“You should have a reason to wear it more often.” The words slipped out of her mouth before she could stop them and warmth filled her cheeks. She rolled her eyes playfully and said, “What is it about a high school dance that makes people say awkward and uncomfortable things?”
Max’s laughter filled the long hall. “You still look cute when you get embarrassed. Do you remember that time we were in speech class and you got hiccups in the middle of your persuasive speech?”
Piper had practiced her speech for days in advance, but when the hiccups suddenly attacked, she had asked the teacher if she could give her speech a different day. The teacher had thought she was trying to get out of her speech and had said she needed to give it, regardless of the hiccups. “I don’t think I ever convinced the class to take up the tuba that day.”
“You might have bombed the speech, but you looked adorable while doing it.” His grin was wide. “I don’t remember anyone else’s persuasive speech but yours.”
Piper put her hands up to her warm cheeks. “I’m so happy high school is over.”
“It’s definitely a lot more fun to be here on the other side of things, isn’t it?” Max held out his elbow for her. “Ready to go crown this year’s homecoming king and queen?”
“Anything would be better than continuing this conversation.” Piper wrapped her hand around his elbow, thankful to shift the focus off her.
Max led her into the gymnasium. The lights had been lowered and the DJ was playing a slow song as people trickled into the room. There was an air of discomfort as the teenagers stood around in their fancy clothes. Piper remembered how it felt to get over the initial shyness of seeing friends and classmates in a different situation, all dressed up in the gymnasium when they were used to seeing each other there in sweaty clothes during phys ed.
Tad entered with his girlfriend, Shelby, on his arm. He looked so much like Max had at his age, Piper had to look twice. The only difference between Max and Tad was that Max wasn’t arrogant and had never had a haughty attitude like Tad did. Tad carried himself with his chin high, as if he was the most important thing that had ever happened to Timber Falls High.
When Max caught sight of his brother, he waved. Shelby returned the wave, but Tad turned away without acknowledging Max.
Piper glanced up at Max and saw the pain in his expression. But when he saw she was watching him, he smiled and winked at her. “I won’t give up,” he said.
Mrs. Tanner, the home economics teacher, was there, fussing and fretting. Her thin hair looked as if she’d recently had it styled, the grayish-purple strands were locked tight in a weblike structure and her old-fashioned black-rimmed glasses were smudged. She wore a dress that looked as old as her. “Oh, good,” she said when she saw Max and Piper approach the stage. “You made it.”
Several hundred students mingled in the gymnasium. The smell of perfume and cologne made Piper’s stomach turn, but she forced herself to ignore the nausea and, instead, focused on the faces of the teenagers gathered.
Memories of her and Max’s homecoming filled her with a mixture of feelings and she couldn’t help but wonder how many of these kids were hiding behind their smiles. How many were struggling in school? At home? In their relationships? Tonight was a fun night, but for some of the kids—like it had been for Piper—real life would be waiting for them at the stroke of midnight. She hoped and prayed that they had friends like Max who would be there to offer strength and comfort on the especially hard days.
She glanced at Max and found him listening to Mrs. Tanner ramble on about homecomings in the past. The old teacher looked at Piper and said, “Are you ready?”
“As ready as I’ll ever be.”
A microphone stood in the center of the stage and Mrs. Tanner walked up to it. She tapped it and blew into it, making the sounds echo through the large room. “Check, one, two, check, one, two,” she said and then looked at the DJ and said, “Is this on?”
He winced and put his hand up to the headphones he was wearing and nodded emphatically.
“Good,” she said. She cleared her throat and the sound ricocheted off the walls of the gymnasium. “Welcome to Timber Falls Homecoming Dance.”
She paused, probably expecting applause, but the students just stared at her.
“Could the homecoming royalty court please come to the stage?” Mrs. Tanner read off the names of the five boys and five girls who had the most votes in the senior class. Tad and Shelby were among the names listed. Three other boys were members of the football team, but Piper didn’t recognize the fifth boy.
When everyone was onstage, Mrs. Tanner said into the microphone, “Congratulations to this year’s homecoming royalty!”
The crowd clapped this time and the kids onstage grinned.
Max stood beside Piper at the rear of the stage. He glanced at her and she smiled at him. It felt like just yesterday that they were standing on this stage, waiting to hear if they’d been elected king and queen to represent the school during homecoming week.
“And to crown this year’s king and queen, we have two special guests,” Mrs. Tanner continued, excitement in her voice. “Our very own alumnus Max Evans!” She stopped and allowed the crowd to applaud again. But then her gaze landed on Piper and she said, “Oh, yes, and Piper Pierson Connelly.”
Max took Piper’s hand and they stepped into the center of the stage to wave at the group.
“Max and Piper were crowned the king and queen of their senior homecoming,” Mrs. Tanner said, “and have agreed to stand in for last year’s couple who could not be with us this year.”
After the cheering subsided, they stepped back. An assistant handed Piper a tiara and a robe for the queen and to Max, they gave a crown and a scepter for the king.
“And now, the moment we’ve all been waiting for,” Mrs. Tanner said, pausing dramatically. “This year’s king and queen are Tad Evans and Shelby Raskins!”
The room erupted in more cheers and Max grinned as he stepped forward to place the crown on his brother’s head.
“Congrats,” Max said to Tad and gave him a hug.
Piper also moved forward and smiled at Shelby. “Congratulations,” she said, placing the tiara on her blond curls.
Shelby was crying and shaking, and saying over and over, “Thank you!”
It brought more memories back to Piper and she hugged the girl before placing the robe over her shoulders. “You look beautiful,” she said to the girl. “Never forget this moment.”
Piper and Max stood back and let the spotlight fall on Tad and Shelby.
“Crazy how fast time goes by,” Max said quietly next to Piper. “If only we could go back and start over.”
She didn’t respond, because there was nothing she could say.
* * *
It had been a long day for Max and the evening started to wear on. The music the DJ was playing was foreign to his ears, the dances the kids were doing looked downright odd, and he was certain he’d never get used to so many of them with phones in their faces, even though they were standing in a group of their friends.
Piper stood on the other side of the gymnasium with one of the math teachers who was also the varsity basketball coach, a young, confident man who seemed quite taken with the dark-haired beauty. She was laughing at something he said and Max couldn’t stop himself from feeling a tinge of jealousy. He wished Piper could be as carefree and comfortable with him. She was always on guard, even in their most lighthearted exchanges, as if she was afraid he would crush her spirit at any moment.
He hated feeling like a villain in her life. Hated even more that he was the only person to blame. The night they stood on the porch, and he had held her in his arms, his heart had pounded so hard he was certain she could feel it against her cheek. When he had asked her if she’d give him a second chance, and she said no, he knew she meant it.
So, he
’d done the only thing he could, and gave both of them space. He kept to himself when he was at the bed-and-breakfast, tried to stay busy with the to-do list Mrs. Anderson had created and avoided meals with the ladies. He spent some much-needed time at his mom’s, though Tad was rarely ever home and when he was, he ignored Max’s attempts at working things out.
As the days turned to weeks, Max realized it would be impossible to stay in Timber Falls without having Piper in his life. His only option was to finish out the football season and then find another job. His best opportunity at the moment was to accept Tom Sutton’s offer to be a scout for the University of California at Mid-State, but he didn’t have to commit to the job now. He had time to focus on the Timber Falls Lumberjacks and to use whatever time he had left with Piper to rebuild their friendship so that, if nothing else, they could part as friends.
He did know that he would hold on to the bed-and-breakfast for as long as it took for Piper to save the money to buy it back from him. He’d keep her and Mrs. Anderson employed and let them manage it while he went on with his life.
But the very thought of leaving Piper gave him physical pain.
Shelby was on the dance floor with a group of her friends, making a video of some kind, but a quick glance around the gym told Max that Tad wasn’t there. A sinking feeling hit Max in his gut and he walked to the doors leading to the lobby outside the gymnasium. Maybe Tad had just gone to the men’s room, or maybe he was standing outside to get some fresh air.
But Max couldn’t shake the memory of seeing his brother smoking that vape pen outside the theater. He just hoped his brother wasn’t making a stupid choice again.
Max almost didn’t want to find out—but the feeling propelled him to open the door to the outside and poke his head out to see if anything was amiss.
The evening was warmer than usual for early October and the sky was clear, allowing the stars to sparkle vibrantly overhead. Max stood for a moment at the open door, allowing his eyes to adjust to the dark when he saw two people standing together near the corner of the school. A girl was giggling and the sound of a deep voice was teasing and flirting.
Max would have gone back into the school to give them privacy, but as a chaperone, he needed to make sure all the students were inside and accounted for. Once they left the school grounds, they were free to do whatever they wanted, but while on the school property, they had to stick to the dance.
He started to move away from the door to tell the couple to come back inside when Piper appeared behind him. “Everything okay?” she asked quietly.
Max nodded. “Just checking on things.” He motioned toward the couple. “I was just going to tell them to come back to the dance.”
“Okay.” Piper smiled. “I’ll wait for you and hold the door open. I think it locks from the outside when it’s closed.”
“Thanks.” He hadn’t even thought of that.
Max left her at the door and approached the couple. They were locked in a passionate embrace, so Max cleared his throat to warn them that he was near.
“Everyone needs to stay inside the school,” he said.
The couple broke apart like they’d been caught doing something inappropriate—and that’s when Max recognized his brother—but he didn’t know the girl. She was a lot younger than Tad, and when she saw who Max was, she bolted for the school.
“Don’t go, Brenna,” Tad yelled after her, but when she didn’t stop, Tad punched the brick building with his fist and then turned to Max. “What’s your problem? Are you determined to ruin all my fun? Get your own life.”
Tad pushed past Max, but Max wouldn’t let him go this time. He grabbed Tad’s arm, his anger rising.
“I’m not about to let you ruin your life, Tad. You have more going for you than all those kids in that gymnasium combined.”
“Give me a break.” Tad stopped and turned on Max. “How am I ruining my life by messing around with that girl?”
“How old is she?”
“Who knows? I don’t even know her last name.”
Max had to take a second to compose himself, afraid his anger would make him lose the ability to talk rationally with his little brother. “She’s probably a freshman, right?” Max asked.
Tad shrugged, but Max could see in his brother’s eyes that he’d been right.
“And you turned eighteen a couple months ago. If her parents want to make an issue of it, you could get in a lot of trouble.” Max tried to calm himself as he breathed heavily. “Not to mention that you have a girlfriend in that gym who thinks you’re a pretty special guy and it would destroy her to know you’re fooling around with someone else.”
“Just like it destroyed Piper?” Tad asked with daggers in his voice.
Max inhaled a breath, feeling like his brother had just punched him.
Piper still stood at the open door and Max knew she could hear everything they said—but even if she couldn’t, he would still say what needed to be said.
“My biggest regret in life was hurting her. If I could change one thing, that would be it.”
“That is what you would change?” Tad asked, shaking his head in disgust. “What about abandoning Mom and me when we needed you most?”
“What?”
“You heard me.” Tad’s voice broke, but his shoulders were still tight with anger. “When dad died, it was just Mom and me. You didn’t even bother to come home for Christmas or call on my birthday.” Tad wiped at his face and Max wondered if he was crying. It was hard to see in the dark.
Guilt stabbed Max in the chest and he took a step toward his brother. “Tad—”
“Don’t,” Tad said, taking a step back. “You didn’t care about anything but yourself. You had dozens of opportunities to make better choices, but you didn’t. After you hurt Piper, you continued to hurt other people you loved—including me. So don’t tell me you’d go back and make different choices. If given the opportunity, you’d do it all over again, and you wouldn’t care who you hurt in the process.”
“That’s not true.” But was it? Hadn’t Max continued to hurt one person after the other? It wasn’t until he was washed up in the NFL that he came back to Timber Falls to make amends. What would have happened if his career had been a success? Would he have continued to be selfish and self-serving?
“Keep lying to yourself, Max,” Tad said, “but don’t pretend you’re better than me when you know you’re not.”
“I’m not better than you.” Max knew he had made some bad mistakes, but he thanked God he was on a different path now. Maybe he couldn’t go back and start over, but at least he could start from here and make a difference now. “I know I failed, but that’s why I want you to listen to me and not make the same mistakes I made. You have the opportunity to do what I can’t—live without regrets.”
Tad’s body was rigid as he listened and Max wondered what, if anything, was getting through to him.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you and Mom. I’m sorry I bailed on Timber Falls and all the people who matter to me. But you still have your life ahead of you. Be the man Mom and Dad taught you to be.” Max’s shoulders sagged. “Don’t be like me.”
“I don’t have to listen to this.” Tad stormed into the school, breezing past Piper on his way inside.
Max slowly walked to Piper. Even though it was dark, he could see the pain in her face reflected off the lights from inside.
“I’m sorry, Max,” she whispered.
Max shook his head. He was failing with his brother and didn’t know how to get through to him. Part of him just wanted to throw his hands up and let Tad live his own life. It would be a whole lot easier to walk away from his brother—but wasn’t that what Tad had just accused Max of doing all along? Walking away? Giving up? Doing what was best for Max, regardless of what it meant for everyone else?
“Everything he said about me was true.”
Max wasn’t looking for Piper’s sympathy, but she offered it to him anyway.
“Maybe that was who you used to be,” she said, “but it doesn’t have to be who you are anymore. Anyone can change.”
If he had really changed, and she saw it, would she give him another chance? Would Tad? “But even if I’ve changed,” he asked softly, “how can I fix years of heartbreak and then convince the people I’ve hurt that I won’t hurt them again?” He reached out—tentatively, afraid she’d pull away—and ran his thumb over the curve of her cheek. This wasn’t about Tad anymore. “How can I have a second chance?”
She studied him under the starlight, sadness weighing down her mouth. She put her hand over his and lowered it away from her face. “Sometimes it’s too late for a second chance, so you make your apologies and then move on, hoping for closure.”
Closure. Was that what she truly wanted? He’d asked her twice now, but she had given him the same answer both times.
It was too late for them.
She let go of his hand and left him to return to the dance.
Max had no other choice. He couldn’t stay and watch Piper’s life from a distance. Once the season was over, he would move on from Timber Falls. It seemed the only option.
Until then, he’d have to settle for friendship and nothing more.
Chapter Nine
Clouds gathered over Piper as she walked out of the Family Medical Center, her hand on her swollen stomach. She was almost seven months along, only nine weeks until her due date, but the news she’d just been given at her routine prenatal appointment left her trembling.
“Hi, Piper!” A familiar voice pulled Piper from her scary thoughts and she found her friend Joy Asher stepping out of a large conversion van in the parking lot.
As Joy went around the van and opened the side door, Piper walked toward her. If anyone could understand Piper’s worry, it would be Joy. Even though Joy was a couple years younger than Piper, she was the mother of six children. Three boys she and her husband, Chase, had adopted, a set of four-year-old twin girls, and a little baby boy who had been born that spring. Joy removed the baby’s car seat from its base in the van and grabbed her diaper bag before closing the door and turning her attention to Piper.
A Home for Her Baby Page 10
