Moonlight Road (Virgin River #11)(64)

He plunged his hands into his pockets and scowled at her, backing away. “Don’t throw God’s name around here, Annalee. You conned me. You used me, set me up, tricked me, almost had me court-martialed, almost cost me my residency, my career, and once I wrote you a check, you ran for your life. I don’t even want to know what went wrong in your ever-complex scheming to bring you around here, but—”

“Aiden,” Maureen said sharply. “Son.”

“Mom, you shouldn’t be hearing this. This isn’t for you to hear. This was a horrible catastrophe and I’m not proud of it, but I swear to you, I was the victim. I was the—” And then he stopped. Sure, he was the victim in his mind, but he’d been a twenty-eight-year-old man, a doctor. He should have been so much smarter. He had thrown caution to the wind, went wild with this little tart and got caught breaking military rules. Stupid rules, he thought—you should be able to date whomever you liked, regardless of rank or commission—but that was not the case, so he was caught.

He couldn’t prove she’d set him up.

“I was twenty-one,” she repeated. “I thought I loved you. We made some mistakes but I think we deserve—”

“No!” he said. “We are done! I’ll get that divorce taken care of! You can leave!”

“Aiden,” Maureen said again. “Sit down with the woman. You don’t have to talk to her alone. One of your brothers or George can sit in. But, Aiden, you absolutely must—”

A very loud and long groan came out of Shelby. She bent over her stomach, holding it, groaning and then breathing deeply. Luke was immediately on one knee beside her, rubbing a hand along her back. It was quite a while before Shelby lifted her head, her eyes clouded with tears. “Sorry. As much as I wanted labor, I hate to leave before I find out how this comes out. But—I have to go to the hospital.”

“Okay, baby,” Luke said, helping her stand. “How long have you been having them?”

“Since what’s-her-name got here. Call Mel to meet us there and grab my little duffel, will you?”

Luke was off to do her bidding. “Sean, we need you to keep tabs on Art. Aiden, if you can’t come, we understand.”

“I’m coming. Of course I’m coming. Annalee—I need you out of here. I’ll take your phone number. I’ll call you. I’ll get this sorted out, but you are out of here. No way you stay on my family’s property while I’m not here.”

Annalee dropped her gaze and shuffled down the porch steps like a pitiful, rejected little girl, and Aiden took in his mother’s pained expression. He noticed that George put an arm around Maureen’s shoulders and gave comfort.

Annalee walked to her car, opened the passenger door and took out a small, elegant clutch. She opened it, pulled out a business card and took it to Aiden. He studied it for a second. Annalee Riordan—Fashion Consultant. There was a cell number.

Okay, this was more proof in Aiden’s mind that she was a liar and a con. Part of that divorce decree demanded that she resume the use of her maiden name—Kovacevic. And yet she was still using his name? How long had she really known the divorce hadn’t worked? And had she had anything to do with that?

“We don’t get cell reception in the mountains, Annalee,” he said as calmly as possible. “My sister-in-law is in labor and I’m going to the hospital with them. There are some nice motels in Fortuna—go there. If you’re anywhere near Virgin River, I’ll get a restraining order. I’ll call you when I’m free to talk.”

She shook her head and tears poured out of her large blue eyes. “Why are you so cruel?” she asked him. “This isn’t my fault. None of this is my fault.”

“You’re supposed to be using your maiden name,” he said. “Not Riordan. You’re just playing me again, Annalee, and you’d better move on. I mean it.”

“Oh, Aiden…” She let her chin drop and she cried, placing trembling hands over her face.

He just stood in front of her, hands in his pockets. When she looked up, her tearstained face looking for all the world authentic, he said, “Save it. I don’t buy it. Now, get out of here.”

He heard his mother gasp in shock. Annalee lifted her chin and said, “All right, Aiden. I’ll go. Please just take care of the divorce. You have my phone number and e-mail address if there’s a problem.”

“Fine. Go. Now.” Then he watched as Annalee bravely turned, got in her late-model Lexus and backed away from Luke’s house until she could turn around.

“I don’t believe I’ve ever heard you speak to another human being like that in my life,” Maureen said, clearly appalled. “Especially a woman. A woman in tears.”

“Not just any woman,” he said without looking at his mother. “Sean, I’m going to the hospital—Luke wants me to be there. It’s not as though I can do anything—maybe he wants someone who can help him understand how and why things are happening. I’ll take you, Mom, if you want to ride with me. Or if you don’t think you can stand my company, George can take you.”

“I don’t think George wants to sit around a hospital, waiting for a baby to come, and I won’t miss it. Besides, I’d like a chance to talk to you.”

He shook his head a little bit. “I don’t think there’s any possible way I can satisfy your curiosity, but I’ll tell you what I can.” He turned to his brother. “Sean, please hear me on this—make sure Annalee isn’t hanging around here. She’s destructive. I wouldn’t dare try to predict what she might do next.”