by M. Allen
Chapter 26
Magnolia hopped out of the cab of Calla’s truck, and just like the first day she arrived, her shoes sunk into the mud. She snapped up her head, half-expecting Dax to be waiting on the front porch for her, half-expecting her father to pop out his head and tell her that’s what she gets for wearing heels in the Tennessee mud. Rather than fight it, she slid her feet from her shoes and let her bare feet sink into the mud as she walked to the other side of the truck and pulled Hayden from the back seat. “Tell your folks I said thank you for watchin’ Hayden for me.”
Calla turned back from the driver’s seat. “You sure you don’t want me to stay with y’all for a little while?”
Magnolia put her head back, looking up at he ranch house where she’d grown up. All the lights were out and it would be dark soon. The house seemed so empty, so alone, so lost… exactly how she felt. “I think I need just a bit of quiet. Is that all right?”
“Of course. You know where to find me if you need me.” She gave Magnolia a half-smile, half-tearful goodbye.
Magnolia held up her hand. “No more cryin’, Calla. I think I cried enough tears to last me the next ten years.”
When she nodded, her blond curls bobbed. “I’m here.”
“I know.” She blew her a kiss then turned away. “I’ll call you later.”
Hayden tucked his head into her neck. The kid was forever falling asleep in any car. Normally, she’d wake him up or at least try to. But tonight, after everything they’d been through the past few days, she’d let him sleep. Not bothering to pull her heels out of the mud, she traipsed up the front porch, swung the door open and walked through. Usually, a fire would be burning in the hearth, the room would be flooded with warm light and down the hall she’d hear her dad riffling through papers. But now the house stood silent and still as if it too was in mourning.
“Maggie?” her mother called from the kitchen.
“It’s me, Mom.”
When she headed toward the stairs, her mother met her at the banister. “This place hasn’t changed much. Aside from that kitchen, your father had good taste.”
Magnolia had been shocked when her mother arrived in full New York fashion. She’d flown in, rented a car and showed up on her doorstep the next day. Magnolia had called and her mother had answered. Standing in front of her now, she saw what she was on her way to becoming. Stronger, independent, and willful… Her mother taught her that. She glanced back toward the kitchen. “Yeah, he really did.”
Her mother reached out and brushed her hand over her hair the way she did when she was younger. “Oh, honey, he loved you so much.” She reached out her arms for Hayden. “I’ll put him down for you.” She pointedly glanced at Magnolia’s mud-covered feet. “You should get cleaned up.”
“Yeah.” Magnolia passed Hayden into her mother’s waiting arms. As they disappeared out of sight, Magnolia turned to walk down the hall, stopping just outside her father’s office. In her mind, she saw him siting behind his desk, running his fingers through his hair and sorting through papers. His evergreen scent still clung to the air. On the corner of the desk sat a dirty coffee mug she didn’t have the heart to wash just yet. The thick brown Carhartt jacket her father wore for years hung over the back of the chair.
Magnolia walked into the room, running her fingers over the shelves and around the desk. When she pulled his jacket around her shoulders and sat behind his desk, she somehow felt closer to him. At the cemetery, she didn’t feel her father there, but here in this office, she felt him all around her. She pulled the collar of the jacket to her nose and took a deep breath, inhaling his scent and the smell of the ranch that clung to it. She closed her eyes, and a small smile played on his lips.
“I used to love the way he smelled too.”
She flashed her eyes wide to look at her mother standing against the door jamb, with her arms crossed over her chest. It was almost a glimpse into what she’d look like in the future, with her hair cropped just above her shoulders, her steady green-hazel eyes, and impeccably dressed in straight black slacks, a white pinstripe shirt and black cardigan. Her mother pressed her hand to the pearls around her neck. “Your father gave me these.”
When her eyes began to glint, Magnolia wanted to pull her into her arms. Her mother raised her hand. “No, you stay there, I have something to tell you.”
Magnolia leaned back in the plush desk chair. “What do mean?”
Her mother walked in, taking one of the chairs opposite Magnolia. “A long time ago when I left here,” she swallowed, “left you…”
“Mom, you don’t have to—”
“Yes, I do. I want you to know your father never did anything wrong when it came to us.” She hiccuped. “It was my fault.”
Magnolia sat forward, resting her hands on the table. “What are you talking about?”
She swiped at her cheek. “I was so young, Maggie. And I just wasn’t ready for all this.” She motioned to the house.
Staring at her mother, Magnolia realized she inherited more than her looks. When she was younger, she ran just like her mother had. Magnolia pressed her hand to her forehead. “Why are you telling me this?”
“Because I want you to know your dad was an amazing man, he raised you, and he let me go because I wanted him to. I knew he loved me, and I loved him. But I felt so trapped here.” She pulled her cardigan closer around her shoulders. “But now I see how wrong I was.”
“Oh, Mom, we all mistakes when we’re younger.” Thinking back on how she’d left Dax all those years ago, she knew that feeling of being trapped very well. Even now, the walls seemed to be closing in on her. “You did what you thought was right. You shouldn’t hold regrets.”
“Oh, but Maggie, I do.” She sniffled. “I never had the chance to tell your father how I truly felt. I was so determined to prove I could make it in the big city on my own and be without him, I forgot what the most important things in the world were.”
“What’s that?”
“You and him. I loved him dearly. And now he’ll never know it.” She pressed her fist to her chest. “And I will have to live the rest of my life knowin’ he never knew it.”
“Oh, Mom.” Magnolia rose to her feet and rounded the desk, scooping her mother up in her arms. “He was loved, Mom, and he knew it.”
Her mother sobbed into her shoulder. “He didn’t know about me, though. He was a good, strong man, and I walked away.”
Magnolia squeezed her harder, wishing she could take away this hurt from her mother. “Mom, don’t you worry. Hayden and I, we might move back up to New York once all this is taken care of.”
“What do you mean?” Her mother pulled back to look her in the face.
Magnolia dropped her arms. “I don’t know if I can stay here after all this. So much has happened—with Dad, with Dax. I just feel so lost.”
“Did you feel at home in New York? I mean, honey, you had no friends there or anything.”
“I know, but even now, I don’t know if I can handle runnin’ the ranch. Or handle bein’ around Dax after this.” She gazed down at her hands. “I still love him, Momma.”
“Magnolia, now, I’m not gonna tell you what to do, because Lord knows you’ll do the exact opposite, but even dealin’ with everythin’ that’s been thrown at you the past few weeks, this is the most at home I’ve ever seen you.” She reached up, stroking Magnolia’s cheek. “This land—this ranch—is in your blood, baby. Don’t give up because things got a little hard. Or you’ll end up just like me.”
“Would that be so bad?”
As her mother looked around the room then gazed out the window, she nodded. “It is if you have to live with half the regret that I do.”
Chapter 27
Mr. William’s office was at the center of Briar Ridge, just across from green space in the center of Main Street where a white gazebo sat. All around her, the town bustled with movement. It was near lunch time, and the café was packed with people waiting to be sat. Magnolia stood ou
tside the brick building, spinning her keys in her hand. There was so much to tend to in one day, and it all lay behind the white double doors. Adulting sucks. Yesterday, she’d buried her father, and today, she had to get the rest of her life together. There should be a button someone could press to stop life for a moment just so she could catch her breath. Only hours ago, she’d been all in black. In her heart, she felt she should still be. So, she’d worn a black sweater, blue jeans and black boots.
The hinges of the door creaked as she walked through. In the small lobby sat a single desk with a familiar-looking, plump woman filing her nails behind it. To her left and right were aged brown chairs. Magnolia tilted her head to the side, trying to place her. “Hi, I’m Magnolia Reed.”
The woman snapped up her head from her bright red nails. “Oh, Maggie, it’s good to see you.”
“I’m sorry, do I…?” She looked her up and down. “Oh, my gosh, Lydia?”
The woman leapt up from her chair and jiggled her way over to Magnolia, pulling her in for a bear hug that made Maggie more familiar with Lydia’s curves than she wanted to be. Magnolia held her hands stiffly at her sides, waiting for Lydia to drop her unwanted clutch. Lydia shook her back and forth. “Lulu told me you was back in town.”
In high school, Lulu and Lydia were tighter than a southern beauty queen’s girdle. Magnolia took a small step back from her and brushed her hands down her sides. “I didn’t know you worked here.”
Lydia, who stood about half a foot shorter than Maggie, leaned in. “Oh, yeah, and thank goodness I do. I heard y’all are in a quite the pickle.”
“Excuse me?” Magnolia raised her eyebrows.
“Well, the way I hear it from Lulu, y’all got a whole mess goin’ on.” Lydia cupped her hand around her mouth as though she didn’t want anyone else to hear, though they were in an empty room. “You know, with both y’all being married.”
Really? Was this what she was supposed to deal with now? Had things been left unresolved with her and Dax? Absolutely, but the day after her father’s death wasn’t the time nor place for this. “Ah, well, yes. Life is complicated as I’m sure you know.”
Lydia leaned back and playfully smacked her in the arm. “Girl, I know. I heard your husband is still in town, too, with Dax and Lulu, too. And right after your daddy’s death and all.” She sucked in a breath. “I’m so sorry about that.”
“Which part?” Magnolia took a step back toward the door about ready to run for the hills. This was not the visit she expected to have with Mr. Williams, getting ambushed in the lobby of his office by his secretary/her former classmate.
“Oh, honey, all of it.” She giggled then sucked in a breath, looking Magnolia up and down. “So, how are things with you and Dax? Tell me all about it.”
“You know, I’d rather no—”
“Lydia, is Magnolia here yet?” Mr. Williams buzzed on the intercom.
Lydia’s hands flew up and she rounded her desk, hitting the intercom button. As soon as it stopped buzzing, she breathlessly answered, “Yes, she’s here.”
“Well, send her on in.”
“Right away.”
Saved by the buzzer! Lydia cleared her throat and gave her a snide smile while pointing to the tall wooden door. “He’ll see you now.”
She’d almost backed out the door completely, and now a quick change in direction. “Thanks?” She moved past Lydia, leaning away from her lest she get trapped by the town gossip.
“No problem, darlin’.”
Once Magnolia was through the door and into Mr. Williams’ office, a sense of dread overcame her. This was one of the last steps in dealing with her father’s passing and the end of her marriage all in one shot. Mr. Williams rose from his opulent mahogany desk. The office was similar to her father’s, only much larger. Shelves lined the walls from floor to ceiling, each of them covered with volumes of legal books. Mr. Williams extended his hand, offering it to her. “So good to see you, Maggie.”
She took the offered hand, shaking it firmly. “Thank you for having me here, Mr. Williams.”
“Please call me Bob.” He motioned to the chair across from his desk. “I’m sure you have no doubt as to why I’ve asked you here.”
Magnolia sat down slowly, her heart racing in her throat. “I’m guessing Daddy had a will?”
“That’s right.” Bob nodded as he took his seat. “Your father was a great man.”
“Yes, he was.”
“I need to ask you a few questions before we start reading the will, if that’s all right with you.” He steepled his fingers and sat back in the chair. “Seeing how matters of inheritance can be a sensitive subject.”
“Um… inheritance? Mr. Williams—Bob—my father was not a rich man.” Magnolia sat back, resting in the chair.
A smile played on his lips. “Yes, well, we’ll get to that in a moment. First, I wanted to mention something else.”
Utter confusion riddled her mind. She furrowed her brow. “Yes?”
“A few weeks ago, you contacted me regarding your divorce. Is that still the route you want to take in regards to your former husband?” He pressed his fingers to his chin, waiting.
“Um, yes. I believe it is.” This turn of conversation is not what Magnolia expected in the least. She crossed her legs, bouncing them nervously.
Bob pushed his glasses farther up his nose before reaching into his desk drawer and putting a hefty stack of papers down in front of her. “I have been working on this since I heard about your father’s passing.”
Magnolia pulled the stack of papers closer. At the top she read: Divorce Agreement. “You drew these up already?”
“Based on what you told me over the phone, I drew them up to fit the specifications you asked for, as far as custody of your child and all other expenses. However, due to the untimely death of Thomas, I had to make a great deal of changes to it.”
“Like what?” Completely overwhelmed, she sat back in the chair, still unsure of what was going on.
“Magnolia, your father left you a substantial piece of land worth millions. On top of that, there is an inheritance he’d been putting together since the day your mother left town. He wanted you very well taken care of.”
Sweat broke out over her skin. The word millions echoed in her mind, over and over again. Magnolia fanned herself with her hand. “Are you telling me Triple R is worth millions of dollars?”
Bob nodded. “The property alone is worth that.”
Magnolia sucked in a deep breath. “You’re kidding?”
All that time she’d spent worrying about how she’d take care of herself and Hayden, her father had a plan all along. She looked up toward the sky, wanting to tell him to take it all back if he’d come back to her. But in the end, he’d always wanted to take care of her.
“’Fraid not.” He motioned to the divorce papers. “Now, your father was a smart man in leaving what he did to you and only you. However, there’s always a chance your soon-to-be-ex-husband will want a piece of it, seeing how y’all are still married.”
Magnolia narrowed her eyes. “Eric is the type who would want that.”
A half-smirk tilted the corner of his lip. “Many people in this world are.” He sighed, taking out another smaller stack of papers. “If you sign these, they will allow me to serve your husband with divorce papers that he must sign to accept.”
Magnolia took the pen from the top of his desk and held it over the papers, her hands shaking. “And these are specific to our conversation—full custody of Hayden with visitation offered to him?”
“That’s right.” Bob nodded. “Plus, normally I’d add in child support payments, but in this case, they aren’t necessary. The courts use a formula to see how much is to be paid to the caregiver. In this case, if he took charge of Hayden, you’d have to pay.”
Her jaw slacked open. “Are you serious?”
“Yes, I am.” He sat back in his chair, waving his arm over the paperwork. “You’re going to be very well looked afte
r.”
Magnolia tried to listen to every word he spoke, but when her gaze zeroed in on the signature line at the bottom of the pages he pointed out, she silently scribbled her name across each and every one of them. As she closed in on the last page, she felt a lightness in her chest, as though she was finishing a toxic chapter in her long story with a cheating husband. Once she scribbled on the last page, she offered Bob the pen. He raised his hands, motioning for her to hold onto it. “There is still the matter of your father’s will.”
Dazed, she sat back in the chair. “That’s right.”
He reached over to the phone on his desk and hit the intercom button. It buzzed for a second before Lydia’s voice came over it. “Yes, Mr. Williams?”
“Is my one o’clock here, Lydia?”
Her girlish giggle burst on to the intercom before she cleared her throat. “Oh, yes, he certainly is.”
Behind those thick glasses, Bob rolled his eyes. “Send him on in, please.” When he let go of the button, he sighed. “She’s a distant cousin, you know.” As if that one sentence explained exactly why Lydia was still employed by him.
Magnolia sat forward. “If you’re busy with your next appointment,” she hiked her thumb at the door, “I could come back later.”
“Oh, no, you mistake me, Maggie. This has everything to do with you.”
When the door creaked open, Magnolia spun around to look over her shoulder. Her eyebrows rose of their own accord, and she couldn’t hide her shock. “Dax, what are you doing here?”
Dax pulled his beat-up baseball cap from his head, looking as haggard as she felt. Over a day’s worth of whiskers covered his jaw. Though he wore a fitted gray t-shirt that showcased his well sculpted body and his perfect jeans he normally looked so confident in, he hesitated at the door, now holding it open as though he couldn’t decide whether to come or go. “Maggie.” His voice came out as a pained whisper. He cleared his throat. “I’m, uh, here because Mr. Williams asked me to be.”
Seemingly unaware of the tension between them, Bob waved him over. “Come in, come in. Close the door behind you.”
