Damn these tears. Why did she let Travis get to her? He had looked so young and vulnerable lying in that hospital bed, his closely-shorn hair reminded her of when they first got married. It was like she’d gone back in time. They’d had their first conflict-free moments together in years, had even shared a laugh. She had hoped the accident had knocked the smartass out of him. But it hadn’t. In no time, he reminded her that he wasn’t the sweet guy she’d married in the judge’s chambers, but a bitter, hateful man who enjoyed making her suffer.
No more!
She would let the old goat stay at her house during his recovery for Carly’s sake. With graduation looming and her daughter leaving for college at the end of the summer, it would be good for Travis and Carly to spend time together. Maggie would simply have to suck it up and not let his snide remarks get to her. Maybe if she and Buddy reset their wedding date and she stayed focused on the planning, Travis’s nasty comments wouldn’t sting so much.
Maggie stepped outside the hospital into the warm evening. There was a hint of summer on the breeze—the smell of freshly mowed grass and flowers blooming. She put in a call to Buddy. He was on an overnight trip to Columbus, and she suddenly missed him.
“Hey, darlin’, to what do I owe this pleasure?” His sweet-talk settled her jagged nerves. Buddy’s love was just what she needed after Travis’s cruelty.
“I was missing my man. How’s your trip going?”
“Successful. I have one more sales call tomorrow, and then I’ll head home. Are you free tomorrow night?”
“I’ll make sure I am.”
“How about we try out that new Italian restaurant in Clarksburg?”
“Sounds great.” Her voice quivered with emotion. Buddy was such a dear, and she suddenly felt guilty about running out on him.
“You okay, sweetheart?” Buddy was so sweet to worry. Travis certainly wouldn’t care.
“I’m fine. Just missing you. Let’s talk about rescheduling the wedding tomorrow night.”
“I’m all in. Just tell me when and where, and I’ll be there.”
“Okay.” A calming laugh gurgled up from her heart. She really was the luckiest woman to have Buddy in her life. “I can’t wait to marry you.”
“Same here, darlin’. You have a good evening and dream about me.”
“Absolutely. Be safe. I love you, Buddy.”
“Love you more. See you tomorrow night.”
Maggie held the phone to her chest, soaking up the love she felt from this amazing man. She’d had so much heartache in her other marriages, and she just knew Buddy would bring her the respect, tranquility, and security she craved. He was an honest, salt-of-the-earth kind of guy who would make a great husband. So what if he wasn’t funny or spontaneous or a dynamo in bed? He was a solid rock she could lean on.
A few minutes later, she was back in her car, heading south on the interstate when Penny called.
“Hey, I’m at the bar and down to only one bottle of tequila. Did you order any?”
“No, we had a whole case of Cuervo in the back.”
“There was only one bottle left in the case, and I don’t see any others. That won’t get us through the weekend.”
“That’s impossible. There were eight bottles of Patrón and a full case of Jose Cuervo on Thursday night when I worked. You can’t tell me we went through all that tequila.”
“I’ll ask the other bartenders, but my guess is we have a thief among them.”
“No way.” Maggie pulled to the shoulder, unable to talk shop and concentrate on traffic at the same time. A passing semi shook her car as she shut off the engine. “Look again. I’m telling you the case was there.”
“It’s there, but with only one bottle of Cuervo. We are totally out of Patrón.”
“I can’t believe one of the employees stole it. We have a good staff right now.”
“That’s what I thought, but we are definitely missing a few bottles.”
“What about the other liquor? How are we fixed for it?”
“We have plenty of everything else. Our thief is a tequila drinker.”
Maggie dropped her forehead to the steering wheel. She really didn’t need the added stress of a dishonest employee right now with everything happening. She wasn’t good at confrontation, but if they had to question each bartender and server about the missing tequila, that’s what they would do. They couldn’t afford a loss like that.
“Listen, I’m on my way back from Morgantown. I should be there in about forty-five minutes. We’ll figure this out.”
“In the meantime, I’m going to shake down the staff that’s here right now. Maybe a little intimidation will get their tongues wagging.”
Thank heavens for her pit bull of a sister. Penny had no qualms about getting in someone’s face. If only she had her backbone.
The next evening, Maggie sat alone in the little Italian restaurant. Its red-checkered tablecloths, wall mural of Venice, and opera drifting softly through the sound system combined to create the escape she had needed. Buddy was on his way back from Columbus, and they had planned to meet here. Brody and Carly had gone to pick up Travis from the hospital, and Maggie had left the house early to avoid seeing him. She didn’t want to be in a foul mood for her date with Buddy.
Her fiancé must have been just as anxious to see her. He arrived a few minutes early, rushing across the restaurant, sweeping her into his arms.
“There you are.” Buddy smacked a loud kiss on her lips. “You been waiting long, darlin’?”
“I got here a little early.” She kissed him back, but he still held tight. “Put me down. Everyone is staring.”
“Let ’em. They’re just jealous because I’ve got the prettiest girl in the room.”
“Oh, Buddy.” He sure knew how to boost her ego.
He finally released Maggie and pulled out her chair, taking a seat across from her at the small corner table. He plopped a blue velvet box on the table in front of her. “That’s for you.”
“Buddy, what did you do?”
“Got my girl a little something while I was in Columbus. Open it.”
The box creaked as Maggie lifted the lid, and she sucked in a surprised breath. “It’s beautiful.” Inside was a diamond-encrusted heart pendant on a gold chain. “I love it. What’s the occasion?”
“Do I need an occasion to show my love for you? Here . . .” He rushed around the table and draped the pendant around her neck, placing a kiss on her shoulder once it was clasped. His face was flushed with excitement when he returned to his seat. “You said you were ready to plan our wedding again, so I thought that little gem would be a good way to kick it off. You’ve already got an engagement ring.”
“I do, and I love it.” She admired the one-carat solitaire he’d given her the night he proposed. “You gave me a diamond necklace on our wedding day. You don’t have to spend so much money on me.”
“You’re worth it.”
“You’re so sweet.” She reached across the table and gathered his hand in hers. “And patient. I’m sorry about the way I acted at the hospital, and so sorry I haven’t spent any time with you this past week. I’ve just had so much on my mind.”
“No apologies necessary. I understand. But now that the whole Travis mess is behind you, let’s get back to getting married.”
“Yes. I have some ideas about that.”
“Let me hear ’em.”
“How about we get married the day after Carly leaves for college? We can drop her off in Columbia and drive to Miami. We’ll rebook our honeymoon cruise and have the captain marry us onboard.”
“What?” Buddy fell back against his chair, his face going slack. “What about the wedding we already planned? The pastor said he’d be glad to marry us any time.”
“I feel like those plans were jinxed. The reception went on without us—or me anyway—and all our guests would feel like they were repeating the same old thing. There would be no buzz of excitement or element of surprise.”
“But a cruise wedding? With a bunch of strangers? I want to get married ASAP.”
“We can wait a little longer, can’t we? Our wedding and honeymoon will be combined, and it will be a great way for me to get over Carly leaving home. I’ll start my new life with my wonderful new husband out on the open seas. Doesn’t it sound romantic?”
“Gosh, darlin’.”
“Just think about it. I don’t want to put a damper on tonight. Let’s enjoy dinner and each other. We don’t have to make any definite plans right now.”
“As long as you promise we’ll get married soon.”
“I promise.”
“I don’t need that,” Travis grumbled when Brody lifted the wheelchair from the trunk of his car. He had turned his body, placing both legs outside the car, ready to make his way into Maggie’s house on his own steam.
“Dad, the doctor said to use the wheelchair for another week or so.”
“Just give me the walker. I can do it.”
Brody rolled the wheelchair beside the car. “For once in your life would you listen to someone other than that stubborn voice in your head? Sit your ass in this wheelchair and let me get your inside.”
“The walker is only for getting in and out of bed,” Carly said, placing one hand under Travis’s arm and the other around his waist. “Let us help you into the chair.”
This was humiliating. His young daughter was helping him stand and his best friend was about to push him in a wheelchair. Talk about a blow to his male pride. He hoped to God Maggie wasn’t watching through a window.
“Fine. Just get me into this contraption and into the house.”
“That’s more like it.” Brody helped guide Travis to the wheelchair, not noticing the wince he held back. The simple maneuver into the wheelchair was like a knife to his side. The incision where they had taken out his spleen was throbbing, his head hurt, and pain ripped through his ribcage. He felt a hundred years old.
Carly unlocked the door as Brody pushed the wheelchair up the sidewalk toward a makeshift ramp.
“Did you build this?” Travis asked.
“It’s the one I built for Virginia after she fell. It’s been out in one of my barns.”
“Bet you never thought you’d need it so soon.” Travis clenched his teeth as the chair jolted over the lip of the ramp, but damned if he’d show it.
Brody rolled him into the foyer and around the corner to the living room. It had been a while since he’d been inside Maggie’s house, but there was no question she lived here. The furnishings reminded him of her. The walls were painted a light blue, the sofa and matching loveseat were pale green velvet, and floral drapes hung at the windows. The room was soft and feminine like Maggie. Framed pictures of Carly at every phase of life covered the walls and tables. He even spotted a portrait of the three of them on the bookshelf, taken when Carly was a baby. A lump formed in his throat.
“Want to see your bedroom, Dad?”
“Sure.”
“I’ll push you down the hall.”
“No, let me.” He squeezed his daughter’s hand tenderly until the smile returned to her face. “I need to do it on my own, in case you or your mom isn’t here.”
“Okay.”
“Speaking of which, where is she? I thought she’d be here to welcome me.” He chuckled in hopes of covering his disappointment.
“She’s out with Buddy.”
“Oh.”
“Brody and I will get you settled.”
Travis blinked a few times and took a deep breath, gripping the large wheels in either hand. “Point me toward my home away from home.”
“Right down the hall.” Carly led the way, pushing open the bedroom door. He caught a glimpse of Maggie’s plush king-sized bed as he turned into the room beside hers, forcing away the images of her and Buddy in that space.
“This is it. We bought a new bedspread and curtains for the room. It had an ugly flowered one, and we didn’t think you’d like that.”
“You all didn’t need to go to so much trouble.”
“Trust me, that old spread needed to go. I picked this out. Do you like it?”
“It’s great, honey. You’ve got good taste.”
“Thanks. What do you want to do? Are you hungry?”
“I think I’ll lie down awhile.” Disappointed that Maggie wasn’t there, he suddenly felt weak and lifeless. She’d purposely made herself scarce thanks to his smart mouth. When would he learn to stop teasing her?
“Okay. I’ll let Brody help you into bed while I fix you some dinner.” Carly bopped out of the room, excited to take care of her dad. She was a good girl—thanks to her mother. Maggie had passed down her nurturing spirit and kind soul to Carly.
Brody pulled back the covers on the bed. “Ready for some help, bud?” He reached out his hands, ready to lift Travis from the chair, but he smacked them away. He didn’t want to be dependent on anyone.
“I’ve got this. Just be on standby in case I lose my balance.”
After a few groans and grunts, twists and turns, and a lift from Brody, Travis was securely in the bed with his back against the headboard. Sweat dotted his forehead as he concentrated on slowing down his rapid breathing.
“You okay?” Brody asked, pulling the sheet over Travis’s lap.
“I’m good. Just need a minute to recover.”
Brody dropped into the wheelchair and pushed with his feet, putting the cart in motion.
“How do you like those snap away pants Kate found for you?”
“Not exactly my style, but they’ll do for now. I’m hoping to get this cast through my jeans.” Travis reached down and patted the hard plaster covering his leg.
“Maybe you can cut the leg opening or wear a bigger size.”
“I’ll figure something out. Thank her for me, will you?”
“Sure. So, you think this will work?”
“Will what work?” A sharp pain sliced through Travis’s side as he sat back against the headboard. He closed his eyes until it faded.
“You living here with Maggie.”
“It’s only temporary. Besides, I doubt she’ll be around much.” Self-anger replaced the physical discomfort. “You notice she got the hell out of here before I arrived.”
“She had plans with Buddy.”
“Right.” His chuckle held no humor. “If she wanted to be here, she could’ve been.”
“You pissed her off pretty good the other day. She didn’t even speak to me.”
“Yeah . . . well.” Travis rubbed his forehead, knowing damn well he’d crossed the line. When would he learn to keep quiet?
Brody shook his head, pressing his lips into a thin line as he rolled back and forth in the wheelchair.
“What? You got something to say?” Travis had known his friend long enough to recognize when he was holding back. There was nothing Brody could say that Travis hadn’t already said to himself. “Let me have it.”
“Maggie was nice enough to let you stay here. You have nowhere else to go except rehab. Our house has stairs, Liza and Tuckers’s is a two-story, Derek and Riley, Darla and Jason, everyone has stairs. This is the only place for you.”
“And your point is?”
“You need to stop messing with her. I know you’re just playing around when you say stuff, but it hurts her feelings. Try being nice to her for a change. Keep your stupid comments about Buddy to yourself.”
Brody was right, of course. Travis folded his arms over his chest, trying to heed his friend’s advice. “But I can’t stand that guy. I don’t trust him.”
“I’m not a big fan either, but Maggie sees something in him the rest of us don’t. Keep your opinions to yourself. Kill her with kindness. She’s your daughter’s mother. Show her some respect.”
“And what will I get in return?”
“Maybe . . . Maggie.”