Mr. Congeniality

by Sherry Lewis

  Spence came up behind Annie and put his hand on her shoulder as if they belonged together. “She’s really something, isn’t she?”

  “Yes, she is.” Annie slipped away from him.

  Spence pretended not to notice that she’d evaded him. He dropped his hand and linked both behind his back. “No matter what you think about our marriage now, you have to admit we’ve done something right.”

  “She’s our crowning achievement,” Annie agreed. “But we don’t get all the credit. She gets a huge chunk just for being who she is.”

  “Yes, of course. But you can’t see her without realizing that there was something good about us once.”

  “Point taken,” Annie said, remaining expressionless. “But I’d rather not discuss our family issues today. I don’t want to ruin the day for everyone else.”

  Spence looked suddenly grim, but he didn’t argue. He turned his attention to the bustle of activity in the clearing. “Which vehicle are we going in?” he asked after a second.

  “I don’t know which vehicle you’re riding in,” Annie told him, turning away. “But whichever one it is, I’ll be in the other one. We aren’t going as a family.”

  He turned a deep frown on her and his eyes flashed with irritation. “Oh, come on, Annie. Haven’t you carried this far enough? It’s Founder’s Day in Whistle River and all three of us are here. Be an adult about this—for Nessa’s sake.”

  “I am being an adult,” she said firmly. “Some day you and I will be able to sit down together with Nessa and maybe even share a day with her. But not yet. Not until some of the hostility has faded and you stop trying to manipulate me to do what you want. Until then, we’ll only make her miserable.” With that, she walked away before he could do or say something that might test her determination to stay calm.

  Just inside the kitchen door, she found Irma watching the goings-on and nursing a cup of coffee. Annie did her best to wipe away the annoyed expression Spence had put on her face. “Have you seen Dean this morning?”

  “About an hour ago.” Irma sipped and sighed. “Just before he left.”

  “He left? Already?” Annie’s heart sank. “Why so early?”

  Irma glanced at her quickly. “You don’t know?”

  “He didn’t say a word to me.”

  “Well, no. He wouldn’t.” Irma ran the fingers of one hand through her short gray hair and carried her cup to the table. “He didn’t say a word to me, either, but I’m guessing it’s because of your husband out there. I’m thinking he wants to give you time and space to do what needs doing.”

  Annie flushed. “What makes you think that?”

  “Don’t worry. He hasn’t said anything to me. Nessa told me she caught you two kissing and it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that he’d like you to stay here—and not just because you’re an artist in the kitchen, either. He’s happier than I’ve ever seen him. You and Nessa and Tyler are helping him to find the best parts of himself.”

  “He’s doing that on his own,” Annie said joining Irma at the table. “And that’s what I should be doing. When I came here, the most important thing besides Nessa was proving to myself that Spence wasn’t responsible for my professional success. Now Dean has asked me to stay. But how will I ever know the truth if I jump immediately into the same kind of relationship with him?”

  Irma shook her head slowly. “I don’t know the answer to that, Annie.”

  “Neither do I. And what makes this so tough is that it’s not even choosing between my head and my heart. It’s having to choose between two different pieces of my heart.”

  Irma leaned back in her chair and crossed her legs. “It’s easy to choose between right and wrong. Not so easy to choose between two rights.”

  Annie sank back a little farther. “You’re not going to help me with this, are you.”

  Irma chuckled. “Tell you what to do? Not on your life, sweetie.” She stood and put both hands on Annie’s shoulders. “You want to prove that you can succeed on your own? Well, start right here. The answers you need are all inside you. Just listen carefully and you’ll find a better answer than I could ever give you—guaranteed.”

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  “ONE TRAFFIC LIGHT in the whole town. Can you believe it?” Laughing, Spence guided Annie and Nessa through the crush of people hovering around the picnic tables that occupied one whole side of Whistle River’s only park.

  Adult laughter and conversation rose and fell as people cleaned up after breakfast and set up for the next activity. Children darted in and out between tables and feet, shouting and shrieking with glee, and a large circle of teenagers had formed in the shade near the playground equipment. Annie thought it would have been a perfect scene…except for one thing.

  “And that movie theater,” Spence continued with a playful nudge of Nessa’s arm. “It must be a hundred years old. What do you want to bet they’re still using the original projector?”

  “I don’t know, Dad.”

  Annie had avoided Spence during breakfast, but she’d come with them now because Nessa had pleaded with her to. Since they’d split from the others Spence had done nothing but complain about the small town Annie was growing to love, and she was beginning to regret giving in.

  “If you insist on insulting these people and their town,” she said under her breath, “would you at least lower your voice?”

  “Oh, come on, Annie. I’m not insulting them. I’m just observing. There is only one traffic light, isn’t there?”

  Annie stopped walking. “It’s not what you say, Spence. It’s the tone of voice you use when you say it.” He’d always been good at making innocent-sounding comments and dipping them in acid. “You’re insulting these people and we all know it. I’d like you to stop.”

  Spence rolled his eyes at Nessa, no doubt expecting her to agree that Annie was being overly sensitive.

  To Annie’s surprise—and maybe more to Spence’s— Nessa put her hands on her hips and met her dad’s gaze. “She’s right, Dad. It’s okay that you like living in the city, but some people like having only one traffic light.”

  Spence held up both hands in front of him and laughed uneasily. “Okay. Sorry. I didn’t mean anything by it.” He glanced at the smattering of booths across the park, at the baseball diamond, and then toward the playground equipment. “At the risk of sounding rude, is this all that’s going on today?”

  “I don’t know,” Annie admitted. “We can ask. Keep your eyes peeled for someone wearing a ‘staff’ ribbon. While we’re waiting for whatever comes next, I’d like to see what they’re selling in the booths. How about you, Nessa?”

  Nessa nodded eagerly. “Gary said one of the biggest western-wear stores in Wyoming would be here today. Can we see if they have riding clothes? My things aren’t sturdy enough.”

  “Of course we can.” Annie started walking toward the booths.

  Spence held back. “That stuff’s going to be expensive, Nessa. At most, you’ll only be here another few weeks. Why waste the money?”

  Nessa’s gaze shot to Annie’s, and for the first time in a long time, Annie saw a plea for help in her daughter’s eyes. Apparently, in all the talking they’d done, Nessa hadn’t told her dad that she’d been asking to stay.

  Annie would have loved to see Spence’s reaction, but she didn’t think this was the best time to discuss it. She put an arm around Nessa’s shoulders and pulled her close. “Nessa’s in the saddle every day. She deserves some riding clothes, even if they’re just for fun.”

  Spence shrugged elaborately and started walking. “I’m not made of money, you know.”

  Annie studied him curiously. They’d never been wealthy, but it wasn’t as if Spence had to pinch pennies. She answered slowly, keeping her voice level so she wouldn’t inadvertently start an argument. “I didn’t ask you to pay for anything. If Nessa finds some things she wants, I’ll buy them.” She smiled at her daughter and added, “Within reason, of course.”

  “Well
, I’m glad you have money to burn.” Spence shoved his hands into his pockets. “Working out here in Nowhereville must be more lucrative than it appears.”

  Annie fought a flare of irritation. Apparently, Nessa’s request had touched a nerve, and Annie was curious about why. “I wouldn’t use the word lucrative,” she said with an easy smile. “But we’re getting by.”

  Twin spots of color formed in Spence’s cheeks. “And is that what you want? To get by?”

  Annie studied his eyes and saw fear reflected in their depths. She looked at their daughter and realized that Nessa wanted her to broach the subject she’d obviously been avoiding, and that stunned Annie. If Nessa was ready to let Spence leave without her, she must be serious about staying.

  “Actually,” Annie said, “getting by is just fine with me. If we have a roof over our heads and food on the table, that’s all we need. In fact, Nessa and I have been talking about staying.”

  Spence roared with laughter. “Here? You’re joking, right?”

  “I like it here, Dad. I don’t want to go back.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous. You’re not a…” Spence waved one hand at the people around them. “You’re not a cow-girl for heaven’s sake. You’re my daughter. You’ll take over Holladay House someday.”

  “I don’t think that’s going to happen,” Annie said quickly. “It seems that Nessa hates to cook. She’s happy here, and so am I. I don’t need the limelight anymore.”

  “You don’t?” Spence raked his fingers through his hair. “You don’t need the limelight. You don’t care what you do to your career.” He laughed harshly and turned away, but he turned back again after only a step or two. “You don’t care what any of your choices do to me, do you?”

  Annie caught Nessa’s eye and motioned for her to leave them alone. Nessa didn’t have to be told twice. When she was gone, Annie folded her arms and stood in front of the man she’d once loved. “What’s wrong, Spence?”

  He laughed again and rubbed his face with one hand. “What makes you think anything’s wrong?”

  “I know you. I’ve spent sixteen years at your side, and I know your moods almost as well as I know my own. Something’s wrong, and I want to know what it is.”

  Spence ran his fingers through his hair again, let his gaze follow Nessa’s path and planted his fists on his hips. “It’s Holladay House, Annie. I’m going to lose it.”

  “Lose it? How? It’s an institution in Chicago.”

  “Not anymore.” Spence dragged his gaze back to her face. “Not since you left. The chef I hired to replace you isn’t anywhere near as good as you are, but you know how cash-poor I’ve been since those renovations we made two years ago. I can’t afford to pay for someone better.”

  Annie’s stomach knotted and a heavy weight landed on her heart. When Spence had decided to renovate the restaurant, she’d urged caution for this very reason. But he hadn’t wanted her advice or input at the time. He’d plowed ahead without regard for her feelings or her opinion.

  She took in the set of his jaw, the thin line of his lips, the furrow of his brow, and realized that he’d never accepted her input on the restaurant, their marriage, or even the steps she’d taken in her own career. One after another, he’d bulldozed his ideas through and put clamps on hers—all the while calling her his partner.

  “You’re about to lose the restaurant. That’s why you want me back.”

  “I want you back because you and I work well together. We’re great together.”

  “And because you need me to save the restaurant.”

  “We’ll save the restaurant,” he said, suddenly earnest. He grabbed her hands and held them tightly. “You and me, Annie. Together.”

  An immense sadness filled her as she realized how long they’d been living the same lie and how often she’d fed it by taking the path of least resistance. She pulled her hands away gently. “No, Spence. I’m sorry about the restaurant, and I hope you can find a way to save it. But I can’t help you do it.”

  His mood changed in the blink of an eye. “Dammit, Annie, how much longer are you going to punish me for falling in love with someone else? Enough is enough. A business that’s been in my family for nearly fifty years is going down the tubes.”

  “Then I suggest you save it. Holladay House is a wonderful place. I loved the clientele. I loved the staff. It’s worth saving, but it’s not worth my life—or yours.”

  “It is my life.”

  “Maybe that’s part of the problem. If Nessa and I had ever been more important than Holladay House, things might have been different. But we’d be miserable working together under these circumstances.”

  “We don’t know that we’d be miserable. And Nessa wants us to stay together. If we aren’t married, isn’t working together the next best thing?”

  Annie took his hand in both of hers. “Oh, Spence, listen to us. We’re already miserable. How long has it been since we laughed together, or talked about something other than the restaurant? How long since we did anything at home but bicker?” She waved one hand toward the picnic table where Nessa sat watching. “Look at her. She’s nearly a woman. She’s heading into the toughest part of her life. She needs us at our best, not our worst. She needs us to pay attention to her, not spend all our energy fighting each other.”

  Spence seemed to be taking in everything she said, and that gave Annie hope that they’d finally be able to move on. He glanced toward Nessa as she finished. “We’re adults. We can put our differences aside for the sake of the restaurant.”

  “I’m not going back to Chicago.”

  “You can’t really mean that you’re staying here.”

  Annie nodded slowly and felt joy bubbling up into her heart for the first time in years. “That’s exactly what I mean.”

  “You’ll get tired of it. You both will.”

  “I don’t think so.” Annie glanced toward their daughter and the joy multiplied. “I really think Nessa’s found herself here—and so have I.”

  “What about me?”

  “That’s up to you. You’re Nessa’s father. You’ll always be part of her life, and I hope you make it an active part. For her sake, I hope you and I eventually learn how to be friends. And I hope you can save Holladay House. It would be a shame to lose it. But even if you can’t, I know you’ll land on your feet.”

  “You really don’t want to help me, do you?”

  “I can’t, Spence. Don’t you see that? You and I both need to stop blaming each other for our unhappiness and using each other to find success. We owe that to each other and to Nessa. And we owe her a chance to become who she really is, not who we expect her to be.”

  Spence’s shoulders sagged. He ran a hand along the back of his neck. “Well, then. I guess I should go.”

  “Now?”

  “In the morning. If you’re going to turn your back on me, there’s no point in staying.”

  “Nessa would love to have you stay, and I don’t mind as long as you’re ready to accept my answer and we don’t have to have this conversation again.”

  He shook his head quickly. “If you’re not coming back, there’s no point.” He kissed her cheek quickly. “I’ll go tell Nessa that I’m leaving in the morning.”

  “Yes,” Annie whispered, saddened by the realization that he still didn’t understand what she’d been saying. He had his answer and he was rushing back to his precious restaurant. Staying an extra day to make his daughter happy hadn’t even crossed his mind.

  FOR THE SAKE OF THE TEAM, Dean forced himself to stop thinking about Annie during the game. Tyler had chosen to coach along the third baseline, so Dean was ready to take up position along first. Parents filled the bleachers and called encouragement to their children. Dean watched the players’ reactions with interest.

  Nicole, his most reluctant player, now bounced with excitement. Zoe seemed suddenly nervous. Zachary was oblivious, and Pudge looked about ready to pass out.

  Dean motioned for the team to huddle up a
nd put himself at eye level with the kids. “How’s everybody doing? You guys okay?”

  Pudge nodded. Rusty popped his gum to show his utter lack of concern. Zachary scratched his ankle and Bobby blew his nose.

  “We’re okay,” Zoe said, once again turning into the spokesperson for the team. She glared around the circle, daring someone to disagree—which, of course, no one did.

  “I want you to listen to me,” Dean said with a fond smile. “You’ve worked hard all summer and you’re good enough to win this game. The key is to work as a team. Pull together, all right? And remember that we’re here to have fun above all.”

  Pudge nodded solemnly, but his poor little face was still flushed with nervous excitement.

  “Just do your best,” Dean said. “Nobody can ask for more than that.” He stood and brushed grass from his knees, then nodded at Tyler. “Now I’m through yapping. I want you guys to listen to your real coach, okay?”

  Tyler blinked in surprise, then grinned broadly and took Dean’s place. “All right! Listen up, you guys…”

  For the first time in his life, Dean understood the phrase “bursting with pride.” He wondered if he could have been more proud if Tyler had been his own son. And he wondered if he’d ever have a chance to find out.

  DEAN WAS HALFWAY TO THE TRUCK with the equipment bag dragging at his shoulder when he glimpsed someone sitting in a grove of old river willows near the parking lot. He might have passed by without stopping if it hadn’t been obvious that she was crying. Even so, he was almost on the grove when he realized it was Nessa.

  Dean stopped walking and studied her. She was young and vulnerable, and so sad his heart ached. The fact that she was hidden in a grove of trees meant she probably didn’t want company. But Dean couldn’t walk away and pretend he hadn’t seen her.

  He left the equipment bag on the ground and moved to stand between two close-set tree trunks. “Hey, kid. What are you doing in here?”

  Her head shot up at the sound of his voice, and the tears in her eyes made him glad he hadn’t turned away. She dashed her hand across her cheeks and straightened her shoulders. “Sitting.”