Misty Blue (6 page)

“Do you think he’ll want to do it?” Mia forced the words from her mouth, trying to give her brother one more chance. Her throat was so dry she didn’t know how any words could come out.

“Why shouldn’t he?” Keefe answered, wanting to ask her instead, W
hy do you want him?
Jerry wasn’t the one who’d raised her. He was. Sure, Jerry had given them a helping hand but if she was looking for a father, she should be looking at him, not Jerry.

Damien watched the look of pain cross Keefe’s face and knew that despite his denial and Mia’s, Keefe blamed him for Mia’s decision. Hell, he didn’t even have a clue who Jerry was. He almost laughed. Talk about bad timing… If only Mia had told him of her intention, at least they would have been on the same page.

But Mia appeared to be unaware of Keefe’s pain and Damien was left to bear the brunt of the hate-filled glances
. Not this time
, he thought. He was not getting in the middle between brother and sister. He’d had enough of being in the middle of family. He’d done it almost his entire life with his parents. He didn’t want to be in the middle of Mia’s relationship with her brother. Whatever she said, he would do. He just needed to make sure she was doing what she wanted.

“Mia, are you sure?” For a long moment only silence greeted him. Mia was staring at him, a puzzled look on her face, while Ashleigh appeared to be holding her breath. And Keefe…if possible, he was even angrier than before. Yet they all waited for Mia’s answer.

“I think I need a father for this.” Her glance took in her brother and she smiled. “Keefe doesn’t care. You don’t mind do you, Keefe?” Again she prayed,
Please Kee, tell me that you do mind, tell me you want to walk me down the aisle
.

“No, Mia, I don’t mind,” Keefe lied. “You’re an adult, it’s your wedding. Do whatever you want. You want to handle it alone, go ahead.”

“Good. Then that’s settled,” Mia answered around the lump in her throat.
For once their mother had been right. She’d given Keefe a choice and he’d chosen not to do it
.

Mia didn’t notice that her brother had stopped talking, nor did she notice that he was staring at her with a shocked expression on his face. She was too busy trying not to cry, too busy stuffing her emotions into her psyche for examination later.

If only he’d tried harder to talk her out of it. Mia bit her lip, holding back the tears that were threatening to come. Since Keefe had fallen in love with Ashleigh, things had slowly changed. It wasn’t that she wasn’t happy for her brother to have someone, she was. It also wasn’t because she wasn’t ready to learn to stand on her own. She just wasn’t ready to let go of her brother.

She glanced at Ashleigh, noticing Ashleigh’s total attention was focused on Keefe. She’d accused her brother months before when she was still engaged to James, of wanting her to get married so his obligations to her would be over. As her gaze moved from Ashleigh to Keefe, Mia now knew she’d been correct. Keefe was relieved not to have to worry about her. Despite all the nasty things she’d said, their mother had been right. A shudder touched her soul.

“Just a thought, and I’m asking only out of curiosity. What about money, Mia?” Keefe asked.

“Don’t worry about the money,” she answered. “I’m going to keep it simple.”

“You don’t have to.”

“I don’t need your money, Kee,” she said a bit more sharply than she’d intended. And she didn’t need his money. She needed to know that her brother wasn’t as happy as he seemed to be about getting rid of her. It wasn’t ever about his money, it was about him. But now, now that he had Ashleigh… Mia bit her lip as she tried to stop the thought, but it came anyway. Keefe didn’t need her. The offer of money was all that he had left to give her.

Mia’s began to rock back and forth so slowly that no one noticed but her.
Stop it
, she ordered herself angrily, tamping down the need to be alone.

“If you can do it without me, then I’ll stop asking.” Keefe’s voice was also sharp. What the hell was happening? How had a couple of days made that much difference in his sister’s feelings for him? So be it. Whatever the hell she wanted. If she wanted him to stay out of her life he didn’t care.
Like hell he didn’t care. It was tearing him apart.

A tense silence followed the brother and sister outbursts. Everyone shifted positions, moving their food around on their plates, doing anything to bring back normalcy.

“Not having to shop for a gown will save time,” Damien said, hoping that the change of topic would bring some needed relief.

“I don’t think so.” Mia glanced in Ashleigh’s direction. “I think I’ll get a new one.”

“A new wedding gown? You paid three thousand dollars for that gown and now you don’t want to wear it?” The words were out before Keefe had a chance to think about his new vow to himself to stay out of Mia’s wedding plans.

“Mia, have you suddenly come into money that I know nothing of? Where the hell are you going to get enough money to pay for a wedding and buy a new gown on your own?” Keefe was fuming. If she so much as hinted that she was going to charge it, he was going to paddle her behind. There was just so much staying out of her business that he was willing to put up with. And allowing her to throw away good money was not one of them.

Mia inclined her head toward Ashleigh and glared at her brother, not answering him.

“Oh, I almost forgot. Sorry,” Keefe answered, subdued.

“Mia, it’s your gown. You paid for it. If you want to wear it, I really don’t mind.”

Mia looked from Ashleigh to her brother, then turned her attention to Damien. “What do you think?” she asked.

“You did look beautiful in that gown, baby girl.”

He kissed her lightly and she smiled. “Thanks.”

That more than anything Mia had said during the course of the evening pissed Keefe off royally. Who the hell did Mia think Damien was? Oh yeah, he’d almost forgot—the man she was going to marry.

And to think he’d played a part in getting Mia back with Damien. Damn.
I should have left well enough alone
. The moment he thought it Keefe knew he was wrong. He’d done the right thing. Mia had been unhappy without Damien. She’d broken up with Damien because she was trying to protect Keefe under the mistaken idea that Damien was trying to use him, take him for money.

Keefe glanced at Damien, then at Mia. She was happy. That alone was worth him getting her back with Damien. Besides, Damien said he had nothing to do with Mia’s kicking him out of the wedding. If they were going to be family, he had to forget Damien’s past.

Just as he had to forget that Damien had been the man before him in Ashleigh’s life, that they’d lived together for two years and that Ashleigh had been planning to marry him. It would probably be better for all of them if Mia didn’t wear the gown Ashleigh had made for her own marriage to Damien.

Keefe felt the pressure of Ashleigh’s hand squeezing his thigh. He would have to forget all of that, just as Mia would. Ashleigh loved him now, just as Damien loved Mia.

Keefe wouldn’t deny that a couple of times when he’d made love to Ashleigh he’d had thoughts of her making love with Damien. But he’d quickly banished those thoughts. And when Ashleigh screamed out his name as she came, Keefe knew he was the one on her mind, not Damien.

He hated thinking about his sister’s private life but he hoped that when the time came, she would be able to put it out of her mind as he’d done. He hoped that the fact that Mia was still a virgin would help her.

Keefe drummed his fingers on the table, then took in a deep breath. He didn’t want to think any longer about that part of his sister’s life. That would be up to her to work out with the man she was going to marry. He glared once more at Damien. That was a problem for the two of them.

Right now, all Keefe was concerned about was finishing dinner and getting the hell out of there. He’d had enough of the new family bonding.

* * *

No sooner had they entered Mia’s apartment than Damien plopped down on the sofa, pulling Mia with him. “What the hell was that all about? Why didn’t you tell me that you were going to hit your brother with news like that?”

“What?”

“Come on, Mia, you know what I’m talking about. You know Keefe thought he was going to give you away.”

“He doesn’t want to.”

“He does. You didn’t see the look on his face. And you know what else? He still thinks it’s my fault. He was just barely tolerating me, and that little stunt you pulled voided all of that. Tell the truth. Don’t you want Keefe to give you away?”

“Of course I do.

“Then why did you tell him you were asking someone else?”

“Because he told me that he wanted me to stop depending on him so much. He’s right. I figured now is as good a time as any. I want to do this myself without having my brother come in to save the day.” She shrugged her shoulders. “Besides, you heard him say he didn’t care.”

“Are you sure that’s what your brother meant?”

“Are you calling me crazy?”

“No, but I am asking if you’re jumping to conclusions.” He lifted her chin and looked into her eyes. “I love you, baby girl, and I don’t want to hurt you, but you do have a tendency to jump to conclusions.”

Mia attempted to pull away but he held fast to her, not letting her leave his arms. “I’m not trying to piss you off, baby, but come on. We both know how your brother feels about you. Hell, he’s threatened me enough times. I’m just saying I think you’re making a mistake.”

“You think you know my brother better than I do?”

“No. But I saw his face. You were looking down.”

“I asked him if he minded and he said no. He even gave me Jerry’s number.”

“That’s not quite the way it happened, Mia. You asked him for it. What choice did he have?”

“He could have not given it to me. He could have said no, so it’s the same as his not caring.”

“No, it’s not. Think about it. Keefe has always been willing to do anything in the world to make you happy, even if it kills him, and I don’t think he’s changed that much in a couple of days.”

“But he has Ashleigh now.”

“I don’t think that makes a difference, Mia.”

“I wanted him to tell me no, that he wouldn’t allow it, but he didn’t object. If he’d really wanted to do it, he would have said something, but he didn’t. He said nothing. He doesn’t care. He wants me to learn to be independent, to get along without him, and that’s what I’m trying to do.”

“Mia, I think you’re wrong but if you’re sure, I’ll shut up. Now, let’s talk about the wedding. I’ll help with all the expenses. I’ll even buy you a new gown if you want it, but not for three thousand dollars.”

“No, like I told Keefe, this is my wedding and I’ll pay for it.”

“Your wedding?” Damien moved away so he could get a good look at Mia. “This is not ‘
your wedding.
’ It’s
our
wedding! And we will pay for it together.”

“But…”

“No buts. I’m not your brother and I’m damn sure not your father, but I am going to be your husband. We’re going to be a team so you might as well get used to that right now.”

Mia looked at Damien, thinking,
Why didn’t Keefe put up more of a fight, like Damien.
She knew she was being childish. She’d had no business testing her brother in the first place but as long as she could remember, when Keefe had really wanted her to do something he found a way. He’d given up way too easily.

“Mia.”

“Yes.”

“Are you listening to me?”

“Yes.”

“And?”

“Okay, we’ll do it together.”

“Good. Now I want to hear more about this Jerry. Are you close with him? I mean, do you really think of him as a father?”

“No.”

“Then why on earth…”

“Because he’s the only person I could think of that Keefe would believe I was even seriously considering. Anyone else and he would have seen through it.”

“Why won’t he see through Jerry?”

“Jerry helped us. Our mother took off and we were sent to foster care.” Mia’s voice lowered. “It wasn’t the first time she’d taken off, just the first time she didn’t come back. We, well, I called around to our relatives, searching for her. Keefe warned me not to, told me what would happen if I did. I did it anyway. One of my cousins called social services and they found out we were alone. Keefe was taking good care of me, like always, but they said he couldn’t. They put us in separate homes.”

Mia closed her eyes, shivering at the unpleasant memory. “I couldn’t believe it when they came to take us. I was screaming and hollering, kicking everyone in sight. I couldn’t believe it. It was all my fault and poor Keefe…”

Mia’s voice broke and she sobbed. “He was fighting with them, trying to stop them from taking me. But it was no use. They took me anyway. The last thing I heard was him promising to come and get me.”

“How long were you in foster care?” Damien asked.

“We were separated for a couple of months. But it seemed like forever. They wouldn’t tell me where my brother was, wouldn’t let me see him. I almost went crazy. They put me in the hospital because I refused to eat until they let me see my brother. When he came, I begged him not to let them take me away again. I promised him I would be good, that I would listen if he saved me.”