by Kris Jett
Bryce spotted Ed right away on a small band stage that had been constructed on the far end of the room behind the dance floor. He knew Ed and the band had been there early to warm up. Nikki was standing next to Ed in a red miniskirt and sky high heels. Bryce went straight over to the couple.
“Thanks again for doing this,” Bryce said as he shook Ed’s hand.
“No problem, man. We’re happy to do it,” Ed replied.
“It’s gorgeous in here,” Nikki gushed. She held a red drink high in her one hand while she leaned toward Bryce to give him a quick hug with her free hand. Looked like she’d forgiven him for the whole Tiffany situation. “Really, thanks so much for inviting us Bryce. Ed doesn’t take me to nearly enough nice events like this.”
“Hey,” Ed protested, “I’ve taken you to all the best pubs and bars that northern Wisconsin has to offer.”
Nikki rolled her eyes. “Like I said, thanks, Bryce. This is beautiful. It feels like it’s going to be a special night.”
“I hope so,” Bryce replied. “What are you drinking?”
Nikki took a sip of her drink. “Pomegranate martini. The bartender is making loads of Valentines-y type drinks. I think I’m going to try them all,” she said, more toward Ed as a warning. She took another sip and closed her eyes, enjoying it.
Bryce was happy to see his friends were having a good time already. He could see more and more people coming in through the front door but he hadn’t caught sight of Wynn yet. “I’ll check back in with you guys in a bit. I’m going to go track down my date.”
Bryce, wandered through the various groups of people chatting. He didn’t really recognize anyone but he didn’t expect that he would. As he made his way toward the fireplace, he saw Wynn.
“Wow,” he said when he reached her. “You look absolutely beautiful.” Wynn was wearing a sleeveless silvery dress that was fitted at the top and then went out into a full skirt. She had her long auburn hair in curls and partially up gathered on top of her head with wisps of hair hanging down on either side of her face.
Wynn reached up and put a hand on Bryce’s face as she kissed him. “You look handsome yourself.”
“Your real gift is still coming when we have a quieter moment,” Bryce said. “But for now, my lady…” He pulled the box with the corsage from behind his back.
Wynn smiled widely. “You really did it! You bought me a corsage.” She pushed her hand out toward Bryce. “Here, put it on. I want to make my sisters jealous.”
“Where are your sisters?” Bryce asked.
Wynn looked around. “Over there. By the bar. They’re in silver dresses too. We decided to color coordinate.”
Bryce scanned the area by the bar and settled on the two women in silver with their heads together. One was blonde and the other brunette. Both were pretty but neither compared to Wynn in Bryce’s eyes.
“Come on, I’ll introduce you.” Wynn pulled Bryce toward her sisters and introductions were made all around. There were two brothers, Cash and Cade, who seemed to be with the sisters. And an older brother named Cooper who appeared to be there alone. Bryce recognized him immediately as the guy who had been with Wynn that night he saw her at Starlight while he was on his date with Tiffany. Even though Wynn had already told him theirs hadn’t been a date, Bryce put a protective arm around her shoulder.
“You guys got a great turnout,” Bryce said.
“We did!” Luci exclaimed. “Everyone from town is here. All the owners from up and down Main Street plus a lot of their employees. There’s April and Harry from MoonBeans.” Luci pointed at a pair near the door. “And there’s Clyde from the hardware store and his wife Eileen. Over there is Bets and I’m not sure who she brought along. She’s a realtor. Oh, there’s Danny. He runs the theater. Hi, Danny!” Luci called out and waved.
“Where’s your mom?” Bryce asked Wynn.
“Hmm. Where is Mom?” Wynn asked.
“Here she comes,” Jessie said.
They all turned and watched Deidre walk toward them. She was a slight woman in a silver suit that coordinated with her daughters. Her gray hair was pulled back into a bun at the nape of her neck.
“Mom, meet Bryce,” Wynn said when she’d reached them.
“Hello, Bryce,” Deidre said as she gave him one shaky hand. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”
Bryce shook Wynn’s mother’s hand gently. “I’ve heard so much about you, too. Wynn adores you. I heard you’re also the best grandmother in the world.”
Deidre gave a small laugh. “I don’t know about that. I try though. I’m glad you could make it tonight. It’s so wonderful seeing so many lovely people in one place. And the girls outdid themselves with the decorations and food. Everything is so wonderful.”
“We love you, mom,” Jessie said. Wynn and Luci nodded.
“I love you all too. I feel very fortunate to have all my children with me.” Deidre took a deep breath and looked slightly unsteady.
“Mom, do you need a chair?” Luci asked. She grabbed a nearby one without waiting for an answer.
“Thank you, Luci. I think I’d better sit. It’s all a bit overwhelming.” Deidre took a seat and smiled as she scanned the room packed with people. She paused on one person and tilted her head. She squinted her eyes. “Um, darling,” she said quietly to Wynn.
“Yes, Mom?”
“I’m not sure if my eyes are playing tricks on me, but is that by chance Eric over there by the door?”
At once, the three sisters, Cade and his brothers, and Bryce all turned toward the door. Standing there in a black suit was a tall, well-built man with thick blonde hair.
“Shit,” Wynn let out.
Chapter Thirty
“Do I need to send Cade over there to kick his ass?” Jessie asked her sister.
This was a nice event. There would be no ass-kicking taking place there. Unfortunately, if Cade was to do that it, it wouldn’t be the first time he had to kick some guy’s ass on Wynn’s behalf. When her stalker from St. Louis had tracked her to Snowy Ridge about a month ago, and got dangerous, Cade had to take him down until the police arrived. This was going to start to look like a bad pattern if she kept pulling Jessie’s boyfriend into her problems.
“No, no, of course not,” Wynn said. She looked between her sisters and Cade and tried to not let the worry show on her face.
“Is that…?” Bryce asked.
“Melody’s dad? Yes,” Luci told him.
“It’s just,” Wynn begun, “I thought I’d already made myself clear with Eric earlier this evening when we talked.”
“He was here earlier?” Jessie asked, shocked.
Wynn nodded. “He showed up unannounced. I told him he needed to go. But I guess I need to make things really crystal clear for him.”
Eric spotted the Fosters and smiled as he made his way over to them. “Hello, everyone,” he said. “Mother Foster, good to see you.”
Deidre kept her face neutral and didn’t move.
Wynn couldn’t believe he just called her that. He’d never even bothered to meet her in person and they’d only spoken on the phone and briefly on skype.
Eric leaned over and kissed Wynn’s mom stiffly on the cheek. “And Luci and Jessie, my dear sister-in-laws,” he said to the women, “nice to see you again. You both look beautiful.”
“You mean ex-sisters-in-law,” Jessie told him. “You seem to have forgotten that you and Wynn are divorced.”
Luci scowled at Eric.
“Technically,” Eric said with a wave of his hands like a pesky little divorce was no big deal.
They all whipped their heads around to look at Wynn. She was fuming.
Jessie narrowed her eyes and glanced between Eric and Wynn. “What exactly is going on?”
“That’s it,” Wynn said. “Eric, office now. We need to speak.” She grabbed his elbow and yanked him back to the office.
Wynn shut the door behind them after they were both in the office and pointed to a seat for Eric to take. S
he pulled the chair from around her mom’s desk so that it was near Eric’s and sat across from him.
“What’s that thing on your wrist?”
Wynn glanced at her corsage and then shot Eric a nasty look.
“You look really beautiful,” he begun.
Wynn held a hand up. “Eric, stop.”
“I can’t tell you you’re beautiful? You never could take a compliment, Wynn.”
Wynn could feel the anger seething just under her skin. “Eric, stop it right now. You and I both know this is not about my taking a compliment. What are you doing here? I told you I didn’t want you here. I told you there wasn’t a chance in hell we’d ever get back together. In fact, I think my exact words were that we were a hundred, thousand percent not getting back together. Why are you here?” She crossed her arms over her chest and waited for his response.
Eric gave an annoyed smirk. Like Wynn was just being difficult and giving him a hard time. “Oh, come on, Wynn. You know I love you.”
Wynn stared at him. You know I love you. Did he love her when she was eight and a half month pregnant with his child and he was having sex with his teen employee at work? Or, how about when he left her and his six-month old baby to be with said teenager? Did he love her for the past year when he never called once to even see how their baby was doing? When she started crawling, walking, talking, what books she liked read to her, and what television shows she liked to watch. Did he ever ask what her favorite foods were or if she had a favorite stuffie? No, the only thing Wynn could be a hundred percent sure of was that this man sitting in front of her did not love her. And probably never did. And what hurt her most of all at this very moment, was the sudden realization that he might not love their daughter either.
Wynn didn’t know exactly why Eric was here in Snowy Ridge right now, trying to get back with her. But she knew it wasn’t because he had any actual feelings for her and his lack of concern or even a mention of Melody today made her feel like he wasn’t trying to put a family back together. Wynn had a sinking feeling that he was just trying to get back at Brittany and wanted to use Wynn and Melody to do it.
She took a deep breath and tried to keep her voice level. “Eric, I need you to listen, really listen carefully to me. We’re divorced. And I’ve moved on. I’m not in the same place I was back then and I just can’t go back. You and I will not be getting back together under any circumstances. But that doesn’t mean that we can’t keep a sort of friendship going. An amicable co-parenting relationship. For Melody’s sake.
“I don’t need any more friends,” he snapped. His blue eyes flashed anger.
Wynn rubbed the side of her face with one hand like she’d been slapped. “Okay, that’s fine. I understand. Let’s just be cordial at least, okay? And we can work on that visitation to St. Louis you asked for. I can see about getting a few days off and I’ll drive Melody to you and then just hang around while you have your visit. That way she’ll be comfortable and I’ll feel better about everything. It’ll give her a chance to get used to you.”
Eric’s eyes darted around like he was suddenly nervous. Or was that panic? He abruptly stood up and wiped his palms on his pants. “Um, you know what? That’s not going to work right now. Things have been really hectic for me back at the store and I just don’t see when I’m going to be able to take time off any time soon so you and Melody better just stay here.”
Wynn swallowed hard. “Are you going to come back in soon for a weekend then?”
“Didn’t you hear me Wynn?” Eric snapped at her. “I just said I’m extremely busy at work. I don’t have time to be driving back and forth to Snowy Ridge. Jesus. You want me to work, right? I can’t send you child support checks if I’m not working, now can I?”
Wynn felt like she should be stunned but she wasn’t. Somewhere in the back of her mind this was exactly what she expected from Eric. He didn’t want any responsibility for Melody. He didn’t want a real connection with her. He just wanted Wynn to take care of her and do it quietly and away from him. And while it broke her heart for her daughter, she knew she couldn’t make him care about her the way he should.
Wynn cleared her throat. “No, of course not. I know how busy you are running the grocery store. We’ll be just fine, don’t worry.” She added that last part even though she didn’t expect he would worry at all about the two of them.
“I have to go now,” he said as he headed for the office door.
“Sure. Of, course. I’ll walk you out,” Wynn said as she begun to get up from the chair she was in.
“It’s fine, I know my way out,” he said. He walked out of the office, slamming the door behind him.
Wynn sat there staring at the closed door. She had a feeling that was the last time she’d be seeing Eric.
Chapter Thirty-One
“Are you okay?” Luci asked when Wynn rejoined the group.
“We saw Eric stomp out the door,” Jessie added. “Shame he didn’t say goodbye.”
Wynn shook her head. “It’s fine. I’m fine. Really, everything is going to be okay. Let’s get back to having fun.”
Bryce grabbed Wynn’s hand and squeezed. She squeezed back. He could feel her heart beating fast and he wanted to say something or do something that could help her. He knew it wasn’t his place to interfere in whatever happened back there with her and her ex-husband. And even though something big obviously occurred between the two of them, Wynn seemed okay right then. Relieved even.
He was certain someday she’d tell him what went down in the office, but for now she looked like she wanted to put it aside and he would help her do just that. “Want to dance?”
Wynn smiled at him with grateful eyes. “Yes.”
Bryce took Wynn into his arms and pulled her out onto the dance floor. They twirled around and around, in and out of the other dancing couples, laughing and swaying to the music for the next several songs. Bryce saw Wynn’s Mom sitting at the bar with several friends grouped around her. She was glowing. Her sister Jessie was dancing closely with her boyfriend Cade, both of them gazing into each other’s eyes like they were the only ones in the room. And her other sister Luci was sitting at a table with Cade’s brother, laughing at something he’d said. Everyone was having a great time. And Bryce was so happy.
“Hey,” he whispered into her ear, “can we go sit for a bit?”
Wynn nodded and pulled him away from the crowd of dancers and toward the fireplace. She sat down on the brick in front of the fire and patted the space next to her for Bryce to take a seat too.
He sat down and looked out at the crowd of people having a wonderful evening. The fire felt good and warm on his back and he was so glad he was there with Wynn that night.
“How are you doing?” he asked.
“So much better,” she replied. “Really. Thank you for the dancing. I needed it.”
“Of course,” he said. He looked down at his lap and folded his fingers together. He tried to think of the right way to ask Wynn about her ex. He didn’t see a way to do other than just say it. His eyes flicked up and met Wynn’s. “Wynn, are things, you know, completely over with you and your ex.”
Wynn smiled at Bryce. “They are so, so beyond over. I’m sorry that happened before. Only way I can explain it is that I think Eric had a temporary bout of insanity. I swear to you I had no idea that he was showing up here tonight and then he texted me and…”
Bryce took Wynn’s hand and held it in his lap. “It’s okay. You don’t have to tell me all the details. Unless you want to, of course. I’m just saying…I don’t know. I’m just glad things are over with you two.”
“Me too,” she said, laughing.
Bryce reached into his pocket and pulled out a small black box. “I have a present for you.”
Wynn smiled and took the gift. She pulled off the top of the box and carefully parted the tissue paper. Her eyes widened and a smile crept across her lips as she pulled a silver bracelet out of the box and held it up. There was a silver circle cha
rm dangling from the bracelet with words stamped all over it in different sizes and fonts. Strong. Happy. Compassionate. Kind. Brave. And Loved.
“I, uh, I hope you like it. I saw it and it reminded me of you. You’re all of those things,” Bryce said.
Wynn blinked as she looked at the bracelet and then looked up at Bryce. “I love it,” she said softly. “Thank you.” She threw her arms around Bryce’s neck and squeezed tight.
“Happy Valentine’s Day,” he whispered into her hair.
She pulled back and looked at him. “Happy Valentine’s Day.” Wynn leaned in and they kissed there in front of the fireplace for a long time.
When they pulled away Wynn glanced around the room, probably looking to see if anyone was staring at them but they weren’t. The other party goers were in their own worlds, having their own special Valentine’s Days.
Bryce took a deep breath. “Wynn?”
She turned and smiled.
Suddenly Bryce flashed back to the first time he met Wynn in that bar, listening to Ed’s band just like they were doing then. When he desperately wanted to talk to the beautiful women next to him and how she’d looked up at him with that big smile, a dimple in each cheek and he’d said, “Hi, I’m Bryce.”
Did he know then that he’d feel like this for her?
“Yes?” she said.
“Everything in my life has been different since I met you. Better. I like who I am when I’m with you. And the times I’m not with you, I spend thinking about the times we were together and counting the minutes until we’re together again. What I’m trying to say is, I’m falling for you. And I was hoping that maybe you felt the same way about me.” He gazed into Wynn’s eyes, waiting for her to talk.
“Bryce, I’m uh…” Wynn begun.