Chapter19
It was later that evening when the doorbell rang, and Will considered hiring a butler, then laughed it off and jumped up to answer the door.
When he saw Lincoln and Charity standing on his large front porch, he stepped back, silently inviting them in.
“I see your life has changed a bit,” Lincoln said appreciatively.
“How did you find me?”
Lincoln shrugged.
“I have people. It took all day, if that makes you feel better.”
“Not really.”
Lincoln nodded and Charity shifted uncomfortably at the tension that hung in the air.
“Would you like to sit down?” Will asked.
“That would be great. I was hoping I could talk to you.”
“Look, I didn’t know that George had tried to kill Charity until I’d already taken the job. It was good money, and I thought it would be pretty straightforward.”
“Things like that rarely are,” Lincoln said. “But you don’t need me to tell you that.”
“That’s right,” Will said. “He’s already issued a retraction, even though it was a total cop-out and nowhere near an apology for the witch hunt.”
“I saw that. I wasn’t expecting an apology from him or anyone else.”
“So, why are you here?”
“To thank you. I know we parted on bad terms, and I know it took a lot for you to stick your neck out like that for me. You didn’t have to.”
“I wasn’t going to, if I’m being honest,” Will said. “I thought the evidence would speak for itself. But then I saw that snake Wittman on TV, claiming that George was alive and suffering, and all but priming the jury pool to have sympathy for a guy like him, and I couldn’t just let that happen. I reached out to my followers, and not only got some excellent stills, but an entire video.”
“You didn’t take the video?” Lincoln said, looking nervous for the first time.
“No. And I don’t know who did. Every time they send me something, they delete their account immediately after. I don’t think we’ll ever know, but I have a feeling that whoever it was, they were just at the right place at the right time and nothing more.”
“If I had that kind of dirt on the Wittman’s, I would want to remain anonymous, too,” Charity said.
Will looked at her then, taking in the exhaustion that did little to dampen her beauty and shook his head.
“I’m an ass. Can I get you something to drink? Water, juice? Vodka?”
“I’ll stick with water,” Charity said with a laugh.
“That sounds like a good idea,” Lincoln said. “I’ll take one, too.”
“I didn’t ask you,” Will teased, grabbing a water out of the fridge for each of them.
“I see you haven’t lost your sense of humor.”
“I had to do something,” Will said. “I spent days wondering if I did the right thing, then he showed up on TV, and I could have kicked myself. I knew he was dangerous, but I never thought he would outright lie like that.”
“People do crazy things when they’re grieving. Add power to that, and you have a dangerous combination.”
“You’re so right, Lincoln.” There was silence as Will and Lincoln regarded each other, then Will finally spoke again. “Why do I think you’re not here just to thank me?”
Lincoln sighed, then looked at Charity and back at Will.
“Maybe this isn’t the right time, but I thought maybe we could bury that hatchet so to speak.”
“I don’t need to work with you anymore,” Will said quickly. “I have enough money to really grow my brand, and my followers are taking off now that everyone has realized that I was the one who found the missing man.”
“I wasn’t suggesting we work together,” Lincoln said. “I was thinking more that we could be friends again.”
Will was shocked, and he didn’t hide it.
“Really? After all that?”
Lincoln shrugged.
“I was a total hard ass, and I tried to force you to do things my way. I was wrong, and I want to apologize for that. You were always a good friend, and you proved that when you stepped up and did the right thing despite how I treated you before.”
“Wow, man, that means a lot.”
“I was hoping that you would do something for me that would mean more than I can explain.”
“Sure, what?”
“Be my best man?”
Will blinked.
“Seriously?”
“Seriously. You’re the closest thing I’ve ever had to a brother, and I promised Charity that I would give her a real wedding when this is all over.”
“Okay,” Will said, pacing in his excitement. “Wow. Okay, when?”
“Tomorrow night,” Lincoln said.
“Tomorrow?”
“Yes, at the Space Needle.”
“How did you manage to…” Will stopped himself and laughed. “I know, you know people.”
“Exactly.”
“I’ll do it,” Will said again. “But just know, I’m going to roast the shit out of you for my speech.”
“It wouldn’t be right if you didn’t,” Lincoln said with a laugh.
They spent some time catching up, and nearly an hour later, Will was seeing them out the door for the evening. The door closed behind them and Will sighed, shocked at how everything had changed so quickly. He was happy to have his friend back, and up until that point, he’d had no idea how much he missed his adventures with Lincoln.
***
“I think you just made Will’s day,” Charity said when they were back at the hotel, taking Lincoln’s hand and kissing his palm. “I’m glad you guys made up.”
“Me too,” Lincoln said. “I’m an arrogant ass sometimes, but I know when I’m wrong. Will could’ve left things alone, and it would have destroyed me. He would’ve profited from his competition going to jail, and he would have millions in ad revenue by the end of the year. But he turned away from the temptation and did the right thing. He saved my ass, and yours. Apologizing to him was the least I could do.”
“There’s nothing sexier than a man that knows when he’s wrong,” Charity laughed. “It’s a good quality in a husband.”
“Are you sure you’re up to the ceremony tomorrow? You’ve been through a lot and I worry about the baby and—”
“Don’t worry. I’m fine, the baby is fine. Besides, Shanice already bought her dress. You don’t want to see her disappointed when she’s already gone shopping. It’s not a pretty sight.”
“I’m afraid to ask after she showed up at court in the dayglo yellow slip dress.”
“She said she went conservative this time,” Charity giggled. “So, think Vegas wedding appropriate.”
“Oh, dear Lord.”
“Sounds about right. You should just get used to it. It’s less painful that way.”
“I’ll do my best.”
“That’s all I ask.”
Charity was standing in front of the large window, staring out at the Seattle skyline lit up against the night, the Space Needle visible even from this far away. She saw Lincoln’s reflection in the glass as he came up behind her, wrapping his strong arms around her and pulling her close so she was leaning against his chest.
“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” he asked.
“It is,” Charity said. “And it will always be home.”
“Are you happy at the cabin?”
“I am.”
“I feel like you’re not saying something,” he said, kissing the top of her head and giving her a little squeeze.
“It’s not that. I love the cabin, but I also love this. The skyline, the concerts, just the whole Seattle vibe. I didn’t realize how much I missed it until we were here again.”
“But you also miss the cabin,” he finished for her.
“I do. And it’s your dream house.”
“Dreams can change.”
She smiled.
“I hear that. But I don’t want to give up the cabin, either. I love the solitude and being surrounded by wilderness. I’m just not sure that I want to spend the winter out there every year.”
Lincoln chuckled.
“That seems fair. You know, we could just live here every winter, then go back to the cabin once the weather is nice.”
“I love this suite, don’t get me wrong. But this isn’t our home.”
“I can buy the suite if that makes it better.”
She laughed.
“Must be nice to be filthy rich,” she said.
“You should know. How does it feel?”
She froze.
“What do you mean?”
“You’re my wife, right?”
“I am,” she said, his meaning slowly sinking in. “But that’s your money, not mine.”
“It’s our money,” he said. “You can’t bring everything good to the marriage and leave me contributing nothing.”
“Are you serious?”
“Did I have you sign a prenup?”
His words shocked her.
“I hadn’t even thought about it until now.”
“I know,” he said, kissing her neck from behind. “It’s pretty sexy.”
“Stop,” she laughed when he nuzzled behind her ear, sending shivers through her body. “This is serious.”
“It’s just money,” he said. “If you want, I can buy the entire hotel. Then we’ll be the only ones that ever live in this suite again.”
“I was thinking maybe we could buy our own place in town for the winter. I mean, I like this hotel, but I’ve lived in an apartment my entire life. I want a yard and no one else living above or below me.”
“I don’t think that’s too much to ask.”
“It used to be,” she said, turning in his arms and wrapping her arms around his neck. “My life has changed so much in the past few weeks I can’t even keep up.”
He kissed her, slowly, tenderly.
“Do we need to slow down?” he asked.
“No,” she said. “I’m just so grateful for everything. You saved my life, and that was enough. But you didn’t stop there, and I never thought I’d say this, but I don’t think I could be any happier.”
“What about tomorrow?”
“That’s the thing. I know that tomorrow, at our wedding, I’m going to be happier than I’ve ever been. Same with the next day and the next. My entire world has changed, and I don’t know how I got so lucky.” She kissed him again.
“That’s funny,” he said. “I was going to say the same thing.”