Chapter Nineteen
Music piped through the speakers of McLaughlin’s Pub. The pub was closed, but you wouldn’t know it by the laughter and tears flowing in the establishment.
Sarah watched as Kenzie attempted to teach Emily some of the dance moves for Highland Dancing.
The announcement that she and Emily were staying on the island had been greeted with cheers, tears and toasts. Even more frenzy-inducing news was that Sarah and Ian were going to get married.
“Even your mom’s dancing,” Ian murmured next to her. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen her dance.”
“She’s not bad, huh?” Sarah smiled and snuggled closer beneath her future husband’s arm.
He glanced down at her and smiled. The intimacy and love that shone in his eyes made her heart skip.
When was the last time she’d been this happy? Felt so completely full and perfect? Emily had brought a love and enrichment into her life she’d never known was possible. But Ian had been the missing puzzle piece that by chance had never worked before.
“Hi, Mom. Hi, Dad—oh it never gets old!” Emily came bouncing over, eyes twinkling.
The slumber party with Kenzie had been amazing, from what Emily had said. Kenzie had taken her auntie liberties to the extreme. Emily wore a sparkly brand-new dress loaded with glittery happy faces and peace signs, black boots with buckles, and her hair was braided into several intricate-looking twists and loops.
“Hello, my adorable daughter.” Ian reached out and snagged his daughter, tickling her on the side.
Emily squealed with delight and hugged Ian. “Do I get to be a flower girl in your wedding? Or am I too old? ’Cause if I’m too old, I should at least get to be a bridesmaid.”
Sarah laughed, her heart so full of happiness and love, it didn’t feel as if her chest could contain it.
“You can be whatever you want to be, honey.”
Emily narrowed her eyes, the gesture so like her dad, and then nodded.
“Bridesmaid. That flower girl thing is for little kids. And I’m a tween.”
And with another whoop of excitement, she was off again to rejoin Kenzie on the dance floor.
“Food’s here.”
Aleck and Colin appeared with plates full of fries, shepherd’s pies, fried fish, and more food than anyone could eat in a day—let alone the next hour before the pub was set to open to the public.
Sarah watched as everyone gathered around the two tables they’d pulled together. Hands blurred in a flash as people began to divide and conquer the food.
Eleven years later, and she was exactly where she was meant to be. They’d come full circle.
A soft, content sigh escaped her.
Ian squeezed her shoulder and she glanced up at him. The same look that must’ve been in her eyes was in his. So much love. So much happiness.
“I love you,” he murmured.
“I love you more.” She lifted her head and met the kiss he was already leaning down to take.
To quote their daughter, it never got old…
*
Parking her car outside the pub, she swallowed hard and wondered if she were crazy.
You could just leave. You don’t need to do this.
No. She couldn’t.
Pushing open her door, she strode across the parking lot and headed to the front door of McLaughlin’s Pub.
She hesitated, just for a moment. One foot turned back toward her car, the temptation to just turn and drive away still so strong.
No. They deserved to know. After smoothing a hand down her scrubs and pushing back the fatigue from working an overnight shift, she opened the door.
It took a moment for her gaze to adjust to the dim lighting and to locate the group inside.
“I’m sorry, but we’re not yet open,” a male voice called out.
“No wait.”
She recognized Ian McLaughlin as he stood from the table.
“Hailey?”
She nodded, the lump in her throat so massive she couldn’t breathe past it.
“Get out.” Another chair scraped on the floor, and her startled gaze darted to Ian’s twin brother, Colin, as he strode quickly toward her. “You have no business here.”
Before he could reach her, Sarah was at his side, pulling him back.
“It’s fine, Colin. Please, sit down.”
For a moment, Colin’s gaze locked on Hailey’s and the blazing resentment in them had her flinching. She expected it from Ian and Sarah, but hadn’t prepared herself to see it from a family member. How naïve of her.
“Is there something we can help you with?” Sarah’s tone, though polite, held a thread of tension.
This was the Sarah she remembered. Patient and nice, even when she had every reason to hate her. An ache bloomed in her heart and not for the first time she missed the friendship with Sarah she’d destroyed.
“Hello, Sarah. Ian.” Hailey thrust her hands into the pockets of her scrubs and forced a slight smile. “Could we talk for a moment? Privately?” She appeared as if she wanted to turn tail and run. “Maybe step outside?”
Sarah glanced at Ian, and they seemed to communicate silently before she nodded.
“All right.”
Hailey turned and walked back out of the pub, knowing the other two would follow her.
The parking lot was deserted and offered them the privacy she needed.
She turned to face them and her heart sank. There was so much regret and pain on Ian’s face. His gaze wouldn’t meet hers as his arm stayed securely around Sarah’s waist.
They were together again. As they always should’ve been. She’d heard the rumors that Sarah had returned, and then that she and Ian were involved again. But it was only when she’d learned the two had a daughter that Hailey knew she had to come forward.
“Hailey,” Sarah began, discomfort clear in her voice. “We don’t really need to do this. Ian and I are trying to forgive and forget what happened that night—”
“That’s just it. You don’t know what happened that night.” Hailey drew in a shuddering breath, and glanced at Ian. “Neither of you do.”
Sarah shook her head.
“You mean I was just too drunk to remember?” Ian said flatly. “I have a good guess. There’s no need to go into details—”
“There is, actually.” Hailey closed her eyes briefly. “I should’ve done this years ago.”
“Done what?” Sarah’s tone shifted into unease.
No turning back now. They already despised her. While what she was about to tell them may not make things easier, it would shift the hurt. Shift the betrayal. And they deserved to know the truth.
Hailey took a deep breath and forced herself to continue. “Back in high school, I was in a really bad place. You probably heard the rumors. My parents were crackheads and dirt poor. More than once CPS got involved, and there was a real danger of my younger brother and I being taken away. Separated.”
It was hard to talk about it, because it seemed a lifetime ago. There was so much shame associated with those years.
“I heard the rumors,” Sarah admitted. “Though I wasn’t sure if they were true. You kept that part of your life pretty private.”
She’d had to.
“Things got even worse my senior year,” she went on. “Mom was late on bills and really hurting for money, and the ways she was talking about earning it…weren’t good.” Hailey drew in a ragged breath, hesitated, and then lifted her gaze to meet Sarah’s dead on. “So when your dad approached me and offered me five hundred dollars to make it look like I slept with Ian, I said yes.”
No one said anything for a moment, but the small, choked gasp came from Sarah. Ian caught her as her knees seemed to give out.
“My dad?” Sarah repeated, shaking her head. “He would never…”
Her words drifted off, and Hailey could see the moment Sarah gave up on that argument. The moment she decided her dad would have done that.
Ian seemed a bit less convinced.
“I may not remember much about that night, but I remember you climbing into bed with me. Why would I remember that if we didn’t have sex?”
“I kept plowing you with drinks, Ian. To make it look like you were just wasted.” Oh crap it was so hard to admit this. “But I slipped something like a roofie into your drink. Your dad suggested it, Sarah, and with my parents being who they were, it wasn’t hard to get one.”
“The fuck you did.”
Despite his roar of protest, there was realization in Ian’s eyes now. She could see the belief take over the shock, even as he denied it.
“It’s why you don’t remember what happened that night. Why it was so easy to convince everyone—including you—that we’d slept together.” She was going to be sick. Saying all this, confessing to the horrible sin she’d committed against them.
She was a nurse; she saved lives now. But what she’d done that night…
“Fuck.” Ian pulled Sarah closer to him. “I know your dad hated me, but I never could’ve imagined him doing this.”
“Neither could I.” Her voice broke and she stared up at Ian. “I’m surprised, and yet I’m not. Lately I’m learning my dad wasn’t the man I thought he was.”
“Ah, Sarah.” Ian pulled her into his arms and held her.
“Again, I should’ve never been so quick to assume,” Sarah whispered. “That morning when I found you, my gut screamed you’d never do that to me, but logically…”
“Hell, I was convinced I’d slept with her.”
“You didn’t. Oh my God, you didn’t.” There was joy in Sarah’s teary laugh now.
Ian joined in, his laughter filled with amazement. “I loved you too much. It never made sense. I still love you so much.”
Uncomfortable now and feeling intrusive on their moment, especially when they kissed, Hailey wanted to just back away, and leave them to wade through the discovery.
But Sarah pulled away from Ian suddenly to look at her, blushing as she seemed to remember where they were.
“Thank you, Hailey. I know you didn’t have to tell us.”
“Of course I did.” Her mouth curled into a bitter smile. “I’ve regretted my choice every day since. I’m not proud of what I did. I’m not going to make this about me and say I mourned our loss of friendship, Sarah. That’s a given.” Tears burned at the back of her eyes, but she struggled to keep them back. “I regretted ruining your relationship most of all. And when I heard you were back and that you and Ian had a child, I knew I had to come clean.”
“Thank you.” Ian gave a slight nod, even as he still wouldn’t look her in the eye.
She understood. It was a break in trust. A lot to take in. There was so much emotion flowing between them at that moment.
Hailey nodded and pulled her keys from her shoulder bag. “I’ll leave now. Good luck in life.”
She turned and walked away, climbing into her car a moment later. But with her hands shaking so hard she knew it would be another couple of minutes before she should drive.
Ian and Sarah walked back to the pub, arms around each other and talking with heads together before they disappeared inside.
She’d done the right thing. She knew she had. Maybe Sarah had heard some things about her dad that were upsetting, but she now knew Ian was innocent. And that had been Hailey’s goal.
Fumbling to put the keys in the ignition, she paused when the door to the pub again swung open.
Her chest went tight at the sight of Colin McLaughlin, large and intimidating with his glower, striding toward her.
Her windows were already open due to the heat, and he curled large hands around the frame and dipped his head down to look at her.
“Let me give you some advice, Hailey.” His voice was ice and it worked in chilling her to the bone.
“Stay away from them,” he continued. “You’re nothing but trouble and you’ve got no place in their lives. Not Sarah’s, Emily’s, or any of the McLaughlins’.”
Her stomach clenched at the verbal kick. He fit well into his law enforcement image. Writing her off as trouble, no doubt because of who her family had been. Even if she hadn’t seen them in years.
“Well aren’t you the protective guy in the family,” she couldn’t help but reply tightly past the hurt.
“Aye. I sure as hell am. But you don’t really want to find out through trial and error.”
She gave a laugh of disbelief, and knew she should’ve bitten her tongue as she muttered a snarky, “You sure you’re not overcompensating for something by wearing that badge, Sheriff?”
His nostrils flared. “Excuse me?”
She turned her gaze away from his unsettling stare. “I’ll stay away, Colin. You don’t need to worry about me.”
No one had in years anyway. She did fine on her own, and would continue to do so.
Still, as she backed out of the parking lot, she couldn’t help but lift her gaze to the rearview.
Colin hadn’t moved, but watched after her with an even deeper scowl still.
Maybe Mother Nature had to be somewhat kind and make him sexy, because clearly the man was a judgmental asshole. And actually kind of mean.
And he called her trouble?
She grunted and turned her gaze back to the road.
Stay away from the McLaughlins? No problem.
The End