Life Rewritten

by Margaret Watson

  Anger rose inside him in a huge, hot wave, sweeping away his pity. “Sorry, Heather, that’s not going to happen. You go right ahead and call the cops—it’ll only make you look like a fool. I’ll get them back to Florida as soon as I can, but it’s not going to happen tomorrow. Deal with it.”

  He snapped the phone closed, then stood staring at the small whitecaps on the lake. He shouldn’t have taken the kids to Delaney’s press conference. He should have been more careful.

  He hadn’t even thought about what would happen when they returned to Florida. Of course Rennie would tell her mother about Delaney. How had he ever imagined he’d keep this quiet?

  And how had he imagined he could convince Delaney to move with him? Heather would never allow Leo and Rennie to spend time with her. He was sure Delaney had already figured that out.

  Sam would have to leave her if he wanted to be part of his niece and nephew’s life. She’d figured that out, too.

  The three of them appeared around the curve of the cliff, and he forced himself to smile and wave. Delaney held tight to Rennie’s hand and herded Leo away from the water. The sunlight made her hair glow, and she laughed as she listened to something Leo said.

  Sam loved her, but he had to leave.

  WHEN THEY GOT HOME from the lake, he put the kids to bed and called the next-door neighbor’s teen daughter to stay with them. Then he hurried through the woods to Delaney’s house. He’d told her about the phone call, that he had to leave. She’d told him to come over, and had given him the neighbor’s phone number.

  She must have been waiting in the kitchen, because as soon as he stepped onto the porch, she opened the door and held out her arms.She whispered “I love you” when he slid inside her. She cried his name when she came. He tasted her tears as they lay tangled together on her bed, holding tightly to each other.

  His throat swelled and his eyes burned, and he buried his face in her hair.

  At midnight, he reluctantly pulled away. “I have to go,” he said. “I told Tracey I’d be home by now.”

  Delaney slipped out of bed, her smooth, toned body pearl-white in the moonlight, and he pulled her into his arms one more time. “I’m not going to forget you, Delaney.”

  “I know,” she whispered. She relaxed into his embrace for a long moment, then straightened. “I won’t forget you, either.”

  FOUR DAYS LATER, Delaney stood outside the security gates at the Green Bay airport and tried to keep a smile on her face. Rennie was in her arms, and Leo was standing close, clutching his father’s guitar case. Fluffy barked from his cage beside her.

  “You can visit us, Delaney,” Rennie said. “I’ll show you my room.”“That sounds wonderful, sweetheart. I can’t wait.”

  Sam swallowed and reached for Rennie. “We’re going to miss our plane, guys. We have to go.”

  Rennie leaned out of Sam’s arms and squeezed Delaney hard around the neck. “I’ll send you more pictures for your ’frigerator.”

  “I’d like that,” she managed to say.

  Leo threw his arms around her and hugged her tightly, then stepped back. “Thanks again for the guitar. Uncle Sam said I could take lessons when we get back to Miami.”

  “I’ll look forward to hearing you play it,” she said, knowing that would never happen.

  Sam set Rennie on the floor and wrapped his arms around Delaney. She felt him trembling, and she kissed him for a long moment. Then she whispered, “You’re doing the right thing, Sam. I love you. Now go.”

  He captured her face in his palms and stared into her eyes. “I love you, Delaney. I’ll be back.”

  He kissed her again, then turned and picked up Fluffy’s cage and took Rennie’s hand. They waved after they went through security, and she waved back, although she had trouble seeing them through the haze in her eyes. Moments later, they were gone.

  DELANEY GUIDED ANOTHER piece of oak through the table saw, then stacked it carefully in a pile with the rest. She looked at the drawing on her workbench and picked up another piece of wood. The dresser she was building was a complicated design. She had to concentrate on every step. That was good. She needed something to fill her mind.

  Sam had been gone for two days, and the pain was almost more than she could bear. He’d called the last two nights, and his voice made her ache. He was staying in Heather’s house with Leo and Rennie, and he’d told her things were going well, but he sounded grim. Heather had pitched a fit, but he’d refused to leave.Leo and Rennie missed Delaney, he said.

  He missed her.

  There was a huge hole in her heart, and she had no idea how to mend it. She’d searched for houses to rent in Miami, even though she knew it was a pipe dream. She couldn’t move to Miami. Heather wouldn’t allow her to have any contact with her kids. And Delaney couldn’t force Sam to choose between them.

  Her phone rang, and she leaped for it, then set it down when she looked at the caller ID. Jen.

  Jen and Maddie had both called every day. While Sam was still here, Delaney had turned her phone off. After he left, she’d needed some time to regain her balance. She still felt too wobbly to talk to her friends.

  She turned on the lathe, consulted the drawing again, and picked up a piece of wood. Work was her means of sanity right now. Work was escape. She adjusted the knobs of the machine and focused on making the facing of a drawer.

  SEVERAL HOURS LATER, she was sitting in her darkening kitchen, drinking a cup of tea and watching the sunset over the woods, when she heard a car in her driveway. Probably not a reporter—most of them had left town when they realized there wasn’t much of a story left to tell.

  She peered out the window and saw a hugely pregnant Maddie struggle out of the passenger side of Jen’s SUV. Both of them headed toward her front door, determined looks on their faces.Delaney turned on the lights in the house and opened the door. “Hi, guys.” She took a deep breath. They were going to do this, whether she was ready or not. “Come on in.”

  Maddie tossed her coat onto the couch, then put her hands on Delaney’s shoulders. “We know they’re gone.”

  The sympathy in her expression, the distress in her eyes, were too much. Delaney covered her face with her hands, and all the tears she’d refused to shed streamed down her face. When her breath caught on a sob, Maddie pulled her into a hug.

  She clung to her friends, sobbing, until she felt completely drained. The hard bump of Maddie’s belly pressed against hers, and as she was sniffling and trying to gather her courage, she felt something flutter against her stomach.

  She looked down in awe. “Was the kid just kicking me?”

  “She was.” Maddie let her go and smoothed her hand over her abdomen. “Clearly, she’s going to be a soccer player.”

  “She? Do you know for sure?”

  Her friend nodded. “I broke down and asked.”

  Delaney knuckled her eyes and grabbed a tissue from the box on the end table. Maddie and Quinn were having a daughter. Delaney thought about Rennie in Miami and struggled to smile. “That’s great news. Names?”

  “Not yet.” Maddie linked an arm through hers. “We’re not here to talk about me. The real estate agent told us Sam paid off his lease and turned in his keys. We figured you’d need some company.”

  Delaney struggled not to begin crying again. “He’s been gone for two days.”

  “And you let him go?” Jen asked.

  “I had to.”

  Maddie lowered herself to the couch, and Jen pulled a fancy gold box out of her huge purse. “We brought chocolate. Tell us what happened.”

  Delaney looked at her two friends. They’d both apologized for the way they’d reacted to the news that she was Chantal, but Delaney had been cool and distant the last time she’d seen them. She’d been ignoring their calls for almost a week. Still, they’d driven out to her house because they thought she needed them. They must have half expected she’d slam the door in their faces.

  “Let me…let me get some tea,” she said unsteadily. “H
erbal for you, Maddie. Jen, what do you want?”

  “Herbal is good.”

  Delaney was a little steadier by the time she set a pot of tea and three mugs on the coffee table. Jen pulled her onto the couch between them. “I’ve been pissed off at Walker for not pounding that guy when he had a chance. Tell us why we shouldn’t go after him and cut out his heart?”

  Delaney managed a sad smile. “Because he has two kids to take care of.”

  By the time she finished telling her friends about Heather and Leo and Rennie, they’d eaten half the box of chocolates and finished the tea. When Delaney’s voice trailed off, Maddie said, “Well, that bites the big one.”

  Delaney sniffled. “You have such a way with words, Maddie. Must be because you’re a reporter.”

  “This is so unfair,” Jen said.

  “No, it’s not. I knew what the deal was—and this is exactly what I wanted. That’s why I said I’d release the demos. I wanted to keep him here long enough to get to know Diesel’s kids.” Her stomach churning, she pushed the box of chocolates away. “I didn’t plan on falling in love with him.” She gave the box another little shove. “I didn’t think it was going to hurt this much.”

  “That’s why we’re here,” Maddie said. “We know.”

  “Thank you,” Delaney said quietly. “I should have answered your phone calls. I just…I couldn’t talk to anyone. Especially you guys. You know me too well.” She jumped up from the couch. “I knew you’d come out here, and that I’d cry. I hate to cry.”

  “We were afraid you were still angry with us,” Jen said.

  “No. I was never angry. I was hurt. I understood why you were shocked, but it still hurt.”

  “We have no excuses,” Maddie said. “It’s not like we’re perfect ourselves.”

  Delaney smiled and felt some of her misery dissipate. She’d needed her friends. “You get a pass on being shocked. What were you supposed to do when you found out one of your friends was a notorious rocker who’d had a very public affair with a band member and been blamed for his death? I didn’t expect you to say, ‘Oh, that’s nice, Del.’”

  “‘It’s okay’ would have been good, though,” Jen said quietly. “So would ‘it doesn’t matter.’ I’m so sorry.”

  “I am, too,” Maddie said.

  “I know you are. So let’s forget about it, all right? I don’t want things to be different between us.”

  “Oh, things are going to be different.” Maddie leaned forward. “We have a source now for celebrity gossip, and we’re going to mine it. We expect you to dish all the dirt.”

  Two days ago, Delaney hadn’t thought she would ever laugh again. “Ask away.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  SAM PAUSED AT THE door of Rennie’s bedroom, watching his niece sleeping. Fluffy was curled up at her back, his head on his paws. Heather had been appalled at the dog and had tried to get rid of him, but after Rennie’s hysteria, Sam had taken Heather aside and explained. He’d told her how much Rennie loved the ugly mutt, and how attached they were.

  Once she heard the story, Heather had agreed to let the dog stay. She was trying. He had to give her that. She’d clearly learned some things about herself in rehab.He stopped at Leo’s door, watching his nephew sleep, as well. The guitar case lay on the bed next to him. It was out of his sight only when he was in school. Every morning, before he got on the bus, he placed it carefully in Sam’s office. Clearly, he knew what his mother’s reaction would be if she found out where the guitar had come from. Or that it had belonged to Diesel.

  Heather’s nonrecognition of the guitar had told Sam all he needed to know about her relationship with his brother. Thank God Diesel had had Delaney in his life.

  Delaney. Sam eased Leo’s door closed and headed downstairs. It had been three weeks, and the ache hadn’t gotten any better. He missed her more every day. As much as he loved talking to her and hearing her voice, he was beginning to dread the phone calls. They were a daily reminder of what he’d left behind.

  As he reached the main floor, he smelled cigarette smoke and heard Heather’s voice. She had company, and Sam turned to go back upstairs.

  “I can’t, Tim.” Heather’s voice. “I have the kids.”

  The unknown Tim said something in a low voice.

  “What am I supposed to do? They’re my kids. I told Sam to bring them back.”

  She sounded weary. Worn down. Depressed.

  Tim continued talking, but Sam had heard enough. He crept back up the stairs and sat in his office. For the first time in three weeks, hope stirred.

  The next morning, after he’d seen Leo and Rennie onto the school bus, he wandered into the kitchen, poured himself a cup of coffee and sat down across from Heather. Her long blonde hair was tousled from sleep, and her eyes were sad.

  “They’re on the bus safely.”

  “Are you going to walk them to the bus stop when they’re in high school?” she asked.

  High school. That implied he’d be part of their lives permanently. His heart beat a little faster, but he said lightly, “God, no. They’d be totally humiliated.”

  Heather smiled. “Yeah, I forgot about hating your parents when you’re that age.”

  “How is it going with you and the kids?” he asked. “Are you glad they’re back here?”

  “Of course I am.” She grabbed her coffee and took a gulp. “They’re my kids. I love them.” She took another swallow, then stared into the mug. “I know I haven’t been a good mother.”

  “You did the best you could.”

  “No, I didn’t, Sam. I screwed up.”

  “At least you realize it. Leo and Rennie love you. They want a relationship with you. You can fix things if you really want to.”

  She nodded. “I do. I missed them while I was in the hospital.” Her eyes filled with tears. “I wanted to tell them I was sorry.”

  He looked at her hand, shaking slightly as she held the coffee. “You’ve still got a lot of work to do, don’t you?”

  “I need to go to AA meetings. And NA meetings. I’ll be seeing a therapist twice a week.”

  Sam took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Do you want me to take the kids? While you finish getting yourself straight?”

  She stared at him for a long moment, then stood up and grabbed a container of yogurt out of the refrigerator. When she sat down, she stared down at the yogurt instead of him. “They’re my kids. What kind of mother gives her kids away?”

  “A mother who’s overwhelmed. A mother who has a lot of problems she has to work through.” He put his hand over hers. “A mother who wants what’s best for them.”

  “They’ll think I don’t want them.”

  “I’ll make sure they know you do. I love them, Heather, as if they’re my own. They love me. Let me have custody of them while you get yourself sorted out.”

  “So you can take them back to Wisconsin? So Chantal can have them?” She stabbed the spoon into the yogurt cup.

  “Yes, I want to go back to Wisconsin. But I think it would be good for Leo and Rennie, too. They had friends there. They were doing well in school. It’s a different environment. Here, they’re a celebrity’s kids. In Wisconsin, they were just Leo and Rennie Adams. They could have a stable life.”

  “With you and Chantal.” Her voice was sad. Defeated.

  “With me and Delaney. She’s changed, Heather. She knows how much she hurt you and the kids, and she really regrets that. She’s wonderful with them.”

  “So she gets everything.” Heather shoved the yogurt away, and it slid off the table and splattered on the floor. “First Diesel, and now his kids. He loved her, Sam.” She lifted her head, and her eyes were haunted. Full of pain. “He wanted to marry her. We’d been together forever, we had two kids, but he wouldn’t marry me.” Tears ran down her face. “Diesel told me they were going to get married.”

  “That must have hurt a lot.” No wonder she’d been so needy. So desperate. So vengeful.

  “You have
no idea.”

  He reached across the table and took her hands. “Let me have temporary custody of them, Heather. I promise, no one else could love them more than I do. You’ll see them often, as often as you want, while you’re recovering. You have to get yourself straightened out before you can be a good parent.”

  A spark of hope flickered in her eyes, and sympathy washed through him. It hadn’t been easy for Heather, either.

  His voice was gentle. “Sometimes, doing the right thing for your kids means letting them go. I know it’s hard. But make the right choice for Leo and Rennie.”

  DELANEY SANG THE LAST notes of “Learning to Fly,” made a final drum flourish, then smiled as the crowd in the Harp cheered and clapped.

  “Ready for a break?” Paul asked the band.“Yeah, I need a beer,” Hank said.

  “Okay, fifteen minutes.” Paul pointed at her. “You. Eat. Or you’re going to embarrass yourself when your pants fall off in public.”

  “Yes, Mom,” she said, setting down her drumsticks.

  As she stood up to head into the kitchen, Paul stopped her. “Do you want to start out the next set with that song we worked on? The one you and Diesel did?”

  “That would be great. The record company is looking forward to getting a little feedback.”

  Paul scowled. “How about you, Delaney? Do you want to sing that song in public?”

  “Yeah, I do,” she said. “It’s time. I agreed to do publicity, and this is part of it. Might as well stir up a little interest in the CD.” She smiled as she wove her way through the crowd and into the kitchen.

  Singing a song she and Diesel had written and recorded wouldn’t be painless, but she could do it. There would be some nostalgia, some regret, but it wouldn’t turn her inside out. It wouldn’t be wrenching. Not like the last four weeks had been.

  She’d gone on with her life—made furniture, played at the Harp, hung out with her friends. If she had to force herself to smile, she made sure it didn’t show. If she was distracted sometimes, she told her friends she was tired.