If You Must Know (Potomac Point #1)(14)

He might, too. He’d always been protective of Erin and me.

Now Kevin was already furious, and he didn’t even know the full scope of the situation. My stomach cramped again. I must’ve winced, because my mother’s expression pinched.

“What’s wrong, Amanda?” she asked.

“I’m stressed out.” My voice faltered as I massaged my belly with both hands.

Kevin dialed back his anger. “That’s not good for the baby.”

“I know!” Another round of tears clogged my throat, but I fought them.

Kevin rubbed his thighs while taking a deep breath. “If you don’t need a divorce lawyer, why am I here?”

“Well . . . ,” I began. My mom pressed her palms to her cheeks, and the position Lyle had put us in crushed me. “Partly I wanted advice about what I should do in case Lyle asks for a divorce—I mean, mostly I’m concerned about custody, but I also wanted to get an idea about child support and alimony, although . . .” I hesitated, bracing myself. “That might be complicated by the fact that Lyle borrowed money from Mom for this deal in Florida.”

“What?” Kevin sat up, spine erect, eyes wide. “When?”

“Soon after Lyle started his own business two months ago, he got an inside line on the condo development deal in Florida, but he didn’t want to touch his 401(k) because of penalties, and we’d used a bunch of our savings to buy the house. He was scrambling to raise funds in time to scoop the deal. Mom overheard us talking and offered to lend him Dad’s death benefit money.”

Kev whipped his head in her direction, making her start in her seat. “How much?”

She flinched, and I shuddered along with her. “Most of it.”

“You gave Lyle half a million dollars?” Kevin pretty much sprang off the sofa, arms raised before they slapped his sides.

“Not all . . .” Mom’s voice rose, unaccustomed to having to answer to her children.

I pressed my body into my chair as if it could hide me. Bile filled my throat when I thought about the four hundred thousand dollars she’d lent my husband. We’d both put our faith in him without a second thought, but Mom never would’ve bankrolled him if she’d suspected he’d been sleeping with another woman.

Kevin ran a hand through his hair, then glared at me. “Was it his idea to keep this from me . . . and I assume from Erin as well?”

“We weren’t hiding it,” Mom insisted. “It was my money. I didn’t need anyone’s permission.”

I looked away because, while neither of us had ever spoken of it, we’d tacitly agreed to keep the loan quiet to avoid the appearance of playing favorites. Truthfully, while Erin had been Dad’s pet, I’d been Mom’s. Maybe that was because I was her first daughter, or because I’d been willing to meet her high expectations. I don’t know. I never wanted to question it.

Kevin shook his head. “I’m a lawyer, Mom. You didn’t think it might be a good idea to let me structure the loan?”

“I didn’t want a lot of guff.” Despite her firm voice, my mom’s shoulders curled over her chest.

“Stop it, Kevin,” I said. “If you’ve got to yell at someone, yell at me.”

His glower’s sharp edge slipped beneath my skin like a splinter. He opened his mouth but then, after a quick glimpse of my stomach, clamped it shut. The living room pulsed with tension. With his eyes now closed, he drew another long breath. “Tell me there are loan documents and a bank account we can access.”

Now I really and truly wished to disappear.

“Lyle printed a form off the internet—a promissory note. It seemed good enough to cover a family loan. He’s meeting with potential investors in Florida now. As soon as they kick in, he’ll pay her back . . . probably by the end of this year even.”

That’s what he’d promised, and despite everything, I believed that much.

“If he gets investors. Real estate deals are risky as hell.” Kevin pounded the heels of his palms against his forehead. “How could you two be so reckless?”

“I’m sorry!” I croaked. “At the time I had no reason not to trust my husband. He’s always been hardworking and successful, kept his promises, been good to our parents. Mom offered. I saw no harm. We thought this deal would be a game changer for our future.”

“And now?” Kevin spoke through gritted teeth.

“In hindsight, we could’ve been smarter. But he signed the loan papers. Lyle always pays his debts, but until those investors come through, it might be hard to make both the loan payments and pay child support. That’s why I need your advice.”

“Amanda, if he only signed a note, then it’s an unsecured loan. What happens if he isn’t married to you anymore and his big deal flops? He won’t be very motivated to figure out how to repay Mom then, will he?” Kevin scrubbed his face with one hand, while my stomach turned at the wrinkle I’d never considered. “Given what he’s putting you through, he should return whatever he hasn’t already spent on this deal.” Kev turned to Mom. “Where’s that promissory note?”

“It’s in the office, I think.” Visibly shaken, she stared at the ground. The thousands of kids she’d intimidated as the school librarian would be shocked to see her humbled.