Another Chance With Love (Chance Series Book 2) Read online

  As we walked up toward the house, a thought struck me. I sure as hell hoped she meant us cause I was already scared shitless, and I hadn’t thought about the poopy diapers until that moment.

  __________

  I knew raising a baby would change everything. Luckily, I finished my bachelor’s degree a semester early and I thanked God in heaven for the advanced classes I took in high school. I’d initially thought I’d spend this final semester of school enjoying a break before starting law school.

  I couldn’t imagine how I’d ever go to law school now that Luka was going to take so much of my and Aunt Doris’ time.

  At Aunt Doris’ suggestion, I gave notice on my tiny apartment that was close to school and moved back in with her. Luckily, Grandpa had left me a small trust account, but I wasn’t technically supposed to be able to use the money until I graduated. It was grandpa’s way of paying for my graduate studies. Once I told the attorney, who was a trustee, that I had a new baby, he agreed to monthly payments to help with expenses at least until I could show him the degree.

  The monthly stipend far from covered all our expenses, so I had to get a part-time job. The law firm I did my internship with last summer didn’t have anything I could do, but they told me the private investigator company they worked with was looking for someone.

  I knew beggars couldn’t be choosers. So, with their referral, I went to the investigator’s office and was hired on the spot. Luckily, I quickly discovered how much I liked that side of the business. It was mostly research, which I’d always been good at. But there was also the occasional dramatic event we got to be part of, involving cheating spouses or locating someone who’d skipped out on their payments.

  The best part was, when I was doing research, I could work from home, which meant most of the time I could take care of Luka and not be too much of a burden on Aunt Doris.

  Peter

  “Mom, seriously, stop calling me so much! I told you I’m not seeing anyone right now. No, you’re right, I probably wouldn’t let you meet them even if I did. We’ve discussed this. You broke my fiancé and me up, and no, it wasn’t just because you had a tumor... Mom, it doesn’t matter now, I’m sorry, I have to go.”

  I’d gotten used to these phone conversations. I ended up arguing with her at least once a week since I started talking to her again. She wanted to blame everything on the tumor, so I’d forgive her and let things go back to the way they were before. But truth be told, I didn’t think I’d ever forgive her for taking Martin away from me. No amount of apologizing would ever change that.

  “Wait, honey!” she pleaded over the phone. “I don’t know what to do to make this right. It’s been two years. I miss you, and of course, I want to meet your boyfriends. You shouldn’t keep them from me. I went to Dr. Lacie’s last week, and she confirmed the tumor is gone, I won’t be that way again. I promise.”

  I sighed into the phone. “Mom, I’m not dating. I swear to God.”

  This seemed to appease her, at least for the moment. I wanted to tell her that she could probably just give up on me ever dating again, but I was beginning to feel bad about how I was treating her. I’d talked to Dr. Lacey myself, and she confirmed that most of what Mom had said to Martin was because of the tumor. Hell, even Madam Secretary had a whole episode about it when President Dalton had the same tumor Mom did. She’d called me the night the episode aired, all excited because she was sure that the show’s endorsement would help me forgive and forget.

  I wish it had. I often regretted that I couldn’t get past it. That Christmas, I lost not only my fiancé, I lost my mom as well. I missed our relationship and how easy it used to be for us to talk. I couldn’t imagine a time when my anger wouldn’t stop that from happening again.

  “Mom, I’m sorry, but I have to get back to work. I have a deadline, remember?”

  “Okay, honey, but I would really like to see you soon. When are you coming back to Austin?”

  Again, a bone of contention between us. I’d been recruited by a firm in Austin for a potential job over the summer and happened to run into Martin. I’d gone to his house to beg him to give me another chance, but he made it clear he’d moved on. That’s when the walls really went up between Mom and I. She’s been trying to tear them back down ever since.

  The fact that I skipped Thanksgiving and Christmas this year really put her in a bad place. My aunt called to tell me and to try to manipulate me into coming home.

  “You can’t blame your mother for having a brain tumor Peter,” my aunt said, frustration oozing through the phone connection.

  “I don’t blame her for having a brain tumor, Auntie. I blame her for intentionally breaking my relationship up.”

  “She didn’t do it intentionally; it was the tumor.”

  “No, she didn’t like him, the tumor gave her an excuse to spew venom, but it was her dislike that split us up.”

  We continued to argue until my aunt hung up on me.

  C’est la vie, I wouldn’t be manipulated or controlled. Mom created this mess because she did what she did. The tumor was just part of the problem. She’d always hated my dates, always walked a fine line between humor and being hateful. She was jealous, and I knew it, and yet I still hadn’t believed Martin when he’d confided in me about how she’d treated him.

  The reminder hit home, and with great effort, I tried hard not to be disrespectful. “Mom, I don’t know. I’ve got to go, sorry. Love you.” I hung up without a response, knowing there would’ve been at least another fifteen minutes of manipulative banter if I hadn’t.

  I put my head down on my desk and willed myself to cry. I wasn’t good at emotional stuff. As a gay man, I should’ve been able to at least shed a tear, but as horrible as everything was, I only cried once, and that was when I‘d found out Mom did everything Martin said she’d done. I cried more from anger than hurt, though. Anger at myself more than anything.

  Since then, I’d been numb. I couldn’t feel much of anything other than anxious regret, and although I thought a good crying jag would help, I didn’t have it in me to pull it off.

  Trevor

  When I looked up from my desk and stared into the lobby, I immediately spotted the short woman who was my next client. She couldn’t have been more than five foot four, but she wore heels and expensive clothing, which made her appear significantly taller than she was.

  I went out to the front desk instead of paging the secretary and called her name, “Mrs. Reed?

  The woman smiled at me and followed me back.

  “So how can I help you, Mrs. Reed?” I asked.

  The woman stared at me a moment then shook her head. “I made a real bad mess of things with my son, and I need someone to help me make it better.”

  I stared at her for a moment and waited for her to continue. When she didn’t, I responded. “I’m not sure how we can help.”

  “Well, to start, you can follow my son and tell me if he has a boyfriend he isn’t telling me about.”

  I took in the feisty woman in front of me and immediately wished she talked to someone besides me. I simply wouldn’t play a part in harassing her gay son because she had some religious problem.

  “Ma’am, before we go any further, you should know I’m bisexual myself. I personally won’t be able to get involved with a witch hunt or anything that would hurt your son. However, if you wait here, I’ll go get someone else who might be able to help.”

  The woman’s face registered shock, then grief. “No, I’m not a religious zealot! Oh, dear God, you thought I was going to chase my son down to preach hate to him? For goodness sake, I was a PFlag president for four years!”

  I sat back down and shook my head. “I’m sorry, I don’t understand then. Why don’t you just ask your son if he’s dating anyone?”

  The lady leaned back in her chair with a sigh. She explained how she’d treated her son’s ex-fiancé and how she had a tumor that caused her to cross the line with him. “It’s like I didn’t have control over my o
wn nasty mouth!” she said as tears threatened to flow.

  “Can I level with you, Mrs…”

  “Call me Matilda, and please do.”

  “If I were your son and after what you told me you’d done to his ex, if I found out you had a private investigator stalking me, that would pretty much end any contact I’d have with you.”

  Her tears did flow then. She picked up a tissue and dabbed her eyes.

  “I know... my sister told me the same thing, but I don’t know what else to do. I flew all the way out here hoping to see him, but he got mad at me for putting pressure on him and asked me to stay at a hotel. He’s already mad enough not to speak to me.”

  I signed and leaned back in my chair too. I knew I should probably be trying to get this woman’s business, but in good conscience, I couldn’t allow her to screw this up worse than it already was.

  “I’ll tell you what, is there any chance his ex-fiancé would be willing to listen to you if you apologized directly to him?”

  She shook her head. “No, I was the devil himself to that boy. He’d probably call the police if I tried to talk to him.”

  “Do you still want to keep them apart?” I asked.

  She shook her head. “No, I wish I could go back and undo what I’ve done.”

  “Well, can I suggest you leave your son in peace and pursue that direction instead? I can’t say it’ll help, but it might help your son to see you’re trying.”

  Mrs. Reed considered what I said for a long moment. “I think you’re right. I think that’s the way I should approach this.”

  I smiled and patted the hand she’d placed on my desk.

  “I wish you all the luck,” I said as I escorted her out.

  Peter

  I was so pissed off when I’d found out my mother had come to Atlanta, three days after the new year, to force her way into my life again. The truth is, I’d almost buckled and was getting ready to go home for a weekend visit when I got the call. Hell, she hadn’t even waited.

  I’d been more than a little put out and told her to stay at a hotel around the corner from where I lived. I probably should’ve sucked in my pride and let her stay with me, but I just couldn’t.

  I didn’t hear from her the next day, which worried me. My mom wasn’t known for letting things go that easily. That evening, I called her and asked what she was up to. She hemmed and hawed enough that I knew she was indeed up to something and that it would probably be bad for me.

  I asked her if she wanted to meet for dinner, but she declined saying she was leaving to return home early in the morning. Now I was seriously concerned.

  “Mom, what are you up to?”

  “Honey, I have no idea what you mean. I came to see you, but you didn’t want to see me, so now I’m going home.”

  “Mother, you know I love you. You also know I know you better than most people. When you decline the chance to meet me for dinner and pound your agenda into me, I’m fully aware there’s something else going on.”

  My mom huffed into the phone, then blew me off. “Honey, I’m right in the middle of packing. I’ll phone you when I get back home.” Then she hung up.

  Shit, I should’ve swallowed my pride and let her stay with me. There’s absolutely no telling what she’d gotten me into. All I could do at this point was pray it didn’t blow up like Martin did.

  Trevor

  A week after Mrs. Reed visited me, I got a phone call from her. Luka was wailing in the background, so I had to put her on hold and find Aunt Doris before I could speak.

  When I got back to the phone, she was chuckling. “I remember those days,” she said. “Does your wife work at home too?”

  I smiled. “No, it’s just me and my Aunt Doris. How can I help you, Mrs. Reed?”

  The lady sighed so heavily I could hear her exasperation through the phone. “Well, I tried to take your advice to track Martin down, but apparently he’s moved to Florida, and no one will tell me which part. I even went to his parent’s house and was lucky they didn’t call the police on me. I told you, I really screwed the pooch on this one. I have no idea what to do next.”

  I thought for a few moments about what she’d said. “I’ll be honest, Mrs. Reed, if things are that tense, you might not want to pursue this any further. I didn’t realize things were that bad.”

  She sighed again. “No, you were right. This is the way I should make amends. I should’ve gone to the boy right after I had surgery and apologized for how I’d acted. ‘We need to clean up our own mistakes,’ that’s what my father used to tell me over and over. I preached the same thing to Peter growing up, so it’s time I face the music and make amends for my behavior. Even if it’s difficult.”

  I was reticent about helping her go any further, not knowing how this would turn out. I could tell Mrs. Reed was a force to be reckoned with, but if the guy’s parents threatened to have her arrested, there must still be a lot of bad blood there.

  “I’ll tell you what,” I replied. “I’ll send over a contract for you to review regarding how my company handles different scenarios and detailing our services. If you agree, I’ll check on where this Martin is currently located. I’ll need you to fill out what you know about him and send me that info as well. Once I locate him, we can come up with a plan from there.”

  Mrs. Reed seemed satisfied with my suggestion. So much so that I received the signed paperwork back within a few hours of emailing it to her.

  Martin Williams wasn’t difficult to find. He’d become a well-respected food critic in Fort Lauderdale. I was feeling optimistic about a resolution for Mrs. Reed until I found a wedding announcement for him and one Elian Whitman. Nevertheless, I jotted down his contact information on one of the company’s many forms and contacted Mrs. Reed about what I found.

  Matilda was disappointed that Martin was engaged.

  “Oh, honey, I was hoping I could clean up my mistakes and give Peter and Martin another chance.” She sighed so heavily, I almost chuckled. The woman was one hundred percent southern bell.

  “I’m gonna ponder this a little further and see how I wanted to proceed,” she said before hanging up.

  Not surprisingly, I got another phone call from her the following day, telling me she wanted to track Martin down and apologize.

  “I’m not sure that’s a good idea,” I told her honestly.

  “It isn’t. The boy is sure to still be spitting mad at me, but as I said, I need to clean this up once and for all.”

  “Mrs. Reed, I’m not sure how much money you want to spend on this, but I’d be much more comfortable if you’d let me accompany you if you plan to meet him in person.”

  “I was going to ask if you’d consider going with me.”

  “Let me speak to my supervisors and get their permission. If they agree, I’ll send over the additional paperwork.”

  When I spoke to my supervisor, she laughed her butt off. “You’re going to chase down a guy this woman monster-in-lawed so she can apologize?”

  I had to laugh too. “Apparently, I am. To be honest, I’m afraid to let her go by herself. I have no idea how all this will work out in the end.”

  My supervisor gave her blessing, and when Mrs. Reed agreed to the costs, we planned for me to meet her in Fort Lauderdale the following weekend. She decided she’d rather I didn’t contact Martin first because she didn’t want him to refuse to see her until she was at his door.

  I went through back channels to find out where his office was while thinking that would probably be the least likely place for an eruption to take place. I went ahead and set up an appointment with him for the Friday after we arrived. It was easy to pretend to be a restaurant owner, and I secretly hoped the pretense wouldn’t lead to more of an upset.

  __________

  After I met Mrs. Reed at the airport, I escorted her to the hotel I’d rented for the both of us, close to Martin’s work. We dropped off our luggage and met at the hotel’s restaurant to discuss strategy.

  “I’ve set
up an appointment at Martin’s workplace. It’s in my name, so he doesn’t know it’s you he’s meeting.” Mrs. Reed looked nonplused. “Are you sure you want to go through with this?” I asked.

  “Yes, I’m here now. It’s good to have a chance to apologize. Even though I’m scared half out of my wits.”

  I chuckled. “Well, there isn’t much he’ll be able to do. Hopefully, meeting you at work will make it a bit less dramatic. That’s why I set it up this way.”

  She sighed again and patted my hand. “I’m so thankful for what you’ve done to make this possible. I can’t imagine how I’d have worked it all out on my own.”

  I smiled. “Don’t thank me yet. This is still set up to be a total disaster. I have every expectation it will blow up in our faces, but at least you’ll have me by your side if it does.”

  Mrs. Reed smiled again. “I ordered a bottle of Champagne as well as a bottle of Jack to be dropped off at my hotel room. Regardless of how this works out, I’m prepared for the evening.”

  “I have to admit, you are quite a character,” I told her, chuckling. “If you don’t mind me asking, I’m curious how all this went down between you two.”

  Mrs. Reed leaned back in the odd-shaped chair and let out one of the sighs I’d come to expect from her.

  “Well, I admit I didn’t really like Martin when I first met him. He’s attractive enough, but I always thought my boy would marry, well, someone different.”

  I cocked an eyebrow at her, which made her laugh. “I know, I was being petty. I think all parents get caught up in whether or not their kid’s companions are good enough for them, but when most parents keep their mouths shut, I didn’t. I remember how angry I got when Peter announced he and Martin were getting married. I should’ve been over the moon, but all I could think of was that he was marrying some low-life trailer trash, and I needed to stop it if I could. The more I thought about it, the angrier I got. In fact, I can say that was the angriest I’ve ever been. Christmas Eve was the climax as I hadn’t seen the two of them since they’d come over to announce their engagement. So, when Peter left the room, I laid into the boy.”