"You"re upset, love, very much so, but I need you to take several deep breaths and think this through."
"I"m scared," Grier admitted. "I don"t want to lose him."
"Of course you are. I"d be scared, too, if I were in your position, but you"re a good person, Grier, and an outstanding father. Don"t let Jillian push you into doing something so stupid that you"ll never be able to dig yourself out of this mess."
"What if she has me arrested?"
"She has to prove that you raped her, and that"s impossible."
"But her parents...."
"The Garcias have trusted you with their grandson for years. Surely, they"re not going to believe Jillian"s lies."
"Who knows what they"re thinking after her little bombsh.e.l.l?"
"She"s acting like a trapped animal, bleating out nonsense in the hope that she"ll fool everyone. Put your fear on hold, and do what"s best for Luca. You"ll triumph if you play it smart. No one in their right mind will believe Jillian, but taking Luca like this will automatically label you a nutcase and undermine your chance for custody: it puts you in a very bad light."
"You"re right." Grier nodded, drawing a shaky breath. He glanced in the mirror again and was relieved that Luca was still asleep, oblivious to the emotional storm raging around him. Lil"s supportive words had steadied him and given him the confidence he needed to face whatever lay ahead. "I love you," he whispered softly into the phone.
"I know you do, Grier. I love you, too, and I wish I could be there for you."
"You are here for me in all the ways that count."
"Let"s hang up so you can call your father. I"ll be right here waiting for you if you want to call me back. I can keep you company on the drive home."
"Okay, give me a minute to talk to my dad. I love you."
"Love you too."
Grier dialed his home phone, hoping Santino had gone back after the showdown at the Garcias". Thankfully, he answered. "Dad?"
"Where are you?"
"I"m in my truck with Luca. I wanted to give him his presents, and then we decided to grab a bite. Will you let Jillian know I have him?"
"Sure I will, although she"s having a little nervous breakdown at the moment and couldn"t care less where her son is."
"Why"s that?"
"Bob continued to interrogate her after you left. He talked to her about perjury and defamation of character. By the time he got done with her, she broke down and started crying like a baby. She admitted it was bulls.h.i.t, a Fig Newton of her imagination. It was nice to hear it out loud."
"What about Ali and the wedding?"
"It"s still happening as far as I know. Your brother is determined to marry her despite all the lies. He loves her."
"I think they"ll be good for each other."
"You"re something else, you know?"
"What do you mean?"
"You"re so calm after all that c.r.a.p she threw at you. I would have punched a hole in the wall."
Grier started laughing hysterically. "I"ll see you in about an hour, okay, Dad?"
"I"ll be here, son. And by the way, Bob has already started the paperwork to claim your paternity and pet.i.tion for joint custody. He says he"s very confident that things will go your way now that Jillian has admitted you"re a good father, and deserve to have Luca as often as you want."
"That"s amazing... why the big switch?"
"She and Ali locked themselves up in her room for over an hour, and she came out a new person."
"Ain"t love grand?" Grier said, dizzy with relief. He was grateful that Ali had stepped up to the plate and stood by Jillian. He wondered how long Ali had been secretly in love with her. It must have been excruciating to watch her throwing herself at Grier, making plans for a future with the brother who wasn"t interested, while the one who was truly in love with her looked on in silence. Someday, after the volatile emotions had subsided, he"d have to have a long talk with Ali. He hoped that they would be able to reestablish the closeness they had years ago, before love and compet.i.tion interfered. For now, he was relieved that the wedding would go on, and Jillian would find the love and social acceptance she"d been searching for all these years.
"I"m exhausted but happy that the bulls.h.i.t is over," Santino stated.
"You don"t know the half of it."
"Well, come home and bring my grandson with you."
"I will, Dad."
Grier disconnected and dialed Lil, who answered immediately. "You"re a f.u.c.king genius."
Lil laughed. "I know that, but tell me what brilliant thing I just did?"
"I won!" Grier screamed into the phone. "Thanks to you."
"Love, you did the work. I just pointed you in the right direction."
"Ahhh," Grier yelled again, giddy with joy, but shocking poor Luca awake. "Oh, s.h.i.t."
"What happened?" Lil asked.
"I just woke up Luca with my whooping."
"Let me talk to him."
Grier pa.s.sed the phone to Luca. "Hey, buddy, it"s t.i.to t.i.to Lil." Lil."
"Hi," Luca said, still half-asleep. "Thank you for the prethent prethent."
Luca handed Grier the phone. "He"th coming," he said dreamily. coming," he said dreamily.
"Is he?"
Luca nodded and dozed off again.
"What"s this you just told Luca?"
"I may be out there in the next week or so."
"How come?"
Lil told him about his conversation with Jody earlier in the day.
"Do you think it"s legit, or did they do this to get you back to Chicago?"
"I wouldn"t put it past them to drum up business for me just to help us out."
"They"re good people."
"f.u.c.k!" Lil"s voice jumped up several levels.
"What"s wrong?"
"Earthquake!" Lil shouted. "A f.u.c.king, G.o.dd.a.m.n earthquake."
"Lil? Lil, are you there?" The phone went dead, and when Grier tried calling back, it went straight to voice mail.
Chapter 34.
SEBASTIAN jumped off his scratching post and landed on Lil"s lap with an angry hiss, digging his razor-sharp claws into the thick denim, which, thankfully, saved Lil from multiple lacerations. They were both scared out of their wits, and it didn"t help when the LED motion lights flickered on and off while the building swayed, the fire alarms went off, and sirens screamed outside the windows as the city reacted to the all-too-common occurrence. Lil sat frozen on his bed, where he"d been resting and nursing his broken heart after leaving work earlier today. He hadn"t the desire or the energy to work after the emotional goodbye at the airport. jumped off his scratching post and landed on Lil"s lap with an angry hiss, digging his razor-sharp claws into the thick denim, which, thankfully, saved Lil from multiple lacerations. They were both scared out of their wits, and it didn"t help when the LED motion lights flickered on and off while the building swayed, the fire alarms went off, and sirens screamed outside the windows as the city reacted to the all-too-common occurrence. Lil sat frozen on his bed, where he"d been resting and nursing his broken heart after leaving work earlier today. He hadn"t the desire or the energy to work after the emotional goodbye at the airport.
He was overjoyed that he"d been able to talk Grier out of his irrational need to run, especially after hearing that Jillian had come to her senses and admitted the truth regarding Luca"s conception. It was also immensely gratifying to hear the three words that meant the world to him. And now this earthquake and the horrible, sickening feeling of helplessness, as his stable world reacted to the shifting ma.s.ses underneath him. What the f.u.c.k! No matter how many times he"d experienced this phenomenon, it was still chilling and left him hyperventilating with fear.
His heart pounded furiously, and he fought to get his breathing under control before he pa.s.sed out. Swooning like a damsel in distress wouldn"t be a good idea while the building tumbled down around him, an unlikely scenario, but still a very real possibility. He decided to take his chances outside and hugged Sebastian to his chest, ignoring the small voice in his head that told him to find his leash or his carrying case. It would have taken too much time, but he did have the good sense to slip on a pair of shoes, s.n.a.t.c.h his keys off the dresser, and grab his cell phone before dashing out the door.
He paused briefly in front of the elevator and shook his head, reminding himself that getting into an elevator before, during, or after an earthquake was sheer madness, and one thing he mustn"t do. He took the stairs instead, gritting his teeth as he descended the twelve flights to the bottom, all the while listening to Sebastian howling in protest. "Stop fussing, you silly cat."
Sebastian hissed in righteous indignation and twisted forcefully, causing Lil to loosen his hold for a second, long enough for the cat to leap out of his arms in a burst of energy just as they got to the bottom step. He raced out the door someone had left open, speeding across the street to Lafayette Park with Lil caterwauling behind him. Lil would have died laughing if their situation hadn"t been so pathetic. As such, he wanted to cry because losing Sebastian was too much to deal with. Living without Grier was bad enough, but to lose his constant companion was unbearable and would push him over the edge.
"Sebastian," he called out, hoping the cat would recognize his voice and return. After a few more attempts, he realized that it was impossible to expect Sebastian to come trotting back like a dog, and he threw himself on the same park bench he"d shared with Grier the day before, contemplating his next move. He was afraid that his impetuous decision to leave Sebastian off the leash would have tragic results. He should have known better after attending so many earthquake preparedness courses. Animals panicked, just like humans, and he could have been more thorough about his exit. It was irresponsible, and he hoped Sebastian wasn"t running amok looking for shelter. The thought of his cat freaking out made him shudder, and he reached for his phone, hoping there"d be a signal.
He was happy to see the familiar bars light up on the left side and keyed in Grier"s numbers.
"Lil?"
"Love...."
"What the f.u.c.k happened?"
"It"s nothing, just another wonderful day in San Francisco. There was a b.l.o.o.d.y earthquake that scared the bejesus out of me. I think Sebastian is on his way out of town."
"What do you mean?"
"I lost him."
"How do you lose a cat?"
"He jumped out of my arms when I was racing down the stairs, and now I"m in the park hoping he"ll come back."
"He"ll be back."
"How can you be so sure?"
"Cats always find their way home, but you"d better hang out there for a while, so he knows where to find you."
"I"m not moving from this spot."
"Come home, Lil."
"Home?"
"Yes, to me."
"Oh, Grier...."
"Don"t you want to be with us?"
"Very much, but I have a business to run and obligations to fulfill."
"If I helped with airfare, would you be willing to commute for a while?"
"Grier, it"s not the money. I have so many airline miles saved on my American Express card I could go around the world twice. I have projects and commitments I can"t ignore."
"That"s too bad," Grier murmured in disappointment.
"Let me see what I can do, okay? No promises, but I"m going to give this my best shot."
"Okay." Grier perked up instantly. "I"m going apartment hunting on Monday."
"Yeah?"
"A two bedroom in a pet-friendly building."
"Pet?"
"Bianca and maybe a guest appearance by Sebastian?"
"You"re cute and very optimistic."
"I love you."