“Figure out what you’re having,” he muttered, forcing himself to stop going over things in his head. It wasn't going to do him any good. Whatever reason Nicole had had for wanting to meet with him, he’d know soon enough.
“Excuse me.”
Jordan looked up to find a teenage guy standing there. His dark eyes and hair seemed familiar, but he couldn’t quite place him. “Yes?”
“Do you mind if I sit here?”
Jordan took a hasty look around again. “Well, I’m actually supposed to be meeting someone, and there are other unoccupied tables.” He frowned, suddenly wondering why the kid wanted to sit with him. It didn’t make sense.
“Yeah, I know you’re meeting someone. It’s just not who you think you’re seeing.”
Jordan’s eyes widened, and for a second he was speechless. Then he shook his head. “Come again? Are you sure you have the right table?”
“Are you Jordan Carroway?”
“Well,” Jordan began, “Yes.” He scrutinized the kid, that familiar feeling nagging at him, and then it dawned on him: he had Nicole’s eyes. Her son, perhaps? “You’re Nick, aren’t you?”
Nick nodded, surprised and sat across from him. “I didn’t know if you knew about me.”
Jordan laughed and set the menu on the table. “The last time I saw you, you were still in diapers right after your grandfather’s funeral, so it’s been a while, but yeah, I definitely knew about you.” He looked around the room, trying to find Nicole. “Where’s your mom?”
“Not here.” He leaned back.
“Is she all right? She sounded strange on the phone.”
It was Nick’s turn to laugh, and since the waiter appeared at that moment to take their orders, Jordan had to wait to find out why. When the waiter finally walked away, he asked, “What’s so funny?” Then he grabbed his water and took a drink.
“That wasn’t my mom you talked to on the phone, actually. She was at the movies with me while my sister and Aunt Sarah called you.”
The pit of Jordan’s stomach seemed to lurch as though he were on a roller coaster and had just gone over a large hill. “But Sarah hates me.”
“Not as much as she hates my dad--and you haven’t seen my mom lately. She’s been a wreck. Sarah even told her to call you, but she wouldn’t listen.”
A flush crept into Jordan’s cheeks, and he took a deep breath. “Well, I guess that explains why she sounded the way she did. At first I couldn’t put my finger on why her voice was so different but since I was talking to a teenager, I’m thinking now she sounded like one. I just didn’t get it at the time.”
Jordan stared at Nick, kind of amazed at how much he really did look like his mother. It seemed as though he should have known immediately when he'd first spotted Nick; that’s how uncanny the resemblance was. Still, there was no way he could've known, really.
“Yeah, well, Michelle was pretty pleased with herself that she was able to convince you she was Mom and get this whole meeting set up.”
Jordan set his glass down. “But why wouldn’t your mom just call me herself? Why have your sister do it?”
A bit of color drained from Nick’s face. “Mom doesn’t have a clue Michelle even called, and it’s better that way. Really it is.”
The waiter brought out a salad for Jordan, and once Jordan had unwrapped his silverware, he tried again to wrap his head around a conversation he couldn’t believe he was having with someone he couldn’t even believe was this old. Where had the time gone?
“Okay, so what's going on with your mom?” He looked at the salad but suddenly didn’t have much appetite.
Nick took a deep breath. “I’ll tell you. But first I want to ask you a question. It might seem a little personal, but you gotta understand. This is my mom we’re talking about. It’s important.”
Jordan’s back tensed, and he suddenly felt unnerved. What was going on? What had he stumbled into? “Okay, I’ll do my best.”
“Do you love my mom?”
Jordan blinked, trying to believe he'd heard right. As he struggled to answer, a couple passed by them on their way out.
“Why?”
“It’s a simple question. Do you love my mom?”
Jordan took a sip of water just to give himself some time to form an answer to a tough question he really already thought he knew the answer to. Saying it was a different story, though. His gut reaction was to keep his feelings locked up, to play it safe, but something about the way Nick sat there, his eyes delving deeply into Jordan’s, made lying impossible. “I care very much for your mom, but up until two days ago, she was still married in my mind, Nick. Up until now, I’ve never had much chance to explore them. I’d like to, but I can’t just say I love her without a foundation we haven’t had a chance to build.” He toyed with his silverware. “I know maybe that isn’t what you want to hear, but it’s the best I can say.”
Nick smiled and nodded. “Well, you didn’t lie, and that’s what’s important. My dad could stand to take a few lessons from you on how to treat women.”
Jordan shoved his fork into the salad. “You’re a lot like your mom, Nick.”
“Thank you.”
The waiter returned with Nick’s order, and for a moment the two men busied themselves eating. Then Jordan finally looked up and set his fork down again. “So what are you expecting from me? I mean, your mom doesn’t know I’m here, so why bother?”
Nick swallowed the bite in his mouth. “Well, the thing is, my asshole dad has decided to marry his girlfriend—the same one he cheated with during his marriage to my mom--and it’s been really tough for her. Aunt Sarah’s been trying to get her to call you since the divorce years ago, but Mom figured you were remarried, and she didn’t want to complicate your life.”
She’s never complicated my life, Jordan thought. Never. He arched his eyebrows at the mention of Sarah again. “You sure Sarah tried to get her to call me?” He shook his head in bewilderment.
Nick pointed his fork at Jordan. “Take my word. You put Sarah and my dad in a room, and there’re fireworks. Guaranteed. Besides,” he said, slipping his hand around his glass of soda, “you haven’t seen my mom since my dad made that boneheaded announcement. She’s been crying a lot and thinking about the past. Once Sarah told us about how Mom met you, both Michelle and I decided we had to do something.”
Jordan leaned back, suddenly aware he was finally about to get to the point where he fit into a plan he’d known nothing about. “Is your mom okay?”
“Yeah,” Nick finally said. “I guess. She’s pretty upset, and we didn’t know what else to do.”
Jordan took a bite of his chicken and asked, “Okay, it sounds like you, Michelle, and Sarah have cooked up a game plan. How about letting me in on it?”
Shaking his head, Nick said, “Okay. Here’s the deal: I was going to take you to meet Mom. Right now Michelle and Sarah are setting up a campsite with Mom—”
“Wait.” Jordan held up his hand, stopping the conversation as he leaned forward. “Please tell me your mother isn’t camping.”
“Well, yeah, she is. Why?”
Jordan starting shaking his head as he imagined all the disasters which were about to befall Nicole. “Have you ever taken your mother camping before?”
Nick fiddled with his hamburger. “Well--no--my dad didn’t much care for the Great Outdoors.”
“Then let me enlighten you about what happened the last time your mother decided to spend some quality time with Mother Nature. I was there with her when she fell into a river, tipped a canoe, and stepped on a cactus. By that point, I think the only reason she didn’t get into more trouble was that I was carrying her. The world is not ready for your mother to go camping, Nick.”
Shaking his head, Nick said, “Then we should get to the campsite before something bad happens?”
Jordan set down a tip and stood, grabbing both checks. “That would be my guess.”
Nick also stood. "I'm following you."
Jordan
stepped up to the register and handed the cashier the checks.
“You don’t have to pay for my meal.”
“I know,” Jordan said, grinning. “But I don’t mind.” As the cashier handed Jordan his change, he turned back to Nick. “Now perhaps we should go rescue your sister and aunt.”
Chapter Twenty-One
“Tell me again why I let you guys talk me into this? You know I hate camping.” Nicole glared at her best friend while holding the poles of their tent in her hand. She’d tried to tell herself she was intelligent enough to make sense of how a tent should go up. The tent, however, seemed to be getting the upper hand, and all Sarah could do was sit on her butt and laugh.
“You came because your kids asked you to, and you know that in a few years they'll be in college and you'll wish you'd had more moments like this.” Sarah turned her focus to the tent poles in Nicole’s hand. “Okay, well, maybe not exactly like this, but you know what I mean.”
Nicole waved the poles in the air in exasperation. “How is it I can have a bachelor’s degree and still not know which pole goes where?”
Sarah chuckled and held her hand out for the poles. “Here. Give me those before you hurt someone. How did you ever get through that weekend P.E. trip with Jordan?”
Immediately Nicole’s shoulders stiffened, and she closed her eyes as though she didn’t want to see what was right in front of her. “I was a disaster, that’s how,” she finally managed in a weak voice.
“Have you talked to him lately?”
Nicole gritted her teeth and glowered at her. “I think you know the answer to that.”
Looking away, Sarah began assembling the tent. “You could always call him. I’m sure he’d be glad to hear from you.”
“Yeah, well, considering how my last relationship went, I think I’ll pass just the same.” She plunked down in one of the folding chairs to get a great view of her friend fighting with the tent. Unfortunately, it seemed Sarah was a bit better at assembling the tent than Nicole had been.
“Nic,” Sarah began, her hands pausing so she could look up at Nicole. “We’ve been over this, hon. What happened between you and Michael wasn’t your fault. He was a dick, and you got hurt. Your kids will tell you that, even though you’d never ask them because you try so hard to make things equitable.” She shook her head. “Well, do something for you. Just this once make things equitable and enjoy your life. You aren’t married, and you're free to call whomever you want. Jordan is a big boy. If he’s in the middle of a relationship, which I doubt, he’ll be the first to speak up, I’m sure.”
Sarah went back to shoving the poles into place, and to Nicole’s frustration, the tent began to take shape--and it even looked right, unlike what she'd done earlier. Chewing her bottom lip, Nicole reached into the ice chest and pulled out a bottle of water.
“You seem certain Jordan isn’t in the middle of a relationship. Why?”
Sarah straightened and stretched; half the tent was done. “Well, let’s face it. You never got over him, and I’m willing to bet he never got over you. Yeah, he married Alyssa, but that didn’t last very long. You married Michael, and even though you did everything you were supposed to, it fell apart. Who's to say that what you and Jordan had wasn’t meant to be, and that both of you were just too stubborn and stupid to know better?”
“Thanks for your vote of confidence, Sarah. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it.” She sighed and took a drink before wiping her hand across her forehead. “Besides, even if I did call Jordan and we wanted to go out, I’m not sure what the kids would think, and the last thing I want to do is upset them the way their dad is upsetting them.”
At that, Sarah actually threw one of the smaller tent poles. Even though Nicole tried shifting out of the way, the pole dinged her shin. “Ouch! That hurt! Why are you throwing things at me?”
“You're a grown woman, Nicole Adams, and you deserve your chance to go out and have fun just like the rest of the population. I think your kids are smart enough to recognize that.” She began to assemble the last part of the tent. “You just can’t put a tent together to save your soul.
Nicole squirmed in her seat, knowing her best friend was probably right, but that didn’t make it any easier to think about. It was bad enough that both her kids had seen her break down during a weaker moment even though she’d fought so hard to avoid it. She didn’t want to have to explain about going out on dates, too. Then again, if she hadn’t believed so strongly that Jordan had remarried, she probably would've tried to get together with him, if for no other reason than to rule out this infernal feeling of being incomplete without him. That was really beginning to get on her nerves.
Nicole glanced around the campsite and shook her head. “By the way, have you seen my two wonderful teenagers—you know, the ones who thought this would be such a great experience for mom?”
Sarah shrugged. “Nope. Then again, Nick in particular knows just how well you put things together, so my money is on him wandering around, and Michelle has probably found the part of the river where all the cute guys are swimming and is reluctant to leave.”
She snapped the last pole into place and then gestured to the tent, a proud smile on her face. “The tent is up.”
“Have I mentioned you suck?” Nicole growled standing. Part of her wanted to find some kind of fault in how the tent was standing but couldn’t. Sarah somehow knew just where everything went. It was sickening, really. “So where did you figure out how to put up a tent?”
“It’s not hard.” She picked up a flyer from the other folding chair. “They're called instructions and they tell you everything you need to know about putting the poles in the right places. You should try using them sometime.” She waved them at her best friend and started laughing.
“Well,” Nicole said, looking at the tent. “It’s hours before we need to think about dinner. So what are we going to do?”
Sarah’s cell began to ring, and she shrugged. “Hold that thought. Let me answer this.” She flipped the phone open. “Hello?” A pause. “Oh, yeah. The usual spot is definitely where it needs to be. Thanks.” She flipped the phone shut before turning back to Nicole.
“What was that all about?” Nicole asked, frowning.
“Mom’s keeping an eye on the house because Greg is out of town. I was telling her to put the mail in the usual spot.” She stretched her arms over her head. “So how about we take a little walk to stretch our legs?”
“All right. But I’m kind of getting a little nervous about Nick. He should have been here already.”
Sarah gave her shoulder a squeeze. “I’m sure Nick is fine, Nicole. He’s got a good head on his shoulders.”
The two of them headed down the road, and even though Nicole thought the landscape seemed familiar, she really couldn’t place it. Although it was warm enough for swimming and she figured there would be more than a few people hanging around, there weren’t, which actually made it nice. The two kept walking until Nicole spotted her son’s truck , and she jerked her best friend toward it.
“Now you get here,” Nicole said, watching as her son rolled the truck window down. “I could've used some help putting up the tent!”
Nick grinned. “Yeah, well, I’m sure you could've.”
Sarah threw her hands up in exasperation. “Hey, I helped. Otherwise, the tent would still be on the ground in pieces. Your mother so needs tent assembly lessons.”
Nicole shoved her elbow in Sarah’s side, which immediately quieted her. “So where have you been?”
Nick shrugged. “I had to pick up a friend.”
Scanning the empty passenger seat, Nicole frowned. “Okay, if you really want me to buy that, you should have someone sitting next to you.”
“He’s on the bridge, Mom.” Nick’s dull tone suggested his mother really should be more observant.
“On the bridge?” It was then that Nicole remembered the park from years ago, when she'd first met Jordan. The sun was bright and she had to shield
her eyes even to look at the bridge, which was when she saw a man in jeans and a denim, button-down standing at the center in pretty much the same spot she’d stood that day. He held a bouquet of daisies.
“Who is….” Nicole’s voice died as she took in his dark hair and build. It was Jordan. Her mouth opened, and she meant to call his name as her feet started moving. At first, it was a slow canter, but a few steps later, she was running full force and didn’t stop until she'd launched herself into his arms.
“It’s you! It’s really you!” she whispered breathlessly.
Jordan thought about answering, but for the moment all he could do was just hold onto her the way he’d always wanted since they’d met. She wrapped her legs around him and buried her head against his neck, the silence broken only by the sound of dragonflies buzzing through the air and the sound of their hearts.
“I thought you'd remarried,” she said.
He pulled back to look into her eyes. “And I thought you were still married. Just goes to show what happens when you think instead of feel.” He smiled, and in the instant their eyes met, he knew he had to kiss her. His head bent low, and their lips touched at last.
For a moment the world seemed to spin. Jordan could swear to that because suddenly they both listed to the side--and fell over the edge, the arms of the one never releasing the other. They surfaced, laughing.
“We have to stop doing that,” Nicole said.
“Let's do it every year.” Jordan pulled her close, and they kissed again.
From the bank, Nick yelled, “Hey, Jordan,” I think I got it.” He waved the camera.
“Oh my God--is that my camera?" Nicole asked, incredulous. "The one that fell in the river?”
He nodded.
Nicole swallowed hard and felt tears glimmering in her eyes. He’d thought of her all those years and kept part of her close. “But I told you to get rid of it.”
Jordan smiled. “Some things just take time to fix.”
Scattered Ashes Page 21