No Place Too Far

by Kay Bratt

  “Colby,” Maggie barely got out between the panting and coughing up water. She struggled to get to the shore and made it down the beach the last few feet to them. She wanted to collapse from the sudden exertion, but she held herself together with just her hands on her knees, doing her best to control her ragged breaths.

  Obviously she needed more exercise.

  Yoga was letting her down.

  Woodrow came to her and tried to help, but licking the salt from her legs was less than helpful to her heart, which was pumping out of her chest from exertion. If anything, the dog was sucking up more of her energy.

  “No, Woodrow,” she gasped. Anyway, he was a traitor. She’d expected him to at least show some ferocity toward a man he hadn’t seen in months.

  “Mama, look! It’s Daddy! He’s here!”

  Charlie had a look on his face that Maggie had rarely seen in the last year. It was pure and unadulterated joy. Disbelief too. But mostly the kind of happiness that can only come from a child who thinks his world is complete because he now has his two favorite people at his side.

  In her peripheral view, she saw Joe change direction behind her. He’d obviously heard the word daddy and didn’t want to intrude on the welcome.

  Liam and Quinn were turned their way, watching but not interfering.

  “Yes, I see that, Charlie. What a surprise,” she finally croaked out.

  Colby turned and set Charlie down.

  “Daddy, I’m practicing soccer! Liam got me a ball.”

  “That’s great, buddy. Go kick a few while I talk to Mommy.” He rubbed Charlie’s head and then their son was off, intent on showing off for his dad.

  “What are you doing here?” Maggie asked as soon as Charlie was out of earshot. They stood together, watching him go after his ball. It felt surreal that one moment, he was thousands of miles away across the ocean, and then he was here.

  Maggie couldn’t remember the last time Charlie had seen his parents in one place, side by side, as though it was meant to be that way.

  “Do I get a hello? Or a hug?” Colby said. He looked over her head. “People are watching. Can you at least act like you’re glad to see me?”

  The truth was, Maggie wasn’t glad to see him. She’d kept her secret from him for a long time, never letting him know the problem she was running from. Having him here now just wasn’t what she needed.

  He held his arms out, and she suddenly felt next to naked in her bikini, even though by Maui standards, it was quite conservative.

  “I’m wet,” she said, backing up a step. “And you’re wearing jeans. And boots. On a Maui beach. Do you have any idea how silly you look?”

  He grinned, and her stomach flipped. She despised that he could still do that to her. It also puzzled her how most men would look like idiots dressed that way on a beach, but somehow, despite what she said, Colby pulled it off. All he needed was his sweat-stained old cowboy hat and he’d have a line of beach babes at his beck and call, if it was just a bit earlier in the day.

  “I’m serious, Colby.”

  He lost his grin and tipped his invisible hat, reminding her just how southern he really was. No act, just genuine country-boy etiquette. “Sorry, little miss. I didn’t have time to shop. I was kind of in a hurry after your last call. Or should I say, the last call I received from this island by someone I didn’t know who had possession of your phone.”

  Maggie thought of the poor fellow who manned the gas station. He would probably lock the door the next time he saw her coming.

  “That was . . . Well, that was unfortunate. But I handled it. You know I have issues with anxiety, but nothing happened to Charlie, and we were both fine. You didn’t have to come all the way here.”

  He turned and put his arms around her, pulling her close to his side. And the embrace felt good. She had to admit it.

  Colby’s arms were familiar. Her body knew him and reacted immediately. Even with the slight chill of the evening breeze on her damp skin, she instantly felt warm all over.

  That wasn’t a good thing, and she broke away.

  He sat down on the sand and put his arms around his legs, staring out at the water. “Mags, don’t be mad. I could hear Charlie crying in the background of that message. It was a cry I’ve never heard. You didn’t call me back, so I was worried about you too. How could I not come?”

  Woodrow sensed his distress and lay down next to him.

  “I sent you a text message.”

  He gave her a disappointed look. “Yeah, that one is what drove me to the internet to book my ticket. Kind of cold, don’t you think? I could’ve called you back, but I needed to see what was going on for myself.”

  Maggie sat down beside him. “I’m sorry. I should’ve talked to you after everything settled down, but I just didn’t want a lot of questions. You know how I am about that problem. It’s humiliating. Not to mention that I’m going through a lot here right now.”

  “Obviously. And I came to see if I can help. And to make sure Charlie’s getting on all right. He’s thousands of miles away from me, his father, and when I hear him cry like that, it kills me not to be there to comfort him.” He looked hopeful.

  “But I don’t need any help, and Charlie doesn’t need you confusing him.”

  He looked at her, taken aback. “How am I going to confuse him?”

  Maggie sighed. “Oh, Colby. Now he’s going to think you’re here to stay.”

  Colby shrugged and looked at his boots. The same worn-in shit-kickers he’d been wearing for probably ten years. He hadn’t changed. “I don’t have to leave right away. I gave my job notice I wasn’t coming back. I’m ready for something else. Building fences gets old, if you know what I mean. Thought I’d try mending a fence this time instead, which is why I’m here . . .”

  So many thoughts were going through Maggie’s head that she didn’t even know what to ask next. His arrival had definitely put a wrench in things. And now that he didn’t have a date to be home by, this was going to get complicated. She had to find a way to send him home without breaking Charlie’s heart.

  “So the airplane thing, how did you do that?” she asked, softening her tone.

  He looked at her then. “It was hard, I’m not gonna lie. But I kept telling myself that what I loved the most was on the other side of that ocean, and there was only one way to get there.”

  She smiled. “He really missed you too, Colby. Maybe this visit will do him good and help you see that we’re both thriving here. So that you know I’ve got everything under control when you go back.”

  Colby started to say something else but was interrupted by Quinn and Liam walking up.

  “Hi, I’m guessing you’re Charlie’s dad,” Quinn said, holding her hand out. “You look exactly like your photo.”

  Colby smiled broadly. “So you must be the infamous Quinn that she’s told me so many stories about. I can’t believe it’s taken this long to meet you.” He shook her hand, then took the one that Liam offered.

  “I’m Liam. You’ve got a good kid there,” he said, nodding toward Charlie who was now trying to kick the ball up to the top of his head to bunt it. He bent too far over as he tried again, and the ball smacked him right in the face.

  He recovered fast, and the next time, he nailed it.

  “Did y’all see that?” he called out to them before getting back to training.

  “He’s committed,” Colby said. “Good job, Charlie!” he yelled out.

  He and Liam laughed like they were old friends. Something about the way that Colby fell into her friends group so easily irritated Maggie.

  “I’m guessing the desk clerk told you where to find us,” Quinn said.

  Colby nodded.

  Maggie shot a look of concern to Quinn. This was the second time one of her staff had led a stranger straight to them: first the bellhop and now the desk clerk. No one should be giving out their whereabouts. It was already a miracle that some reporter wasn’t skulking around while they were out there. Or w
orse, a deranged stalker.

  Colby noticed the exchange. “Ah, don’t blame him. I told him I was Charlie’s dad here to surprise him. He thought that was awesome.”

  But what if it hadn’t been Charlie’s dad? Maggie couldn’t very well bring that up to Colby, so she seethed in silence.

  “Josh has a soft spot for Charlie, but he needs to be a little more discerning,” Quinn said. “I’ll have to talk to him.”

  “I’ll do it,” Liam said. “He’s my third cousin, and he’ll listen to me without thinking he’s about to lose his job.”

  “Well, maybe he needs to have a little fear,” Maggie said. She stood and brushed the sand off her wet bottom, or at least tried to.

  “I need to start guiding Charlie toward a bedtime. Where are you staying? Did you book a room here at the inn?” she asked Colby.

  “I—um—no. I checked the rates, but well, you know, it’s a little pricey for my budget. I didn’t even rent a car. Thank goodness for the waiting taxi.”

  He looked embarrassed, and it dawned on Maggie.

  Colby expected to stay with her.

  She felt her independence closing in on her a little bit more. He was right, though. You could buy a small car for what lodging in Maui would cost you for a week. And she couldn’t expect Quinn to lose a room just to comp him for her.

  As for Colby, she stared at him and could read his mind. All he had to do was summon his little mini-me minion, and Charlie would insist that his dad come home with him.

  Maggie wouldn’t win this one. And just like with a child, you also had to learn to pick your battles with your ex. This was small compared to what it would take for him to agree she was fine and leave the island. She needed to save her mental strength.

  “Fine. You can take the couch,” she said, unable to wipe the grimace from her face before speaking. “Wait, where did Starr—I mean Joe—take off to?” She hadn’t even noticed that while they were talking, he’d disappeared.

  “He said he had a patient to call about,” Quinn said, raising her eyebrows at Maggie.

  He didn’t have any patients. Maggie knew that. Yeah, it was a little awkward, she had to admit. She’d call him later and apologize. Joe had really been good with Charlie, and surprisingly, she’d enjoyed the surfing lessons too. Away from the clinic, her boss was a lot of fun.

  Actually, even in the clinic, Joe was a lot of fun.

  Colby reined Charlie in, and they all headed back up to the hotel.

  “Our sleepover is off, right?” Quinn asked.

  “Yep,” Maggie replied.

  Charlie stopped. “I want Daddy to stay with me.”

  They were almost up to the hotel. Everyone was silent, and it got awkward.

  “Yes, Daddy is coming home with us for tonight,” Maggie said, heading off a whining campaign. “Because I decided, not because you ordered it.”

  Charlie jumped up and down, his excitement of seeing his dad now surpassed by his joy of taking him home and probably showing him every Tonka truck and book he owned. He was going to talk until his dad was ready to wave the white flag.

  She smiled slyly. Colby at least had that coming.

  Maggie was already planning a long, hot, and uninterrupted bath. While Colby was here, he was going to be taking more than his share of parent duty. She’d make him beg for an airport drop-off.

  “Colby, grab your bags, and I’ll meet you in the parking lot. Look for the biggest piece of junk out there, and you’ll find me and Charlie.” She sounded as disgruntled as she felt, but her good manners wouldn’t do anything less than let Colby stay with them.

  Hell, she couldn’t afford Maui lodging either. Not unless it was a pup tent on the beach with the moon as her night-light. She pushed the thought away before it could slip out of her mouth. She knew her son and he’d jump all over that idea, probably with his dad backing him up. And while the Ghost was on the loose, Maggie meant to keep Charlie behind lock and key.

  The ride to her place was filled with Charlie asking questions, a blessing because that meant she didn’t have to find something to say. Her son was never at a loss for words, and he was also good for entertainment in awkward moments.

  “We can go to the park but not at dark because Mama says the boys smoke marinara there at night,” Charlie said.

  “Good call. We sure don’t want to be around any saucy smoke,” Colby said, laughing as he grinned over at Maggie.

  They pulled up at the apartments and she bit her tongue, worried what he would think of her sparse living. He didn’t judge, other than to tease her about having a black thumb when he saw the boxes of flowers on either side of her door.

  The lines of stems with no heads did look a bit creepy.

  Maggie had told Charlie that the dragonflies ate them, but something told her Colby knew enough about nature to know that would be a bunch of bull.

  While she fumbled to unlock the door, she felt Colby staring a hole through her.

  “That’s some serious hardware,” he said.

  She declined to comment and showed him in, feeling her cheeks burn as he walked into their tiny home. If he noticed how shabby it was, he didn’t say a word, and for that she was grateful.

  Two hours later, she was ready to strangle Colby. He’d used two pots, three wooden spoons, two cups, four bowls, and a colander to make Charlie a simple box of macaroni and cheese, all the while narrating each step loudly and obnoxiously as though he were some sort of television chef.

  Charlie loved the show.

  Every. Single. Second.

  He thought his dad was some sort of celebrity.

  As for her, she should get more for giving him birth and keeping him alive each day. But then she smiled as she heard Colby’s voice from the bedroom, reading their son his sixth bedtime story. As predicted, Charlie had not stopped talking to his dad.

  And talking.

  Then talking some more.

  She’d almost rescued Colby a few times, but then she figured he needed to know the feeling of thinking your ears would bleed if you had to listen to one more question or read yet another story.

  Even Woodrow had enough by book three and came out to join her in the kitchen, lying between her legs and the cabinet, just to make her last chores that much more unbearable as she strained to reach the dishes.

  But his loyalty was admirable.

  “You’re such a good boy,” she mumbled to him. “Aren’t you glad it’s not us tonight?” He looked at her, and she swore she saw a barely perceptible nod of his head.

  When she finished the last dish, Colby stumbled out, looking quite shell-shocked and red-eyed from reading in the dim light. He was wearing just basketball shorts and no shirt—his farmer’s tan shining from day after day of planting poles and hanging wire. Which the muscles confirmed.

  She tried not to stare.

  “God, Maggie,” he said, falling into the couch right on top of the clean sheets she’d just set out for him. “I couldn’t find an off button.”

  She laughed. There were many evenings she’d thought the exact same thing. She didn’t know why there was such a thing as waterboarding when the government could just send in a four-year-old, and the suspect would soon beg to spill his guts if the kid shut up.

  “I finally had to promise to teach him how to do a judo kick as soon as he wakes up,” Colby said.

  “Well, that was a mistake. You’d better be ready as soon as his tiny toes hit the floor. You promise a preschooler something before they go to sleep, and the second they open their eyes they’re demanding you pay up.”

  “Crap,” Colby said. “I thought he’d forget. That’ll be fun first thing in the morning. He’ll be pulling moves, and I’ll be standing there trying to remember who I am and how I got here.”

  Maggie laughed. “Welcome to Charlie’s world.”

  She opened the fridge and pulled out two cans of beer. She took one to Colby, then popped the top on hers and sat down beside him.

  “Thanks.” He scooted
a little closer, and she felt her guard creeping up. “I have no idea what time it really is, but my brain is telling me that I missed a night’s sleep somewhere.”

  “We’re six hours ahead. You should’ve slept on the plane.”

  “I couldn’t. I was too worried about what you’d do when you saw me. I expected a hard right to my center or something like that. I know how much you hate surprises, so the mellow way you took it kind of surprised me.”

  “That’s because I couldn’t catch my breath from paddling in to the beach. If you’d have come out to me, I’d have drowned you,” Maggie said.

  She leaned her head back on the couch, and he followed suit. They sat there side by side, heads back and beer in hands. It felt comfortable.

  “Come on, now,” he said. “You know I’ve changed a lot in the last few years. Don’t I get any credit?”

  She didn’t say anything, though she’d noticed he had changed, actually. He was never late sending a check for Charlie’s support and sometimes even added a little extra. Despite the time difference, he was always available by phone—no matter what time it was, he would pick up. He’d also never missed a visitation or was late for anything he’d agreed to do with Charlie.

  But Maggie most appreciated that when they exchanged their son back and forth, Colby was always the perfect gentleman. They’d never let Charlie think there was anything but fondness between them.

  Co-parenting at its best.

  Though, honestly, Colby had always had impeccable manners. From their first date when he’d opened the truck door and helped her in, then paid for dinner. Afterward he took her for a simple ice cream cone before delivering her back home without even one attempt to talk her into his bed. It wouldn’t have taken much. Maggie had fallen hard for his southern charm during dinner that night; then the deal was sealed even more when she witnessed how well he treated his mama.

  He was just a good man.

  That simple.