“You pretended exactly that for a week and seemed to like it just fine,” Rex pointed out.
“Something’s holding me back. I’m not totally sure what it even is. But it’s stronger than I am, and you know what I can bench.”
“Knocked out by your own punch,” Rex said, sipping his coffee. “Now that’s dumb.”
He supposed it was, if his brother had to put it that way.
“Can you stay awhile?” Axel asked. “You’re welcome to the guest room.”
Rex shook his head. “I’m leaving late this afternoon. Another meeting in Jackson tomorrow.”
“Ever gonna tell us exactly what it is you do?”
“One of these days,” Rex said.
Axel hoped so, out of pure curiosity. “You ever get tired of all those meetings, all that travel, all those suits? I mean that in both senses.”
Rex laughed. “Yes. Trust me.” They finished off the doughnuts and had another round of coffee. “So. About Dad’s letter. Maybe I could come along on the last address.”
Axel raised an eyebrow. Rex had always been quiet about his take on Bo Dawson, keeping his feelings to himself. That he wanted to experience whatever good would come out of that final address was saying something. “You ever gonna tell us what was in the letter Dad left you?”
“I don’t really want to talk about my letter,” Rex said—and then looked immediately uncomfortable, like his shirt was suddenly squeezing the life out of him.
“I get it. It took me almost nine months to even open mine.”
Rex sipped his coffee. “I’m curious what the last address is.”
“Me, too. The first three helped—a lot.”
“Not enough, though, Ax. Not if this Sadie is about to be the one who got away.”
“I thought I was the one who got away.”
Rex smiled and shook his head. “Nope. And you’ll probably find that out in a week or two.”
“Too much chitchat,” Axel said, feeling like his shirt was getting too tight. “Let’s go see what this last address is.”
His phone pinged with a text. Daisy.
Hey, can you watch Tony for about an hour from one to two-ish? I want to check over the lodge and make sure everything is set up for the wedding.
You can get two brother babysitters for the price of one, he texted back. Rex is here.
Yay! she texted in reply.
“Looks like a little babysitting, then we’ll hit the road,” Axel told Rex.
“Good thing the back seat of my Jeep is full of presents for people under a year old,” he said. “I might have bought out Baby Town before I drove over.”
Axel smiled. Rex had better watch out or he’d be next on Daisy’s hit list to get him married and adding a baby cousin to their brood.
* * *
Ahhh, if you had to have a broken heart, it helped to be sitting in a massage chair with heat functions at Esme’s Day Spa in Prairie City, getting a pedicure. The bridal party would all have the same shade on their toes: Rouge Decadence, which was a sparkly bright red that Sadie loved. They’d already gotten their nails done in Ballet Slipper, a very pale pink, and had rejuvenating facials with potions and creams and cucumber slices over their eyes—that had been heavenly. Next, they’d be off to hair—beachy waves for everyone. Evie might be a serious CPA, but she was a skilled makeup artist who always did the family’s faces for events—including her own wedding. Sadie wouldn’t mind if this day went on forever.
“So I have an evil idea,” Evie whispered. “Involving your date for tonight.”
“Uh-oh,” Sadie said while the pedicurist slathered a deliciously scented scrub on her legs.
“It’s a risk, but might be worth it. And hey, I took a risk by giving Marshall an ultimatum, but it knocked some sense into him. So I say risk is good.”
Sadie eyed her sister, intrigued and scared at the same time. “Exactly what did you have in mind?”
“I’m thinking you go see Axel in person. Not a text, not a call. Face-to-face. You tell him you appreciate all he’s done for you this week, and that’s why you’re truly letting him off the hook by accepting another date for the wedding.”
“But he already said he wants to go,” Sadie pointed out.
“Yes, yes, he did. And do you want to know why he wants to go? Because he’s in love with you and wants to be with you but isn’t there yet. He needs a little push.”
“I don’t know, Evie. I’ve played enough games.”
“This isn’t a game,” she said seriously. “Your happiness is important to me, Sadie. I don’t care about deposits and plate costs. I care about you. And why the hell should Axel get to sit next to you and be your date at this special event when he’s not planning to be your date ever again?”
Well, when she put it that way. Ouch.
“What I mean is,” Evie continued, “maybe Axel should know that you’re starting fresh—with another date to the wedding. Unless you really want him as your date, Evie. I know you’re in love with the guy. But isn’t tonight going to hurt?”
“It will either way,” Sadie said, her stomach twisting.
“Yeah. I know. That’s why I think you should give my evil plan a try. It might be the push that Axel Dawson needs.”
Maybe? “I’ll think about it while I’m getting my hair fussed over,” Sadie said.
But she already knew her sister was on to something. Having Axel as her date to such an important event in her life would hurt. All night she’d just be wishing it meant something more than...friendship or a final favor of sorts. She’d slow dance with him and—Oh, who was she kidding? She’d never get through one dance in his arms without crying. She’d never be able to listen to Frank Sinatra again.
“Marshall has several interesting, attractive friends who would love to be moved from the singles table to be your plus-one,” Evie said. “Just let me know.”
“To be honest, Evie, I’d rather have no date than a stand-in. If I uninvited Axel, I mean.”
“I understand,” she said, leaning over to give Sadie as much a hug as the huge massage chairs would allow. “Whatever you decide, Sadie.”
“I’ll talk to Axel when we get back. Before the makeup session.”
She’d likely cry it all off otherwise. Because she had a feeling this conversation wasn’t going to go well.
Two hours later, her beach waves loose around her shoulders, Sadie texted Axel that she’d like to talk to him, that it was important. When she saw him, she’d speak the truth. No games. Just how she felt. She’d know in that moment. Right now, her mind was all over the place.
I’m actually at Daisy’s house babysitting my nephew. Come over?
Be there in a few, she texted.
She sucked in a breath and headed up the path to the beautiful white farmhouse on the hill, where Axel had grown up a good portion of his childhood.
She walked up the porch steps, her heart suddenly beating so fast she wanted to just sit. But she knocked.
He came to the door, absolutely gorgeous, holding an adorable baby who couldn’t be more than a few months old. He had big blue eyes—the Dawson eyes—and wispy brown curls and big cheeks. “This is Tony. Tony, meet the lovely Sadie Winston.”
She managed a smile. “Hi, Tony. You sure are precious.”
Another man, who looked a lot like Axel, came up behind him. “Hi, I’m this big lug’s brother—Rex Dawson.”
“Sadie Winston,” she said, shaking his hand. “I’m sorry for barging in. I didn’t realize Axel had company or that Daisy did.” She shook her head, nothing coming out right. “We can talk later, Axel.”
“No, now is fine,” Rex said. “Trust me. I was just about to surprise Noah with my presence at the ranch—a rare occurrence. Back in thirty, Axel.”
“Nice to meet you,” Sadie said.
; Rex smiled. “Likewise.” He got in a buggy and drove off.
She and Axel made small talk for a minute or so about his brother, who was in town for only a few hours, and Tony and how the weather was terrific for a wedding.
“Speaking of,” Sadie said, her heart now twisting.
The more she looked at Axel, particularly this Axel, with a baby in his arms, the more she knew she needed to let him go. Being a fake dad-to-be for Danny was fine for him, being a doting uncle was fine for him, but being a real dad wasn’t. And Sadie needed a real husband, a real father for her son. She needed real love, big love.
She’d be her own date to the wedding.
“I think I should attend the wedding solo,” she said. She stopped short of explanations since she knew none was necessary. He knew why.
“Oh,” he said. “I feel bad about ruining the seating arrangements.”
She glared at him. That was what he felt bad about?
Suddenly she realized how right her sister had been to tell Axel he was off the hook. That was how he looked at it, she realized. He just wanted to finish out the week because he cared about her and her family and at heart, he was a good guy.
Just not one in love with her.
She cleared her throat and ignored the stinging sensations in her eyes. “Evie has a blind date arranged for me—she’s promoting one of Marshall’s friends from the singles table to be my plus-one.”
“Oh,” he said again, staring at her. “So you have another date.”
“Well, if I want. And to be honest, I don’t want another date. You’re a hard guy to top, Axel Dawson.”
He stared at her, so many emotions in his eyes she couldn’t read what he was thinking. “I’m sorry I can’t be what you need,” he said very solemnly. “I wish I could.”
Dammit. “Oh, really?” she asked. “Because you do know it’s up to you.”
He rocked the baby in his arms. “It’s not that simple.”
“Then I guess this is goodbye,” she said. “I have the wedding tonight and we’re leaving after breakfast in the morning. I’ll tell Danny you said bye and give him a hug for you.”
He winced. “I’d like to do that myself. If that’s all right.”
“Fine. Because I know Danny would feel bad otherwise. We’re leaving at eight sharp.”
She looked at sweet Tony, then at the man holding him. And she turned and left before she completely fell apart.
Chapter Sixteen
Axel and Rex easily found 62 Bear Ridge Lane, which was right off Main Street, a three-family house with two balconies on the top stories. A woman in her early sixties was sitting on a chair on the porch, a small dog in her lap. She had a hard edge to her but was attractive with lots of wild auburn curly hair and dark brown eyes. She wore a lot of silver bracelets on both arms and a long sundress. The dog wore a hot-pink collar dotted with rhinestones.
“Cocker spaniel,” Rex said to Axel. “Always loved the long, floppy ears.”
Axel eyed his brother. “Should we ask if she knew Dad?”
“Excuse me, miss?” Rex called out from the walkway. The guy never waited. He just did—his MO. Not a bad trait, in Axel’s opinion.
The woman peered at them. She didn’t look particularly friendly.
“Did you know Bo Dawson?” Rex asked.
“Who’s asking?” The woman grabbed a pair of glasses from the small round table beside her. She put them on, and her entire expression changed. “As I live and breathe. Honey Bear,” she said to the little dog, hand to her chest, “do you know who these two men are? I do. Yes, I most certainly do. They’ve got to be Bo’s kids.”
“I’m Axel, and this is Rex.”
She got up and put the dog down. Honey Bear came over to sniff their legs, then went up to the porch and curled up on a red floor pillow. “I heard all about you. The six of you. Five boys and a girl. Well, adults, of course. But Bo always referred to y’all as the kids.”
“Your address was listed in a letter that my dad left me,” Axel said. “Just a bunch of addresses, no notes about them. So we were wondering what your relationship was to Bo.”
“Huh, interesting. Well, I’ll tell you. I was his last girlfriend. My name is Nell. He dumped me out of nowhere, told me it was over, he was sorry but he was moving on, and I was devastated. I loved your dad something fierce. Next thing I know, I get a letter from him from beyond the grave—freaked me out. I knew he’d passed on and I couldn’t imagine why I’d get a letter after. He asked the manager of the bar we used to go to to send it to me if anything ever happened to him.”
Axel looked at Rex. His dad had been making amends all over town, it seemed.
“The letter was short and sweet. He said he’d been crazy in love with me but he was no good and didn’t deserve me, that he’d wrecked everything meaningful in his life and he’d wanted us to part before that happened. He wrote that he knew he was dying and needed me to move on with a good man worthy of a woman like me. Do you believe that? Worthy of a woman like me. No one’s ever said anything like that to me before.” Tears came to her eyes. “I did eventually start dating again and about three months ago, I found my Mr. Right. We’re going on a cruise next month.”
“I’m sure Bo would be comforted to know that,” Axel said.
“Your father was a lot to handle, but I would have cared for him till the end. If he’d let me. I feel so bad that he died alone, without a loving woman at his side. But I guess he had his kids there.”
Rex nodded. “We were all there.”
“Good,” she said. “I loved him despite his flaws. I loved him as he was.”
“I’m glad he had that in his thoughts,” Rex said. “I’m sure it was comforting.”
Honey Bear got up and started barking at two kids on bicycles.
“Oh, hush now,” she told the dog. “I’d better get her inside. Day camp just let out.”
Rex smiled at her. “Thanks for talking to us.”
“Bye now,” she said and scooped up Honey Bear.
Rex seemed mystified. “Wow.”
Axel nodded. “What you said.”
“He thought he was leaving her for her own good,” his brother said as they headed up the sidewalk and turned the corner onto Main Street. Rex shook his head. “The notions we get in our head, right?”
Axel didn’t respond to that.
Rex eyed him. “I think Dad’s trying to tell you something, and just in time. There’s a reason you finally opened his letter to you now.”
That reason was Sadie.
He could feel something shift inside his chest, but he couldn’t quite figure out what it meant.
“I’ve got to hit the road. I’ll drop you off, then hit the airport. Kiss Tony, Chase and Annabel for me. I already miss my little niece and nephews.”
“Will do,” Axel said.
“Don’t let her get away, Ax. Think long and hard but not too long. Things change fast. Trust me.”
Sadie’s beautiful face and Danny’s adorable one floated into his mind, Zul the superhero lion in his hand, of course.
Again, there came that feeling, that movement in his chest, something happening. Be the boss of yourself, he heard the mountain man say, but suddenly, it meant something else. It meant not to let old wounds or bitterness or fear tell him what to do.
He needed to see Sadie. He needed to be with her and maybe he’d understand what the hell was happening inside him. Maybe it was all Nell had said. All the stories he’d heard from the people whose addresses had been on the list. Maybe it was Sadie and Danny themselves. Maybe it was everything.
He glanced at the clock on the dash of Rex’s Jeep. It was 5:06 as his brother pulled up to Axel’s cabin. The wedding had already started. In fact, Evie Winston and Marshall Ackerman were saying their vows right now.
Maybe that was a sign
—that he should stay put at home with Dude.
Or maybe he had a wedding reception to crash.
* * *
Sadie had a waiter remove the place setting of her plus-one and scooted over a bit so that she’d have more elbow room. There. See, who said attending a wedding alone didn’t have a silver lining? More space. At Sadie’s table were her parents, her dad looking quite handsome in his suit, her grandparents, Aunt Tabby and Cowboy Joe, and Izzy. Danny and the other young kids were next door in the kid zone, where three ranch staffers were showing them a grand old time and getting paid time and a half. Izzy said she and Sadie would be each other’s dates since that “handsome fiancé of yours obviously had a ranch emergency.”
That was when Sadie sucked in a breath and told her great-grandmother, who at ninety-nine deserved not to be pandered to, the entire story. The truth.
Izzy’s hazel eyes got misty. “You cared so much for my feelings that you and that tall drink of water pretended to be engaged all week? Why, that’s the sweetest thing I ever heard.”
A huge weight lifted off Sadie’s chest. Izzy was the best. She hugged her great-grandmother, inhaling her trademark scent of roses. “I love you, Great-Gram.”
“Love you, too, Sadie-girl,” Izzy said.
A slow song started playing, “Fly Me to the Moon,” one of Izzy’s favorites, so Sadie asked her great-grandmother to dance. It involved pushing her in her wheelchair in little movements, but Izzy had a great time and sang along. Back at the table, Sadie told her mom and grandmother that she’d come clean to Izzy, and they were glad to hear it.
One of Sadie’s favorite songs started playing, a beautiful ballad. She sipped her wine and closed her eyes, wondering what Axel was doing right now. Playing fetch with Dude in the yard. Eating dinner alone. Out riding and not thinking about her at all.
“May I have this dance?”
Sadie gasped. Standing beside her was Axel in the flesh. Well, dressed, but very much there. He wore a gray suit and Stetson and was so gorgeous and sexy she couldn’t speak for a second.
A Family for a Week Page 18
