“Is Jan not coming?” He shrugged and stood up.
“No, she is. She’s gonna meet us there. She’s with your mom getting her hair or something done.”
I nodded, and we walked towards the door together, a mountain of space between us. As we made our way to the park, I couldn’t think of a single thing to say and Cooper walked beside me with slumped shoulders.
“Bailey?” he sighed as we reached the entrance to the play park and I turned to face him, taking a step back from the pain in his eyes.
“Are you really moving to Paris?” I shrugged and turned away feeling the sting of hurt beginning again.
“I’m not sure yet.”
He nodded without speaking and stepped ahead of me, making his way towards the playground.
Halfway to the playpark he stopped, and I plowed into his back almost falling backward, because I wasn’t looking where I was going. I was thinking about Paris, my gallery, and Coop and his wedding. I gasped when I thought of his wedding, and he turned as I took a step back, sitting on a tree stump.
“Bailey, what is it?” I glanced up at him with tear-filled eyes and spoke without thinking.
“Cooper, you’re getting married.”
He turned away from me and spoke so softly I almost missed it.
“Bailey, I can’t talk about that. Not with you.”
I nodded as tears clogged my eyes and my throat and I rubbed my hands over my face. I needed to be okay, I needed to be strong and be happy for him. I spoke to him softly, kissing his cheek before moving ahead as I said, “If she’s really what you want, then I’m happy for you.”
He nodded at me, stumbled before straightening up, and stared ahead as we continued walking to the play park. My heart was stomped on in the ground, and he looked as though he felt the same. We didn’t speak again, but I managed to have fun in the park. Cooper’s face lit up as he met his niece and nephew, but his eyes still showed pain, and Samantha looked between us and gave me a sympathetic smile.
When Jan arrived, the atmosphere got tense, and she somehow wound up having a go at Zane and Samantha because Serena got mud on her sweater. I rolled my eyes and scooped Serena off, calling to Oliver as we went off to play. I left the four of them to speak and enjoyed my time with the two children I adored.
After a while playing with the kids, I looked over to see Zane moving around furiously, and Sam trying to calm him down. Cooper and Jan were nowhere to be found, so I left the kids playing and moved over to find out what was going on. I kept them in my sights and moved back over as a man with a dog approached them, scooping them up and taking them back to their parents.
As I reached them, I heard what Zane was so annoyed about.
“Babe, both Bailey and I aren’t invited to their wedding. He’s my only brother, and he’s making a mistake. He doesn’t love her…”
Sam put her hand on his arm, her face shining with tears.
“Zane, he’s an adult, and he’s made a choice. He told you that. He told you Jan was his choice and there wasn’t anything you or Bailey could…”
Sam broke off as she saw me standing there and Zane followed her eyes.
“You, how could you let this happen? Tell him how you feel about him, and he won’t marry her.” Zane shouted at me and I shook my head as my eyes burned. Tears clouded my vision and Zane walked over and pulled me in for a hug, breathing hard.
“Bailey, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. I tried to talk with him, and he shut me down.”
I nodded against his chest and glanced at him and Sam.
“Are you guys hungry?” I asked and Oliver jumped up and down, yelling, “I am, I am.”
Sam glanced guiltily at Zane and I stared between them.
“What’s going on, guys?”
They shared another glance and I could see Sam pleading with Zane, but he shook his head at her and when she looked at the kids and then at me, she squared her shoulders.
“Zane’s company downsized, and he was let go. He wanted to come here to see his dad, and we’d arranged it months ago, but he lost his health insurance and last month I…” She paused and her pretty eyes filled with tears. Zane moved over to her and pulled her into his arms.
“Last month she had a miscarriage and it almost broke us. We were made homeless, but we sold most of our furniture and used the money from that and our savings to get here. We don’t have much left and because we’re living in our car, I can’t get a new job.”
His face fell and I reached over and touched his arm in sympathy.
“Fine, then you’ll just have to stay with me. I have the room and there’s space for the kids to play.” He looked taken aback for a moment and then Sam rushed at me enveloping me in a hug.
“Where’s your car?” I asked and we moved towards it. As they settled the kids into their car seats, Zane pulled me to the side.
“Bailey, you don’t have to do this.”
His low voice thrummed with pain and I hugged him hard.
“Yeah, I do. For your babies, you need somewhere better to stay. Please, Zane, stay with me.”
He nodded stiffly once and gruffly whispered, “Thank you. I’ll never forget it.”
He kissed my cheek and I told them to meet me at the gallery so I could lead them out to my house.
We made it back within forty minutes and I cooked lunch for the kids. My dad even joined us, but his eyes were tight as he took in Zane, Sam, and the kids. He soon mellowed though and was playing with the kids, when there was a knock at the door. It sounded official and I went to the door opening it to see Jay and his partner Sarah in their police uniforms.
“Bailey, is Zane here with you?” Jay asked in a serious voice and I nodded at him giving him a questioning look. He shook his head sadly at me, and they both moved into the property and read Zane his rights as they told him his dad was arresting him for stealing more jewelry from the family home when he’d visited. Zane swore he hadn’t, and I believed him, so did Jay. I could tell, but there was nothing I could do. As they loaded him into the car, I dialed the number I had for Cooper and praying he would help.
“Hello,” a female voice answered, and I knew it was Jan. My heart sank and I wanted to end the call, but I had to try. I was sure my mom had said something about Cooper being a lawyer or studying law, so I had to ask.
“Hi, is Cooper available?” Her sharp intake of breath told me she was furious at a female calling and that I wouldn’t be speaking to Coop.
“Who’s this?” she bit out and I sighed.
“It’s Bailey.” As soon as the words were out of my mouth the dial tone sounded in my ears.
I yelled in frustration and stood up, pacing around as I considered my options. Damn it, the only thing I could do would be to go back there and ask him face to face.
“Sam,” I called, “I’m going out for a little while, I’ll be back soon.” I closed the door and rushed to my car, through the downpour.
After driving in a deluge for half an hour, I finally reached the house and I sat outside for a few minutes readying myself for going in. A knock on my window made me jump and I rolled it down a little to see Coop standing there.
“Great, just the person. Get in.”
He nodded at my gruff tone and opened the door, jumping into the car.