Troy resisted the urge to grin because now the drama was coming out of the actress. She clearly felt the need to drive home the point that his chosen profession was worthwhile.
“When was this?” Zach asked, his eyes narrowed.
“A few months ago,” Julie said. “He got shot.”
“She got shot twice,” Troy said, making sure Zach knew the real story. But he never took his eyes off Julie and she had her gaze locked onto his.
“But he was working for someone else and saved me.”
He’d do again in a heartbeat. “The best decision of my life.” The words were too intimate, said with too much emotion, but Troy couldn’t seem to keep the feeling out of his tone. He saw the shift in Julie’s eyes. Saw that she understood what he was saying without the actual words. It was another solid reminder that he needed to come clean with her, so he tore his gaze away from her amazing blue eyes and brought it back to Zach. “I happened to be at the right place at the right time.”
“Or wrong place at the wrong time, depending on how you look at it,” Julie said.
“I’m just glad you’re both okay.” Zach glanced between them. “Is that how you two met?”
Julie’s hint of a smile turned his hard heart to mush.
“It is,” he said. But he couldn’t talk about his relationship with her just now. “To get back to your other question. With Mom gone, I didn’t see much reason to come back. Plus there existed the possibility that my dad—Jim—moved back and I wanted to stay clear of him. I honestly didn’t think anyone missed me.”
Zach’s hurt gaze stabbed a knife in his chest. “I missed you, son. I missed you.” Zach moved away from the fireplace and sat on the end of the sofa. Troy took the spot on the other side. “You know, Celia and I tried for years and couldn’t have kids. And here I was so jealous of Jim because I thought he got your mother pregnant before they were even married.
“It was just the one night. One night when I was so hurt and broken and she was there trying to pick up the pieces.” He ran a hand through his hair. “I never knew her feelings for me were so strong. I only knew she helped me through a very dark time. I loved your Aunt Celia from day one. When she broke things off with me, I thought that was it. I didn’t see how I could live without her.” He chuckled but there wasn’t any humor in it. “We had ten amazing years together, but it was your mother who got the prize. She got you.”
Troy had never imagined hearing this information. He swallowed the lump in his throat.
“I missed all those years with you,” Zach said. He exhaled a short burst of air. “You know, the thing of it is, had I known, I honestly don’t know what I would’ve done. I loved Celia. Your mother was sweet and I had a special place for her...” Zach trailed off and shook his head. “She got a raw deal,” he finally said. “So did you.” He looked up. “You were always special to me, Troy. You were the son I wanted so badly. The son I never had. When Jim took you away, I think he knew he was taking the last thing that meant anything to me.”
“How long do you think he knew about it?” Troy asked.
“Hard to say. Celia died and I think he worried that your mother was going to take the chance and tell me about you.”
“Worried enough to push her down a flight of steps?” Troy wondered aloud.
Zach’s face drained of color. “What?” The surprise in his tone matched the look on his face. “Did you see that?” he finally asked.
“No. I heard her fall and came in after she...” He closed his eyes and saw her sprawled out on the floor, her head at an odd angle. He swallowed back the emotion that threatened to destroy him every time he thought about that night. Shaking his head, he felt the sting in his eyes just as he had when he’d looked up to see his father at the top of the stairs. Though there might have been surprise in the man’s eyes, Troy saw evil.
“Were they arguing?” Zach asked.
Troy nodded. They’d always argued. More like Jim argued and