Drew parked his truck in Mrs. Jennings’ driveway. He hadn’t been there in years, but he saw Kate’s grandmother every now and then either at Food Mart or across the auditorium at church. “Stay right there,” he said. He walked around to the passenger side and opened the door for Kate.
“Well aren’t you a gentleman?” She grinned. “But you always were, even in junior high.” He was pleased to hear her bring up the past. Maybe she was finally warming up to him.
“I try.” They walked up the sidewalk to the front door. “I’m a little nervous. I don’t guess I’ve seen your family too much over the years.”
She stopped and smiled at him. She looked especially pretty tonight in a green sweater that matched her eyes. “If it makes you feel any better, I’m nervous, too. Grandma and Brooke both acted weird when they were telling me about tonight. I’m glad you’re here though. You’re kind of a good buffer.”
He laughed. “Buffer? Why do you need a buffer with your own family?”
“I’m worried they’ll try and corner me and make me tell them for sure how long I’m staying.” She shrugged. “Every single one of them asks me about my future plans any chance they get. So hopefully you being here will take some of the heat off of me. If they start in tonight, please rescue me by sharing some kind of home renovation disaster story.”
“You got it.”
Mrs. Jennings met them at the door. “I’m so glad you both could come,” she said. She hugged Kate first, then Drew. “And Drew! It’s been such a long time since we’ve visited. I hope your dad and Jaime are doing well. Her kids are precious.”
He nodded. “Thank you. They are. And thanks for inviting me.”
She gave him a wink. “Of course, dear.” She turned to Kate. “Come on in the living room. I want you to see something.”
Kate glanced at Drew over her shoulder and raised her eyebrows.
He followed them into the large living room.
“Oh my!” Kate exclaimed.
A Christmas tree with all the trimmings was set up near the fireplace. Garland hung on the hearth and white twinkling lights were strung all around. There were two balsam scented candles lit on the coffee table, and the sound of festive Christmas carols streamed from the stereo. It might be late March, but it certainly looked, felt, smelled, and sounded like December. What a great family.
Riley, Brooke, and their parents were in the living room waiting. They all jumped up when Kate and Drew entered the room.
“What’s this all about?” Kate asked once she’d looked at all the decorations and taken it all in.
“You’ve missed so many Christmases,” Brooke explained. “We wanted to try and make up for it a bit.”
He had to admit, it was pretty cool. Kate had always loved Christmas and to see her family honor that was really special. He wondered how her holidays had been since she’d left Arcadia Valley. He glanced over at Kate. Her eyes were filled with tears that were about to spill over. He knew how much she hated to cry in front of people. He stepped in front of her to give her a minute to compose herself. “Thanks, everyone, for having me. It’s nice to be here again.” He glanced back at Kate.
She gave him a nod of thanks.
“Drew, it’s been a while,” Riley said. “Nice to see you. You may remember my dad, Bobby Jennings.”
Drew shook hands with her dad.
Mr. Jennings nodded. “Drew, I think we attend the same service at Arcadia Valley Community Church. You go to the early service, don’t you?”
He nodded. “Yes, sir. My dad, sister, and her family go to the next one, but I’ve always been an early riser.”
“That’s an admirable trait.” Mr. Jennings gave him a pat on the back.
“And this is my mom, LouAnn,” Riley said. “But you probably know her from church, too.” She laughed. “I am not an early riser, so you early service people may as well be on a different planet than me.”
LouAnn Jennings smiled at her youngest daughter. “To each his or her own, dear.” She turned to Drew. “I’m glad you could make it tonight, Drew.”
“Thank you. It’s nice to be here.” Even though he saw the family from time to time, he didn’t usually even talk to them. He sat on a different side of the building than they did and had never been in any kind of group with them. Considering his history with Kate, he’d always thought it best to steer clear of them.
“I may see you sometimes at church, but mostly I remember you from high school days.” Mrs. Jennings shook her head. “It seems like just yesterday all you kids were going to Homecoming and taking the ACT.”
“It sure does.” Except that in some ways that all seemed like a million years ago. He glanced over at Kate. She’d pulled herself together and was holding a baby boy, presumably Brooke’s son. He walked over to them. “Surprised?” he asked. “It’s not every day you get your own special Christmas celebration.”
“Definitely.” She smiled. “And thanks for taking the attention off me earlier,” she whispered.
“I’ll help you any way I can. Any time,” he said.
She shifted the child to her other hip. “This is River. He’s a year old.”
They sat down for a traditional Christmas dinner of turkey and dressing.
Mr. Jennings offered thanks for the food, asking a special blessing on Kate.
“I just can’t believe you guys did this,” Kate said, smiling around the table. Her face was as bright as the Christmas tree itself, and Drew was thankful he was here to see it.
“Well, we weren’t sure if you’d be here at Christmas, and so we decided to go ahead and get the family together now. Besides, it’s been too many years since you’ve tasted my pecan pie. I seem to remember that being your favorite,” her grandma said.
He locked eyes with Kate. If anyone else made a reference to how long she may or may not be in Arcadia Valley, he was fully prepared to change the subject.
But there was no need. Riley jumped in with a funny dog walking story.
Kate visibly relaxed and shot him a quick smile.
The rest of the evening passed in a blur, complete with Christmas gifts for Kate.
Watching her interact with her family, laughing and talking to her cousins, and playing with River all beneath the glow of the Christmas tree lights really did make it feel like the holidays.
“I hear the renovations are going well,” Brooke said, sitting down next to him.
He nodded. “I think so. Kate seems pleased.”
“Have the two of you had much time to talk?”
“Some. Mostly about the house and the office.” He and Brooke had always been friends up until he’d broken things off with Kate. “We’ve talked a little about the past though. But not about the actual ending of our relationship.”
“She seems fragile right now, but she’s tougher than she looks.” Brooke smiled. “My advice to you, for what it’s worth, is to be as honest with her as you can be. Particularly about the years she was away.”
He felt the color drain from his face. Did Brooke know his secret? This was not a huge town, and even though he’d lived away for a while there was still a good chance Brooke could know. “Thanks.”
“I know it’s none of my business,” she said. “But Kate’s already dealt with so much. I don’t want to see her blindsided again.”
Fair enough. He couldn’t blame Brooke for looking out for her cousin. “You and I want the same thing. For Kate to be happy and to make her peace with the past and with this town.”
Brooke nodded. “Good.”
* * *
“That was so much fun,” Drew said on the way home. “Would you think it was weird if I said it felt like old times?”
She’d thought the same thing. “Not at all. The truth is that I felt more like myself tonight than I have in ages.” She grinned over at him. “Thanks for taking the heat off me a time or two. After all these years, you still read my cues pretty well.” She was falling back into an old pattern with him and it scared h
er. Having Drew next to her was as normal as breathing. It wasn’t anything she had to think about. And she knew all too well that Drew had the capacity to hurt her.
She couldn’t handle that again.
“Do you want to stop anywhere or just go straight home?” Drew asked.
“I guess home. Sam’s been inside the whole time we were gone. I’m pretty sure it will be okay, but it still makes me a little nervous.” She laughed. “I tried to tell Riley, but she told me I was nuts. Granted, Riley has a house that’s basically designed around her animals, so maybe she really doesn’t worry about leaving her dogs home alone and unattended. I’m still a new dog owner though.”
“Like you might end up one of those viral Facebook video people who comes home and their dog has the trash can lid stuck on his head?”
She laughed. “Exactly. I feel like that very well could be me at some point.”
Once they were in the driveway, her stomach fluttered. This was not a date. Not even close. But it felt very date-like and she wasn’t sure how she felt about that. “Do you want to come inside?” She expected him to decline.
He locked eyes with her for a moment. “Sure. I think we still have some catching up to do.”
She nodded. “How about a cup of coffee?” The past several times Drew had attempted to draw her in to a more serious conversation, she’d managed to wrangle out of it. But tonight had been so perfect and had left her with such a good feeling. Maybe she was ready to deal with things once and for all.
They went inside and found Sam sound asleep on his dog bed.
“He’s a little hard of hearing,” Kate whispered. She knelt down next to the dog bed. “Hey, Sam. Do you want to go outside?”
At his name, the big dog sat up and looked around. He yawned and stretched, then stood up slowly.
She opened the back door and Sam ambled outside.
“I don’t see anything out of place,” Kate said after a quick glance around. “I just may have the perfect dog for me.”
Once the coffee was brewed, they settled at the table.
“Thanks again for going tonight. Grandma, Brooke, and Riley insisted that I bring you.”
He grinned. “Are you kidding? Christmas in March? I wouldn’t have missed it.” He took a sip of coffee. “Although I wish you’d quit reiterating that my being in attendance wasn’t your idea.”
She laughed. “Sorry. I’m glad you were there, too.”
Drew widened his eyes. “Finally, some affirmation.” He winked. “So I wondered about something. It’s kind of personal.”
“Oh, really? Well lucky for you coffee is something of a truth serum for me.”
“I met your boyfriend. Aiden, I believe. He sat by me at your dad’s funeral.” He looked at her expectantly. “Is it serious?”
“Actually, Aiden is my ex-boyfriend now.” She swirled a spoon in her mug and watched as the creamer made little ribbons in the black coffee. “It just wasn’t right. He’s a nice guy and all, but he’s not the one for me.” She and Aiden had been on the same page about the breakup, and it hadn’t caused her any grief. That told the whole story right there. “I think we were just filling a space in each other’s life, you know? I guess there never really was the possibility for it to turn into something lasting.”
Drew regarded her for a moment. “Have you ever come close to settling down?”
“No. I’ve had a couple of relationships that lasted two or more years. But even those had things that were fundamentally wrong.” She frowned. “I think I may have some trust issues.”
“I’m sorry,” he said quietly. “Those are my fault, aren’t they?”
She closed her eyes. Were they really going to do this? “Drew, do you remember the night we broke up?”
“Yes.”
“I have never felt anything like that before. It was a devastation that I didn’t know if I could live through.” She shook her head. “Until that night, you and I were inseparable. And when you started talking about wanting to see other people and needing space and not being ready for marriage, it was like a bomb went off in my heart.”
“It isn’t something I’m proud of.” He raked his fingers through his dark hair. “I didn’t want to hurt you. I mean, I’d loved you since we were in the sixth grade. All those years, my dad’s problems, our financial issues, all of that stuff — you were the one by my side during all of it.” He reached across the table and took her hand. “You were my best friend.”
She pulled her hand away. Having physical contact with him was too much. “But you hurt me anyway.” She took a deep breath. “I didn’t get out of bed for two days. My dad was completely relieved we’d called off the wedding. My mom was already in hospice care and I think I was able to hide my pain from her.” She shook her head. “She died the following week and after that I just couldn’t stay. I didn’t even walk at graduation. Do you remember that? I packed up everything that didn’t remind me of us, picked up my diploma, and drove as far away as I could drive.” Just going back over all of it made her nauseous. And it still didn’t make sense. “You told me back then that you were interested in Sarah somebody who lived on your block. I have to know — after all these years, I have to know. Was she worth it?”
His jaw clenched. “I’m sorry. You have to believe me. If I could change anything in my life, I would start with that night. You can’t imagine how many times over the years I’ve prayed that God would take all the hurt away for both of us.”
“I just wish you would’ve figured things out before you asked me to marry you. Marry you. I was ready to commit to you for life. You weren’t the only one who’d been in love since sixth grade.” She took a deep breath. “I met this girl once through work and she had met her husband in the sixth grade. It hurt me to hear her story because it doesn’t happen that often. Childhood sweethearts, then high school sweethearts. We grew up together. I expected to leave Arcadia Valley and find our way together.”
“I know,” he said simply.
“Why didn’t you ever settle down?” she asked. “Why didn’t you get married and have a family and all of that?” The question had been burning on her mind since she saw him in the law office. She could at least guess as to why she hadn’t let herself get close to anyone and had never even considered settling down with anyone. But why hadn’t he?
He hung his head. “I got married when I was twenty-one.”
She was doing okay up until that point. “Wait. What? You were married?” All this time she’d been back in Arcadia Valley, she’d been thinking that Drew was the same guy she’d known. Sure, they’d grown up and become adults and started paying taxes and voting — but at the core he was the same guy. But now it hit her. She really didn’t know him at all. Not this Drew. And at that moment she knew there was nothing he could say to make things right.
Chapter 8
Drew sat frozen in his seat. Ever since the conversation he and Brooke had earlier, he’d known he was going to have to tell Kate about his marriage.
But he didn’t expect that news to make her look at him like she was right now.
Like she hated him.
“It was dumb,” he began. “We met in college and I was making an effort to move on.”
Kate stared, stone-faced. “Move on.” She cocked her head. “From me? Or Sarah? Or someone else?”
“It wasn’t like that. I mean, we barely knew each other. I’m not proud of it.”
“Got it. So you end things with me. Your ‘best friend’.” She made air quotes around the words. “The person who had been there through seven years of life and family drama with you. And you ended up married to someone you barely knew.” She shrugged. “I’m sorry, but I guess I don’t understand.”
“I probably can’t explain it either. You’d have to understand my mindset at the time. If it’s any consolation, she cheated on me before we’d even been married a year.”
“So clearly you have terrible taste in women. Not sure what that says about me.”
Drew rubbed his temples. This was so bad. “I wish I had a great explanation for you. I wish I could say I was tricked into marrying her or I was in Vegas and didn’t think the license was for real or something like that. But the truth of the matter is that I wanted to move on with my life. I wanted to take the next step. And she was there. That’s it. It has a lot more to do with me than with her.” He held up his hand. “And before you say it, I know. I one hundred percent know how much of a jerk that makes me sound like.”
“It makes you sound like someone I don’t know.” She pressed her lips together. “And honestly like someone I don’t want to know.”
“Haven’t you ever made a mistake?” he asked. “I can’t make a good enough excuse for something I did nearly a decade ago. She and I have made our peace with it. She wasn’t in love with me. She will tell you that if you ask her. And before you ask me, no she doesn’t even live here. I literally haven’t seen her since our divorce was final.”
She stood up and poured her coffee down the drain. “I think you should leave.”
“Kate, please.”
She whirled around to face him. “No. I’ve tried. These past weeks, I’ve tried to forgive you for what you did. I’ve started to consider getting to know you again. I’ve wondered if I should’ve come back years ago to see if we could’ve worked things out.” She shook her head. “But now I see that I don’t know you at all. And that terrifies me. You hurt me worse than I ever knew I could be hurt. And I can’t risk that again. Ever.”
He opened his mouth to speak but she shook her head.
“I think you should leave.” Her voice was firmer this time.
He’d known her long enough to know how stubborn she could be. She wasn’t going to change her mind, especially not tonight.
He’d just have to pray that his new revelation didn’t mean the door was forever closed on them.
Because he didn’t know what he’d do if it was.
* * *
Romance Grows in Arcadia Valley (Arcadia Valley Romance Book 0) Page 55