by S. J. McCoy
“Are you going to meet me at the bus again this afternoon?”
Eddie nodded. “If you like. We’ll have to tell the driver that this is your stop now, huh?”
Marcus grinned. “Is it? Do we live here now?”
Eddie nodded. He probably should have run it by April first, but yeah, they did. He didn’t believe she’d want to leave and go back to the place she’d been renting. Especially not after last night. She loved him; she’d told him—she’d shown him!
“Can we go and get the rest of my things from the old house this weekend, then?”
Eddie looked up. Which house did he mean?
“I mean from where me and Mom were living in town. I know I can’t ever get my old stuff back from Dad’s house.” He shrugged. “But that’s okay. I don’t ever want to go back there.”
“Don’t you miss Montana?”
“No. I miss the horses, but that’s about all.”
Poor kid. He didn’t miss his dad or his home or even friends. All he missed were the horses. That reminded Eddie that he’d said he’d go horseback riding with them. Although it wasn’t something he was looking forward to, he fully intended to keep his word. “Do you want to take me riding this weekend?”
Marcus nodded eagerly. “Yeah! You’re going to love it!”
Eddie highly doubted that, but he was going to give it a go. He checked his watch. “We’d better get to the bus stop. I hope it’s going to stop for us.”
“It will,” said Marcus. “I told the driver that this was going to be my new stop soon.”
“You did?”
“Yep.”
“Do you like it here?”
“I love it here! I love my room. I love the dock. Can we get a boat? And I love that we live with you now.”
Eddie’s heart melted for the kid yet again. He looked so happy. Eddie wanted to make sure he stayed that way. He might not have had the easiest start in life, but it was only going to get better for him from here on out. Eddie was going to make sure of it.
Marcus grinned up at him as they stood at the bus stop waiting. “Are you going to marry my mom?”
“She’s still married to your dad.”
“I know, but when they get divorced.”
Eddie smiled. “Maybe someday.”
Marcus’s smile faded. “You don’t want to?”
“I’d love to, but I think she’s going to need some time first.”
Marcus looked thoughtful. “I guess.” He looked down the street and pointed to where the bus was rounding the corner. “Here it is. Will you be here when I get back?”
“I will. Don’t worry; I’ll be waiting for you.”
“Thanks!” Marcus wrapped his arms around his waist and hugged him tight. “I love you, Eddie!”
Eddie had to swallow the lump that filled his throat. “I love you, little dude. See ya, later.”
He stood staring down the street for a long time after the bus had gone. He really did love him. How could it be that a ten-year-old boy had snuck in and stolen a piece of his heart when he thought he’d already lost it completely to the kid’s mother?
Chapter Sixteen
April smiled as she went out into the bakery to serve whoever had just arrived. She’d been on the other side of the building helping Renée. They were nearly ready to open the women’s center now, and they’d set up a buzzer that sounded in there whenever someone opened the bakery door.
Her smile faded a little when she saw Leanne standing there. “Have you thought anymore about what we talked about?”
April nodded. She had thought about it, but she still wanted to just sign the papers and send them back to Guy. She wanted to be free of him. She didn’t want to fight him, and she didn’t want to live with the reprisals that would surely come if she did.
Leanne seemed to understand. “But you don’t want to do it?”
“I just want it to be over. I’m ready to start a new chapter in my life. I don’t want to take him forward with me. I want to make a clean break and leave it all behind.”
Leanne nodded. “I understand. I’m not trying to force you into anything. I just didn’t want you to lose out on what’s rightfully yours, not through fear. If you choose to walk away because you want to, I can respect that. But if you lose out because you’re too scared to fight, well, I’d just hate for that to happen.”
“Thanks, Leanne. I do appreciate it, you know.”
Leanne grinned and pointed at the chocolate brownies. “Then you can let me have one of those as a token of your appreciation.”
April laughed and pulled out the tray. “Here, pick your own.”
Leanne eyed them and selected the biggest one with a grin. “Thank you!”
“How long are you staying for?”
“I was supposed to go back today.” She smiled. “I didn’t want to impose on Laura and Smoke too long, but Dan and Missy invited me to come stay with them through the weekend, so I’ve got a few more days. Will you be coming out on Saturday night with everyone?”
April shrugged. She hadn’t heard anything about it, but then why would she have? It wasn’t as though she was one of the gang. She was just a newcomer.
“You should! Get yourself a babysitter and come out. It’d do you good.”
April nodded. She might. It’d be nice to go out with everyone.
“Ooh! I was hoping I might catch you!” Renée appeared in the doorway from the women’s center.
Leanne eyed her warily. “Why?”
Renée laughed. “Don’t worry. I’m not going to pick your brains about my divorce again. It’s all over bar the waiting now. I was wondering if you’d come back up and do a session at the women’s center sometime?”
Leanne didn’t look too enthusiastic. “I told you. I don’t practice family law. I don’t mind doing what I can to help the two of you out, but it’s not my thing.”
“I know, but you’re so switched on. You get it. You care about women and what they’re going through. I bet you’re savvier than most divorce attorneys.”
“Are you just shitting me now, playing on my ego?”
Renée laughed. “No! It’s true. Think about how it feels for a woman facing divorce when she walks into an office to be met with a crusty old man who’s supposed to represent her. I mean, that’s not fair, some of them are great, but it’s not the same as having dynamo Leanne Miller in your corner. It’s not the same as having a strong, independent, kick-ass babe urging you on and telling you what you need to look out for.”
Leanne laughed. “Okay, you got me. The ego thing works.” She smiled. “It was the kickass babe part that sealed it. So when do you want me to come up?”
“I don’t know yet, but you give me some dates that are good for you, and I’ll make something work around it.”
“Will do.”
They all looked around as the door opened. Leanne’s grin grew broader. “Well, hello, Nate!”
April smiled to herself and made her way behind the counter. Nate and Leanne were so similar. They were both incredibly good-looking, and they knew it. Neither of them was lacking in confidence or flirting skills. This should be an interesting exchange to watch.
“Leanne!” Nate flung his arms around her and hugged her a little too tight. She didn’t seem fazed in the slightest. In fact, she leaned in to return the hug and then leaned back to look up into his eyes. She still held onto him so that their lower bodies were touching and her large breasts pushed at his chest. If April were awarding points, she’d have Leanne down as the winner of the opening round.
“Are you coming out on Saturday night?” she asked. “I’m sticking around till Sunday.”
“I’ll be there,” said Nate with a grin. “I take it you managed to win Smoke over, then?”
Leanne shrugged. “I think he’s forgiven me, mostly, but I’m going to spend the weekend with Dan and Miss.”
“Ah, okay.” Nate turned to smile at April. “And are you coming out, Cinderella? You never know, Pri
nce Charming might be there.”
April smiled. “I don’t know yet; I’ll have to see about Marcus.”
“And besides, she already has her Prince Charming,” said Leanne. “You’re going to be stuck with me.”
Nate laughed. “What and deprive all those cheerleaders of my company?”
“They’re still here?” asked Renée.
“Nah, but they had such a good time last weekend, they’re coming back again.”
“What, you kept all of them happy?” Leanne raised an eyebrow at him.
Nate laughed. “I had some help. Haven’t you met Smoke’s student pilots yet? I have a whole team of wingmen now! It’s going to be an interesting summer.”
Leanne laughed. “Hmmm, yeah the pilots. That southern guy, what’s his name?”
“Luke?” asked Nate.
“Yeah, that’s him.”
Nate shook his head. “Not your type, Lee. Not your type at all.”
“No?”
Nate shook his head. “Nah. Leave him alone.”
April had to wonder what he meant. She’d met a couple of the pilots when they’d come into the bakery; they seemed nice enough.
The doorbell tinkled again, and Lily came in. April smiled at her; she was looking forward to catching up with her when they went riding.
Lily smiled back, but she seemed a little uptight. Maybe she was just in a hurry.
“Hi, can I just get a dozen glazed doughnuts?” she asked.
April nodded and started to fill a box for her.
Nate let go of Leanne and went over to Lily. “You’re coming tomorrow night, right, Lil?”
April was surprised at the frosty look she gave him. “I don’t know yet.”
Nate looked as though she’d knocked the wind right out of his sails. Which didn’t make any sense to April. The two of them seemed to have become good buddies since Vegas. Nate recovered quickly and slung an arm around her shoulders. “What about tonight, then? Come have dinner with me?”
Lily shook her head. “I can’t.”
April handed her the box, and she handed over a twenty. “I’m in a hurry. Can you give me the change tomorrow?”
“Sure.” April had never seen Lily look so out of sorts before. She stared after her, as did the others as she turned and left without another word.
“What’s her problem?” asked Leanne.
“I’ll be damned if I know,” said Nate.
“I’m going to go see,” said Renée. “There must be something wrong.” She hurried out.
“I should get going.” Leanne smiled at April. “I’ll hope to see you tomorrow night, but you call me if you need any help with anything, okay?”
“Thanks, Leanne.”
She reached up and kissed Nate’s cheek. “I’ll see you around.”
Nate grinned. “You sure will.”
April chuckled as he watched Leanne’s ass leave.
“What?” he turned back to her with an innocent shrug. “A guy’s allowed to look, isn’t he? And I can’t ogle you anymore since you’re spoken for.”
April smiled. She liked Nate, but he was a little much for her. “Do you think you’ll ever meet someone you want to settle down with?”
Nate laughed. “Settle down? Me?”
She laughed with him. “Okay, for you I guess that would mean meet someone you want to spend more than one night with.”
He thought about it for a minute, and she thought he was going to come back with something funny. Instead, when he met her gaze again, his face was serious. “I think I might have, but I’ll be damned if I know what to do about it.”
Wow! That was the last thing she’d expected him to say. “Who? What?”
He shook his head. His grin was back. “Fooled ya!”
She wasn’t buying it. “Nice try, Nate, but you’re not fooling me one bit. You’ve met someone, and you’re scared, right?”
He shrugged. He wasn’t going to admit it.
She smiled. “Well, if ever you want to talk about it, you know where I am. If anyone understands about being scared, it’s me.”
Nate smiled. He was such a good-looking guy, and he was even more so when he dropped all the bravado like he did in that moment. “Thanks, April. I might take you up on that someday soon.”
She nodded. She hoped he would.
They both turned to look when the door opened again. It seemed there was a mini-rush going on, and they were all locals. It was Missy who walked in and grinned at them both this time.
“Hey, guys! How are we doing?”
“All the better for seeing you.” Nate gave her his best smile. “Do you want to come have lunch with me?”
Missy laughed. “Your charms never worked on me Nate, and you’re forgetting that I’m an old married lady now. My husband wouldn’t like it.”
Nate hung his head. “I missed my chance there.” He smiled at April. “Would you bag me up a dozen chocolate chip cookies? And I’ll get out of the way, leave you two ladies to chin wag.”
April nodded and filled a bag for him.
Once he’d gone, Missy looked more serious.
“What can I get you, Miss?”
“I’ll take a couple of those cheesy loaves and a cheesecake if you’ve got any left.”
April nodded. “You’re in luck. This is the last cheesecake of the day.”
Missy nodded but didn’t seem too interested.
“What’s up?” April knew there was something.
“I talked to Chance.”
Oh, no! April wished she hadn’t. “What did you say? What did he say?”
“I’m sorry, hon. I couldn’t keep my nose out. I just wanted to know if your ex really had been down here. Chance didn’t think he could have been. He’s been busy up there apparently.”
“What kind of busy?”
“Causing trouble for the Remingtons.”
“Oh, no! He’s not fighting with Mason again?”
“Apparently,” Missy looked over her shoulder before she continued, “he had one of his henchmen ram a truck into Beau’s car.”
“What?”
Missy nodded.
“But that doesn’t make sense. He never minded Beau as much he did the others. Is he okay?”
“Yeah. It put him in the hospital, and his leg was broken, but he’s okay. Apparently, the police have been out to your place a few times. Chance thinks they’re going to be able to nail him.”
“Really?” April couldn’t quite believe it. Guy did seem to have been getting worse over the last few years. He’d always threatened people and screwed them over in business, but he saved the physical violence for his nearest and dearest.
Missy nodded. “It sounds like he’s been involved in quite a few shady incidents lately and it’s all catching up with him. Hopefully, they’ll be able to lock him up and throw away the key.”
April would love to think that might happen, but she knew better. Guy never got caught. He weaseled his way out of everything. “All I know is that I’m done with him. I’m going to sign the papers tonight and send them back to him.”
Missy’s face fell. “I wish you wouldn’t do that, hon.”
April shrugged. “I have to. My decision’s made. I’m making a new start. This is a new life for Marcus and me.”
Missy nodded. “You do what you feel you have to.” She pursed her lips.
April smiled. “Thanks for caring, Miss.”
Missy wrinkled her nose. “It’s only because I care so much that I’m keeping my lip buttoned. It’s your life, your decision. I just hate to see you and little Marcus lose out.”
“I know, but if you were in my position, I think you’d do the same. I’m not doing it because I’m scared. I’m doing it because I want to be free of him. I don’t want to spend the rest of my life looking over my shoulder. I want to spend the rest of my life knowing that whatever I have, I’ve earned.”
Missy nodded. “I can see that, hon. I really can. It’s just that if you ask me, you
could take him for every penny he’s got, and you could still say you’d earned it.”
April sighed. Maybe that was true.
~ ~ ~
Eddie smiled when he saw April’s car pull into the driveway. This meant they’d both be able to walk to the bus stop to meet Marcus. He liked that idea. He wondered as he watched her get out of the car and run up the front steps, maybe he should let her go by herself? He liked the thought that it was the three of them now, but maybe she still needed it to be the two of them?
She smiled when she came through the front door. “Hi.”
“Hey, how was your day?”
“Busy. The center’s nearly ready to officially open the doors now.”
“That’s great.” He knew how much working at the women’s center meant to her. He also knew that helping other women would help her. She’d spent too much of her life being the one who needed help by the sounds of it. Now she was going to be able to help others. She’d come such a long way since she’d left her husband and gotten out of Montana.
She looked at her watch. “I should get to the bus stop. Did he get off okay this morning?”
Eddie nodded. “We did great. In fact, we were wondering if we could make that our new normal?”
She raised an eyebrow. “You wouldn’t mind?”
“I’d love it. It’s a win-win, if you ask me. Marcus gets a couple more hours in bed every morning. I get to hang out with him, and you get to leave a bit later too if you don’t have to drop him off at the Morgans’.”
She came to him and closed her arms around his waist. “I’d love that, thanks, Eddie.”
He grinned. “Come on then, let’s go get him. I’m going to have to start getting ready for work soon.” He’d always enjoyed working at the resort. It had never mattered to him before that Friday and Saturday nights were work nights. To him, work was more like play anyway. It was different now, though. He didn’t want to go out and leave them. He wanted to stay here and hang out. He wanted to grill burgers for them, fish from the dock, sit around and play games.
April was watching him. “Are you okay? You don’t have to come if you don’t want to. Get going if you’re in a hurry.”
He hugged her to his chest. “It’s not that; in fact, it’s the opposite. I don’t want to go. I just wish I could stay here with you guys.”
