Dream (Rosewood Bay Series Book 4)

by Carly Phillips

  He raised an eyebrow.

  “I saw it on Jeopardy,” she said with a grin.

  “All set.” Nicky bounced back to their table and slid in beside her.

  “Mom, how’d you know what Mr. D. likes on his pizza?” Nicky, her smart boy, asked, obviously having picked up on her question.

  “We … grew up together,” she said.

  “Your mom and I used to be really good friends,” Kyle said. “Before I moved away for college.” His golden-brown gaze locked with hers, the basic truth passing between them.

  Before she’d pushed him away. But he protected her son from the way she’d broken something so precious between them, and she appreciated his sensitivity.

  “Cool!” Nicky said. “You didn’t tell me you guys knew each other.”

  “It never came up,” she murmured. “So I hear you’re going to be reading Harry Potter. What if I reread it? We can talk about it at home, too,” she said.

  “Yeah. I like that,” Nicky said.

  Kyle shot her a warm look accompanied by an appreciative nod. Obviously he thought she was handling Nicky’s reading issues the right way and she was glad.

  “What was my mom like when she was younger?” Nicky asked out of the blue, surprising her.

  Kyle blinked. “Well, let’s see. She was fun and happy, and she laughed. A lot.”

  Nicky wrinkled his nose. “That doesn’t sound like my mom. You’re always so serious,” her son said to her, the words hitting her like a punch in the stomach.

  Was that how her little boy saw her? Serious, not laughing or enjoying life? That wasn’t the impression she wanted to give him. But the truth was she had lost the lightness of being a while ago and she had Billy – and herself – to blame.

  “It’s serious business being a parent,” Kyle said, jumping in in the wake of her silence. “Your mom has a lot on her shoulders.”

  She appreciated his explanation, but she made a silent promise to smile and laugh more around her son. “Being an adult is very different than being a kid,” she agreed. “But I vote we have more fun together from now on.”

  Nicky grinned. “I like that idea.”

  A waitress brought the pizza to the table, which thankfully changed the subject. They talked football, the New England Patriots being the team of choice, and Nicky encouraged Kyle to try his Hawaiian pizza, which he did with good humor. But he didn’t love the combined taste.

  “Kyle? Davenport!” A man Andi recognized as Ryan Mueller, one of Kyle’s old high school friends and someone Andi had been friendly with as well, walked over to the table. “I heard you were back in town.”

  “Hey, Ryan.” Kyle pushed out of the booth and shook the other man’s hand. “It’s been a long time. What have you been doing with yourself?”

  “I’m an attorney. You?”

  “Teacher,” Kyle said. “Nicky here is one of my students. And you must remember Andi Harmon.”

  Ryan ran a hand through his blond hair and nodded. “Andi! Where have you been hiding?”

  “I’ve been busy working at In Bloom and of course with this guy.” She gestured to Nicky, who was drinking his soda, not paying attention to the adult conversation around him.

  “Hey, I’m having some people over to watch the football game on Sunday,” Ryan said. “Why don’t you two join us? I’m seeing Nina Jones now and you two used to be close. I’m sure she’d love to see you,” he said to Andi.

  She bit down on the inside of her cheek. “Oh, I don’t know. I have Nicky and–”

  “I’m going to Uncle Kane’s to watch the game, remember, Mom?” Obviously she’d been wrong and he had been paying attention.

  “Right.” So much for that excuse. “I appreciate the invitation–”

  “Great. We’ll look forward to seeing you.” Ryan jumped to the conclusion that she’d be there. “Kyle? What about you?”

  “Love to,” he said with a smile. “It’ll be good to catch up.”

  “Twenty-five Old Mill Road. Around four p.m. See you both then.” Ryan turned and headed back to the counter where he’d been ordering food.

  “Guess we’re going to a football party.” Kyle rolled his shoulders, the muscles moving in an enticing stretch and flex. “I haven’t seen many people since I’ve been back. I’m looking forward to reconnecting.”

  She, on the other hand, wasn’t so comfortable with small talk and connections. Not since high school had she had close girlfriends. When she was married to Billy, she’d always felt like people were looking at her, wondering about her long sleeves to cover bruises, and were aware that she’d isolated herself and were curious about why. Although it had been two years since he’d disappeared from her life, she still preferred to keep to herself and not answer questions about things she didn’t want to talk about or admit to.

  But she was going to a football party and she’d try to get herself back out into the world of adults again with only Kyle as her anchor.

  Chapter Three

  Andi tried to think of every excuse in the world not to go to the party. She hadn’t seen Nina and her friends, once Andi’s friends, since her pre-Billy days, another casualty thanks to her poor choices. But in the end, she knew she needed to put on her big-girl panties and show up. What kind of example would she be setting for her son if she backed out? The worst thing that could happen was someone asking her about Billy, and she could handle that. She hoped.

  She put on a pair of jeans and a New England Patriots football jersey and a pair of sneakers. A quick glance in the mirror told her that her hair was presentable, makeup minimal, and she was ready to go. “Come on, Nicky! I’ll drop you off at Uncle Kane and Aunt Halley’s on the way to my party.”

  He joined her, dressed in a jersey of his own, his hair spiky and standing on end, the way he liked it. She held back a grin, knowing she couldn’t tell him she thought he was cute.

  “I’m ready. Can I stay with Uncle Kane for dinner?” he asked.

  She nodded, grateful her son had Kane as a male influence in his life. His father certainly hadn’t been a positive role model when he’d been around, belittling him but thankfully saving the real hands-on abuse for Andi. She’d like to think if he’d touched her child, she would have been out of there.

  Shaking her head at her train of thought, she refocused on Nicky’s question. The game was at four o’clock and would run past dinner. “Yes. I’ll pick you up when the game is over.”

  “Is Grandpa going to be there?”

  “I’m not sure.” Her dad was back to gambling, which meant she didn’t know where he’d be and when, especially on the weekends, just one of the reasons she’d taken Nicky and moved into a place of her own after years of living in her dad’s house. The same house she’d grown up in.

  Her stomach churned at the thought of his addiction, but she’d long since accepted she couldn’t change him. “All your homework is finished, right?” she asked Nicky, switching the subject.

  “Yeah, including the first chapters of Harry Potter.”

  “Then we can go.” She dropped him off at her brother’s house on the beach, walking him in and spending some time with Kane and Halley before heading out to Ryan’s house. Cars lined the street, telling her she wasn’t the first one there, and she saw Kyle’s Ford Explorer parked by the mailbox, and some of the nerves in her stomach relaxed, knowing there was a familiar, friendly face waiting inside.

  Thanks to their pizza dinner, she felt as if the ice between them had thawed, and even if he was angry at her for the past, they’d managed to put it behind them enough to be nice to each other. And she needed that support right now.

  She drew a deep breath, walked up to the front door, and rang the bell. A familiar pretty brunette with dark brown hair and eyes answered the door. “Andi! Ryan told me you’d be coming by and I was so happy he ran into you!”

  “Hi, Nina. It’s good to see you. You look wonderful.”

  The other woman smiled. “Thanks. So do you. Come on in! Some o
f the girls are here.” She led Andi into the kitchen, bypassing the family room, where the men were congregated for the game.

  “Hey, everyone, look who’s here,” Nina called out to the women.

  A bunch of eyes turned Andi’s way. “Hi,” she said with an awkward wave.

  “You know everyone,” Nina said. “It’s just been a while.”

  Andi nodded. Although she hadn’t kept up with them personally, in her small town, she couldn’t help but hear about people through the grapevine or run into them on occasion. She knew some of the women were married, others were still single, and one, like Andi, was divorced.

  “Andi, how have you been?” Cynthia Colson, a pretty redhead, asked.

  “Busy, what with my son starting fourth grade, and working during the day. But it’s all good. How about you?”

  “I recently got engaged!” She wriggled her hand with a nice-sized ring for everyone to see. “Daniel Scott is my fiancé.”

  “Congratulations!” Andi said. She remembered Daniel from high school, a quiet guy with a good sense of humor. “What does he do now?”

  “He’s a financial officer at the bank and I’m a teller there, which you know from coming in. We reconnected one night at a holiday party… and that was that.”

  “I’m happy for you,” Andi said.

  “I heard you got divorced,” Cynthia said, her gaze still on her ring.

  Andi bit the inside of her cheek, not surprised the subject came up. “We’ve been apart for almost two years.”

  “That’s hard,” the newly engaged woman said. “Nobody goes into a marriage expecting it to end. I can’t even imagine.” She spoke as if she were trying to ward off Andi’s bad luck in her own life. “Then again, if my husband was sleeping around with Maya Dane while I was pregnant, I would have been well rid of him, too.”

  Andi blinked, Cynthia’s words hitting her with the force of a freight train. “I’m sorry, what did you say?” She could add cheating to Billy’s list of sins? While she was pregnant with his son?

  She broke out into a cold sweat, feeling like the stupid, oblivious wife. When he’d started to leave her alone sexually, she’d been relieved. Her pregnancy hadn’t been an easy one and by that time, Billy’s temper made him someone she didn’t want around her on a good day. She’d known he’d go out to drink but she’d never thought he was cheating.

  Nina caught Andi’s gaze, her eyes wide and horrified. “Hey, let’s go into the family room. The game started.” She grabbed Andi’s hand and started to pull her away from the oblivious and clearly tactless Cynthia.

  “Andi, wait,” Janie Hudson, a woman Andi had been very close with in high school, said.

  “You sure you’re okay?” Nina asked.

  Andi nodded. “I’m fine. No need to worry about me, but thank you.” She turned to Janie. “Hi,” she said to her old friend.

  Janie smiled. “I’m really glad you came today. It’s been too long.”

  Andi nodded. She agreed. There’d been times she missed Janie and thought about calling, renewing the friendship. But what would she have said by way of explanation? Billy didn’t like me to have friends but I’m rid of him and back now? Talk about mortifying. So she’d never reached out.

  “It’s good to see you, too. How’s the job?” Andi asked.

  Janie worked as a vet tech for Dr. Canon, the town’s veterinarian.

  “I still love animals, so it’s great. How’s the floral shop?” Janie asked, taking a sip of the drink in her hand.

  “Good. I really found my niche there,” Andi said, knowing she was lucky her job was something she loved.

  “Listen… about what Cynthia said…”

  Andi stiffened. It was bad enough she’d found out Billy had been cheating, but to have to discuss it with a woman she hadn’t seen in years? It was too much.

  But in her heart, she knew Janie meant well. “My marriage wasn’t a good one and more people were aware of it than I ever realized,” she murmured. “Though I haven’t been out mingling in a while, I hoped it wouldn’t be the central topic of conversation.”

  Janie smiled in understanding. “It isn’t. That’s what I wanted to tell you. Everyone has their own garbage in life to deal with and knows better than to bring up difficult subjects. Cynthia is just very self-centered, like Nina said.”

  “Thank you,” Andi said. She appreciated Janie’s sensitivity.

  “I’m just happy to see you and I hope we can get together, maybe for lunch or something?” the other woman asked hopefully.

  Andi smiled. “Sure. I’d like that.”

  “Want to check out the game?” Janie asked and Andi nodded.

  “I’m happy to watch Tom Brady,” she said, laughing.

  She and Janie walked into the other room, a large area with a flat-screen television on the wall and a comfortable-looking reclining sofa in the center.

  The men were spread around, some on the couch, others in small groups talking amongst themselves. And by the bay window, Kyle was holding a drink and chatting up a very pretty, clearly interested-in-him woman Andi remembered from high school named Kimberly Greene.

  She’d been a sex-driven siren back in the day, and from the way she shook out her long blonde hair when she laughed, combined with her tight jeans and cropped top now, not much had changed. Except for the fact that Kyle appeared extremely interested in what she was saying.

  Watching them interact, Kimberly’s hand on his chest as she laughed at something he said, Andi’s stomach twisted uncomfortably. Until now, she’d thought her awareness of Kyle was a superficial thing, something she could brush aside as unimportant. But her jealous reaction to seeing him with another woman told her very clearly she’d been wrong.

  The feelings she had for him weren’t all about old friendship and included an attraction she hadn’t counted on experiencing. She might not desire a relationship at this point in her life, but she certainly desired Kyle, a man who was tolerating her at best, being civil to her because of her son.

  Between the revelation about her cheating ex and now watching Kyle eagerly engaged with another woman, she’d had just about all she could take of her first public outing in years. But she refused to admit defeat, so a quick trip to the ladies’ room to freshen up and pull herself together was in order.

  She took one more look at Kyle, appearing very serious about something Kimberly said to him. He reached out and put a hand on her shoulder and she leaned in closer. Andi’s stomach churned and she spun around, making her way to the bathroom, hoping she could calm herself down and make herself presentable again.

  * * *

  Kyle couldn’t tear himself away from Kimberly Greene, who had pulled him aside from the moment he’d walked into the house. He’d wanted to hang out with guys he hadn’t seen in a while, grab a beer, and watch the game. But Kimberly had intercepted him and held him hostage. To make matters worse, her brother had cancer, and when she realized she was losing him on a sexual interest level, because he’d been perfectly clear he wasn’t interested, she’d turned on the emotional waterworks to keep him by her side.

  He sympathized with her pain over her brother’s situation, but it wasn’t going to change the lack of attraction on his end.

  When Andi walked into the room, looking surprisingly sexy in her Brady jersey, her luscious hair tumbling over her shoulders and her vulnerability stark for him to see, he couldn’t tear his gaze away. She obviously wasn’t comfortable here and he felt bad for her. He knew Ryan had cornered her into coming today, and though he meant well, Andi obviously hadn’t socialized with these people in a long time. The crowded house must be overwhelming to her.

  He turned in time to see her glance at him, pivot, and head toward the back of the house, where the bathroom was located. Worried because she’d looked upset, he excused himself from Kimberly and followed Andi, winding his way past people who hadn’t yet settled in to watch the game.

  He caught up in time to see the bathroom door close and h
e waited outside for her to come back out. It didn’t take long for her to reopen the door. He immediately noticed her eyes were red from crying.

  “Kyle, hi.” She forced a smile and stepped aside as if to let him pass and go in.

  “Before you walk away, let’s talk.” He grasped her wrist and pulled her into the small bathroom.

  “What are you doing?” she asked as he closed the door behind them.

  “You’re upset and I want to know why.”

  She bit down on her trembling lower lip. “It’s nothing.”

  He brushed his hand over her damp cheek. “It’s not nothing. Did someone say something to set you off?”

  She lifted one shoulder. “Cynthia Colson mentioned something about Billy sleeping with Maya Dane while I was pregnant with Nicky.” She drew in a shuddering breath. “You know what they say. The wife is always the last to know.”

  He winced at the relayed information. “Stupid bastard,” he said of her ex-husband.

  “I’m not even upset because he cheated on me, per se. I’m angry with myself for being so blind. The truth is, I was so relieved he wasn’t touching me back then, I never stopped to ask myself why,” she said without meeting his gaze.

  He placed a hand beneath her chin and lifted her face so she had no choice but to look at him and face the things she was admitting to. “Your marriage sucked.”

  “More than you know.”

  I told you so was the last thing she needed to hear, so he didn’t say it. “It was stupid of Cynthia to bring it up,” he muttered.

  “She seems to be oblivious to anything but her own happiness.” She shrugged. “It’s fine. I just got hit by an overwhelming amount of emotions at one time. I’m okay now. Thanks for checking on me. I didn’t mean to drag you away from Kimberly. You two seemed to be hitting it off.”

  He didn’t pull his hand away from her face, struck by the tinge of something in her voice. Jealousy? And if so, why did it please him that she cared?

  “Kimberly was like a leech who wouldn’t let go. She even used her sick brother’s story to hang on to me. I wasn’t doing anything more than offering sympathy,” he said, opting for the truth.