Which naturally only made me bawl harder. He wasn’t just claiming me in this moment. He maybe even wanted me to be a part of his life? Oh my God, it was stupid that such a little comment could have me come apart at the seams.
Montgomery kept wiping my eyes, being big-brotherly already, as Rafe rubbed my back. Tucked between Montgomery at my front and Rafe at my back, I’d never felt more protected. I knew in that moment that the two of them would do anything to protect me, even though I barely knew Montgomery. I knew what sort of man he was by his reputation and from my brief interactions with him growing up as Rafe’s friend.
He was a good man.
And he was my brother. The thought brought a fresh rush of joy and gratitude. And then I remembered, holy shit, I had a father now, too.
I reached out and grasped Montgomery’s hands. “What’s our dad like?” I asked eagerly.
Montgomery’s face immediately fell. “I’m so sorry. He’s a complete asshole piece of shit. Don’t get your hopes up.”
I felt disappointed but then nodded. I’d always known in the back of my head that any man who didn’t claim me and left my mom in the state that she’d been was likely not a great man. It was okay to have it confirmed, even though it still hurt that Mr. Kingston had never wanted any part of me. But that wasn’t Montgomery’s fault. I clutched Montgomery’s hands tighter and smiled at him. “I can’t wait to meet Grace.”
Montgomery just shook his head in wonder at me again and pulled me close for another hug. Then he pulled back and stood tall, glaring out at the crowd around us. “This Trial… no”—his face flushed with anger and certainty—“this entire Initiation, is hereby over. My sister will endure no more. She has passed with flying colors and has earned her reward. This ends today. Right this second.”
Rafe moved from behind me so that he stood by my side. He reached out and clasped my hand, standing tall. “I’ll be finishing with Fallon, one way or the other. It’s up to you to decide if I’ve passed or failed my Initiation.”
Then my beloved Rafe’s strong face crumpled as he looked at his father. “I’m sorry, Dad. I’m sorry I couldn’t do these Trials the way you wanted me to. I couldn’t stay quiet. I couldn’t be the man Tim was. I’m just not him.”
And then Rafe’s facade really cracked, and his voice broke. “And I’m so fucking sorry for Tim. He called me that night. It’s my fault. He called and asked me for a ride. But I didn’t pick up. If only I’d just picked up. I could have saved him, but I didn’t pick up.”
Rafe’s father broke from the crowd and he headed towards Rafe, the usually reserved man’s face full of an emotion I’d never seen. “Oh, son, no. No, don’t think that. You’ve carried that all these years? I knew he called you. I saw his phone logs back then. Son, he called me too that night.”
“What?” Rafe all but barked.
Rafe’s father had gotten to him and reached out and grabbed his son’s shoulders. “I talked to him that night. I’m sorry I never told you. I’m so, so sorry. I didn’t know how to talk about that night. I’m sorry, son. He was drunk. Again. I told him not to drive. He promised me he wouldn’t. I offered to pick him up, but he said he was just going to sleep it off in his truck. He swore it. Son, it wouldn’t have mattered if you’d picked up. He would have told you the same. Usually, he did sleep it off in his truck if he’d drunk too much.
“But sometimes, and I didn’t realize it until after that…” His father’s voice cracked. “Until after that night, that sometimes he didn’t. Sometimes he drove anyway. Your brother had his troubles. I’m so sorry. But it wasn’t your fault, Rafe. It wasn’t your fault.”
And those words were Rafe’s breaking point, because he dropped his face into his father’s shoulder and his back shook in a way that I knew meant he was crying. His father tugged him in and awkwardly patted his back, neither man familiar with showing emotion in front of the other.
But they were trying, and I knew I was witnessing a healing moment, for the both of them. Oh, Rafe, oh, baby. I hoped after this moment he could truly believe it deep, deep down. It wasn’t his fault.
Even if circumstances were different, it wouldn’t have been his fault. Tim was responsible for his own actions that night. Rafe had done nothing to make Tim drink and drive, and I was glad if this could finally help him believe it and know it in his soul. It would be the first step anyway.