Brendan (The Doherty Mafia Book 4) by Kasey Krane (summer reads TXT) 📗

room to check on him and I realized he looks exactly like I did at that age. He has my eyes.”

My nostrils flared as I felt another bout of tears welling up inside me.

“And then you left,” I said.

Brendan sat beside me on the couch.

It was the truth. That was exactly what had happened. As soon as he figured out that he was Davey’s father, he had left us. Just as I’d expected him to.

“I needed some time to think,” he said, after being silent for a few moments.

“Would you have even shown up again if you didn’t find out about the kidnapping?” I asked, wiping my tears.

Now that it was established that I couldn’t do anything for Davey, the only thing distracting me was directing all my frustration and anger at Brendan. Didn’t I have every right to be angry with him?

“Maybe I could have dealt with it in a different way if I was told the truth by you,” he said. Brendan looked up at me from under his heavy lidded eyes. He was frustrated too.

I clasped my hands together in my lap, tangling my fingers together.

“I guess I was waiting for the right opportunity,” I replied.

“You can stop lying to me now, Rosalie. More importantly, you can stop lying to yourself. You were never going to tell me. You wanted me gone from your life. From Davey’s life. You had plenty of opportunity to confess.”

I tore my gaze away from him, breaking down in sobs again.

“I didn’t know what I was doing, I felt so lost and confused. I didn’t want to disappoint Davey. I didn’t think you would want to be a father.”

I hoped he would take me in his arms again, that he would quickly forgive me for keeping the truth from him—but he didn’t.

“That was not a decision for you to make. To decide whether I want to be a father or not.”

“You can admit it, Brendan. Now that I know about your history. You never wanted kids. You don’t want to be a father.”

He banged his fists on the coffee table, hard enough that he made the coasters jump.

“Damn right I didn’t. I never wanted to be a father. You’ve got it all figured out pretty well. But what made you think I would abandon my responsibility as a father? That I wouldn’t fall in love with Davey. That I wouldn’t feel a connection to my own son? He’s my flesh and blood. He’s a Doherty. You thought I would reject him?”

He spat the words out with venom in his voice. In those moments, it seemed like he truly hated me. I hated myself too.

“Brendan, I’m sorry,” I murmured.

He stood up and walked to the window, keeping his back turned to me firmly.

“It’s too late for that now. If I knew the truth, Davey wouldn’t have been taken. If I knew he is my son, I would have known they were coming for him and I would have protected him.”

I knew he was right. I had made a poor error in judgement. I knew that now, but there was nothing I could do to change it. There was nothing I could do to bring my son back.

I went up to Brendan, and when he still didn’t turn to look at me I placed a hand on his shoulder. Finally, he turned.

“I’m going to find him, Rosalie. He’s my kid. I’m not going to let anyone hurt him. I promise you that.”

I nodded. I believed him. He had no idea how relieved I was to hear it. I wished he would have taken me in his arms and kissed me.

“I know I’ve made a mistake by not telling you about Davey, but I thought it would have been easier to just raise him myself.”

“You could have found me. You knew who I was. Everyone around here knows who I am.”

I nodded. “Yes, I know that. I’m not going to lie. It was a conscious decision on my part to keep Davey from you. I thought I was saving him a lot of disappointment.”

“By not letting him have a relationship with his father?” Brendan narrowed his eyes accusingly at me. He had every right to.

“I genuinely thought you ditched me that night at the party. I assumed that was the kind of father you would make.”

He brushed a hand through his hair and shook his head.

“I would never desert my own flesh and blood.”

“I didn’t know that. I knew nothing about you.”

My lips quivered. I knew more tears were coming. I felt helpless because I couldn’t help my son, and also because Brendan hated me now.

But then he grabbed me by my hips and pulled me in. He used his thumbs to gently wipe my tears away.

“We can talk about all this later. Right now, we just need to focus on finding Davey.”

“How much longer will it be?”

“I don’t know. I’m waiting to hear from my brothers, but none of us will give up until he’s asleep in his own bed safely.”

I nodded. Tears still rolled down my cheeks, but he was there now to catch them. I wasn’t sure if he would ever forgive me for all the wasted time. For missing Davey’s birth, for missing his first steps and his first words. But for now, there wasn’t anyone else who I could rely upon more.

Mom was right—I had been wrong about Brendan all along.

I looked up expectantly at him, hoping he would kiss me, but he released me and turned to look out of the window again.

“Come on, kiddo, where are you?” he mumbled under his breath.

I watched his reflection in the glass. He looked determined and enraged as he stared out at the streets. I pressed my eyes close and whispered to Davey that I loved him.

Twenty-Six

Brendan

Even though it seemed like a long time, it hadn’t been that long that we were waiting at the apartment—probably like half an hour—before all my brothers showed up.

Tristian had