by Joan Kilby
Will was at the barbecue, spreading white hot coals in an even layer. Seeing Angus, he lifted a hand in greeting. “Glad you could make it.”
“I appreciate the invitation.” Angus handed Will a six-pack of craft beer and a package of free-range pork chops he’d picked up at the farmer’s market.
Will put the meat in a cooler and the beer on ice, passing an already cold brew to Angus. “Come and say hello to everyone. You probably know most people here but there’ve been a few additions to the family in recent years.”
Angus followed Will to the patio where Will’s brothers and their wives lounged in deck chairs or stood watching their small children playing on the wide green lawn. Blake was there, too, with his wife, Hayley.
Will rattled off the names of the kids, and who they belonged to. Angus smiled and nodded, tried to remember. It was great to be among people he’d known all his life, people he could relax around. He’d made friends in college and they were nice, but it wasn’t the same. Once classes were over for the year, everyone scattered. Here in Sweetheart, years passed and life evolved, but the good parts—family and friends—were a constant. He missed going to gatherings like this, and he was sad not to have been present for major life events of his friends. Weddings, births…
“The kids are cute,” he said. “You and your brothers have started a dynasty while I was away.”
“You’ll be quizzed on their names later,” Garrett joked, and introduced the willowy redhead at his side. “Angus, this is Lilou. Lilou, Angus used to live in Sweetheart.”
“Nice to meet you,” Angus said to Lilou’s warm greeting. Skye had told him Garrett’s new wife was a New York society gal. Montana had rubbed off the glitz and given her a country glow.
“Good to hear you and Brianna worked things out and the community hall is going ahead,” Garrett said.
“Oh, are you and Brianna back together?” Cody asked, overhearing. “Cool.”
“Garrett means that she and I are liaising on the hall,” Angus explained. He didn’t want to talk down the possibility of a reconciliation, but neither did he want to presume it was going to happen.
“Awesome. Great to have you home.” Then Cody excused himself. “Catch you later. I promised I’d kick the soccer ball around with Ricky.”
Angus watched him lope over to the open patch of lawn where a blond boy of about twelve years old waited. Had Cody accepted his explanation, or did he still think he and Brianna had reunited? It was hard to tell.
Speaking of Brianna, where was she? Ah, there she was, standing with a circle of women, looking as pretty as a spring day in an old-fashioned dress covered in blue roses. She did love those styles from the fifties, and they suited her hourglass figure.
Before he could go over to her, Blake clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Angus, my man, I went past the hall on my way into town last night. It’s coming along.”
“The guys are working hard,” Angus said. “Could use some extra hands, though. It would go faster.”
“I hear you, buddy, but it’s a problem.” Blake scratched the back of his head. “This ranch home I’m building is taking up all our guys. It’s for a big-shot celebrity. Before you ask who, I’m not at liberty to say.”
“Don’t worry about the hall, we’ll get it done,” Angus said.
“Good for you.” Blake’s gaze drifted to his wife, Hayley, struggling to carry a squirming baby boy into the house. “Excuse me, I’ve got to go help with the little one. Since he learned to crawl, it takes two of us to change his diaper.”
“Catch you later.” Angus watched him join Hayley and take the child from her, raising the baby high above his head and jiggling him until he laughed. Even Blake was a father now.
He wandered across the lawn to the edge of the orchard and inspected the blossoms. Maybe this tree got more sun or something because these blossoms looked more advanced.
“Where are we at?” Brianna appeared at his side, wine spritzer in hand.
“Almost looks like stage two,” he said, showing her the blossom.
“It does.” She took a quick photo of the cluster of buds, and then turned her attention to the children playing on the lawn. “Sweetheart had a baby boom while you were gone.”
“No kidding,” he said. “Look at them all.” If he hadn’t left when he did, maybe they would have had a little boy or girl of their own running around the lawn with the other kids. Had that thought occurred to her? He glanced over at her. “You look great. That blue really brings out the color of your eyes. And I like your hair long.”
“Flatterer.”
“Truth teller.”
She shook her head with a dry smile. “I’m not going to get caught up in that argument.” Then she gave him the once-over in return, eyeing his polo shirt and jeans. “You look nice, too.”
“Oh, I can be very nice,” he said.
“Get that twinkle out of your eyes,” she warned.
He leaned over to whisper in her ear. “You are as adorable as ever.”
Pink tinged her cheeks. “Careful.”
“Too much?” He was so tempted to lean a little closer and kiss the tender skin behind her ear. She went very still. He inhaled her delicate scent, mesmerized by a tracing of blue vein on blushing ivory skin.
She took a step away. “Oh, look, they’re starting a croquet tournament.”
Mia came over and handed them matching mallets. “Do you two want to join in? You can be purple.”
“Oh, but…” Brianna glanced at Angus, clearly not sure she wanted to be paired off with him.
“Sounds great. Don’t worry about it,” he added to Brianna, taking her arm. “Let’s whip their butts.”
They followed Mia out to the lawn where hoops had been set up and three other teams were milling around a folding table set up for drinks and snacks. Cody made a big show of flipping a coin to see who went first until it was discovered that he had a two-headed coin. Amid good-natured joshing, he was sidelined and a real coin was flipped.
“This better not be an indication of your sneaky tactics,” Garrett joked to his little brother after he won the toss and teed up his ball to aim for the first hoop.
“Already coming up with excuses?” Cody shot back.
Angus and Brianna stood apart, waiting their turn.
“How was the rest of your week?” he asked.
“Busy. You?”
“Same.” He gave a small sigh for the end of their banter. They were back to monosyllables.
“How’s your model of the community hall coming along?” Brianna asked.
“Half done,” he said. “We’re putting in such long hours on the hall I haven’t had much time to work on it.”
“Has it turned up any problems that translate into changes to the design?” Brianna asked.
“A couple of little tweaks,” Angus said. “Nothing major. But I do have some concerns about the build.”
A burst of laughter from the croquet field as Lilou accidentally hit her ball the wrong way through the hoop distracted them.
“Brianna, your turn,” Will called.
Brianna tapped her ball through the first hoop and took another shot, stopping short of the second hoop. Angus was next and got through two hoops before losing his turn.
“We’re ahead,” Brianna said with satisfaction. “What were you saying about the build?”
“I’m worried about the size of the construction crew,” Angus said. “I mentioned it to Blake, but he can’t spare any more workers.”
Brianna tapped the mallet against her calf. “I’ll talk to my dad about hiring more guys.”
“Or I could ask John Coates for help,” Angus said. “He’s got a big pool of labor to draw on.”
“We should do it in house, if possible,” Brianna said. “Coates and Dad don’t get along.”
Angus remembered what Gordon had said about Coates being his rival and wanted to ask what that was about, but it was their turn again. After she’d taken her shot, Brian
na went off to refill her drink while Angus engaged in amiable trash talk with the guys. Brianna gravitated to hang with her cousin Hayley. Only natural, he supposed. The two women had become good friends when Brianna had been working on reception at Sweetheart Log Homes and Hayley had come to town looking for her uncle Gordon. For the rest of the game he and Brianna mingled with the others.
But later, as they sat at a picnic table with plates of barbecued meat and salad, he returned to their earlier conversation. “What’s the problem between Gordon and John Coates? Your father doesn’t seem like the kind of man to hold a grudge.”
“He’s not,” Brianna said. “I don’t know what started the feud, or when. They don’t sabotage each other, or anything, they’re just not friendly.”
“Being business rivals might explain it,” Angus suggested. “Coates is the only other log home builder in the immediate area.”
“I don’t think that’s it. Coates’s company is bigger by far, but Sweetheart Log Homes has more work than they know what to do with.” Brianna speared a forkful of lettuce and tomato. “Dad never talks about it, but he frowns whenever he hears Coates’s name mentioned.”
“Like you’re doing now,” Angus pointed out. He studied her a moment. “Coates is flashy and kind of pushy, but he’s not a bad guy.”
“I don’t have any personal beef with him,” she said.
“Then why do I get the feeling you don’t like him?”
“Dad said he snapped you up awfully fast.” Brianna turned a cloudy gaze on him. “Why did you take a job with him without even talking to Blake or my dad about coming back to Sweetheart Log Homes?”
“I thought it might be awkward given you and I had broken up.” Was she miffed on her father’s behalf, or because she was disappointed? “Also, Coates gave me work all through college. After I graduated, he was right there with an exceptional job offer. Can you blame me for accepting a high-level job at an excellent pay scale?”
“No, of course not,” Brianna said.
Kelly went past, leading a teary five-year-old girl with a skinned knee into the house. “So good to see you two back together.”
“We’re not—” Brianna started to say but Kelly was already out of ear shot, preoccupied with her daughter. She turned to Angus. “Have you said anything to give people the impression we’re a couple again?”
Angus held up a hand. “I swear I didn’t. In fact, I corrected Cody earlier when he said something similar. I’m not sure he got the message.”
He concentrated on finishing his chop. “Would it be so terrible if they thought that?”
“Yes, since it’s not true,” she said. “We haven’t spoken in five years, and you’re leaving again in three weeks. Obviously, nothing’s going to happen. I don’t want our friends speculating. Or teasing, or asking questions.”
Angus set his fork down and studied her profile for clues. “Are you angry because I didn’t come back to Sweetheart to live?”
She looked at him, her gaze searching. “You used to talk about settling down here. When did you change? Don’t you miss your mom, our friends, this town?”
Did he miss her? Was that what she was really asking?
“I do miss everyone. My preference would be to live here, but I have to go where the jobs are.” He paused. “Don’t you ever want to go further afield? You would have more opportunities.”
“I believe in making opportunities where I want to live,” she said. “I’ve tried other places. This is home.”
He nodded, acknowledging her point of view. “Don’t worry about what people think,” he said, returning to her earlier concern. “Our friends will eventually figure out that we haven’t reconciled.”
“Playing croquet as a team and eating together might not be the best way to get the point across,” Brianna pointed out.
“Do you want me to leave?”
“No, don’t do that,” she said. “Then everyone would think we had a fight.”
“Maybe that would be a good thing,” he said. “Show them how things really stand between us.” A touch of bitterness came through which he hadn’t intended.
Her eyebrows rose. “Is this where I slap your face and storm off?”
“What, so I’m the bad guy?”
“You were the one who left.”
“You broke up with me. You told me to go.” He glanced over at their friends. No one seemed to be listening, but he lowered his voice anyway. “Maybe it would help if you explained why you act so strangely around me. Are you still holding onto grievances after five years?”
“Not grievances so much as disappointments,” she said slowly. “I don’t blame you for what happened. You had big dreams and ambitions. It would have been a crime for you to give up that scholarship to California. I urged you to go for your sake. We weren’t going to see each other for years. I knew you were too nice to break it off so I had to do it.”
“There was always Christmas, summer vacation, spring break,” he pointed out. “I felt like you wanted to get rid of me. I was considering Missoula State. You practically pushed me into going to California. Were you ever really serious about me, or were you just—” He broke off, not wanting this to get ugly.
“What?” she demanded. “Say it.”
“Slumming until someone better came along.”
“Slumming?” Her mouth dropped open. “How can you say that? I cared about you. I was hurt by our breakup, too.”
“How was I to know when you didn’t say anything?”
“Neither did you.” She shook her head sadly. “Face it, Angus. Sweetheart is just a pit stop to you. Even now there’s a time limit on how long you’ll be here. Three weeks and you’re off again.”
“I was offered a job too good to refuse,” he said.
“I know. I don’t blame you, I really don’t.” She pushed her half-eaten plate away. “You’ll have to excuse me. I’m going to go home. I think I’ve had too much sun.”
Angus watched her run into the house and could have kicked himself for his remark about slumming. Was she mad at him for not being committed to the town—or because he hadn’t committed to her? Yes, he’d been ambitious, but for them, as a couple. As a family. He’d wanted to marry her someday, but not until he could support her. Oh, he knew what she would say to that—she could support herself, thank you very much. But she didn’t understand his need to prove himself.
Maybe she had been serious about him, but she didn’t know what it had been like for him, growing up so much poorer than her. He didn’t ever want her to regret being with him or to see her struggle the way his mother had. Architecture gave him the means to raise himself up. This new job in Sacramento would finally put him on a par with her and her family.
All that aside, the fact remained that she had pushed him to go away to college. And to hear her tell it, it sounded as if all the sacrifice had been on her side. She wasn’t willing to relocate, not for anything, or anyone. Was he a fool for hoping to reconcile?
He got up and followed her into the house, not wanting to part with her on harsh words. But she was already at the front door, saying goodbye to Mia. She gave him a glance over her shoulder and hurried out to her car.
“She said she’s not feeling well.” Mia, meeting him in the hall, eyed him sympathetically. “Are you okay? Did you two have a fight?”
“Just a misunderstanding, but I’ll go, too,” he said. “I’ve got things to do.”
“Are you sure?” She gestured to the cake on the table. “We have dessert.”
“No, but thanks for a real nice afternoon.” He hesitated, then added, “Brianna’s feeling pressured. Everyone seems to have expectations of us.”
“Oh, that.” Mia’s mouth twisted. “Sorry if we made things uncomfortable for you guys. It’s just that, you two used to have something really special. When you finally came home, we all hoped you’d get back together.”
“It’s not your fault. Tell Will thanks and good-bye.” Now he just wanted to get out o
f there as fast as possible. “I’ll see you guys soon.”
Angus maneuvered his car out of the crowded parking area and headed home. He honestly didn’t know what he could have done differently five years ago once she’d broken it off with him except go ahead and tell Brianna everything he’d been thinking and feeling. But he hadn’t had the confidence then to believe she would want him for a life partner, and with her insisting he go… It was a cruel irony that in order to have more to offer her, he’d destroyed what they did have.
He considered himself an optimist but even he had to admit, it didn’t look good where he and Brianna were concerned. She didn’t seem interested in trying again. Was it too late? Had they grown too far apart? She had her own goals and they were incompatible with his. The smart thing to do would be to concentrate on building the hall, and then get the heck out of Dodge.
*
Brianna drove away from the barbecue heartsick and fuming. Slumming? That hurt. How had she ever thought she could work with that man? Instead of going home, she headed toward her parents’ house. She would ask her father to find someone else to oversee the construction of the community hall. There must be someone in the state of Montana who could do the job. After this afternoon, Angus would probably be glad to get out of the project. He could relax, enjoy his visit with his mom and not have to deal with her.
There was no answer at the front door but her father was usually home on a Saturday afternoon so she let herself in through the side gate and walked around to the backyard.
Sure enough, he was tending to his beehive. Suited up with a hat and veil and heavy gloves, he held a smoke pot above the open hive while a cloud of bees swarmed around his figure. He nodded to let her know he knew she was there then continued what he was doing.
Brianna hung back as he carefully pulled off a clump of honeycomb and placed it in a basin. Bees crawled over it, and over him. She shuddered but he didn’t seem to notice. His patience and calm were all the more remarkable because he was allergic to bee stings. With an epi-pen always close at hand, he didn’t let fear stop him from doing what he wanted to do. He just got on with his task.
