Wrong to Love You (Strong Brothers 3)

I nodded. “She says she is.”

“And then you have to decide if you want what you wanted when you pretended to break your leg.” Gran stood. “Your dream is within reach, Carter. Are you going to reach for it?”

“What if she lies to me again?”

Gran studied me. “What if she doesn’t? What if she meets someone else and builds your dream with him?”

Rage bloomed in my chest at that idea.

My expression must have revealed my feelings as Gran smirked at me. “I thought so.”

32

Jess

It was surreal to wake up in the twin bed in Tanner's room at Carter's house. On the one hand there was a time that I longed to be in this house with Carter and Tanner. What I hadn't anticipated was that I'd be a guest. That Tanner would be a part of Carter's family, but not me.

Of course, it was my own fault. So, I had to be grateful that Carter was being civil, and willing for us to work together to provide what was best for Tanner.

I lay in the twin bed long after Tanner had fallen asleep wondering if there would be a possibility of my changing Carter's mind about me. We had at least another fifteen years of co-parenting together, and maybe in that time I'd be able to prove to him that my love for him was real. And maybe then he'd forgive me. Maybe the dream wasn't completely dead.

The next morning, I got Tanner up and dressed, and was able to find cereal in Carter's kitchen. Carter came down a few minutes after I put the cereal in front of Tanner, and with a good morning kiss to his son, he asked me if I wanted coffee. It wasn't a good morning kiss, but the morning was never complete without coffee anyway.

After breakfast, I helped to get Tanner into Carter's vehicle, and gave him a kiss, reminding him to be on his best behavior while he was at his daddy's work. Tanner was his usual exuberant self, chatting away.

Once they left, I got my car and drove home, showering and then getting ready for my day. When I worked with Alex Strong, he had asked for intensive therapy. He’d wanted me to live-in but with Tanner that wasn’t possible. But I had worked with him exclusively, so he’d been my only client. Now that my work with him was done, except for an occasional visit, I was ready to take on more clients.

The physical therapy clinic that I worked for had assigned me Mr. Schmidt and I hoped that they would assign me more clients shortly. In the meantime, I would go out and check on Alex, although the thought of seeing him after everything that happened, made me nervous. Alex was a good and kind man, but he was also loyal to his sons.

I used the drive to practice my calming breath, but the closer I got to Alex's home, the more nervous I got. I parked the car in his driveway and walked up to the front door, giving it a knock.

The housekeeper opened and smiled, letting me in and telling me that Alex was already out on the terrace. Her demeanor suggested that perhaps she didn't know about all the drama between me and Carter.

I made my way across the living room and out the doors to the terrace where Alex was sitting and drinking a cup of coffee as he read his paper.

He turned when he saw me. "Jess, you're right on time."

I took it as a good sign that he seemed jovial. My intentions had been to play it cool, and follow his lead, but all of a sudden, my guilt and shame overcame that plan. I rushed over to him sitting down beside him at the table and reaching out to cover his hand with mine. "I'm so sorry, Alex."

He arched a brow. "I hope you're talking in reference to Carter, and not that there's something wrong with my recovery."

Damn. Why was I getting this so wrong? "Yes, I'm talking about Carter. And you." I looked down as my shame swamped me. "Once I knew that Carter was your son, I of course knew that Tanner was your grandson."

I expected him to pull his hand away, and perhaps scold me for being so selfish.

Instead, he put his other hand over mine. "Am I unhappy that you've broken my son's heart and kept me from my grandson? I'd be a liar to say no. But I feel like I know you well enough, Jess, to know that you didn't set out to hurt any of us."

I lifted my gaze to his, his face blurred because my eyes were filling with tears. "My reasonings made so much sense at the time, but now looking back, I don't know who that person was. You're a wonderful man and so is Carter, and Tanner is so lucky to have you two in his lives. He told me all about playing in the sand with you."

"Tanner is a wonderful little boy. You've done a good job with him as a single mom, Jess, but you're not alone anymore. Tanner is a Strong, and so he has a family beyond you now."

Part of me inside was cold because I wasn't included in that. I started to pull my hand away, but Alex held onto it. "And by extension, you’re family too."

I shook my head. "I feel like I forfeited that right."

He patted my hand and then drew his hands away, reaching for the coffee carafe and pouring coffee into an extra cup on the table as if he'd been expecting me. Of course, he had because we had an appointment, but we'd never started our sessions with breakfast.

"I have to be honest, Jess, that I'm not sure why you would turn down a man like Carter. He believes that you were intending to keep Tanner from him, and that's why you kept