Second Chance Girl (Happily Inc. #2)

Her voice was kind, as was her gaze. He could feel her concern. Carol would never ask for the sake of knowing. She wasn’t like that. Funny how, at the end of the day, he trusted her. Whatever was going on, he knew that she would do the right thing, be it for him or someone else she cared about. Because he knew she did care about him. They were friends.

“I don’t remember not being Ronan’s twin and him being mine,” he admitted. “We shared everything. Mom used to talk about us sleeping in the same crib when we were babies. I always thought it was because we couldn’t be separated, but looking back I’m guessing it was because when she took Ronan in, she didn’t have another place to put him. She hadn’t actually been expecting another baby.”

“I’m still amazed she was willing to take him in the way she did. I couldn’t do it.”

“Not many people could. She’s the complete opposite of my father. He only thinks of himself and she only thinks of him. At the risk of being too cynical, I’ve never believed the story about her knowing the second she saw Ronan that she had to raise him. I think it was because he was a part of my father and Ceallach has always been the center of her universe.”

“But you said Ronan was her favorite. How do you explain that?”

“I can’t.”

All the brothers had known it. Mathias never knew how everyone else felt. Personally he hadn’t minded because he’d been a part of Ronan’s inner circle. The two of them against the world. Everyone else had come in second.

“We were in the same class at school, we played the same sports. When one of us got sick or injured, the other stayed home, too.” He smiled. “We never liked the same type of women, though. When we were in high school, we tried dating sisters. That didn’t go well.”

“Then it all hit the fan,” she said softly.

“It did.” He still remembered the shock—not wanting to believe the words. How could Ronan not be his twin brother?

“It was hard on me,” he continued, “but worse on him. I was still Elaine’s son while he wasn’t. We both had to deal with all the years of lies but he had to figure out who he was.”

“Has he?”

“Hell if I know. These days we barely speak. He’s pulling back more and more.” He reached for a chip. “When we first moved here I thought we’d figure it out. We still worked together in the studio. We’d even rented a house together. Then he found that place up in the mountains and once he moved, he started withdrawing.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Thanks. We’ll get through this.”

At least he hoped they would. Bad enough to have lost his twin, but to end up losing his brother...

“What can I do to help?” she asked.

Let me take you to bed. A phrase only to be thought, not spoken, because she would think he was trying to make up for what had happened before. Even though he did want a do-over, today wasn’t about that. Not that he could explain that to her.

Still, getting lost in Carol would go a long way to healing what ailed him.

“I’m good,” he said instead.

“Let me know if that changes.”

“I will.”

“Want to stay for dinner?” she asked.

“I need to get back to Del and Maya. Want to join us?”

“Sure.”

He didn’t care if it was a mercy agreement—he wanted her with him. “Weren’t you over earlier today, helping her with something?”

“I dropped by at lunch and took pictures of her in her dress. It was fun. I always enjoy your view when I’m at your place. Looking down at all the little animals.”

“My house is the closest one to yours and our views aren’t that different.”

“And yet we are worlds apart.”

“I’m ignoring you,” he grumbled as he grabbed more chips.

“At your own peril. I’m all that keeps you grounded in the real world.”

He chuckled. “Lucky me. Now if only you had superpowers to keep my father at bay.”

“Sorry. I can try to think of a few ways to distract him, if that would help.”

“No, it’s okay. We’ll get through it.”

All of them, or so he hoped. He might not enjoy dealing with his father, but he would manage to survive the visit. Ronan was less of a sure thing. His brother would be fine with Ceallach—Ronan was used to ignoring their father’s pronouncements. The bigger problem would be Elaine. Ronan still hadn’t come to terms with the woman he’d always thought of as his mother.

Carol reached out her hand. He took it and ignored the wanting that accompanied the warmth of her skin. He knew what she was offering and while he wanted a lot more, he was going to be happy with what he could get.

*

VIOLET AND ULRICH walked along the boardwalk by the river. They’d gone out to dinner and then had decided to take a stroll before he dropped her off back at her place. The sun had set, the air was still warm and she was doing her best not to read too much into their evening, but it was difficult not to. Ulrich was just so great to be around.

“I can’t believe how warm it is,” he said as they passed an older couple on a bench. “Back home it would be rainy and cold.”

“Isn’t it like that all the time?” she asked, her voice teasing. “I had a friend visit London once in July and she said it was the coldest she’d ever been in her life.”

“We do have challenging weather,” he admitted. “But we more than make up for it with our culture and charming accents.”

“Your accent is charming.”

“As is yours.”

“I don’t have one,” she told him. “You’re simply hearing me incorrectly.”

They moved closer to the river and leaned against the railing. Behind them was The Promenade and all the uptown shops. Across the river was the downtown district, such as it was.

Ulrich pointed. “The Boardroom is over there, isn’t it? I’m starting to get my bearings. Your shop is by the art gallery that will host the party to raise money for more giraffes.” He smiled at her. “I’ve made my peace with Millie, by the way. I shall not have any hard feelings about her gaining a herd.”

“How very nice of you.”

“I’m a very nice man.”

He was, she thought wistfully. One she would miss when he was gone.

“Tell me, Violet, why aren’t you married?”

The unexpected question had her blurting out the truth. “No one has asked.”

“Have you wanted anyone to?”

“Not really. I have a habit of choosing safe, boring men to have a relationship with. I pick them because there’s no way I can fall for them, so there’s no way they can hurt me. But being with someone for the sake of having a relationship isn’t good, either. Eventually the men figure out I’m not emotionally engaged, so they end things, usually blaming me for trying to trick them.”

She glanced at him and saw him watching her intently. “There’s an old saying that knowing the problem is half the battle, but they’re wrong. Knowing the problem just means I can see it when it happens, but it doesn’t seem to make me act very differently.”

Except with Ulrich. She’d fallen for him and he was neither boring nor safe. But he was leaving, which meant there was a predefined end to whatever it was they had together.

“Do you know why you choose safe, boring men who won’t hurt you?”

She drew in a breath. “Yes. I think so. Mostly.”

“If you’re sure.”