Unbroken Hart (The Hart Family) (7 page)

Delilah grabbed Todd's arm, pulling him further into the room as Dominique did the same for Flynn.  Then they proceeded to introduce them to each one of us.  I knew that it was overwhelming to be meeting so many new people under the circumstances, so I did my best to engage them
both and make them feel comfortable.

"Please, make yourself at home.  Would either of you care for anything to drink?"

Both agreed that they'd like sodas, and I made my way to the kitchen to get drinks for everybody.  I stood at the counter for an extra minute as I swiped tears away.  I was so happy for my sisters-in-law that they had a chance to have a good relationship with their father.  I wished that was possible for my husband, that somehow it could turn out that Mike Hart wasn't his father. I wished that he could know the love of a parent, and it broke my heart that he never would.  My husband deserved so much better than the hand he was dealt.

By the time I got back to the living room, most of the anxiety that had been in place before the Rand's had shown up had dissipated.  In its place was curiosity.  Todd had a million questions for the girls, wanting to know their interests, likes and dislikes.  I could see that the lost time was upsetting him, and I hoped that over time it would hurt him less.

He asked Dante, Damien and Spencer a lot of questions about what the girls were like when they were infants and toddlers, and I silently gave him thanks for understanding how important it was to engage with them and give them their due as the primary caregivers from the time the girls had been born until Aunt Sandra came into the picture when they were ten.

Ever the proud father figure, Dante produced a
baby book that he, Damien and Spencer had made for the girls.  Everyone in the family but Brooke and I had seen it before, so they didn't have as much trouble with it as I did.  I struggled to hold in my emotion, and I could see that Brooke struggled too. 

They'd taken one of those marble composition books and made a baby book of their own.  They'd put in pictures of the girls, listed their likes and dislikes, noted all of their firsts, put in little clippings of their hair and even the first tooth that each of them had lost was in there.  My husband was seven years old when his sisters were born, and Damien and Spencer had only been four.  How they'd managed to pull something so amazing off made me crazy emotional.  Looking at Todd and Flynn, I could see
that they were stunned.

After they'd finished looking at the baby book, Dante pulled out a few photo albums for
Todd to look at.  There were two small photo albums covering birth to age ten, and then there was a photo explosion from when Sandra had taken over.  Todd laughed and cried as he looked at the pictures, and Flynn kept his arm slung around his father's shoulders for support.

Hours went by as we all shared stories and got to know each other.  Todd was lovely, a totally upstanding man who fit right in.  Flynn was an absolute doll as well, absolutely no hint of any
celebrity ego bullshit.  By the time they were leaving, I could see that Dante and the rest of the guys felt much better about the whole thing.

Todd hugged the girls forever,
and he had a hard time letting them go.  They'd agreed to go to lunch with him and Flynn the following day, and we all felt very good about that.  I could feel Dante's tension easing as he realized that the girls weren't going to be hurt.

When he'd finished hugging the twins, he crossed the room to talk to Dante, Damien and Spencer.  "I just want you three to know how awe-inspiring you are.  What you did for those girls blows my mind.  They were so damn lucky to have you that I can't even put it into words. I can never thank you enough just for being there.  You've done an amazing job.
  You raised two of the most amazing people I've ever met.  I can't wait to get to know them.  I promise you, I mean to be a positive part of their lives.  I won't hurt my daughters."

They all thanked him for the compliment, and Dante
responded for all three of them.  "We love those girls, and it was us that were lucky to have them.  We're very happy for them that they have the opportunity to expand their family.  We're all hoping to see a lot more of you and Flynn.  Our homes are open to you, any time."

Today was the day that Damien, Spencer and I would all be meeting our shared brother, Dillon.  We were all keyed up and nervous as hell gathered in my office waiting for him to arrive.  We’d chosen to do it there because my seating area was the most comfortable place in the building for us to have the conversation that was to come.

Sabrina had insisted on coming into work
for the meeting. Brooke, Dominique and Delilah had forced their way in, too.  The four of them were together in the outer office so that they could be there to support us after the meeting was over.  I loved that my wife wouldn't leave me to deal with this alone.  Every day in some way large or small, I am reminded of what I really got when she chose me.

The
three of us were beyond anxious.  What if Dillon didn't react well?  There was a better than good chance that he'd resent our telling him where he'd come from, but in the end, we felt it was a choice that had to be made.

We all jumped when the intercom on my office phone rang.  I noticed that my hand was a little shaky when I picked it up.  "Is he here?"

"Hi baby.  Yes, he's here.  I'm sending him right in. I love you."

Even though I was jumpy,
her declaration made my heart skip a beat.  I was no prize, but somehow, I'd gotten the most amazing girl in the world to join her life with mine. "I love you too baby.  So damn much."

When he stepped into the office, I could see the
similarities to the three of us right away.  I wondered if he could see them too.  He was a perfect combination of all of our features.  His hair color made the resemblance to Spencer the most obvious. His facial features reminded me a lot of Damien, while he and I shared a jaw line and a body type.  It was overwhelming to see parts of the three of us staring back at me.  If I'd have seen him in the street, with absolutely no knowledge of his existence, I'd have stopped short and wondered what seemed familiar about him.

As we'd previously agreed, Spencer stepped forward to speak first.  It made the most sense, since he was the one that had made the appointment with Dillon.

"Dillon, I'm Spencer Cross.  I'd like you to meet the Hart brothers.  This is Dante, and this is Damien."

The three of us took turns shaking hands with him, a totally surreal experience.  Cocking his head, he considered the three of us silently, but it was me that he looked at the most
.  I wondered if subconsciously he felt or suspected something.

Gesturing to the seating area in the overlook of my office, Spencer indicated that we should all head on over.  My heart was beating double time, and I could tell that Damien and Spencer were in the same mindset.

Once we'd all taken seats, I took over.  I'd asked to be the one to tell him, because at one time, we had shared a life together.  Even if it wasn't anything we both could really remember; it was still something.

"Dillon, Spencer had previously arranged this meeting with you to discuss business m
atters.  In what I can only describe as one of the most amazing pieces of synchronicity that I've ever experienced, we've learned something in the last few days that made this appointment necessary for a completely different reason.  I could stand here all day building up to the real reason we're all here today, but I think it would be fucked up to do that.  To put it bluntly, this week we found out that the three of us share a brother, and it's you."

The room was bathed in silence as we all waited with baited breath for his response.  He took the three of us in one by one, staring at us as though he were trying to decide if it could be true.  Finally, he looked right at me.

"Is that why you look familiar to me?"

So he had sensed it.  Nodding my head in the affirmative, I spoke again.  "Yes.  You and I were raised together for the first year of our lives.  You, Damien and I share a father, while you and Spencer share a mother.  The same applies to Leah.  To be perfectly blunt with you, our parents were fucked up losers.  Our father is dead, has been for just over twelve years.  Your birth mother is alive, but she's about the farthest thing from maternal that you can possibly imagine.  In fact, we only found out about all of this now because she's trying to blackmail us.  She's known where you and Leah were the entire time."

It took almost an hour to explain the ins and outs of the details to him, letting him know everything we'd found out this week about the newest additions to our family.  He took it all in, but stayed mostly silent, other than asking questions for clarification from time to time.  I didn't detect much emotion from him until we'd finished talking and I handed him the pictures of the two of us. For the first time, there was crack in his façade.  I saw him struggle to control his emotions, but eventually he got himself under control.

Looking up at the three of us he asked, "What do you expect out of this?  I need to know what your intentions are before I draw my sister into any of this."

I nodded my head, because I understood that completely.  "We want to have relationships with both of you.  Fuck the blackmail, because we don't give a rat's ass about that.  We aren't paying or playing with Marceline.  But you're just as much a part of this family as we are, and so is Leah.  The entire family is ready to welcome you with open arms, but that has to be your decision.  I know we can't pressure you, and we are prepared to do whatever it is that you want to do.  Speaking for the three of us, I can tell you without reservation that we want you to become part of our lives.  Our intentions are good Dillon."

Running his hands through his hair, he shook his head as he blew out a deep breath.  "I can respect that, but it is a lot to take in.  I need to think it all through, need to decide how to tell Leah about this.  I need some time."

We all assured him that we understood, but in reality, I desperately needed him to at least try.  I knew that he was why I'd always felt that I was missing a piece of myself, and I wanted to know my brother.

He shook all of our hands before starting to walk out.  I led him from the office, stopping just outside the door to address him where no one could hear me.  "I remembered you Dillon.  I always remembered you, even though I didn't really know what I was remembering.  It would really mean a lot to me if you could find a way to try."

Staring at me, he nodded his head.  "I remembered you, too.  Just the way you describe it, like I didn't know what I was remembering. Often times it was more just a feeling. I'll try Dante, but you need to give me space.  I don't do well when I'm boxed in.  I've got a back story too.  I can see that we all do.  There are issues that need to be addressed.  My primary concern will always be my sister. Give me room to think this out."

God knew that
I could understand all of that, especially his devotion to Leah.  If I were in his shoes, my concern would have been for my sisters.  Continuing with him into Sabrina's domain, I stopped to introduce him to the girls. 

"This is my wife Sabrina and her sister Brooke.  Brooke is engaged to Damien.  And this beautiful girl here is my sister Delilah.  She's engaged to Spencer. Her twin sister, Dominique, was here when you came in, but I see she's wandered off somewhere.  I hope to introduce her to you sometime."

I floundered for a minute, wondering how to say goodbye.  Right then, Sabrina stepped beside me and wrapped her arm around my waist before handing a piece of paper to Dillon.

"This is Dante, Damien and Spencer's contact information.  All of their cell phones, home phones and email addresses are there.  We're all hoping to see a lot more of you, and
Leah as well.  We do family dinners at our home most Sunday's, and you've both got open invitations."

My wife was a force to be reckoned with, and I beamed down at her with pride.  When I looked back at Dillon, he was smiling.  The first really genuine smile I'd seen since he arrived.

"I can see why Dante married you.  You suit each other perfectly."

We all laughed at that, and it was a good note for Dillon to leave on.  Bidding us all goodbye, he left the office.

The four of us wandered into my office to discuss what had happened during the meeting with Damien and Spencer.  Brooke immediately went and curled up in Damien's lap, whispering in his ear, while Delilah curled up in her nook in Spencer's arms.  After Sabrina took her spot in my lap I asked where Dominique had gone. 

Delilah frowned at that as she shook her head.  "I don't know, but something is going on with her.  She's been really sketch for the last few days."

Before anything else could be said, Dominique came into the office looking flustered.  "Sorry, had to run to my office to check my email.  I ran into Dillon in the hallway and introduced myself.  He looked overwhelmed."

That quickly, my anxiety about Dillon became my anxiety about Dominique.  Delilah was right, she was upset about something.

"Dominique, what's wrong sweetheart?"

Frowning at me, she shook her head.  "Please, don't start worrying about me.  Right now I'm concerned about you.  Let's focus on that."