The thought of growing old alone had never bothered him. His marriage to Chloe had been over for years before she’d actually left, and he had long been used to being alone.
Alone was good. Alone was undemanding. Alone was the freedom to do what he wanted, when he wanted. Alone was uncomplicated.
Alone sucked!
He crossed the room to hand Casey her glass of brandy, a frown creasing his brow as he noted the way she deliberately avoided her hand coming into contact with his.
She could no longer even bear for him to touch her casually!
He took a swallow of his own brandy before speaking. ‘Casey—’
‘I’m sorry to interrupt, Mr Fraser—’
‘Not now, Hilton!’ Xander growled, and he turned to glare at the manservant standing in the doorway.
Damn it, he had never realised what an intrusion household staff could be until Casey came into his life! Every time he tried to talk to her, it seemed for one reason or another Hilton came in and interrupted.
Except yesterday evening, in Xander’s study…
It was probably just as well that the butler hadn’t walked in on that particular scene!
The elderly man had the grace to look apologetic. ‘I really am sorry for the interruption, Mr Fraser, but Mr Henderson has called—’
‘Tell him I’ll ring him back later,’ Xander instructed, not at all interested in yet another confrontation with his ex-father-in-law.
‘You misunderstand me, Mr Fraser,’ Hilton persisted. ‘When I said he had called, I meant that he’s here—at the house.’
‘Here?’ Xander repeated, with a scowl. ‘Now?’
‘He’s waiting in the hallway, sir.’
Xander looked at Casey, noting that her eyes were wide with an apprehension she couldn’t hide. ‘If you would rather go upstairs while I talk to Brad…?’
He was offering her a way out, Casey realised. A chance to escape any further insults from his ex-father-in-law.
She straightened her shoulders, her chin rising. ‘No, I don’t think so, thank you,’ she refused quietly, surprised when Xander reached out and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.
‘Good girl,’ he murmured approvingly, before turning back to the waiting butler. ‘Show Mr Henderson in, Hilton.’
Casey was aware of Xander’s hand still holding hers when Brad Henderson was shown into the room. The older man’s gaze narrowed immediately as he took in that outward show of intimacy.
Which was probably why Xander had done it, Casey thought.
Obviously the two men hadn’t come to any compromise after all—so what had Xander needed to talk to her about so urgently earlier on?
‘Brad,’ Xander greeted him curtly, once the three of them were alone.
‘Xander,’ the older man acknowledged with a nod. ‘Mrs Bridges,’ he added, surprisingly.
‘Casey will do,’ Xander was the one to suggest.
Brad Henderson gave a brief smile. ‘I—I believe the two of you are to be married tomorrow?’ he began awkwardly.
‘Yes, we are,’ Xander replied firmly.
Yes, they were? Casey thought, relieved.
Xander hadn’t changed his mind about the marriage, after all?
Or was he just saying the wedding was going ahead for the other man’s benefit…?
‘Yes. Well.’ Brad Henderson looked decidedly uncomfortable. ‘I—’ He broke off, breathing heavily.
‘Can I get you a drink, Brad?’ Xander offered gently. ‘You look as if you could do with one.’
The older man quirked a rueful brow. ‘That obvious, is it?’
‘Yes,’ Xander drawled, releasing Casey’s hand to move across the room to the drinks cabinet. ‘Bourbon on the rocks?’
‘Thanks,’ the other man accepted, glancing at Casey once Xander had handed him his drink. ‘I believe I owe you an apology, Mrs—Casey,’ he amended stiffly.
‘You do,’ Xander agreed, before Casey could think of an appropriate reply. ‘You were extremely rude to her three weeks ago,’ he pointed out as he moved back to stand at Casey’s side.
One thing was becoming very clear to Casey—Brad Henderson had had some sort of change of heart. Perhaps it meant the wedding didn’t even need to take place.
It was what she had feared from the beginning, of course. The reason she had insisted on meeting Brad Henderson three weeks ago—to ascertain that his threat was genuine.
Although the reasons for her misgivings now were no longer the same as they had been then!
She had fallen in love with Xander over the last three weeks.
She wanted to marry him.
She wanted to wake up beside Xander every day for the rest of her life. Wanted to have more children with him. Wanted the two of them to watch all their children grow up together. Wanted to grow old with him…!
Brad tried to smile. ‘I’m afraid I wasn’t quite myself when we last met, Mrs—Casey,’ he offered.
She inclined her head graciously. ‘It was perfectly understandable, following your recent loss.’
‘Perhaps,’ he accepted.
‘It wasn’t understandable at all after what Casey had already been through,’ Xander refuted. ‘You were bloody insulting, Brad,’ he added grimly. ‘To both Casey and myself.’
The other man had put him in an unacceptable position because of his threats concerning Lauren, and Xander, for one, didn’t intend letting him get away with it that easily.
Brad ran a hand through the thickness of his hair and he looked shame-faced. ‘I was, wasn’t I?’ he acknowledged with a grimace. ‘I really do apologise, Casey,’ he turned to tell her gruffly. ‘I—if you and Xander have managed to find some happiness together out of this mess, then I sincerely wish you well.’ Brad raised his glass and took a huge swallow of his bourbon. ‘I may have been an over-indulgent father, Xander, but I wasn’t blind. I always knew that you and Chloe weren’t particularly happy together—’
‘We weren’t happy together at all,’ Xander said bluntly, welcoming Brad’s apology.
‘No. Well.’ Brad gave a shuddering sigh. ‘I knew that, of course. But she was my daughter, Xander,’ he appealed. ‘And despite everything I loved her.’
‘Of course you did.’ Casey was the one to answer him soothingly.
‘But that’s no excuse, is it, Xander?’ Brad looked across at him regretfully. ‘I put you in a terrible position three weeks ago, with my threats concerning Lauren.’ He gave a self-disgusted shake of his head. ‘If it’s any consolation, I’ve come here this evening to eat humble pie.’
Xander watched as Casey moved gracefully across the room to Brad’s side, to place her hand lightly on his arm. ‘Why don’t you sit down for a while, and perhaps the three of us can talk quietly together?’ she invited.
She really was the most incredible woman, Xander acknowledged with growing wonder. Most women in the same position, having previously been insulted and ridiculed, would have told Brad just what they thought of him. Chloe certainly would have done. But Casey, being Casey, was being gentle and understanding.
He could only hope for that same gentleness from her when the two of them talked together, once Brad had left.
Brad was just as amazed. ‘I can’t believe someone like you was ever married to that complete—’ He broke off, realising he was about to be rude again. ‘Insulting the man isn’t going to bring Chloe back,’ he acknowledged shakily.
Xander felt for him, he really did, and his own anger faded. He knew what it must be costing the other man to come here this evening and abase himself like this.
Brad continued. ‘I want you both to know that I’d no idea Bridges was even married until I called to see Chloe one weekend and Bridges’ son Josh was actually staying there with them. Chloe didn’t tell me that the two of them setting up home together had broken up two families, not just one. And even once I knew about Josh, Chloe assured me that the marriage had been over long before she’d entered Bridges’ life. But that wasn’t true either, was it?’ He sighed.
Casey felt so sorry for this man. She knew that he must have faced some harsh realities about his daughter in the three weeks since he had met her, and Xander had told him the truth about the break-up of her marriage.
‘No, it wasn’t.’ Xander was the one to answer the other man harshly. ‘I told you three weeks ago what really happened.’
‘Yes.’ Brad Henderson nodded. ‘But even then I couldn’t believe it—couldn’t accept that Chloe had done such a thing. It was only after I spoke to you on the telephone in New York, when you insisted you were telling me the truth, that I sat down and realised how wrong I’ve been. You’ve never lied to me in the way that Chloe did, Xander. I want you to know I’m not going ahead with any custody battle over Lauren. I—she’s better off with you. And Casey,’ he added, with a brief smile in her direction. ‘I had better go now.’ He stood up abruptly to drain the last of his bourbon, before placing the empty glass on the coffee table. ‘I hope that some time in the future you will be able to forgive me for the trouble I’ve caused, and that—that you will let me see my granddaughter from time to time.’ He gave Xander a hopeful look.