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“The second reason is for Dad. Everyone always wants something from him. His money, his title, who he can help get them to. How he can move their career along. No one as far as I can see, Xander and present company excluded,” he smiles at Tim and Patrick, “gives back to him or asks for nothing other than friendship. Even the women.” He shrugs, “fair enough he gets something out of it, but they use him as much as he uses them. Them more so in most cases. Always to sell on, he’s a commodity, not a person, to most people.” He pauses, gauging our reactions. I’m on the ropes, about to go down. Evie is still staring at him, tears starting to well in her eyes.
“And lastly for you and Dad, Mum.” He sweeps his arm between the two of us, smirking slightly at our surprise. “And the wider world. We were treated like crap, discarded and thrown out. For telling the truth, for wanting to be simply acknowledged. Because we weren’t the right sort of truth for all the people around you. I’ve seen the aftermath and heard about how they made destructive decisions just to be a lord, a countess, have a connection to all that entails. The depths they were and are prepared to sink to to get it. Well I want to show how different we are. How fucking amazing my mum is.”
If it’s possible, he stands taller, shines brighter. “You are not just a Lord, you are not just a house to her. I know you don’t see him like that, Mum, because you’ve never asked him for anything, not ever. Only that he look after me. Has she?” He turns to fully face me again. “Has she asked you for anything ever?” I shake my head, I have no words. “And regardless of your shitty actions, Dad, how you speak about her when we’re on the phone alone, how your face changes, softens whenever she comes into the conversations. You can’t hide from it forever. I see it, my uncles see it. Xander knows it. So man the fuck up, before it’s too late.”
He takes a deep breath in. I can see his hands are shaking slightly. “You both want what's best for me. Mum, I’m telling you I want this title, for Dad’s kids, for Dad, and for you. I want to treat people like they should be treated, like we should have been treated. With respect and dignity, compassion and fucking love. That is why I want this title.”
We stand there, looking at our son. I’m not sure either of us blinks. Or breathes. Finally, she reaches out, touching his hand.
“James,” she smiles lovingly at him, touching his face. “Do I tell you how much I love you, and how proud I am of you?”
“Everyday, Mother.”
“Well we’re doubling up today, Son. In fact, we are trebling or quadrupling. Because, boy, do I love every single inch of you, Sunshine.” She hugs him and the tears fall from her eyes. She whispers she loves him in his ear and holds on tight to him.
I have to get out, I’m going to break down. I stagger with jerky movements towards the door.
“Dad?” I turn, but still no words come out. I look from one to the other, tears starting to fill my eyes.
“I’ll do it,” blurts out Evie. “I’ll marry you. But we need to sort out quite a few details. And I mean quite a few.”
I nod my head in acknowledgement but I don’t want to cry in front of them, so I carry on moving towards the door.
James prevents me from leaving. “Don’t go. I didn’t mean to upset you by mentioning your other kids.”
James, my son, my beautiful boy, pulls me into a hug and holds me tightly while I get myself together. I can’t believe I got so lucky. Evie raised an amazing man.
I ignore her dirty looks and pull her into a hug. “You’re a pain in the arse, but I love?—
Everything stops, and I feel Evie’s breath catch as I catch the word, keeping it from escaping into a reality I am not ready to face just yet.
“—our son. You did an amazing job. Thank you, Evie, for keeping him safe,” I whisper in her ear.
Amidst a flurry of sniffles and soft voices, they both leave the office. James has to go back home, so Evie walks him to the lifts. I look around at Tim and Patrick, who are both smiling at me.
“What?” I say to them.
“Not sure how you managed to produce that boy, Marcus, but he’s one hell of a man,” Tim says.
Patrick nods as well, saying, “Impressive. But you’re going to have to deal with the mother now. You better be clear on what you want, because she means business.”
“Christ, don't remind me. Get more doughnuts in, Tim. See if we can sweeten the deal.”
Evie walks back in, head high, full throttle. “Right, let's get this sorted. When? For how long? And no way am I living in that bloody house with your mother. You can move in with me. You can live in Devon, because that’s where I’ll be when not in London. I’m not playing the Countess of Stockton for anyone. Oh, and you can’t see anyone else. And I’ll only do it for six months tops.” She stops to take a breath.
“Don’t want much. And what do you mean I can’t see anyone else? Are you going to have sex with me? Because if you’re not, someone’s got to.”
She smirks, knowingly. “Thought that would get your attention from that list. You can’t see anyone or have sexual relations. Or oral sex. Just in case you try and creep round on a technicality. I’m not going to be made to look like an idiot. And I will if you straight from the get go get off with other women. You won’t like it if I do it, so let’s not. Say, for three months. After that you can, but please be discreet. In fact, we could use it later on when I divorce you. What do you think, Tim? Would that work? Everyone knows he’s a cheating scumbucket, so we may as well use his work to our advantage.” She looks at Tim to see if he agrees.
“True, we could use it to show a breakdown in the marriage, let you off the hook. But to start with, you’d have to look like you love each other. And to be honest, I don’t know if you could both pull it off.”
She snorts at him, “Easy peasy. I’m the best liar in the business, and he’s not far behind me.”
“We’ll manage it,” I assert. ”But it has to be totally married—no separate bedrooms, no separate hotel rooms, in fact, no separate beds. And you’re going to have to go on tour.”
She looks at Tim again. “No way. I’m not doing a tour bus with his entourage of random women.” She thumbs towards me.
“I don’t have an entourage. It’s Gabe and Xander,” I put in.
