This time, the resulting pause was even longer than before. “Actively involved, you say?”
“Yes, ma’am.” Heath had no idea what direction the conversation was going to go.
“From what I could tell from those articles I read, you’re a busy man Mr. Collins. The babies are so little; they need someone stable in their life. That’s why my Sylvie is such a good mother. There isn’t a thing she wouldn’t do for them. I don’t know if it would be confusing for them, especially since they’re so little, to have someone that comes and goes in their lives.”
“Lots of children do fine with visitations from a parent.”
“Well, I’m sure there will be lots of times when business matters will force you to miss those visitations. I think it would be nearly impossible for someone like you to have the kind of regular schedule you’re talking about. Running a company is busy, important work. I don’t think it would be right for you to be disappointing the twins all the time. It would be confusing for them. Don’t you think?”
Heath couldn’t believe it. For the first time in his life, he was going to be at a disadvantage because he was successful. But then he started to think about what she had said.
She was right. His work did take him all over the world at odd times and at a moment’s notice. He could be called upon the next day to have to fly halfway across the world to have a meeting. His life was often chaotic.
Before he found Sylvie, he had acknowledged his life wasn’t suited to having a family. He saw other successful men with families, and they rarely had time to spend with the people that should have mattered most.
His own parents had been distant in his life, and he never knew when they would drop in on it. Their neglect had really done a number on him. He didn’t want his kids growing up like he had.
“Yes, it would probably be confusing,” he said slowly.
“Well, that’s decided then. It’s not a problem, Mr. Collins. I’ll talk to Sylvie about you helping financially. I think that’s wise. I need to go now. I just heard the oven alarm. You have a good day.” She ended the call.
Reflecting back on the conversation with Sachet now as he dried himself off, he wished he had said something different.
He should have said that he was going to be the father that he never had. He would be there for the boys, and he would change everything about his life to be with them if that’s what it took. But he didn’t want to upend things for them if Sylvie didn’t want him in her life.
She was a good mother. The boys would have a wonderful life because she was in it. He wanted her to be happy just as he wanted them to be happy. He didn’t want to cause them pain or confusion. Even if he was their father, that didn’t seem right. Especially, since he was their father.
He thought about this all the way back to his high-rise apartment. It wasn’t until he got there that he realized with chagrin that he forgot to pick up something for dinner. He looked in the refrigerator. It was practically empty. The only thing in there was some beer and a small package of brie. He made a mental note to tell the housekeeper to go to the grocery store.
He thought about ordering some Chinese takeout, but he didn’t even have the energy for that. He didn’t do Chinese anymore. It always made him think of Sylvie’s Chinese Take Out Casserole. He idly wondered if Aunt Charmaine ever admitted the recipe was Sylvie’s sole idea and property.
That made him think of some of the other Joneses. He wondered if Will, Kent, and Leon had found someone to cover his spot on their darts team. And the triple threat, teenage terrors. Were they still into their old skateboards now that he’d given them new hoverboards?
Was Phae grumpier than ever? He worried that Neesa may have never found someone to fix her well pump. And Meg, and Rita at the diner, and Elfleda and James? What were they up to tonight?
His body was exhausted, but unfortunately, his brain was not. He took the brie and a bottle of beer and went to sit and stare out at the bay.
He soon pulled out his laptop, but instead of checking his email and looking at the latest analysts’ reports, he pulled up the pictures of Quentyn and Jadyn he had saved in a file. He could already see reflections of himself in Quentyn’s face. But what he really saw was how much they looked like Sylvie. He loved that they were going to look like her. They were getting the best parts. That was all he could ever want for his kids.
He leaned back and closed his eyes. He just wanted to sleep. He wanted to sleep and wake up and have the whole situation completely gone away as if it had never happened.
Heath was woken up by the sound of his cell phone ringing. He picked it up from the table and stared at it. The display told him it was a caller from a number he didn’t recognize.
He wiped his eyes to get rid of the last remnants of sleep and then hit the answer button. “This is Heath Collins.”
“Hoss? Is that you?” the scratchy voice on the other end of the line asked.
Chapter Thirty One
HEATH GRINNED, KNOWING EXACTLY WHO it was and really pleased to hear from her. He couldn’t resist egging her on for a second. “Excuse me, ma’am, who is this? Do I know you? There’s no ‘Hoss’ here.”
“It’s Elfleda Jones, and don’t be pulling any shenanigans,” came her bossy reply. “You should thank your lucky stars that I managed to find your phone number in Sylvie’s cell phone. Cell phones. Hmph. A device truly meant for the younger generation. I feel like I’m all thumbs when I’m trying to mess with that little screen.”
“Oh, Aunt Elfleda. Of course, I know you. To what do I owe the pleasure?” He couldn’t have been more pleased, in fact. This had to be a good sign.
“It’s no pleasure, sonny.”
Okay then, not a good sign. Damn.
“Listen up. You need to get back to Zeke’s Bend right away.”
He waited for an explanation, but it was as if she didn’t feel the need to offer any reason. But that was Elfleda, Jones family matriarch. She said jump and everyone asked how high. But he wasn’t a Jones, so he’d be needing a reason why.
“What’s happened? Is something wrong? The babies? Are they okay?”
Elfleda sighed. It sounded as if she dragged it up from somewhere deep inside her tiny, shrunken body. “I’m surprised you haven’t heard and aren’t already here. It’s shocking. Aren’t you some kind of a hotshot big deal? I would’ve thought you’d have somebody watching your family affairs down here.”
“What’s happened? What should I already know about?”
“The accident, of course.”
Heath shot to his feet, heart pounding. “Accident? What accident? Is Sylvie okay? Quentyn? Jadyn?”
?
?The boys are fine. They’re with Sachet. But the prognosis for Sylvie isn’t so good, I’m afraid.”
Heath took a step forward and felt the world shift on its axis. He had to grab onto the chair to keep his balance. “But she’s going to be okay soon …”
There was another pause. Elfleda sounded very sad. “I don’t know much other than things don’t look good, Mr. Collins. She’s taken a turn for the worse, and she may not be with us much longer.”
Heath blinked stupidly. He was frozen in place. He didn’t know what to do. For the first time in his life, he was completely helpless. “What can I do? Tell me how to help her.”
“I already told you. Get your ass back to Zeke’s Bend! Sylvie needs you. I don’t know what happened between you two, but you need to make sure that when the time comes for her to cross over, she can do it in peace.”
“I don’t understand.” Heath’s mind refused to work. He couldn’t process the idea of Sylvie crossing over because that meant … no, he wasn’t going to think that way.
“She needs to know that her babies are going to be taken care of by their father,” Elfleda said. “You need to tell her that. You’ll probably get into a fight with Sachet over custody, but you’ll win. You’re those children's father. If you can’t parent with Sylvie, at least, you can do it when she’s gone.”
With that, Heath’s brain kicked back into gear. He began to formulate a plan.
It would be hours before his plane could get him to Sylvie’s side. He had to get there as quickly as possible. Even as he was talking to Elfleda, his fingers started moving over his phone’s keyboard, sending an urgent text to his private pilot.
“I’ll be there as soon as humanly possible,” he told Elfleda.
“Hurry, young man, and think about what I said. Sylvie might not have that long after you get here. You want to make sure that she’s able to cross over in peace knowing that you’ll take care of your children.”
The line went dead. He stared at the phone wondering how his life had completely gone off the rails so quickly. He was a fool to leave Zeke’s Bend. He was a fool to let anything get in the way of his happiness with Sylvie.