“All will be revealed when we get home.”
“Oh?”
“And I want you to know that whatever you decide to do is okay by me. I'm ready to let this secret out. It’s been too long and I don’t want it hanging over me anymore and I don’t want it coming between us.”
“You’re making me nervous.”
“I hope you will understand and not judge me too much.” He sighed. “I’m not proud of myself, Savannah, but I want to be a better man for you and our future kids.”
“What is it, Wade?”
“You’ll see.”
Wade helped me into the house and I could feel my legs shaking with nerves as we made our way towards the kitchen. I froze as we entered the room and I saw Lucy, Henry and another man sitting at the table. The man had a long unkempt beard, long stringy hair and appeared to be in his sixties.
“What’s going on?” I looked over to Wade, whose face was pale.
“Savannah, I’d like to introduce you to my dad, Joseph Hart.”
“What?” My jaw dropped and I stared at him in shock. “But, but, he’s dead.”
“That’s what they thought.” The older man stood up, a smile on his face as he approached me. As he got closer, I recognized the familiar green eyes. Wade’s dad was alive, but what?
“I need to sit down.” I turned to Wade and he walked me over to a chair. We all sat down and I stared at Wade. “What’s going on here?”
“It’s really quite simple.” He sighed and shook his head. “My dad was a philanderer and a bad business man. He cheated on my mom and got another woman pregnant, which caused my mom to leave. My dad wanted her back and basically lost control.”
“I made some bad investments.” His dad spoke up. “I put the company on the line as collateral. I was going to lose it all, but then I had an idea.”
“What idea?” I frowned.
“I had insurance policies that would pay out upon my death.” He shrugged. “And they would save the company. The company that was meant to go to my sons.”
“So you faked your death? And you knew?” I turned to Wade. “You were in on it?”
“Not originally.” Wade shook his head. “Henry and I saw him jump. We thought he’d killed himself.” He sighed. “But one summer we went hunting and we found the cabin. He was there.”
“We couldn’t say anything.” Henry spoke up. “It would look like we were a part of the fraud. We’d already collected millions and millions of dollars and reinvested them back into the company. Wade saved the company, but if it came out that our dad was still alive, we knew we’d be prosecuted for fraud. We’d go to jail.” He clenched his fist. “And we weren’t even a part of the plan.”
“Oh wow.” I nodded my understanding though my mind was still blown. Then something occurred to me. “But I think someone else knows...” My eyes were wide. “I think Beryl from the cafe knows. I think her husband saw your dad.”
“She knows.” Wade sighed. “Do you remember when we went to the cafe and she served us the grilled cheese?”
“Yeah why?”
“It’s my favorite.” Joseph grinned. “I always tell Wade to get me the ingredients for grilled cheese when he goes shopping. I could live on them and venison.”
“Weird.” I shook my head. “But that explains the shopping list I found.” I rubbed my forehead. “And you trust her not to tell?”
“Beryl was one of the women my dad had an affair with.” Wade pursed his lips. “He broke her heart, but she would never betray him.”
“Beryl?” I looked at the father. “But isn’t she older?”
“Pussy is pussy.” The dad said and Wade glared at him.
“That’s enough.” Wade growled. “My dad has always beaten to the beat of his own drum. He’s also the one that was sneaking into the house and taking stuff.”
“Oh okay, so it wasn’t Gordon?”
“No, it wasn’t.” Wade squeezed my hand, knowing how guilty I was feeling. “Don’t you dare feel bad for suspecting him?”
“I’m trying.” I took a deep breath. “You thought I’d turn you into the police if I found out? That’s why you were worried?”
“A little bit, but I was also falling for you and I didn’t want to put you in a compromising position.” He rubbed his head. “This information, well, it can get us into trouble and now you know, it puts you in a bad situation as well.”
“Oh Wade.” I got up and