“What the hell is this?” Eva asked contemptuously.
Carter blinked slowly, lifting his head to face the woman he was there to see. She was standing in the living room doorway, looking spectacularly pretty and ageless in a pair of black jeans and a gray sweater. A tall man with dark hair and a Yankees hoodie stood behind her. He placed his hand on Eva’s shoulder and gave it a small squeeze. Eva scowled at Carter, folding her arms across her chest. Her face was angry, defensive, but surrounding all of that were the markings of hope.
If she was hopeful, he’d cling on to that fucker like a vise. He could use it to his advantage. He could turn that hope into understanding. That’s all he could ask for. He didn’t need her blessing or her acceptance. He just needed her to understand.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Eva asked sharply.
Carter gripped Kat’s arm, halting her retort in its tracks. Her furious eyes searched his face.
“It’s okay,” he said.
“I invited them here,” Nana Boo answered, lifting her chin toward Eva, daring her daughter to question her actions.
Carter removed his hand from Kat’s and stepped forward. Eva watched him carefully as he approached. The man behind her, whom Carter knew to be Harrison, stepped to her side, a subtle move that told Carter to watch his step. Eva’s face betrayed no emotion when Carter reached her, stopping just two feet away. But, when he held his hand out between them for her to take, a flash of disbelief shot across her features.
“Hello,” Carter croaked. He cleared his throat in annoyance, but kept his eyes on Eva’s. “I’m Wes Carter.”
The walls of the room seemed to bend and strain under the tension that emanated from everyone around Carter, including Eva, who still hadn’t taken his hand. He kept it there, though, determined to show he was no *, even though his insides were ready to bust out of his ass and run for the hills.
“It’s nice to finally meet you,” he added when the silence became stifling.
Eva’s stare was intense and downright bewildered. Carter wasn’t sure whether she thought him to be completely insane or genuinely stupid. At that point, he’d have personally gone for the latter. She glanced toward her daughter.
“Did Katherine put you up to this?”
“No!” Kat shot back from behind Carter before he could take a breath. “I didn’t. And I can’t believe you’re just standing there and ignoring his attempts at civility like a—”
“Kat,” Carter said firmly, interrupting what he knew was going to be something toxic and unhelpful. He fixed her with a level stare and shook his head minutely. The anger never left the rigidity in her body, but, to her credit, she shut up.
Carter turned to Eva, whose eyes were flickering between the pair of them, and gradually dropped his hand. “Kat didn’t put me up to this,” he said. “I was the one who wanted to come here today.”
Eva remained silent, cautious, and expectant.
“I wanted to come here and talk to you.”
“About what?”
Kat shifted at his side. Still watching Eva, Carter reached out his hand, finding Kat’s, and wrapped his index finger lovingly around her pinkie.
“I wanted a chance to explain.”
“Explain?” Eva scoffed. “Explain what, exactly? Are you here to explain why you’re endangering my daughter’s future? To explain why the hell I should trust you with her when you’re a convicted criminal? To explain what prospects someone like you could possibly have with a woman like Katherine? What exactly are you here to explain, Wes Carter?”
Her voice rose in volume with each word. Carter didn’t miss the quiver behind it, though, and allowed that to ease his temper rising with each slice of her tongue. Kat’s hand shook. She was aching to blow up at her mother, resisting only because he’d asked her to and he loved her all the more for it.
“I can explain all of that, if that’s what you want,” he offered in a tone more clipped than he’d intended. And, without knowing why, he took another step toward her. He saw Eva’s eyes widen infinitesimally, though her chin rose defiantly.
“But I came here to explain that, despite what you think of me, or whatever conclusions you have come to about me and my intentions, I’m in love with your daughter. And no matter what you say or do, I’m not goin’ anywhere.”
Carter could have sworn he saw shock tease at the edges of Eva’s mouth. “Is that so?”
“Yes,” he answered with a sharp dip of his head, determination once again flowing freely through his body.
Kat moved closer, and he indulged in the warmth and security her gesture brought. Eva saw it, too, which conjured up another intense frown. She stared at her daughter, but Kat’s eyes were on Carter, branding him as hers.
“I love you, too,” she said, loud enough that everyone heard.
32