***
Luke called Max first and told him to bring Nick to the hospital. He put off calling the more difficult of his brothers until he and Cassie were just about to walk out of her hotel room.
“Gio, the hospital called. Mother is conscious and coherent. I’m heading over there now. Max and Nick are on their way.”
Gio made a sound deep in his throat. “I wish you’d give us time to talk to her first. Alone.”
“She doesn’t have much time, Gio. She’s awake, but she’s not pulling through as I’d hoped. This could be the last time they see her.”
“Shit. You did the right thing then.”
Luke met Cassie’s eyes and took her hand in his. Right. Wrong. No, this was neither. There was only one right thing in his life, and he was taking her with him to the hospital. “Cassie is coming with me.”
“You’re taking a big risk, Luke. I wouldn’t bring her.”
“She’s coming, Gio.”
Gio swore. “Tell me she doesn’t know.”
“I trust her.”
“You barely know her,” Gio thundered. Cassie winced as Gio’s voice reached her.
Luke gave Cassie’s hand a firm squeeze and held her gaze. “I trust her more than most people I’ve known my whole life. She’s part of my life, and she deserved the truth. Did you tell Julia?”
“Yes,” Gio said quietly. “Julia doesn’t want to be protected from the truth, and I respect that.”
“Then understand it’s the same with Cassie.”
Gio sighed. “I hope you didn’t just make a monumental mistake.”
“I didn’t,” Luke said firmly. “I’ll see you at the hospital.”
As he and Cassie rode alone in the elevator, Cassie said, “If my presence will upset your family, I’m okay with not going.”
Luke fell in love with her a little bit more just then. “Gio always sounds that way. You’ll get used to it. He’s worried, and he’s used to being in charge. There isn’t much about this that’s in his control, and that’s not easy for him.”
“Are you close?”
“I spent my life trying to be. I don’t know if it’s important anymore. When my mother passes, we may all end up simply going our separate ways.” Luke surprised himself with how jaded he’d become. Yes, his brothers seemed to have reconciled, but they’d been in that place a hundred times before only to fall apart again. It was difficult to imagine their fragile bond would withstand the stress that losing a parent put on any family.
Cassie clung to his hand, but she didn’t debate his last comment to her. He had a feeling she would support his decision either way. He’d never had that type of love in his life before, and he wanted it there beside him today. Cassie’s support was his beacon of light in the dark, bottomless hole he found himself in.
When they arrived at the hospital, Luke introduced Cassie to the three women gathered in the private waiting room beside his mother’s room. Gio’s fiancée, Julia, hugged him tightly then hugged Cassie just as awkwardly and long. Luke had known Nick’s fiancée, Rena, for most of his life. He was glad to see her there to support his brother. Tara, Max’s fiancée, was a newcomer to the group and tentatively hugged Luke, expressing her hope that Patrice would recover.
Before walking out of the room, Luke took Cassie aside. “I don’t know how long I’ll be in there.”
Cassie gave him a supportive smile. “I’ll be fine.”
He opened his mouth to say something else, but Cassie covered his lips with her hand.
“Don’t worry about me, Luke. Go be with your brothers. I’ll be here when you’re done.”
Luke kissed her warmly, tenderly, absorbing as much of her goodness as he could before turning away. He spoke briefly to the attending doctor about his mother’s condition then read over her latest stats. It didn’t look good. Her body was shutting down. He considered calling for a morphine drip, but she was alert, communicative, and didn’t appear to be in pain. He would have called it a miracle, but there was nothing holy or likely good about giving his mother one last chance to speak.
Luke’s brothers were already gathered around her bed. Luke headed that way, but Nick met him halfway, shaking his head in disgust. “She doesn’t care that any of us are here. She wants to speak to Uncle Victor. Should we call him?”
Chapter Seventeen
“It’s nice to finally meet you,” Julia, Gio’s fiancée, said as she took a seat in the waiting room beside Cassie. “Gio told me Luke had met someone.” She quickly reintroduced the other two women in the room.
Cassie clasped her hands on her lap. “I know it’s not good timing, but I’m glad to finally meet all of you. Luke doesn’t talk much about his family.”
“Really?” Rena asked, her voice rising slightly. “That’s surprising. He has called each one of them every few days for as long as I’ve known them, and that’s a long time. Nick didn’t know what to do when he didn’t hear from him for two weeks.”
Julia added, “I consider Luke the glue of his family. Gio was just as lost when he didn’t hear from him. It’s funny how easy it is to take someone for granted. When Gio said Luke didn’t want to come back, I was getting ready to fly out there and beg him to. These Andrade men don’t know how to express it well, but they love each other.”
Tara nodded in understanding. “Max was exactly the same. He doesn’t like to talk about his childhood, but we’ve been fixing up the houses on Slater Island for all of you. He knows you’ll want to decorate them to your own taste, but he is happy when he’s there working with contractors on those homes. It’s like they are tangible evidence of his bond with his brothers.”
Cassie didn’t know what they were talking about. “What houses?”
Tara looked at the other three women as if confirming that it was okay to share, then said, “Max bought five homes on Slater Island off the Rhode Island shore. It’s kind of a long story, but his uncles had an island back in Italy that was supposed to be passed down to Gio.”
Rena leaned toward Cassie. “Then Patrice stepped in.”
Julia pursed her lips sadly. “She does like to make her sons suffer, doesn’t she? She lied to them about the island. Told her sons the uncles were denying them their inheritance because they didn’t consider them worthy of it.”
Rena nodded. “Then their uncles sold the island to Dominic Corisi.”
Julia blinked a few times as if remembering an event. “Gio was angry, but things became bad between him and his mother when he found out the role his mother had played in losing the island.”
Cassie looked from woman to woman. “So, Max bought homes on another island to replace what they’d lost?”
Julia tapped a finger on the armrest of her chair. “Yes and no. Gio owns half of the Italian island now. His cousin, Stephan, owns the other half. I think Max wanted to recreate some of that. What do you think, Tara?”
Feeling overwhelmed, Cassie let out a breathy chuckle. “I am so lost right now. Fascinated, but lost. Why five homes? One for their mother?”
Rena gave Cassie a pat on the arm. “Hell, no. The fifth house is for Gigi.”
“Gigi?” Cassie echoed.
Tara’s eyes rounded. “Should we be telling her all this?”
Rena nodded. “She’s here, so I say yes. Luke doesn’t bring women around to meet the family. Ever.”
Julia rolled her eyes in agreement. “And getting information out of an Andrade is like pulling teeth.”
It was impossible not to want to hear the rest of the story. Cassie prodded, “So, who is Gigi?”
Tara raised a hand at Rena. “I know you’ve known them longer, but let me try to explain it. You chime in if I’m wrong anywhere.”
Rena shrugged and waved to give her permission to continue.
Tara tapped each of her fingers as she spoke as if checking off points. “Their father, George Andrade, never divorced Patrice, but he wasn’t happy. He had a secret second family in Venice. Gigi is the daughter of that relations
hip and therefore their half-sister.” Tara smiled proudly. “Right?”
Rena nodded. “That sums it up.”
“And Max bought her a house. That is so beautiful.”
Tara raised and dropped a shoulder sadly. “It would be, if she knew about it. They keep trying to contact her, but she won’t speak to any of them. They didn’t know she existed until recently, although she knew about them. Apparently she’d been told not to contact them while Patrice was alive.”
Cassie grimaced. “That’s horrible.”
Rena made a face. “That’s Patrice.”
Cassie sat back in her chair and added what she’d just heard to what she knew about Luke and his brothers. “So, the houses on Slater Island represent a second chance for them to be a family.” Her eyes misted up. “That is so sad and so beautiful.”
Julia leaned over and hugged Cassie. “I know this is premature, but I love you already.”
Chapter Eighteen
Victor Andrade walked into Patrice Stanfield’s hospital room with his shoulders high and a determined set to his jaw. He was in his early sixties, but he still had a powerful presence. His features softened when he saw the tubes and machines attached to his sister-in-law. “I’m here, Patrice.”
“Leave us,” Patrice said to her sons in a weak voice.
Gio was the first to respond. “Whatever you have to say to Victor, you will say in front of us.”
Luke took his place beside Gio, lending him unspoken support. Nick and Max joined him.
Victor stepped closer to the bed. “Patrice, do you want me to call a priest? Whatever you have to say might be better said to God.”
Patrice’s eyes narrowed. She spoke softly, but there was steel in her voice. “God didn’t sleep with me then toss me aside like I was a common whore. You did.”
Victor’s face whitened. “That was a long time ago, Patrice. We were young. Things happened, but I thought you understood we were never more than friends.”
“I loved you,” Patrice spat. “But you ripped my heart to shreds and fed it back to me each time I saw you with that Italian slut.”
Victor was quiet in the aftermath of her announcement.
Luke, appalled, looked over at Gio. His cheeks were flushed with anger, but that was the only sign he was also shocked by the announcement. Nick on the other hand was barely concealing his revulsion, and Max was looking like he was ready to walk out of the room. None of them moved, however.
Finally, Victor said, “I didn’t know, Patrice. When we spoke about it afterward, I thought you understood. Then I met Elise, and you said you were happy for me.”
“Happy? How could I be? She stole the only thing that ever mattered to me.”
Victor frowned. “I was never yours, Patrice.”
An ugly expression spread across Patrice’s face. “I hate you for that. I married George because I wanted you to feel as badly as I did. But you didn’t care.”
“George loved you,” Victor said firmly.
“George was a fool. He knew how I felt about you, and he married me anyway.”
The monitor on the wall revealed the toll Patrice’s anger was taking on her. Victor looked at the monitor then said, “Try to stay calm. I don’t know why you want me here, Patrice. Say what you want about my brother, but he was a good man. Not a perfect one, but a good one. He loved his family very much.”
“He proved his love every time he flew off to his Venetian mistress.”
Victor shook his head sadly. “He would have given her up for you, Patrice. You know that.”
“I didn’t want him,” Patrice snarled. She looked behind Victor at her sons. “I should never have had children with him. I see you and what you did to me every time I look at them. Gio has your judging eyes. Nick has your Andrade charm. Luke has his father’s heart, and it sickens me to watch him grovel for my approval. And Max. He looks just like you, Victor. He should have been ours, but he isn’t. And he walks away from me just as easily as you always have.”
Luke let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding in. Part of him wanted to walk away and pretend he’d never heard any of this. However, part of him knew he needed to hear the rest.
Victor was reeling beneath the depth of Patrice’s bitterness. He was visibly shaken.
Gio said quietly, “Is that why you made sure Victor lost his company? Because he didn’t choose you?”
Victor looked back at Gio. “What are you saying?”
Gio’s hands fisted at his sides. “Tell him, Mother. Tell him how you bribed everyone with Cogent’s money. To do what? Block enough of his business deals to sink his company? That’s what you did, isn’t it?”
Patrice brought a shaky hand to her face. “You wouldn’t stay away from my family, Victor. When George died, you tried to take the only thing I had left—my sons. I wanted them to hate you the way I do.”
Victor’s shoulders shook with emotion and his voice was unsteady as he said, “You hated me that much?”
“Yes,” Patrice said. “And I’m glad you know. I beat you, Victor. I wanted to see your face when I told you. Maybe you didn’t love me, but in the end, I won.”
Tears began to run down Victor’s face. He looked down at Patrice then back at his nephews without wiping them away. “You didn’t win, Patrice. No one in this room did. I’m sorry I didn’t love you. I’m sorry I slept with you that night. I didn’t do it to hurt you. Our families were close. I cared about you. I had no idea you felt this way. I don’t know what I would have done differently if I had known how you felt. It wouldn’t have changed anything with Elise. But, maybe I could have said something that would have stopped you from going so far.”
“You still would have lost your company, Victor. I only helped you along.”
“You think I’m talking about a company?” Victor’s voice rose with rage. “Look at your sons, Patrice. Look at them. Four healthy, successful men. You should be proud. They love you, although you have done nothing to deserve it. My brother loved you, and you shame his memory. I pray for your soul, Patrice. I pray for your sons, that they realize they deserved better than you gave them.”
“Get out,” Patrice said, bringing a shaking hand to her chest. “Go home to your wife and try to live with what you’ve done to me.”
Victor stepped away from her bed. “What you have done, Patrice. You brought this on yourself.”
He wiped the tears from his cheeks and met the eyes of each of his nephews. He said nothing, but there was nothing he could say. He walked out of the room, and Patrice let out an angry, vile cry.
Alarms on the monitors began to go off. An emergency team rushed in. Luke knew they wouldn’t win. His mother’s obsession had just walked out the door, and her fury with him was more than her heart could handle—literally.
The team asked Luke and his brothers to step out of the room so they could work on her. Together, they walked into the waiting room. Gio opened his arms and Julia ran into them. Nick went to hug Rena. Max walked over and pulled Tara into his arms.
Luke met Cassie’s eyes, but didn’t walk toward her. He felt raw and exposed. He knew his mother was likely taking her last breaths in the other room, and he didn’t have the slightest desire to help the team save her. Although he knew Cassie would say she understood, he couldn’t go to her as he was.
He was filled with anger the likes of which he’d never experienced before. Everything his mother had said, everything she’d done, shook Luke. Had she always hated looking at her sons, or had there been a time, at least when they were little, when she’d felt something for them?
He’d told Cassie he loved her, but in that moment he doubted he was qualified to know what love was. Cassie stood and took a step toward him.
Luke turned and walked out of the waiting room.
He knew what he had to do.
***
Cassie didn’t move from her spot in the middle of the room. At first she told herself he would be right back. He probably had to speak to
a fellow doctor, or he was returning to his mother’s side. That wasn’t the look she’d seen on his face, though.
In her heart, she knew he was gone.
The chatter of talk around her filtered through her shock, giving her the reason he might bolt. His mother had had a myocardial infarction and wasn’t reviving. This is not about me. This is not about my fear of being abandoned again. Luke trusted me enough to bring me here. If he needs to be alone to deal with his mother’s death, I can’t judge him for that.
A tall, dark-haired man came to stand beside Cassie. He spoke with a heavy French accent. “You must be Cassie. I’m Maddy’s husband, Richard.”
Cassie spared him a quick glance. “That’s me,” she said, before looking back at the door.
“He’ll be back. Luke is one of the finest men I have met. And the most loyal.”
Cassie believed him, but it didn’t make Luke’s departure easier to endure. An old panic was nipping at her heels, begging to take over her mood. She was fighting it, but was winning only with sheer determination not to succumb to it. “I know.”
Richard put a comforting hand on Cassie’s shoulder. “Sometimes when a man loves a woman, he tries to protect her from his inner demons. Especially on a day when they are raging, you understand?”
Cassie met the kind eyes of the Frenchman. “I think so.”
Pressing his lips together in a sad line, Richard continued, “It is often best to let him. Luke is no coward. His uncle left with tears in his eyes. I don’t believe they were from mourning. Whatever Patrice said to him, it was ugly. And if Luke heard her, then it’s my guess that is what he is running from.”
Cassie turned to face Richard. “What would she have said? And how do you know?”
Richard made a pained face. “Patrice has been an unhappy woman for a very long time. I don’t want to imagine what she would use her last breaths to say.”
Maddy burst into the waiting room and sought the arms of her husband. Tears were running down her face. “She’s gone, Richard. I know Uncle Victor wanted to talk to her first, but I should have gone in with him. I should have made him let me. I didn’t get to say goodbye.”