Montana Mornings (The Wildes of Birch Bay Book 3)

by Kim Law

  The blue of her eyes had dulled. “I’m going to throw away everything else she bought me, too. Because I hate her, Dad. And I’ll hate her forever. And I’m never going to see her again.”

  Gabe held his arms out for his daughter as tears began to roll over her cheeks, and she rushed into them. Then they both sat on the kitchen floor. They held on to each other as she cried, and it broke Gabe’s heart to know that both of them had lost something very important that morning. Jenna now fully understood the type of hatred Gabe held for Michelle.

  And he’d discovered that there were simply some hurts he couldn’t save his daughter from.

  Mike eventually came over and began licking Jenna’s tears away, and when the dog had Jenna smiling once again, Gabe wrapped his arms around the both of them. “How about you and I do something fun today?” he suggested. “Just you and me?”

  “Can we? You don’t have to work?”

  He’d been so busy since moving back home that he hadn’t always made time for his daughter. But he wouldn’t be too busy today. In fact, he wouldn’t be too busy for the rest of his life. Not for Jenna.

  “I don’t have to work.”

  As he continued sitting there, her warm little body snuggled up tight to his on one side and her dog on the other, he suddenly got that winning the state championship would do nothing to better his relationship with his daughter. Nor would having more estrogen. She simply needed him. And he now knew without a doubt that he could be that man for her. He may not have had the best role models in the world, but somewhere along the way he’d picked up enough skills to be the father his daughter needed.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Her mother’s squeal was the first thing Erica heard as she turned the car into the driveway of her childhood home. Ellen Yarbrough stood in the middle of her front flower garden, one hand now over her mouth and the other stretched high above her head. She waved madly while Erica’s dad rushed around the corner looking panicked.

  When he saw that the shout had come from excitement and not fear, Phillip Yarbrough plucked off his garden gloves and moved to stand with her mother. He nodded in approval as Erica parked the car and opened her door.

  “You’re home.” Her mother hurried to her side. “Oh, Phillip, our daughter has come home.”

  The welcome seemed a bit too much, but Erica didn’t voice the thought out loud, she merely accepted their hugs. She’d gotten out of Birch Bay Friday night, knowing she needed to be gone before Gabe returned from the game, but she hadn’t been quite ready to return to Silver Creek. Her meeting with the district superintendent wasn’t until Monday, so instead of heading south, she’d told her friends good-bye and driven north toward Glacier. It had been too late in the day to enter the park, so she’d spent the night at the base of the mountain and had given Saturday to a leisurely drive through the national park. Once she’d come out the other side, she’d finally pointed the car south, but she’d stopped yet again. This time in Great Falls. She’d spent the night still ninety minutes from her family, and only after playing tourist for most of the next morning had she finally been ready to go home.

  “We thought you might have shown up yesterday,” her dad told her. Which totally shocked her. She hadn’t told them she’d left Birch Bay.

  “What made you think I was coming home at all?”

  Her mom hugged her again. “Charles told us. You got your old job back.”

  She should have known the superintendent would tell her parents about the call. They’d all been friends since their college years. “I’ve been offered my job back,” she corrected. “I haven’t accepted it yet.”

  “But you will.” Her mom patted her cheek and smiled at her. “It’s so good to have you home.”

  “We’re proud of you, honey.” Her dad was passing out hugs today, too. “Pop your trunk, and I’ll get your things.”

  “There’s no need,” she told them. “I’m staying at a hotel.”

  At that, both her parents seemed dumbfounded. Her mother had turned for the house to lead them all inside, but she now stood with one foot on the ground, the other lifted toward the first porch step, seeming frozen in motion.

  “Why would you do that?” her dad asked. “Your mother got your room ready for you.”

  “I want my own space, Dad.” She bit down on the inside of her lip to give her courage. “And if I decide to stay in town, then I’ll be renting a place of my own, too.”

  “Phillip?” Her mother said the one word, as if Erica’s dad had the answers to the questions she couldn’t formulate. Then she seemed unable to say anything else.

  “Let’s not worry about it now, okay?” Erica said. “I wanted to come back and see you both, and then I thought I’d head over to Seth’s and see him, Angie, and the boys. Now show me these gardens that got so much attention on the Sunset Garden Tour.”

  Both her parents remained perplexed that their oldest daughter hadn’t returned as the same person she’d been when she’d left, but neither voiced their confusion. Instead, they led Erica through the yard, same as they’d probably done for the crowds during the weekend of the tour.

  “A few things have faded by now, of course,” her mom pointed out, “but overall, it still looks good. We’ve not had any snow yet, so your dad and I have continued to putter out here until the weather no longer allows it.”

  “Your mom wants to add in sunflowers next year. We thought you might help.”

  She might. She’d been intrigued by sunflowers since she’d been a kid. She loved the way the heads always looked toward the sun. “I have a book on them,” she told her mom. “I’ll lend it to you if you want.”

  Before any of them could say anything more, a high horsepower sports car drove up the road and turned into her parents’ driveway.

  “What’s he doing here?” her mother whispered, and Erica could see from the look on her mother’s face that she continued to wish Erica and JC had not gotten divorced.

  Well, she had news for her mother. Divorce hadn’t been her favorite moment in her life, either. But it was her life now. And she intended to send her ex on his way as swiftly as he’d shown up.

  “I have no idea,” she responded calmly. Then, with long strides, she made it to the car before JC could open his door.

  He grinned up at her as she stood there, his teeth gleaming from a recent polishing.

  “What are you doing here, JC?”

  “I heard you were back in town.”

  “And?” She’d tried to figure him out. She had. Why in the world had he ever wanted her back? Why would he show up there now?

  “Come on, baby.” Somehow his smile got even brighter. “I just wanted to see you. I’ve missed you.”

  “How are Lindsey and the baby?” She crossed her arms over her chest. “How are the wedding plans?”

  Finally, his smile dropped. He unfolded his legs and stood from the car, then took her by the elbow to lead her away. Clearly her parents had moved within hearing distance.

  She shrugged out of his hold when they got far enough away, and he leaned in. “Fatherhood isn’t for me,” he whispered urgently. “That’s another reason it was always better with you. We didn’t have kids. We didn’t want kids.”

  She actually had wanted kids.

  But as she stood there, she became aware of her gratitude that she’d never had any with him. He was kind of pathetic.

  “Then I guess you shouldn’t have knocked someone up.”

  “Say the word, E, and I swear, I’ll cancel the wedding. It’s not about her or the baby anymore. It never should have been. I want you. That’s why I’ve been trying to get in touch with you. My dad wanted us to announce, and Lindsey had all these plans already in place, but I wanted you.” He licked his lips, desperation in his every move. “Say the word, and I’ll make the call.”

  She just stared at him. What nerve.

  What a jackass.

  “You’re a real piece of work, James Christopher the third. What would
your daddy think if he even knew you said the words ‘cancel the wedding’?”

  JC’s tone lost its desperation then, and he seemed real for the first time. There was pain in his eyes. “I don’t care what he’d think,” he said softly. He reached for her, but she jerked her arm away. “I messed up with you, and I know that.”

  “You sure did.” She took another step back.

  “And I’ve regretted it every day. Please, E, give me another chance.”

  Another chance wasn’t even a blip on her radar. Instead, she asked a question she couldn’t believe she’d never voiced, but before she did, she looked up at him, making sure she had his eye. “Why did you cheat on me, JC? What made you do it?”

  “Come on. Let’s not talk about that. That’s the past.” He shot her another pleading look. “Let’s talk about the future.”

  “Your future is with Lindsey.”

  And it had been good between them, she decided. At least at one point in their relationship. She hadn’t been wrong about that. But the problem was that that point had been a very long time ago. And then she’d grown up.

  She’d outgrown her husband—while he’d stayed a spoiled little rich boy.

  It had never been about her being too boring for him. It had been about him being unable to move beyond the past. Since high school, they’d always been JC and Erica, doing the same things, going the same places. Their lives as a couple had defined who she was. Just as before that she’d been Mr. and Mrs. Yarbrough’s oldest daughter.

  When did she just get to be Erica?

  She looked behind her to where her parents remained. At her mother’s hopeful expression, and at her dad’s slightly annoyed one. Her dad, at least, had been fully supportive of her divorcing the man who’d cheated on her. He might have experienced disappointment that she hadn’t been able to hold on to him, but he’d never been less than encouraging for her to kick him to the curb.

  Then she looked back to the man she should have ejected from her life years ago.

  She got to start being just Erica today.

  “Time for you to go.” She moved to the driver’s door and opened it. “Good luck with your life, JC. I’ll be living my own now.”

  “Erica.”

  She shook her head and motioned for him to get in. “I’m not the woman you once married. I’m not the girl you dated in high school.”

  “I know. You’re better.” Urgency filled the words, and she felt her dad step up beside her.

  “Yes, I am. And I’m way too good for you.”

  As JC finally climbed into his car and started it, she heard a whimper come from her mother, and Erica immediately turned.

  “Why would you want me with someone who cheated on me?” she barked out. “Someone who made me the town joke?”

  “We just want you to be happy.”

  Erica’s eyes widened at her mother’s comment. “And what? You think living with a man who could treat me that way would make me happy? Seriously, Mom?”

  “Ellen,” her dad interrupted when her mother started to speak again. “That’s enough.”

  But her mother couldn’t let it go. She tried to explain herself. “Silver Creek is a small town, Erica. That’s the concern. There’s not a lot of good men to choose from. I hate what he did to you, you know that. I’ve stood by you all this time. But he wants you back now, baby. Shouldn’t you at least consider it? He’s got a good family.”

  Erica stared in shock and had the sudden realization that her mother’s opinion could so easily have been her own. Once upon a time. But thank goodness she’d moved on.

  “Silver Creek is one town, Mom. And there are a lot more out there to choose from.” Another decision became clear in that moment, and without letting herself think about it any longer, she took in both of her parents. “I won’t be going to that appointment tomorrow.”

  “What?” her mother asked.

  “Why not?” her dad added.

  “Because there’s no need. I won’t be taking the job.”

  “But we talked to Charles for you.” Her mother stopped talking at the wild-eyed expression Erica assumed had landed on her face.

  “You did what?”

  “Now don’t get mad,” her dad jumped in. “We knew your contract was ending, and when it didn’t work out with your replacement here, we simply reminded Charles what an asset you are to the county. Two-time teacher of the year, Erica. You can’t just give that up.”

  “I won’t give it up, Dad. I love teaching. I just don’t want to teach here.”

  “But what will you do?” Her mom looked truly confused, as if there were no other places to live or work in the world, and Erica decided that she would do something she should have done a long time ago. She’d enjoy a little downtime. She’d spend some of that settlement money her ex-husband had so graciously given to her, and there wouldn’t be one ounce of guilt over not clocking in every morning.

  She pulled her phone out to send a text to her baby sister. Maybe she had a little of Bree’s wildness in her after all.

  And maybe she liked it.

  Road trip? Where are you? I’ll come to you.

  The reply was quick and simple.

  Woohoo!

  Then another text followed.

  Wait. Does this mean it’s truly over with Gabe?

  Erica swallowed.

  It’s over with everyone.

  The impromptu dinner had gone well, with Dani and Nick having both agreed to be at the family home the following evening, and as Gloria bustled around the kitchen scooping banana pudding into bowls, the four adult Wildes silently stared at each other in anticipation. Gabe hadn’t informed them why he’d requested a family meeting, but he’d asked that Cord, Nate, and Jaden be included, as well. They were waiting for Nate to call in now. Nate was Nick’s twin, and he lived in Alaska. He was the hardest to get ahold of, but the minute they got him on the phone, they’d conference in Jaden and Cord.

  “This is a new recipe I’ve been waiting to try,” Gloria informed them as she sat a tray of bowls on the table.

  “It looks delish, Gramma.” Haley pushed up from her seat to lean over the table, checking out each bowl as if one might be better than the others.

  “Thanks for doing this,” Gabe told the older woman. “You didn’t have to.”

  “Oh, goodness. A houseful of guests, and you didn’t think I’d cook?”

  “Well, I appreciate it.”

  Gabe’s cell rang, and the tension in the room mounted. As he answered, Dani rose and suggested to the girls that they take their desserts into another room. She followed to turn on a video for them to watch, and by the time she returned, Gabe had all three brothers on the line.

  “So what’s this about?” Dani asked as she sat back down. She had less than three weeks to go of her pregnancy, and she looked every inch of it.

  “It’s about the orchard,” Gabe told them. He pulled in a deep breath, knowing they’d had a similar conversation a little over two years ago, and at the time, it had been agreed to continue with the status quo. Keep the orchard in the family, their dad would come out of retirement to run it, and no one would talk about whether there was a better alternative or not.

  “I need out,” Gabe told them now.

  Spoons clattered to the dishes as everyone at the table stopped eating. “What do you mean out?” Nick asked.

  “And what are you thinking that does to us?” added Nate.

  “Why?” This came from Dani. She watched him as shrewdly as he knew Cord would if their oldest brother were in the house with them, and Gabe knew it was time to bring his entire family into the past nine months of his life.

  With the kids safely out of the room, he informed them that Michelle intended to fight him for custody. “Though it’s actually more like blackmail.”

  He told them about her leaving after the holidays, prompting him to finally file for divorce, about the night he’d found Jenna home alone, and about the police being called the following m
orning.

  “And I’m sure you know the police were brought out to the Pancake House a few weeks ago.”

  “But nothing came from that,” Gloria inserted.

  “No. Nothing did. Other than Jenna breaking down over her mother, and me finally asking the woman to come back into our lives. Only, she showed up with an agenda.” He let his gaze roam over the log beams of the walls and out the back windows toward the trees and the lake beyond. He’d spent the majority of his life in this place. “It’s either sell my share of the farm and give her the profits . . . or she takes me to court for custody.”

  “She can’t do that,” his dad spoke up. “Jenna needs to stay here with you.”

  “I know that, Dad. That’s why I’m willing to sell. So either everyone buys me out, or . . .”

  “Or what?” Jaden asked from the phone. Jaden was the youngest of the clan, only twenty-four, and currently finishing up his master’s in psychology in Seattle. He planned to move back to town and open his own practice the following year.

  “Or we sell the whole thing to someone else and we all profit.” The words felt like sandpaper coming out of Gabe’s mouth. This home and the orchard around it had meant a lot to him over the years, both good and bad, and the truth was that none of them would be who they were today if the farm hadn’t been a part of their lives.

  “Or I give you enough money to fight her,” Ben added. “I can buy a hell of a legal team.” This wasn’t the first time Gabe’s friend had made the offer.

  “I could fight it,” Gabe agreed, “but she has a record of calls to the police on her side. Not to mention, she recorded me saying she couldn’t see Jenna.”

  “She can’t use that recording,” Jaden interrupted. “That was made without your consent.”

  “But that doesn’t mean she wouldn’t use the cop she has lined up ready to lie on her behalf. I’ve no doubt she’s filled his head with untruths about me—likely along with filling his bed to make sure he sees things her way. Either way, it would be a tough sell for me to prove otherwise.”