Gary gave him a sharp look. “Watch your tone when you’re speaking to your mother.”
“Sorry,” Trent mumbled, kicking at a stone on their path. “I didn’t know you used to go climbing, Mom.”
She nodded, saying nothing.
The Lamars seemed like decent people. Surely Ryan could convince them the same about himself before this trip was over. “Climbing’s always been my escape,” he said. “There’s no room for anything else in your mind while you’re out there. Just you and the rock.”
“It’s true,” Kate murmured.
Ryan offered her his most persuasive smile. “You’ve got to try it out before you leave town, Mrs. Lamar. Maybe once he’s seen you reach the top, I can even convince your son to give it a try.”
“Hey,” Trent complained with a grin.
“Kate,” she said. “Please call me Kate.”
Ryan kept his smile firmly in place. “I’d love to take you for a climb while you’re in town, Kate. What do you say?”
* * *
It was almost nine by the time Ryan got home from Off-the-Grid, and his belly grumbled painfully. He’d missed lunch to take the Lamars on a tour of the property, and the candy bar he’d shoved in his mouth midafternoon wasn’t cutting it. It had been a worthwhile sacrifice, but he needed some real grub pronto.
He stowed the helmet on his bike and strode toward his front door, pondering whether to call Emma and see if she wanted to grab a bite. No doubt she’d eaten already, but…he missed her. He hadn’t gotten to see her when she’d stopped by Off-the-Grid today, hadn’t seen her since she’d rushed out of The Drunken Bear with Jessica last night.
“Ryan, could we have a word?”
He turned at the unexpected female voice to find the Lamars walking toward him down the sidewalk.
“Sorry to ambush you, but we saw you on your bike,” Kate said, “and we had been hoping for a chance to speak to you privately.”
“Yes, of course. Come in.” He flicked on the light in the entrance hall then motioned them into his condo ahead of him. “How are you enjoying Haven so far?”
“It’s a lovely town,” Kate said, “and Off-the-Grid Adventures seems to be doing well. You should be proud.”
“Thank you. I am.” Something clenched deep in his chest at this unexpected praise from the people who’d hurt him so badly when he was a child.
“But we don’t want Trent to stay here,” Gary said, his expression sour and unfriendly, as usual.
Ryan kept his face impassive. “I understand that. His home is in Missouri with you.”
“But you’ve given him a job and an apartment here,” Kate said.
Ryan shrugged. “He wanted to stay awhile. He wanted to get to know me, and you may not realize this, but there is nothing I’ve wanted more in my life than to get to know my brother.”
“You’re not good for him. You weren’t then, and you still aren’t.” Gary somehow managed to look down at him even though Ryan had several inches on the man.
Ryan met his gaze dead-on. “Maybe I wasn’t much of a role model back then, but you never gave me a chance. I was only eleven.”Maybe you could have opened your home to me, too, or at least mentored me, instead of turning your back on me when I was just a troubled kid.
“It was easy to see you were one of those boys who…” Kate drifted off, studying the hardwood floor beneath her loafers.
Ryan clenched his fists at his side. “Was a lost cause?”
“It was too late to save you, Ryan, but it wasn’t too late for Trent.” She had the good grace to look apologetic. “It was best for everyone that we gave Trent a fresh start.”
“That’s bullshit.” The words burst from his throat before he could contain them. “Maybe it was easier for you to pretend that I didn’t exist, but it sure as hell wasn’t best for me. Trent was all I had left in the world, and you took him from me.”
His words hung in the air, harsh and bitter.
Gary and Kate both took a step backward, eyeing the door.
