One More Day (The Alexanders 1)

“We’re all fine. Mara and Matt came to the hospital afterward but you were in surgery so we told them to come back.”

Ridley sighed. “You’re really going to make me ask how he’s doing?”

Elliott looked down at his hands but didn’t say anything else. “I don’t know,” he said finally.

“Eli—”

“Honestly,” he added. “I haven’t heard from him since. None of us have. He won’t talk to us.”

They sat quietly for a few minutes. Raina shifted in her chair, picked up a magazine, and held it up in front of her face.

“There’s no point pretending you can’t hear us, Raina. It doesn’t matter.”

Eli tried unsuccessfully to hide his smile. “Oh, before I leave, I have a present for you.” He reached in his jacket again and pulled out another photograph. He held it out to her. She leaned forward and then did a double take.

“Hey! That’s him. That’s the guy that was following me at the mall!”

Raina got up and leaned over so she could see the picture. “Are you sure? Who is this?” she asked Elliott.

“That is William Rainier-Ridley. Your father.”

Ridley gaped at him. “What?”

“It appears David wasn’t lying when he said he found your father. Unfortunately, David pretended to be you and blackmailed the guy out of about a hundred thousand before he went underground. That’s why he was following you. He was trying to figure out why his own daughter was blackmailing him.”

“This is too much.” Ridley lay back against the pillows and sighed.

“I know, and you don’t have to do anything with this information if you don’t want to. I just wanted you to have the choice. There’s been enough secrets lately.”

Elliott stood and then tapped her on the nose. “By the way, if my idiot brother hasn’t told you, he loves you, Ridley. Now, get better so you can kick his ass personally.”

* * *

Jackson had never known how empty a house could seem despite being occupied by three people. The one thing he wanted to do was off limits—visit Ridley to see how she was doing. According to Eli, she’d been released from the hospital a week ago.

He’d called probably hundreds of times and she’d ignored every one. He was already in stalker territory. He had to keep his dignity if nothing else.

The house below seemed unnaturally quiet. The boys were starting to adjust to Ridley’s absence. He could hear it in the rare peal of laughter or the sound of commotion coming from the playroom. They were trying to be on their best behavior, having sensed that Ridley’s “vacation” was especially trying for Jackson. He tried to put on a nonchalant face but as perceptive as they were, they could probably see right through it.

Pushing back from his desk, he decided to call it quits for the day. He hadn’t gotten any work done anyway, so he might as well go down and spend some quality time with the boys. Since Ridley had come, he had seen a lot of positive changes in both boys, but especially Jase. Normally quiet and introspective, Jase had said more in the last two weeks than he had in the previous two months. But ever since Ridley had left, Jase had barely said two words to him.

The sound of the doorbell stopped him in his tracks. He turned around and peered through the peephole. Shocked by what he saw, he immediately pulled the door open.

“What the… Eli? I thought you’d gone home?” The two brothers clasped hands and slapped each other on the back.

“I heard from a little birdie that you might need some comfort, so I came to see you. Now that I’m here, I can see for myself they were right.” Shocked, Jackson didn’t speak until he noticed Chris’s head peeping around the corner. He had a feeling it had been two little birdies that had called their uncle Elliott to come and spy on him.

“Well, I don’t know who your sources are, but I’m fine. However, I’m always happy to see my big bro.”

Eli’s eyes lingered on Jackson’s face, taking in his unkempt hair and unshaven face. “So, how are things with the new group you’re producing?”

“Slow, but it’s going. Anyway, come on in and make yourself comfortable. The boys are around here somewhere. I’m sure they’ll be happy to see you.”

Eli clamped a hand down on his shoulder. “Actually, the little birdie that called was named Nick. He wants to take you somewhere.”

Nick appeared in the doorway behind Eli. “Can I come in?”

It was funny how he’d been mainly fine for the past week. He still got choked up at random intervals and he hadn’t been able to sleep in his bed anymore. He’d taken to sleeping in the chair in his office. But more than anything, seeing his brother seemed to bring it all back. He took a deep breath.