Beginnings

by Bernadette Marie

  "Never gave it any thought."

  "See those two people across the street?" She pointed, and he nodded when he'd located them. "They're newly married."

  "How do you know?"

  "They're cuddly. Not pawing on each other like a newly dating couple, but cuddly. The couple that is walking into that store," she said pointing again. "They've been married for a long time. He's walking a step behind her and following where she wants to go."

  "So, men fall in line when they've been married a long time?"

  "Good ones." She took another bite of her ice cream. "Okay, see the ones coming out of the pizza parlor? They're not happily married. He's leading the way, and she's got her attitude on."

  He watched as the woman hurried to keep up with the man who was obviously paying her no attention. He could feel the tension in their mannerism, and it had him adjusting his own position on the bench to not seem so stiff.

  "What about that man and woman looking in the window of Pearl's store?"

  Nichole studied them for a moment. "Have been dating for a little bit. He's not too serious about the relationship, but she's trying to hint to him by looking in the window."

  "Really?"

  "Oh, I'd put money on it."

  "This is a fun game," he agreed as he licked his ice cream and relaxed next to her. "Are you happy that you moved here?" he asked.

  "I am. It's been a nice change for me and the kids."

  "What about family? Don't you miss them?"

  "Of course. That was a hard decision, but I knew it was the right one. They needed to start anew too, my kids that is."

  "I take it your divorce wasn't very amicable."

  He noticed that she stabbed at her ice cream now. His question had certainly raised the tension between them. Perhaps he'd crossed a line.

  "I think amicable divorces are a load of crap, really. If your marriage were amicable, there would be no need for divorce." She bit the ice cream off of the spoon with a snap. "So, no. It wasn't pleasant."

  "I didn't mean to…"

  "I know. I know." Nichole let out a long sigh. "Sooner or later you'd ask, and I didn't handle that well."

  "It's none of my business."

  "Sure it is. We're friends. So you have the right to ask."

  He licked his ice cream and watched as she formulated what she wanted to tell him—her friend.

  "We got married young. I was twenty-one, and he was twenty-two. Life was just a big party to us. I worked full time at a salon and part-time as a waitress at a bar. We lived in a run-down apartment and never had enough money to, well, to live." She took another bite of her ice cream. "It should have been my first clue that things weren't what he said they were. After a few months our money began disappearing, I realized he was gambling it all away. He was a blackjack dealer at a resort. He got sucked into it, and soon we were being evicted.

  "We went our separate ways in year two. We couldn't afford a divorce, but we stayed apart for a year. But then one night we met up, and wouldn't you know it? I got pregnant with twins."

  "Your boys are incredible," he said honestly and for the purpose to defuse the tension.

  That brought a smile to her lips. "They are. We managed to work it out for five more years and then had Laura. That was nearly as much of a surprise as having twins, but even then, he wasn't around. He was gambling again, but this time we had bigger stakes. First, he lost his car, then his job, and then the lease on our house. I couldn't do it anymore."

  "So you left?"

  "I packed up my kids and just started driving. We ended up in Athens first. We lived there for six months or so before we made it here and I fell in love with the area. Luckily, Audrey was opening her salon, and I talked her into hiring me. End of story."

  He was sure that wasn't the end, but he had a good grasp on what she'd gone through.

  Nichole took another bite of her ice cream and then eased back against the bench. "My divorce was final the first month I was here. Lydia and I celebrated all weekend."

  "I'm glad you're here." The words fell from his mouth, and he hoped he didn't look as terrified as he felt when she turned and studied him.

  "So am I."

  They silently finished their ice cream and then started back toward the salon.

  The May evening was perfect, and as they walked past the storefronts of the many businesses Lydia Morgan was a part of, their hands brushed, and instinct took over as he took her hand.

  He caught the hitch in her breath and noticed the subtle smile that settled on her lips. No big deal was made about it, not outwardly, that was. His heart was hammering in his chest, and he was just holding a woman's hand. They walked the rest of the way, their fingers interlaced with one another's.

  * * *

  Nichole found that the closer they got to the salon, the slower she wanted to walk. She hadn't been too sure about her evening with Ben Walker, but now she didn't want it to end.

  When they reached the door, his hand slipped away from hers. She dug into her purse and pulled out the keys, then unlocked the door, and pushed it open.

  "Can I interest you in a glass of wine or beer?" she offered, hoping for a few more moments.

  "I have a long drive home."

  "Right. Well, Thank you. I had a wonderful time. "

  "So did I. Maybe I could drop by this week and take you all out for pizza or something."

  Her chest swelled with the anticipation of his offer. "I think the kids would like that."

  "Great. What night is best?"

  "Wednesday? I'm done early on Wednesdays, so I can pick the kids up from school."

  "I'll come by around five?"

  "That works. We'll meet you here."

  Ben nodded but stood in the doorway another moment, his hands tucked securely in his pockets. Nichole studied him. Was he waiting for something? She'd invited him in, and he didn't accept the offer. Was she supposed to…

  There wasn't another moment to think about what Ben Walker wanted to do when he moved in and took her mouth with his.

  She felt the gasp in her throat, but it never surfaced—suffocated by his kiss.

  For a moment they stood in the doorway, lips pressed together, but with an imaginary wall between them.

  Oh, to hell with it, she thought, as she lifted her arms around his neck and sank fully into the kiss that had her head swimming.

  Ben's hands came to her hips and pulled her in closer.

  Once she was breathless and damn nearly faint, he pulled back. "I'll see you Wednesday," he said calmly, which surprised her more than the kiss.

  Nichole could offer nothing but a gurgle of acceptance as she caught her breath.

  Ben dropped his hands, gave her a wave, and disappeared into the night.

  Nichole watched until he was out of sight. She shut the door and leaned up against it.

  Her heart raced, her head spun, and her lips tingled. She could feel the enormous smile that tugged at the corners of her mouth. It had been so long since she'd been kissed like that, she thought maybe she was floating.

  Pressing a hand to her chest, she stood a moment longer. Wednesday seemed so far away.

  14

  Weekends were made for recuperating, and Nichole had done just that. She and the kids had gone to the park on Sunday and played some basketball. She'd taken them to the ice cream parlor too, and she and Laura shared that decadent brownie ice cream. Maybe she was making memories with her family. Or maybe she'd been trying to keep that moment intact, the one where Ben had swept her off her feet.

  Monday she took the boys to school, and as it was her day off, she and Laura did domestic things. They went to the grocery store, filled the car with gas, and cleaned the house. Luckily Laura was still young enough to think that pushing a vacuum cleaner around was fun. And though it was three times her size, and Nichole would have to do the job again, she let Laura have at it.

  In fact, if she didn't get back around to it, it didn't matter. Nichole's head was so fa
r in the clouds nothing seemed to matter.

  How could a kiss from a timid man make her so deliriously happy? Then it hit her—because she was lonely.

  By the end of the day, Nichole had dropped down on her bed after the boys had finally fallen asleep, and she wept.

  A hollowness filled the void where the deliriously happy bubble had been since Ben had kissed her on Saturday night. When she realized she was a single mother of three, divorced, living far from home—the happiness fell out of her.

  This wasn't what she'd wanted—this feeling of despair. Damnit, she deserved a life of happiness and kisses from men who were decent and family-centered. She deserved brownie ice cream any damn time she wanted it, and who the hell cared if she never did get back to that vacuum?

  The more she wept, the more she realized she was still broken from the man who stole everything from her.

  Wiping her tears away, she cursed herself for ever going back to him—but without him, she wouldn't have the three joys in her life that slumbered just down the hall.

  She rolled over and punched the pillow. Why did it always have to circle around and hurt? Why couldn't her anger make his memory go away?

  It wasn't as if the kids asked where he was. Okay, Zane did from time to time, but her ex hadn't been there for them anyway. He'd stolen from them too. He made their house disappear too.

  Rolling back to stare up at the ceiling she made her mind go back to that kiss. That simple stupid kiss that Ben had laid on her.

  That happy bubble percolated in her chest again. Maybe she should call him. Would he freak out? He was the one who asked her out, took her hand, and kissed her. Would he be receptive to her call?

  Picking up her phone from the nightstand, she studied it. Ben Walker's phone number wasn't in her phone.

  It was stupid really. She had more than a dozen contacts of people that would happily give it to her, but she replaced the phone on the nightstand.

  Wednesday. He'd invited them all out on a date.

  She could wait until Wednesday.

  Nichole turned off the bedside lamp and closed her eyes. She was going to have an aneurysm if she kept going back and forth like that. But it was the way it had been for so long she didn't know how not to doubt herself.

  She'd work on that tomorrow. For now, she'd get some sleep and dream about that kiss again.

  15

  Because she worked later on Tuesdays, Nichole hadn't walked into the salon until one o'clock. Katie would pick up the boys up from school, and help them with their homework until Nichole got home that night. It was routine.

  When she opened the door to the salon, it didn't go unnoticed that Audrey and the other three stylists were seated in the waiting area, chairs facing the door all staring up at her.

  "What's going on?" she asked as she let the door close behind her.

  The four sets of eyes were wide, and stupid grins were on each of their faces.

  Audrey sat back in her chair and crossed her legs. "No clients for the next half hour. Sit your butt in a chair and dish."

  Nichole set her bag and her purse on one of the empty chairs. "Dish on what?"

  "Oh, don't be smug. You had a date on Saturday, and we want every hot and torrid detail, even if it was my cousin. Sit."

  A headache began to form behind Nichole's eyes. Were they kidding? Were they going to force her to talk about this? If Audrey knew her cousin at all, she knew there weren't any details to share.

  In the spirit of sisterhood, Nichole pulled up a chair and sat down.

  "I can't believe you guys are doing this to me," she whined.

  "Don't go there," Patty said. "You were right here in this circle when I went on that date with, oh what the hell was his name?"

  "Bob," Darlene injected. "His name was Bob, and he was as dumb as a doorknob."

  "Was not," Patty argued and then reconsidered. "Okay, he was. Maybe that's why I can't even remember his name."

  They all shared a laugh, but then all eyes turned back to Nichole.

  "Fine. We had a nice time. He came here and picked me up. Actually, I'd given up on him. But he showed."

  "He got a flat," Audrey chimed in.

  "So if you know that detail, why are you asking me for the rest."

  "I know that detail because Missy was the one who told me. She said Jake had fixed Ben's tire and that he was all worked up over your date. And that's why I'm sitting here wanting all the juicy details."

  Funny, Nichole thought. He'd been worked up over the date? Did that mean he'd been nervous or had had second thoughts?

  "Lydia had tuned him in to the fact that she was serving samples from the craft brewery she's involved in at Juan's. So, we went there for dinner. We had a nice time. I had the enchilada platter as suggested by Lydia," she said with a laugh trying to draw out the story. "Then we took a walk back toward the salon. Of course, we stopped for dessert first."

  "Damn," Darlene pushed back in her chair. "You had sex after dinner, just like that?"

  Nichole bore a stare at her. "What? Did I say I had sex? I said we had dessert."

  "Yeah, sex. First date sex."

  Nichole shook her head. "Not in my book, sister. I mean we stopped for ice cream."

  Beth clasped her hands together. "That's romantic," she said sweetly, as that was more her style, Nichole knew.

  "Right. Romance, no sex after dinner," she reiterated. "We sat on the bench outside the ice cream parlor and enjoyed the nice night people watching."

  "And that was it?" Darlene sat forward leaning her forearms on her knees. "Boring."

  "We did walk back to the salon, and our hands brushed together. Then he subtly took my hand." She heard Beth sigh. "When we got back to the salon he said he'd like to see me again and take my whole family out for pizza on Wednesday."

  She could nearly see Beth swooning in her seat.

  Audrey mimicked Darlene's stance and leaned in on her forearms. "C'mon, C'mon. You're killing me here. Is my cousin good in bed or not?"

  "What is wrong with you?" Nichole laughed. She was mortified at the question but fully understood that if one of the other girls were in the hot-seat, she'd be wanting lurid details too. "I didn't have sex with your cousin."

  "What's wrong with him?"

  "I didn't say I wouldn't have sex with your cousin. I just said I didn't."

  "So that was all? Dinner, ice cream, and hand holding?" Audrey sat back in her chair. "What are we, in sixth grade?"

  "You never let me finish. Before he left, he took me by surprise and laid the hottest kiss on me. Which proves we're up to eighth grade," she joked and received a laugh from each of them. "Well, it was the hottest kiss because it's been nearly a year since I've kissed anyone, but it made my knees weak."

  "Eh," Darlene protested as she stood up and picked up her can of Coke from the coffee table. "I wanted hot details. Tell me when you're banging someone," she said as she went to the back room.

  Beth's cheeks pinked, and Audrey laughed. "You're going out again, though?"

  "With my kids."

  "That's a big step," Audrey offered. "He's a good man, Nichole. You couldn't do better."

  "I'm not looking for the real thing. I would be selfish to even think about it. I have three kids and an ex-husband. Who in their right mind wants that?"

  "You can still have sex with the man even if you don't plan to keep him forever. Even if he's the boss' cousin," Darlene called from the back room, sending the women into a laughing fit that only ended when their next client walked in the door.

  Ben wiped his brow with the back of his hand. The sun was hot, and the work that was left to be done was plentiful. He'd thought Gerald was going to help him unload the hay from the trailer, but as he had yet to show up and Ben was halfway through the load. He'd given up.

  This was what he loved to do, though. The physical labor involved in running the ranch, that made sense to him. He never could be a paper pusher. The Walker men were hands-on with whatever they did. />
  Taking a break, he sat on the edge of the trailer and took a long satisfying swig from his water bottle. When this day was done, he was going to sit on his front porch and have a nice cold beer and watch the sun go down over the fields. What better life was there than that?

  With his next swig of water, he thought of how lonely it sounded. Oh, he didn't mind it, but he had a hard time concentrating on the things that were normal lately. A certain brunette kept creeping into his thoughts. And that kiss they'd shared, it had made an appearance in more than one dream over the past few nights.

  He'd never dated anyone with kids before, and that brought a whole new level of thinking to any relationship. A laugh escaped his throat as he lifted his bottle for another drink. Relationship. A date and a kiss did not qualify as a relationship. However, the stupid garter that had landed in his lap, and sat on his nightstand, did justify obsession. He couldn't get the woman out of his mind, and his mind wandered a lot lately. Just as it was now when he had an entire half a trailer of hay to move.

  When he heard the sound of a vehicle coming up on him, he twisted the lid back on his bottle and walked around the truck.

  As Gerald parked his truck and stepped out, Ben moved toward him. "‘Bout damn time."

  "I was hoping you'd be done with this," he joked as he pulled on his gloves. "Eric had a rider go missing. We found her. She had gotten turned around and was heading the wrong way."

  "I keep thinking someday someone is going to sue us when they get lost on our property."

  "That's why we have that legal jargon they have to sign."

  Gerald stepped up onto the trailer and began moving the next bale of hay. "Heard you had a date on Saturday."

  "Yeah, so?"

  "So no big deal. How did it go? Was this with that gal that works for Audrey?"

  He tossed down the bale from the stack so that Ben could grab it. "Nichole. Yeah, she works for Audrey."

  "And has a house full of kids, right?"

  "Three," he specified.

  "Any sparks?"

  "Could be," Ben said reaching up for the next bale. "She's great actually, and so are the kids."