the thrill of being a thief trumped everything else in your life?”

The handsome face was stiff. He never looked directly at her until then. He nodded abruptly. “You could say that. I’ve made a living by following the rich, relieving them of bits and pieces. Until a few months ago, I’d never been caught or even suspected. Then I made one little mistake and now here I am.”

Marley made a sound of disgust. “You make it sound like you didn’t do anything more than not use your signal when making a turn. You’re a thief, a liar, a cheat, and only God knows what else. I wish you hadn’t come here. I suppose I know why you did. You learned from Mother that Callie’s artwork was going to be sold. There would be a lot of wealthy people staying in town, with bits and pieces there for you to relieve them of while they were otherwise occupied. Well, I’m not sorry you were caught.” She rose from the chair. “You need to go to prison for what you’ve done. Still, I forgive you, because I’m not going to carry anything of you with me for a moment longer. I forgive you for everything you failed at as a parent. I know Callie would do the same. Maybe that’s why I’m able to. She was a much better person than I am. Good-bye.”

Phillip Jacobson didn’t say another word, didn’t try to stop her. He was pale and Grayson could see a tremor of emotion go through his body. The man had created the hell he was now going through, but Grayson could not find it in himself to be sympathetic.

Once Tim returned the prisoner to his cell, Grayson left the sheriff’s office behind and went out to stand on the sidewalk. There were a lot of people out for a Tuesday evening. The unusual activity was due to the show at the gallery, of course, but he found it pleasant to see people strolling along holding hands, talking and laughing as they enjoyed one of the few remaining evenings of good weather. Soon the temperatures would begin dropping. There would be more frequent rain, and then it would snow.

The snow always came earlier than it did in other parts of the country. Climatologically, winter often started in September and lasted until April or May. In higher elevations the snow never melted off. Harsh weather never stopped the residents of Silver from going about their day-to-day activities. They just adjusted to the conditions and continued on, as did the farmers and ranchers living and working in the outlying areas.

It was a good place to live. Neither he nor Roarke had ever considered living somewhere else. When they had finished school, they had returned at once. They returned to begin building a life together, always hoping that they would one day find their third. Now they had Marley and both would do whatever it took to make her happy. Unlike her father, they would never let her down, would never give her a moment to doubt the sincerity of their words or actions. They loved her and would protect her. And when the children began arriving, well, they would prove their real worth and be the fathers to their children that she and her sister should have had.

When Grayson saw Marley and Roarke walking together along the sidewalk, he knew she had needed a moment to compose herself. He met them as they got to Roarke’s car. He pulled her close and kissed her softly in a comforting, passionless kiss. Her slender body trembled against his, as he held her just as she needed him to at that moment.

“Come on. Let’s go see Doreen.”

Grayson’s phone rang just then. He kept hold of Marley’s hand as he answered it. His mouth tightened and his eyes narrowed as he stared at a point across the square, focusing inwardly on the caller’s information.

“Thanks, Chet. It’s not a problem. Have a good night.”

Pocketing his phone, he looked down at Marley. “Your mother’s taken off. A cab came and picked her up. Since they don’t leave the area, I suspect it took her to the airport. Do you want me to call and see if she’s flown out yet?”

Marley was silent for a moment. She looked from him to Roarke, as if weighing the situation. Then she was shaking her head. “No. If you don’t think she’s broken any laws here, let her go. I said pretty much everything I needed to say to her when I left California. Other than keeping her marriage a secret, nothing else has really changed.” A long sigh left her. Then she was reaching for them. They moved close, holding her between them. “I want to start my new life now, this minute. Is that okay with you guys?”

“It’s fine with us, butterfly,” Grayson said, relieved to see the smile return to her face.

“Yes, baby, we have a wedding to plan. It’s only two days away.”

A delighted laugh escaped her. “You guys are so funny. I can see my future is going to have a few surprises along the way.”

“You’ll never be bored with us,” Grayson assured her, hugging her close.

Roarke moved in for a kiss as they pressed her between them. Now that the crisis was over, Grayson’s cock was hardening at an alarming rate. He suspected the other man was experiencing a similar condition.

“Hey, sheriff, get a room!”

“Isn’t there a law against that?”

“Do you want to borrow my handcuffs, or are you going to use your own?”

“Our truck is over there, if you can’t wait to get home. There’s a clean tarp in the back.”

The four Preston brothers, Cherry’s husbands, were a bunch of jokers and wisecrackers. Grayson laughed out loud as Cherry walked out of the office. It was the end of her shift. They went from jerks to angels in a matter of seconds, rushing forward to greet one of their two wives. Their wife Gracie was waiting in the truck. Several months pregnant, the tiny woman’s belly looked much like she had swallowed a very round pumpkin, making it difficult for her to get around. It wouldn’t be long before they welcomed their child. Everyone was looking forward to it. The sweet little elf smiled and waved at them. Grayson wondered what Gracie had ever done to deserve such jerks for husbands. The three of them waved back, accepting the sweetness she always offered to those around her.