Moonlight Road (Virgin River #11)(67)

“Oh, Aiden, you must have been very involved with her,” Maureen said.

He didn’t blush; he was too angry to blush. “Very,” he said. “We weren’t married a week before it got strange. She had violent mood swings, and the sweet little girl would become a lunatic who screamed and threw things.” He gave a hollow laugh. “I tried to get her help. I wanted her evaluated, but she wouldn’t go along with that. She’s not mentally ill, Mother—she knows exactly what she’s doing. I can’t prove it, but I’m convinced she saw me coming—young doctor, just off a boat and without female companionship for a long, long time…”

“But there are lots of women in the navy,” Maureen naively pointed out.

“Mom, I couldn’t date women who served on the ship—we were working together.”

“Of course,” she said quietly.

“Annalee, she told the most outrageous stories—she was everything from a spy for the resistance in Bosnia to a homeless teenager in L.A. She even once said she had cancer! I still don’t know the truth about her. She wouldn’t be around here unless she was after something. I need to get her out of our lives.”

“But, Aiden, how can you be so sure?”

“Ask Luke,” he said. “I called him, described how crazy my life had gotten and he came out right away. I met him at the airport and brought him back to my apartment. Annalee wasn’t home when we got there, so I shoved him in the second bedroom and told him to stay put and listen when she walked in the door. I confronted her about a huge credit-card bill and she started screaming and throwing things. He witnessed it. He understands what I’m talking about. He drove her to a hotel, gave her some money to hold her off and called Sean.” He stole a glance at Maureen as he drove. “Luke and Sean got me through the worst of it. Mom, she wouldn’t sign the divorce papers without a lot more money. I gave her ten thousand dollars to go away.”

Maureen groaned. To her, ten thousand dollars was a fortune. And to Maureen, who couldn’t lie if her life depended on it, this story must seem bit otherworldly.

“Now she tells me we’re not divorced. Well, if that’s true I’ll get it taken care of right away. But here’s the thing—don’t listen to her, don’t get sucked into her stories, her manipulation. I don’t know what she’s after, but five gets you ten it’s got commas and decimal points. Money, Mother. Really, I don’t know how far she’ll go. She’s a user and a liar.”

Maureen was quiet for a moment. “I never knew all this. And you boys—you used to joke about your crazy wife. You laughed about it.”

“After it seemed pretty apparent she was long gone, we laughed. What are you gonna do? I was an idiot—I fell right into it. But damn, I thought I was done paying for that lapse in judgment…”

“Aiden…” she said. “If you’re really not divorced, what can you do?”

“Get a really good lawyer,” he said.

When Aiden and Maureen got to the hospital, Mel was already there. Shelby was doing great but was only at four centimeters. It would likely be at least a few hours before it got interesting. Aiden visited her briefly, then begged off to run a couple of errands.

He returned the tux, then he called Erin. “Well, our evening is probably off. I got back to Luke’s to find Shelby in labor. I just returned the tux and am on my way back to Valley Hospital to wait with my mother. I’m sorry.”

“Good for her, too bad for us,” she said.

“Yeah…”

“Are you all right?”

“Fine. I just hate missing the night with you. But Luke wants me to be at the hospital. He’s been nervous about this.”

“But everything is all right?”

“It’s all good. She’s going to have a nice delivery…”

“Aiden? What do I hear in your voice?”

He was going to tell her, but not now, not like this. “Disappointment, probably.”

“Well, be tough. And no matter what time it is, please call me and tell me when the baby arrives. All right?”

“I will,” he promised. “Erin…?”

“Hmm?”

“Erin, I—Listen, thank you for last night. It was really…special…”

She didn’t say anything for a moment. “It was. It’s always special with you. But something’s—”

“I should probably get back, see how the mom and dad are doing. I’ll give you a call when something happens. How’s that?”

“Please,” she said. “And whatever’s bothering you? Try to let it go, will you? You’re the one who takes everything in stride. I’m the one who stews.”

He laughed slightly. “Let’s not stew. I probably won’t talk to you till morning. First babies tend to take their time.”

“I just hope she goes real easy. Give her my best.”

Twelve

Brett Lucas was born at three in the morning, seven pounds even. When he was placed on Shelby’s chest, her arms went instantly around him, though he was covered with muck and blood, and she kissed his head over and over. Luke kissed them both while the pediatric nurse tried to dry the baby.

Luke was vaguely aware of his mother nearby, the clicking of pictures Aiden took, of Mel talking about the cord, the placenta, the need for a couple of stitches, but it all seemed to be happening far outside this little sphere he shared with his wife and son. He slipped a big arm under her shoulders to hold her closer and whispered, “You’re the most amazing woman I’ve ever known and I don’t know why you love me this much.”