A Home for Her Baby

by Gabrielle Meyer

“Good,” Piper said. “And how are you?”

  “Same old, same old.” Rita grinned as she looked from Piper to Max, and then back to Piper. “You two are as cute as ever. I always thought there was something special between you. You’re one in a million, you know that, don’t you? Not everyone gets a love story like the one you two have.”

  Max looked at Piper, waiting for her to correct the waitress, but she didn’t.

  She just met Max’s gaze, a gentleness in her eyes that made Max’s heart race.

  He wouldn’t correct the waitress, either.

  “What can I get for you?” Rita asked, apparently oblivious to the silent communication that had just passed between Max and Piper. “The usual?”

  “Do you remember what we used to order?” Max asked, his incredulous gaze tearing away from Piper to look at Rita.

  “Sure do. A large pepperoni pizza, order of garlic cheese bread and a pitcher of ice-cold root beer with two frosted mugs.”

  “Sounds perfect,” Piper said as she handed her menu over to Rita. “Thank you.”

  “I’ll throw in an extra slice of bread for that baby,” Rita said with a wink. “Be back in a minute.”

  As she walked away, Max let his gaze settle on Piper again.

  “What?” Piper asked.

  “You didn’t correct her when she thought we were still a couple.”

  Piper fiddled with the Parmesan shaker and shrugged. “It seemed the easiest way to handle the situation. Why go to the trouble of trying to explain the past ten years?”

  “I’m surprised she doesn’t know about what happened—and then Nick...” He let his sentence trail off.

  Piper shrugged again. “Timber Falls is just big enough that we don’t know everything about everyone. Unless she had a kid in school with us, or went to church with us or knew our parents, I’m not surprised she doesn’t know all the details.”

  Max nodded, but he was still surprised Piper didn’t correct her.

  A silent pause filled the space between them, but Max wasn’t afraid of silence with Piper. It was one of those things that told him a lot about a relationship. They were just as comfortable with the noise as they were the silence.

  “Do you have everything you need for the baby?” he asked her.

  “I think I’m all set.” She smiled, but he could see the trepidation hidden in her eyes. “Less than six weeks to go.”

  “Are you scared?”

  She pushed aside the Parmesan and clasped her hands. “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t.”

  He nodded. It would be hard enough to have a child—harder still to do it on her own. He longed to tell her he’d be there for her, if she wanted him, but he didn’t want to press her. She knew it, even if he didn’t tell her.

  Max’s phone rang and Margo’s name showed up on his screen.

  Piper glanced at the phone as Max switched off the ringer and turned the phone over. It still vibrated on the tabletop.

  “Aren’t you going to answer her?” Piper asked.

  “No.” Max had not returned any of her other calls or texts. She had tried contacting him half a dozen times, never telling him what she wanted, just telling him to call her.

  “Have you told her dad you’re going to take the job?”

  “I haven’t gotten around to it.” He’d been busy with the team getting ready for their first playoff game—and a part of him had hoped Piper would tell him not to leave.

  Her gaze was steady as she looked at him. “Don’t put him off and miss your opportunity. You’d be good as a college scout, Max. I watch you with your team. You were born for the game of football—whether you’re playing, coaching or scouting. How many job opportunities are there for you to use your talents and gifts that way? Don’t let it slip away.”

  He watched her, trying to see how she really felt about him leaving. “Do you think I should take the job?”

  “Yes.” It was a simple, straightforward answer, with no reservations or regrets.

  Piper wanted him to take the job in California, and the realization of it felt like a splash of cold water.

  She didn’t want him to stay.

  Chapter Twelve

  The high school commons buzzed with excitement as the team sat at the round tables, their parents and siblings sitting with them. They had won their second playoff game at St. Cloud State University and in the morning, they would head to the Vikings’ stadium in Minneapolis to play their semifinal game. But, for tonight, they would celebrate their seniors, eat a meal together and build up morale for tomorrow’s big game.

  Max sat at a table with Tad and his mom, enjoying the chicken Kiev and wild rice pilaf. Piper and Liv had been hired to coordinate the banquet and they were darting in and out of the school kitchen where the caterer had set up.

  They had done an amazing job personalizing the event, making unique centerpieces, filling the room with purple and black balloons for the school colors, and they’d even set up easels with boards honoring each senior. The seniors’ pictures, football stats and other fun information was displayed.

  “Piper should get off her feet,” Mom said to Max as she tugged on his sleeve. “Have her come and join us. She looks a bit pale.”

  It had been a week since they’d gone out for pizza, and in that week, he’d rarely laid eyes on her. She had spent almost every waking minute working on the Custer wedding—which was tomorrow—planning the football banquet and managing the bed-and-breakfast. He checked in with Mrs. Anderson every day to make sure Piper wasn’t doing any of the physical work, and the older lady had assured him Piper was heeding the doctor’s advice. But she was still too busy for his liking.

  Max put his napkin down and walked over to where Piper was standing with Liv.

  Piper’s violet-blue eyes lit up when she saw him and his heart did a little flip at the sight. Would he never lose that funny little flutter he felt when seeing her?

  “Are you two going to get a chance to eat tonight?” he asked.

  Piper put her hand on her stomach and shook her head. “I don’t have much of an appetite today.”

  “And I have to run,” Liv said, her usually polished appearance a bit frazzled. “With the Custer wedding tomorrow, we’re also overseeing the groom’s dinner tonight. I’m heading there now and then going to the ballroom to make sure all the decorating is underway.”

  “Thanks a million,” Piper said to Liv. “I’ll be there in the morning to meet with the florist.”

  Liv gave Piper a quick hug. “See you tomorrow.”

  “Thanks for all your help with the banquet,” Max said to Liv. “It turned out great.”

  Liv smiled and waved as she left the commons, her heels clicking on the hard tile floor.

  “Would you like to join us?” Max asked Piper. “We’ve got more than enough room at our table.”

  Piper waved at Max’s mom, who tried to motion her to come over. “I wish I could,” Piper said, “but the caterer is wrapping things up in the kitchen and I need to get home to work on the seating arrangement for the wedding tomorrow. Carrie sent over a ton of last-minute changes to the chart. Apparently, some family members are fighting and she doesn’t want them sitting near each other.”

  She glanced around the commons, exhaustion lining her face. “It looks like everything is all set here. Is there anything else you need from me?”

  “I need for you to rest.” He had his back to the loud group of football players and their parents and was speaking for her ears alone. “I’m worried about you.”

  She bit her bottom lip and didn’t meet his gaze. “I appreciate the concern, but I don’t have the luxury of a break right now. I need this wedding to go off without a hitch tomorrow. After that, I’ll have all the time in the world to rest and relax.”

  He wished he could ease her burdens. He’d hired a part-time maid w
ho came in on Mondays and Thursdays to clean the bed-and-breakfast and prep for the new guests. But he couldn’t step in and hire someone to help Piper and Liv with their event business. And he knew Piper needed the wedding to be perfect, because she needed the money to pay off some debt. She didn’t talk about it, and she was too proud to ask him for financial help, but he had ears and he’d heard enough over the past couple of months.

  Even if he wanted her to take it easy, she couldn’t.

  “I wish I could come to the game in Minneapolis tomorrow,” Piper said. “Hopefully you’ll win and I can come to the championship game in a couple weeks.”

  “I’ll plan on it.”

  She left and Max went back to his mom and brother. Excitement had ramped up and the team was louder than ever. After the meal was finished, it took several attempts, but Max was able to get the group’s attention and had the honor of giving out awards, letting the seniors speak and then leading them in a pep talk.

  By the time the evening wrapped up, Max was exhausted and ready to get some sleep before tomorrow’s big game.

  “There’s a ton of food leftover,” Max said to his mom when they were the last ones at the high school. There was a box of food he’d just taken out of the refrigerator and a stack of other odds and ends he needed to bring back to Piper. “Do you want to take some of it home?”

  “What would I do with it?” she shook her head. “Why don’t you take it back to the bed-and-breakfast and let Piper decide. Tad will help you.”

  Tad stood to the side with his cell phone in his hand. “What?” he asked.

  “Help your brother with the food and the easels and things. He needs to get it all back to Piper.”

  Max didn’t really need the help, but he wanted a chance to talk to Tad before tomorrow. “Come on,” he said as he nodded toward the parking lot. “Give me a hand. I’ll take you home later.”

  Tad rolled his eyes, but he grabbed the easels and the leftover centerpieces that people had forgotten on the tables.

  “See you later,” Mom said as she kissed first Max and then Tad on the cheeks. “I’m heading home to bed. Big day tomorrow!”

  “Bye, Mom,” Max called.

  Tad helped Max put everything in his car and then they left the parking lot.

  It was only a few blocks to the bed-and-breakfast, but Tad didn’t say a word. He still had his cell phone in hand. The glow from the screen illuminated the inside of Max’s car.

  “Who you talking to?”

  “Shelby.”

  “Are you two pretty serious?”

  Tad shrugged. “We’ve been dating for almost a year.”

  “Do you think you’ll stay together once you go to college?”

  Again, Tad shrugged. “Who knows?”

  “Do you want to stay together?”

  “I don’t know.” Tad’s voice rose in irritation. “Why do you care?”

  They pulled up to the bed-and-breakfast. The house was lit up with all the guests who had come in for the weekend. Piper had mentioned that everyone who was staying with them were guests for the Custer wedding. Max didn’t want to disturb anyone with his and Tad’s conversation, so he planned to talk to him in the car, but Tad got out and went to the back seat to start unloading everything.

  “I care,” Max said, getting out of the car, irritated that his brother was choosing to make things difficult. “Because I care about you and your future.”

  “You care if Shelby and I stay together or break up?” Tad shook his head. “Why?”

  Max put his hands on the top of his car and looked at his brother. It was dark, but there was enough light from the house to let him see Tad’s face. “You’re angry, because you feel like I abandoned you and Mom, but now you’re angry because I’m back and I want to be a part of your life. Make up your mind, Tad. Either you want me to be a part of your life or you don’t.”

  Tad slammed Max’s door. “I don’t need this from you.”

  He started walking toward the back of the bed-and-breakfast. Max followed him. “I want to talk to you and I want you to listen to me like a grown-up.”

  Tad opened the back door. The entry was dark, so Max reached around his brother and flipped on the light. Tad set down the easels and tried to move past Max to return to the car, but Max wouldn’t let his brother leave the back entry.

  “I’m going to give it to you straight, Tad, because I respect you and it’s time for me to talk to you like an adult.” Max was tired of tiptoeing around his brother. “I know you don’t think highly of me and I’m okay with that. I messed up. But I don’t want you to follow in my footsteps. There will be college scouts at the game tomorrow and they’ll be there to watch you. You have the chance to play for some pretty prestigious colleges and you have a really great chance at going pro.” Max put his hands on Tad’s shoulders and forced him to look him in the eyes. “Don’t make the same mistakes I made. Don’t let this all go to your head. Be a man of integrity and don’t trample anyone on your way to success.”

  Tad watched Max quietly, but he could see that he was finally getting through to his brother.

  “I’m sorry you were one of the people I trampled,” Max said, a little quieter, swallowing back the emotions clogging his throat. “I love you, Tad. If I could go back, I’d do things different. But I can’t. All I can do is say I’m sorry and hope we can move forward.”

  Without warning, Tad embraced Max, just like he used to do when he was a kid. “I love you, too, Max. Why’d it take you so long to tell me?”

  Max held his brother close. He thought he’d told his brother he loved him—but maybe he’d just assumed his brother knew.

  “I’m scared, Max,” Tad said. “What if I mess everything up?”

  “Seek God first, and then find wise counsel. You’ll be okay.” He pulled back and looked at his brother. “And if you love Shelby, don’t mess it up. I would give everything for a chance to go back and save my relationship with Piper. She means more to me than anything in the world, but I was a fool and I let her go. If Shelby is that important to you, don’t let her go, Tad. Because at the end of your career, no matter how long that may be, you’ll only have one thing left: your relationships. That’s what you need to be guarding with all your heart. The rest will fall into place.”

  Tad stared at him. “Would you really give it all up for Piper?”

  “In a heartbeat.”

  “The NFL?”

  “Without a doubt in my mind.” Max didn’t even have to think about it. “Piper is more precious to me than football, money, fame or anything else this world has to offer.” He smiled at his brother. “But, if you can have it all, go for it. You’ll have the time of your life.”

  Tad let out a big sigh. “I’m sorry I’ve been such a jerk, Max.”

  “Don’t worry about it.” Max put his arm around his brother and knuckled him in the gut like he used to when they were younger. “I’m sorry it took so long for me to tell you I love you.”

  Tad laughed and tried getting Max back, but Max was still stronger than his kid brother.

  “Come on,” Max said. “Let’s get the rest of this inside and then you need to get home and go to bed. You’ve got a lot riding on this game tomorrow.”

  “I’m happy you’ll be there, Max.”

  “So am I. I wouldn’t miss it for anything.”

  They brought the rest into the house and then Max drove his brother home. It felt good to have his little brother back.

  * * *

  Piper sat on her bed, her swollen feet stretched out before her, looking at the finished seating chart lying against the wall. Her back ached, her feet were sore and her head pounded.

  But it was her heart that was in the most pain. The house was old and she had heard most of Max and Tad’s conversation in the back entry. She hadn’t meant to eavesdrop, but it had been impo
ssible not to hear their heated words.

  She laid her hands on her tummy, feeling the baby move beneath her palms, trying to ignore what she’d heard.

  Max said he’d give it all up in a heartbeat for her. She had no reason to believe he’d lied to Tad—on the contrary, without knowing she could hear him, she suspected that he was being completely honest with his brother.

  But it only confirmed what she already knew. Max would have given everything up for her in high school—and he’d give it all up for her now, if she let him. She tried telling him not to pass up the opportunity to work for the University of California at Mid-State, and she hoped he was taking her seriously.

  She suspected he was, or Margo Sutton wouldn’t be calling him. Twice now she had seen her name on Max’s phone and she wondered how often Margo called when Piper wasn’t nearby. Was Max talking to her? He denied it the first time, but the second time, she didn’t even ask him. Would they rekindle their romance once Max was working for her father? Margo would have so many connections for Max. He could go so far. Maybe he wouldn’t play for the NFL again, but could he end up coaching a professional team some day? It was only a matter of time for someone to see what an incredible coach he was. She had witnessed it on the Lumberjacks’ field and knew he could take his abilities all the way. Working as a college scout was simply the first step.

  And no matter how much Piper loved him, and no matter how much she wanted to make a life with him, she wouldn’t ask him to stay.

  The baby rolled under her touch and she tried to smile, though her heart was heavy and she felt like crying. “It looks like it’s going to be just you and me,” she whispered to her child. “I’m so sorry.”

  The tears did come as she pulled the covers up to her chin and tried to find a comfortable position to let her weary body rest.

  As hard as it was, she would keep her feelings to herself and encourage Max to leave Timber Falls—again.

  Chapter Thirteen

  The smell of bacon, fresh-baked muffins and coffee met Max on the back stairs as he came down from his apartment on Saturday morning. The sun was shining, the temperatures were higher than normal for mid-November and Max couldn’t stop himself from whistling.