Chapter Six
Cade turned the bronze handle and opened the rustic wooden door he’d crafted with his father many years ago. Two shockingly handsome, six-feet-tall, identical-looking brothers with blond hair and blue eyes wearing matching jeans and navy T-shirts stood on his porch.
“Hi,” Cade said. The boys had to be Ella’s. He wondered if they looked like their father. If they did, their father was a very good-looking man.
His stomach burned like he’d eaten a bowl full of ghost peppers as jealousy consumed him. The boys should be his children. They should resemble him. He should have been the one who raised them, loved them, provided for them. What he wouldn’t give to have children with Ella and a chance to be a great dad like his father.
“Dude, put a shirt on,” one of boys said as he walked past Cade into the living room of the house. “I totally don’t want to think about you and my mom doing it.”
“Come on, Jay. That is so not cool,” the other boy said.
Jason waved him off. “Whatever, Ky.”
Kyle held out his hand to Cade.
Cade shook it. Shit. He just screwed up his only chance at a good first impression.
“Nice to meet you, Mr. Jackson. I’m Kyle Winthrop, Ella’s son.”
“Ky, I think he got that.” Jason walked around the living room looking at everything. He stopped near the corner fireplace at the series of photos on the mantle of Cade and his father clearing the land for the house they stood in. Cade wasn’t much older than the boys when he bought the land. “He invited us.”
“Jay, we declined. We showed up out of the blue.” Kyle followed his brother’s route and stood next to him at the next grouping of photos on the ladder bookshelf beside the front windows.
“Semantics.” Jason picked up the photo of Cade and his father next to the trees they crafted the doors and tables from for both houses. He carefully placed the photo back on the top shelf as if it was precious. “He invited us. We’re here.”
“It’s nice to meet both of you,” Cade said. Ella couldn’t have described Jason and Kyle’s personalities more perfectly. “Have you had breakfast?”
Kyle laughed. “Uh, yeah. It’s noon.”
Noon? He hadn’t slept until noon since he was their age. He let out a lighthearted chuckle, sounding like an idiot. “Yeah, I knew that. My chef will be here soon. Did you bring swimsuits?”
Jason cocked his head back and narrowed his gaze on Cade.
“It’s a little cold for swimming. Where’s Mom?”
Cade’s gaze flew to the bedroom door. Fuck. What if she walked out naked? Her boys would hate me.
“She’s in the bedroom.” He casually strode to the door and knocked. “Jason and Kyle are here.”
“Shit,” she said loud enough they could all hear her. “I’ll be out in a minute.”
“Late night?” Jason’s glare shot daggers at him.
“Kind of.” He was under fire already and wasn’t prepared for it. His first impression sucked. He’d never dealt with the almost-adult children of someone he dated. “The raccoons were making a racket outside until early this morning.”
“Mom doesn’t like camping or wildlife,” Jason said.
“I figured as much after the raccoon incident.” Great. Ella doesn’t like any aspect of camping, and I took her to my cabin in the woods. No wonder she freaked out over the raccoons. They definitely hate me. They probably want to kill me given the fury growing by the second in Jason’s eyes. He couldn’t blame them. If he’d been them, he wouldn’t be nearly as nice.
Jason walked over to the leather couch. “Nice TV. Do you entertain a lot?”
“I mostly rent this place out. There’s a guest house through the woods with a heated pool. I have extra swimsuits if you’re interested.” Swimming with the boys would develop enough of a bond to stop them from taking Ella home.
Kyle walked around Cade and joined Jason on the couch. “We can’t. We have plans today.”
Cade sat on the edge of the ottoman across from them. “Can you stay for lunch?”
Keep things relaxed. I’ve already screwed up enough.
“We can stay for lunch,” Kyle said.
“That’s great.” Cade stood up. “I’m going to grab a shirt. I’ll be right back.”
“Okay.” Kyle slapped a tight grip onto Jason’s forearm. “We’ll be here.”
Maybe Kyle didn’t hate him, but he couldn’t be sure. Cade rounded the corner and eavesdropped on the boys as he slowed his pace as he neared the guest bedroom.
“If he hurts Mom, I’m going to kill him,” Jason said. “What kind of guy answers the door without a shirt?”
“He didn’t know we were coming,” Kyle said. “Be nice to him.”
“Mom called Maddie after midnight wanting to come home,” Jason said. “Why should I be nice to him?”
Cade kept the door ajar to the bedroom and listened. He really messed up last night. He hadn’t thought she was on the phone ready to bolt.
“We’ve been over this. You shouldn’t have been eavesdropping on the conversation,” Kyle said. “It’s a good thing I caught you. At least we know he’s not trying to… Anyway, if Mom wants to come home, we’ll bring her home. If she wants to stay, then—”
“—You’ll have to drag my ass out that door,” Jason interrupted. “She’s not staying. He should have kissed her when she made whatever move she did. Mom doesn’t look twice at anybody, and she likes this asshole. He doesn’t deserve her.”
What the hell? What move? She made a move, and I missed it? We had one moment in the woods, but I screwed it up. It wasn’t a move. It was more like a question.
“Jason, they’re not sharing a room. They’re not doing anything. Maybe she’s been hiding all morning trying to get up the nerve to come out…”
Cade closed the door and blocked off the conversation. He’d heard enough. He had made a huge mess of things last night by not following his instincts. He loved Ella and wanted to tell her he loved her. He wanted to tell the boys he loved her. He wanted to tell the world he loved her, but he couldn’t.
Keeping his feelings private and repairing the damage that forced her boys to come and check on her was top on his agenda. Making her boys comfortable enough to leave her with him for the rest of the weekend was paramount, or she would be gone no matter what he wanted.
He washed up in the sink and put on fresh clothes. He stilled the frenzied butterflies churning the anxiety in his stomach and set out to make a better second impression than the first.
Cade quietly opened the bedroom door until he could make out the hushed voices in the living room. “The power is out at the house,” Kyle said.
“Could you check my business account balance on Monday?” Ella said. “I might not have the funds, if any of the checks bounced. I’ve hit a string of bad clients. But I’ll definitely have the money Tuesday.”
“What if Colleen comes home early?” Jason asked.
“Colleen never comes home early,” Kyle said. “She mentioned taking summer classes a couple months ago. How are we going to pay for that?”
“I can sell the last of the jewelry to pay for her tuition,” Ella said. “I need to put the house on the market. I can’t afford the utilities or the small mortgage. I think, with the profits, we could move into a small fixer-upper with some land farther outside Memphis, but I don’t know how much I can get for the house with the things it still needs repaired.”
“I can tutor,” Kyle said. “But your business is going to take off as soon as I finish the site this weekend. I called a few local retailers, and they placed orders. It will tide us over until the house sells.”
“I’ll help you make the soaps in the evenings,” Jason chimed in. “I can get a job with Katie’s dad doing construction on the weekends. He knows I can make damn near anything. Sorry. Didn’t mean to cuss.”
“Neither of you need to get part-time jobs. I can make ends meet until the house sells. I’m just sorry we have to sell.”
Cade inched the door farther open. Did Josie know how bad Ella’s finances were? Did Maddie? It didn’t sound like anybody outside her two boys knew the extent of her problems, not even her daughter.
Kyle grunted. “We’re not children. The house is nice, but it’s just a roof over our heads.”
Damn. Boys don’t make noises like that. Men do.
“We’re more worried about you running yourself into the ground keeping things afloat. We’ll help get the place ready. I’ll call our friends for help.”
“We don’t need help,” Ella said sharply, ending the line of conversation. “I can fix the small things.”
“No, you can’t, but I can,” Jason said. “Our friends could help with the landscaping. You can’t do everything yourself, Mom. You don’t have the money for the utilities. You can’t afford to repair the house. None of it is your fault. So stop blaming yourself for every damn thing that’s wrong.”
“I paid the last of the medical bills last week. That’s why we ran short this month.” She released a heavy exhale. “I really will have the money for utilities Monday barring any bounced checks.”
Did she just finish paying off medical bills from her husband’s cancer? Josie said Ella was rich but tight with her money. What he heard didn’t sound like a wealthy person’s problems. It sounded like she was struggling to make ends meet and trying to hide it by being frugal. He would talk to Maddie. She’d know the real deal. Then he’d pay Ella’s utilities and take care of anything else she needed. With him as her husband, she’d never worry again.
“I think you should sell the house but not because it’s a burden. You should sell it because it’s time to move on,” Jason said. “Money is not going to be an issue as soon as you lift your rules and let us start being men and working.”
“When you turn eighteen, you can decide whether to live at home with me while you’re at college or head out on your own. Until then…” Her voice hardened to stone. “…you are under my rules. And I’m going to support my children any way I can.”
Damn. Her momma bear protecting her kids attitude was hot, even if it was misguided and unnecessary. Get ready because I’m coming whether you like it or not.
Cade strode into the living room with a plan. “Hey.” He headed toward the couch.
Ella stood up and turned around wearing a sexy, little, blue-cotton dress that hit mid-thigh and an ivory, long-sleeve cardigan.
His cock rose to attention. “You look beautiful.”
Her gaze dropped to the Persian rug underneath her feet. She smiled as her cheeks turned a beautiful shade of pink. “Thanks. Phil is in the kitchen.”
“Oh, great. I’ll check on lunch,” he said.
“Hey, Cade,” Phil said. “Lunch is ready. I’ve got to head out, but I’ll be back to cook dinner.”
Cade turned around and grinned at the red-haired man. “Thanks, Phil. I’ll see you later.”
“Bye, Cade.” Phil waved and walked out through the back door.
He turned around. All three Winthrops stood on the other side of the couch. He imagined himself in the mix, standing beside Ella in the middle of the two boys as if they were his. One day they will be mine. My family.
“Who’s hungry?” he asked. His mother insisted good food could buffer the most uncomfortable of circumstances. He had to get the boys on his side by the time lunch ended so they would tell him about Ella’s troubles. Then he could help Ella get out from under her financial stresses. If there was one thing he was good at it, it was making money. With a few phone calls her side business would thrive. With her boys in his corner, he could make her fall in love with him.
“Dude can’t cook?” Jason leaned closer to Ella. “Not too impressed with this one.”
“Jason,” she grumbled. Her eyes widened, and her mouth dropped to a thin line. “Be respectful. I didn’t raise you to be rude.”
“I can cook,” Cade said. The boisterous teen wanted to see what kind of man he was? He would show Jason he was worthy of his mother’s interest and affection. “The area is economically depressed this time of year. I try to help the local economy, and Phil is an exceptional chef.”
“I’m ready to eat.” Kyle’s lips curved into a tight smile. “Jason is too.”
“I’m ready,” Ella said.
Cade held out his hand to her, and she placed her small hand in his.
Jason and Kyle walked on either side of her around the edge of the couch to him. Jason didn’t seem too happy about his mom dating. Or maybe the hostility radiating like a nuclear fallout from Jason was about Cade coming to the door without a shirt. Or it could be the boy didn’t like what Ella said over the phone last night. Whatever the reason, Cade needed a do-over, and he hoped lunch would give him one.