“I’m just saying, honey, your brownies were an absolute hit at Callie’s wedding, and I’m not surprised someone else wants to order them for a party. You have to stop doubting yourself.”
Reagan flashed a quick glance at Chase before she replied, “I told you I accepted the offer, Mom. Chase’s… friend… was very kind to ask. I’m just saying, I’m nervous. That’s all.”
Chase quickly realized that Reagan did not seem to want to admit how she knew Paulie. Suddenly the shirt she was wearing, that covered her fresh tattoo also made sense. He wondered why she was keeping it a secret, and hoped it wasn’t out of shame.We’ll be talking about that later…he thought to himself. Reagan’s ink was beautiful and meaningful and something she should be proud of. Based on their reaction to him, he didn’t think her family would judge her for having a tattoo, so he couldn’t understand why she wasn’t showing it off.
He brought his attention back to the conversation just in time to hear Betty say, “Well, I’m glad you’re taking that step. It actually leads me to something that Dad and I want to tell you and Simon. We started a small investment for you both, years ago. It grew slowly over time, but recently the stock had a bit of a windfall, so we decided to cash it out for you both. Now seems like a good time to tell you, since you are both looking to make big changes in life. Simon, you and Daniel have talked about wanting to start a family, and Reagan, you need to open your bakery.”
There was a stunned silence after Betty finished talking. Simon and Reagan both looked at their parents in shock before starting to speak at the same time.
“Mom, what are you talking about?”
“No way, you keep it, Mom.”
Lewis stood up and put his big hands together in a loud clap. “Now listen up, both of you.” He turned to Chase apologetically. “Sorry you’re stuck here for this, Chase, but we had planned on telling the kids even before we knew you were coming.” Chase just nodded and Lewis went on.
“Simon. Reagan. You are wonderful kids, the best your mom and I could have ever hoped for. When I lost my job years back you didn’t complain about anything. It broke our hearts not to be able to take you out for dinner or spoil you at Christmas that year. So, when I got a new job, we decided to say thank you by investing some money for both of you. We never expected it to do much, and honestly, we thought about cashing it in and giving it to you years ago. But, for whatever reason we didn’t, and now feels like perfect timing.”
Lewis walked over and crouched down in front of his son. “Simon, you and Daniel will be incredible parents. I have never had any issue with who you are and who you love, but the rest of the world is not so supportive. Adopting or surrogacy will take time and money, and selfishly your mother and I want to be grandparents soon. Take the money and have a baby.” Chase saw tears streaming down Simon’s face as the other man nodded and hugged his father.
Then Lewis came over to Reagan. He glanced at Chase, nodded slightly, then bent down to take Reagan’s hand. “And as for you, my girl. It’s time you chased your dreams. Don’t think you’re fooling us into believing you’re happy in that desk job of yours, because you’re not. We’ve talked with Gammie and we know your passion lies in the kitchen. The money we’ve got for you should be enough to rent a kitchen and outfit it as needed. Whether you choose to open a bakery, or just do online orders and catering, we’re here to support you.”
When Lewis finished talking, Reagan also pulled her father in to a hug. Chase heard her whisper, “Thank you, Daddy,” in his ear just before Lewis walked back over to where Betty sat, also with tears glistening in her eyes.
“Now that’s all out in the open, let’s celebrate. To new relationships, new fortunes, new families, and new careers.” Lewis raised his glass, and everyone else joined him in a teary yet joyful toast.
Chapter 14
Once Chase began the drive home to Reagan’s apartment, she turned to him with a soft smile. “So, that was my family. Scared yet?”
Chase laughed and reached a hand over to caress her knee. “Nah, just the opposite, Red. Your family is incredible. Thank you for letting me be there tonight.” His brow furrowed, and he went on. “I have to ask though, why did you hide your tattoo? You do like it, right?”
“Oh my god, no, Chase, I love it! I just wanted to be able to show Gammie first, and I didn’t have the chance to talk to her alone tonight. It’s such a special piece of art for me, I wanted to share it with the person who inspired it. That’s all. Are you mad?” Reagan was nervous to hear his reply. She hadn’t even thought to explain to Chase why she wasn’t revealing her ink to her family. They wouldn’t have a problem with it, heck her dad had a bulldog on his shoulder from when he was younger.
“That’s good to hear, babe. I wasn’t mad, just curious. And hopeful that you weren’t worried about how they would handle it. If they didn’t like tattoos, they probably wouldn’t like me much.” He chuckled.
“That was definitely not the reason, I promise. My family loved you.” She covered his hand with hers, and squeezed it lovingly. “You haven’t told me much about your family. Were they as crazy as mine?” she asked, realizing how little she knew about Chase’s past.
His response was quiet, somber even. “No.” He sighed deeply. “I should tell you about my childhood. But can we talk when we’re home?” Chase glanced over at her, and the pain on his face made her heart drop.
She kept her questions to herself until they arrived back at her apartment. Silently, Chase escorted her inside, where she kicked off her shoes, then turned to him. She took his hand and led him into her bedroom.
He looked so lost, Reagan desperately wanted to hold him and take away whatever was causing him such pain. She reached up and undid each button on his shirt before sliding it off his shoulders. He stood there, letting her touch him. It was unspoken that tonight would be about comfort, not seduction.
When she had Chase in just his boxers, she walked him over to the bed and gently pushed him to lay down. Then she quickly shed her clothes, pulled on some silky pajamas and climbed into bed beside him.
Only once she was snuggled into his side, his head resting gently on hers, their hands tangled together on top of his stomach, did she speak.
“Tell me, Chase.”
Reagan felt his chest rise and fall with a deep breath before he spoke.
“I have no idea who my dad was. He was never around. It was just me and my mom at first, then she died when I was seven. Cancer. Before that, things were okay. Mom loved me—I know that. Even though, as a single parent, she must have struggled, she never let me see how hard it was. I didn’t realize until it was too late.” His voice was low, stilted, as if he had to force the words out. “There was no other family, so when she died of cancer, I went into the foster system.” Chase let out a harsh bark of a laugh. “Let me tell you, the stories you hear are true. Sometimes you get lucky and get a good home, sometimes you don’t. When you’re an older kid, and a boy, your luck is not so good.”
Reagan tightened her hold on him, fighting to hold back tears as he revealed more to her.
“No one can understand what it’s really like in the system unless they’ve lived it. Garbage bags to carry your stuff in, moving all the time, always worried if the next family would be worse than the last. The hardest part though, is that shred of hope that maybe this time, maybe this family would keep you. But that shred gets smaller and smaller every time you move, every time you aren’t chosen to stay.” Chase paused, and he must have felt the tear fall from Reagan’s eye because he shifted so he could see her face and gently wiped her eyes with his thumb. “Hey, Red, I didn’t tell you this to make you feel sad for me. I’m okay now, really. Yeah, my childhood sucked but it also made me appreciate the idea of family. Please, babe, don’t let my story change how you see me.”
Reagan propped herself up on her elbow and smiled with watery eyes down at the incredible man who had chosen to share his story with her.
