by Brenda Novak
“Not so much. From what I hear, he’s trying to get back with Liz.”
“I guess it doesn’t make much sense to lose both families.”
“I think that’s the logic he’s using.”
“Is she responding?”
Reenie remembered seeing them leave the diner together the other day. “She goes out with him occasionally.”
“If they reunite, do you think he’ll move her and her kids into your old house?”
“Hopefully not. That would be too creepy.”
“He could. He’s already living there. And if he sells, he’s going to have to pay you half the equity.”
“True. But maybe Liz has some money stashed away somewhere.”
“She wouldn’t be working at the grocery store if that was the case.”
“Thanks for cheering me up.”
“Sorry. Would you mind if they got back together?”
Reenie had certainly spent some time thinking about it. “Probably,” she admitted. “Besides the whole jealousy thing, it would make the girls’ visitations so much more awkward. Especially if Keith was taking them back to our old house every other weekend.”
“Yikes, I see your point.”
Reenie glanced at the clock in the corner of her computer screen. “I gotta go. We’re starting a new unit in my math classes tomorrow, and I still have to prepare the rest of my lecture.” She didn’t mention the stack of papers she had yet to grade, because she didn’t want Lucky to go back to telling her how she was running herself into the ground.
Lucky covered the phone and said something to her husband. “When does Isaac start at the high school?” she asked when she returned.
“A week from next Monday. At least, that’s when Ina goes on maternity leave.”
“Today’s Wednesday. Which means you have almost two weeks to get used to the idea.”
That was supposed to help?
“Does Keith have the girls this weekend?” Lucky asked, suddenly switching topics.
“Yes.”
“Would you like to go out to dinner with Mike and me this Friday? Get out of the house?”
“I can’t. I told Beth I’d go dancing with her.”
“Well, that’s hopeful, at least. Maybe you’ll meet someone new.”
“Here?”
“You never know. There’re always new people coming to stay at the Running Y. Sometimes they go into town to kick back with the locals.”
“That would be exciting,” Reenie lied.
Lucky hesitated, making Reenie suspect she saw through her inflated response. If so, at least she didn’t call Reenie on it. “Okay, I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
Reenie sagged in relief as she hung up. She was growing to love Lucky like the sister she was. But even simple conversations with anyone seemed like hard work these days.
Wondering if Tara Benson, an old friend from high school who’d married and moved to California, had written her back, she clicked over to e-mail.
There weren’t any messages from Tara, but her mother had sent her a new cake recipe, her father had written to say he’d be home early on Friday and would like to take her to lunch, and Beth wanted to know if she could borrow something to wear on Friday night.
She told Beth she could borrow anything she wanted, then started to grade papers. A moment later, however, she noticed an instant message request on her screen. It was from [email protected].
“Speak of the devil,” Reenie grumbled. She immediately hit the reject button and smiled in satisfaction. “Take that, Dr. Russell.”
She graded more quizzes, then glanced up to see that he’d sent her another request. “What do you think, Bailey?” she asked. “Do we want to hear from him?”
Bailey opened one eye and nuzzled closer before dozing off again.
“My thoughts exactly. No way,” she said and hit the reject button again. She knew there was a way to block certain senders, but she’d never blocked anyone before and didn’t know how. Just as she was trying to figure out the process, the telephone rang.
The caller ID said I. Russell. How dare he call her! Especially at this hour. He had no business even e-mailing her. Sure, she’d given him her address. But that was before she’d known who he was.
She picked up the phone because she had a few things she wanted to say to him. “Hello?”
“I’ve found you the perfect puppy,” he announced.
It was Isaac all right, but his words, and the childish enthusiasm in his voice, took her off guard. “What?”
“He’s at an animal shelter in Boise. They just got him, and he’s great, so you’d better act fast. Do you have a pencil?”
“I don’t want a new puppy,” she said. How could she replace Bailey before he was even gone?
“I was thinking it might distract the girls from…you know, what’s to come.”
Isaac had a point there. She had been worried about how her girls would respond to the death of their beloved pet. And Bailey was so mild tempered and tired, she doubted he’d mind the company. He was getting to the point he didn’t want to be bothered by Jennifer, Angela and Isabella. He preferred to lie by Reenie all the time.
But Reenie didn’t have a chance to explain all that. Isaac gave her the URL, then, before she could say anything more, hung up.
She blinked at the handset. Was he right? Would it soften the blow?
Bailey wheezed as he shifted in his sleep. As she listened to him, her eyes filled with tears. The vet said he didn’t have much longer. They were going to have to say goodbye to him soon, and then the house would seem so empty.
Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to take a look.
She typed the address and hit enter, and her computer conjured a picture of the cutest puppy she’d ever seen. The caption below said he was a black Lab/chow mix only ten weeks old. But the fact that he wasn’t a bassett hound surprised her. Isaac had said he’d found her the perfect puppy. Wouldn’t he think she’d want another bassett?
Maybe he was as smart as everyone said. Maybe he understood that if she got a different breed, she wouldn’t be replacing Old Bailey.
She sighed, unwilling to give Isaac any credit for his insight.
“You’re darling,” she said—grudgingly because in her mind the puppy was connected to Isaac Russell—and clicked on the link below the picture. It would be nice to surprise the girls with a puppy on Sunday, when they returned from their father’s house after the weekend….
But as she read about all the fees associated with the adoption, she knew better than to waste her time. She couldn’t afford to spend $160 on a dog right now, not when she could still be facing a stack of vet bills for the pet she already loved.
“Too bad,” she said, and closed the window.
The good manners her mother had instilled in her as a child dictated she thank Isaac for trying to help. But she wasn’t convinced he’d done it for the right reasons. She preferred to believe he considered her some kind of challenge. If he could win her friendship, his takeover of the town would be complete.
She wasn’t going to allow him such a victory. If she held out, maybe he’d eventually pack up his sister and her children and take them all back to California.
* * *
LIZ SAT in the darkened living room, staring at the moonlight spilling through a crack in the drapes and onto the carpet. The four and a half months she’d been living in Dundee had been the most difficult of her life. Too guarded to make friends as easily as Isaac, she felt isolated and alone. She was always on the defense in case she ran into Reenie or a member of Reenie’s family. And now her renters in California had presented her with an offer to purchase the house, and she had to decide whether or not to let it go.
Sometimes, when the stress of her current situation really got to her, she called Dave Shapiro. He made her laugh, which eased the tension. She wanted to call him tonight but thought better of it. Isaac was still awake and would be coming up to bed in a few minutes. She didn’t want her brother to know she
was speaking to Dave as often as she was. She knew getting involved with a twenty-four-year-old womanizer wasn’t the wisest thing in the world for an older, brokenhearted divorcée to do. Besides, he’d probably try to convince her to keep the house just so she’d eventually come back. But she knew returning wouldn’t be best for her kids. They were doing well here, where they could see their father regularly.
Their father…With a grimace, she finished her tea and set the empty cup on the side table. Once Keith had begun to realize that he couldn’t save his first marriage, he’d started calling and coming over more often. He claimed he wanted to see the children. But Liz could sense the not-so-subtle change in his focus. Soon he was bringing her gifts, taking her out to eat, touching her. Although their marriage had been annulled, she’d welcomed his attention at first. The last time they’d been together, she’d even gone home with him—and had soon found herself in Reenie’s old bed, staring up at the ceiling while he moved on top of her. She’d felt very disconnected from their lovemaking. She’d missed him terribly. But she could never completely escape the knowledge that he’d chosen Reenie over her, that she’d always be second-best. That night was when she realized she was worth more than what he’d given her. That was also when she’d caught her mind drifting, imagining he was Dave.
“Liz? You still up?”
She turned at the sound of Isaac’s voice coming from the doorway and smiled. “Yeah.”
“What are you doing?”
“Just thinking.”
“About what?”
“Keith. Reenie. This town.”
He slipped into the room and sat across from her. “Keith’s been calling here a lot,” he said, watching her carefully.
Folding her arms, she leaned back in the chair. “The kids are getting to see a great deal of him. Which is good.”
“You’ve been seeing a lot of him, too,” he pointed out.
“Not so much,” she said. “At least not anymore.” She’d told Keith the night they made love at Reenie’s old house that she’d never let him touch her again.
“What does that mean?” Isaac asked.
“It means that there’s no danger I’ll ever go back to him.”
Isaac’s smile revealed a certain amount of relief. “I’m glad to hear that. For a while, I was really regretting the fact we came here.”
“I’m glad we did. If we hadn’t, it would’ve taken me much longer to get over him.”
Isaac’s eyebrows arched up. “You sound pretty definite.”
“I am. He’s tried to get back with me, and I’ve tried to resurrect what I once felt. It’s just…not there, anymore.”
“That’s great.”
She felt a flicker of guilt when he responded so positively, knowing he wouldn’t approve of her being in contact with Dave Shapiro. But after everything she’d been through, her late-night talks with her old tennis coach were a guilty pleasure she wasn’t ready to give up. She couldn’t move back to L.A. without tearing her children away from their father, which she didn’t have the heart to do. So maybe she was worried about nothing. She couldn’t get herself into too much trouble with Dave nearly a thousand miles away.
The images she’d begun to entertain of him called her a liar, but she knew nothing would come of their relationship. She’d never get involved with a man who was so much younger than she was. Especially one nowhere near ready to make a permanent commitment.
“I received an offer on the house in L.A.,” she told him. “The renters want to buy it.”
“Really? Are you going to sell?”
She shrugged. “I could use the money.”
“Do you have much equity?”
“Not a lot. But it’d get me through a year or so.”
“You don’t have to sell,” he said. “We’re managing.”
“Thanks to you.”
“I’m happy to help.”
She twirled a lock of hair around her finger. “But you won’t be here forever.”
“No.”
“I ran into Reenie the other day,” she said.
“You always run into Reenie.” He stretched out in the chair and crossed his legs at the ankle. “In this small a town, it’s tough to avoid her.”
“This time I ran into her in the literal sense.”
He scowled. “Not with your car…”
“No. When I dropped Christopher and Mica off at school last Wednesday, I realized that I’d forgotten it was Chris’s turn to share snacks with the class. So I ran over to the grocery store, gathered several boxes of cookies and rushed toward the checkout. Next thing I know, Reenie comes around the corner and, bam, we collide.”
“You’re kidding.”
“No.”
“What’d you do?”
“I’d dropped everything, so I stooped to pick it all up.”
“What’d she do?”
Liz clasped her hands in her lap and stared down at her cuticles, which were finally beginning to heal. “She could’ve gone merrily on her way, but….”
“What?”
“She didn’t. She helped me gather what I’d dropped.”
For a moment, Isaac seemed deep in his own thoughts. Then he said, “She’s a good person, Liz.”
“I know.” Leaning forward, she toyed with the handle of her empty cup and changed the subject. She knew her brother liked Reenie. She suspected he might be attracted to her in a romantic sense. But she couldn’t dwell on that. She couldn’t lose both Keith and Isaac to the same woman. “Have you already sent in your grant applications?”
He nodded and stood. “What are you going to do about the offer on the house?”
“I’d like to move back to L.A.” She couldn’t help thinking of Dave again. “But I can’t as long as Keith’s here. Maybe when the kids are older.”
“So you’re going to sell.”
“Yeah.”
“Mica and Christopher are very lucky they have a mother like you,” he said softly, and squeezed her shoulder as he passed by on his way to bed.
Liz knew she should retire, too. Instead, she slipped downstairs and picked up the phone.
* * *
WILEY DURANGO, the owner of The Honky Tonk had remodeled and expanded shortly after Conner Armstrong had opened the Running Y Resort. Now, in the spring and summer, young families, executives, nature lovers, even college students came to Dundee to sample the Western experience. To capitalize on the influx, Wiley had added an extra room to his bar, with a mechanical bull. On weekends, he hosted live bands, and on Saturday mornings he had his waitresses give line-dancing lessons.
Tonight, the bar was particularly busy, but Reenie couldn’t say she was having much fun.
“You look distracted,” Beth said, drawing her attention from the people on the dance floor.
Reenie took a sip of her Long Island Iced Tea so she wouldn’t have to bother gathering the willpower to smile. “Not really. I’m just listening to the music.”
Shania Twain’s latest played so loudly Reenie’s ears were ringing, but at least the volume made it difficult to talk. She didn’t feel inclined toward conversation tonight. At the last minute, Keith’s parents had decided to take the girls to Texas to see Keith’s brother, who was at Baylor, and although Reenie had never particularly liked this brother, she was feeling a little left out. Texas should’ve been a family trip. But her divorce had changed things all the way around.
It was good the kids were getting away with their grandparents, she told herself. Certainly she wouldn’t be able to provide the same experience. She wouldn’t be traveling anywhere in the near future, not alone with three children. For one thing, she didn’t have the money.
“Are you missing your girls?” Beth said.
“I’m trying not to think about the fact that they’re so far away,” Reenie replied.
“When did they leave?”
“This morning.”
“They missed school today?”
Reenie nodded. “But their grad
es are good. One day won’t hurt them.”
“So shake off the doldrums. Sunday will be here before you know it.”
“It’s not the girls,” Reenie insisted.
Beth stirred her gin and tonic with her straw. “Is it Isaac Russell?”
Remembering the picture of the adorable puppy Isaac had found, Reenie frowned.
“Reenie? Are you still upset that Liz’s brother will be teaching at the school with us?”
“No, I don’t care about that,” she lied.
“Are you going to assist him with the academic decathlon team?”
The arch Reenie put into her eyebrows probably answered that question clearly enough. But she didn’t stop there. “What do you think?”
“Right. Of course not.”
Alex Riley, one of the more handsome cowboys who worked at the Running Y, approached their table. Anticipation lit Beth’s eyes the moment she saw him. She’d had her heart set on Alex for months, so much so that Reenie could almost hear her chanting Pick me, pick me!
But Alex turned toward Reenie instead. “Would you like to dance?”
Sensing Beth’s disappointment, Reenie felt too guilty to accept. “Actually, I think I’m going to—”
The door opened and Keith stepped in, along with Jon Small. As recently as a year ago, Jon and Keith had barely known each other. Growing up, they’d never traveled in the same circles. Jon had liked cars and motorcycles; Keith had liked computers and sports. But times had changed. Now they were both divorced, and when Jon wasn’t with his older brother, Smalley, he was hanging out with Keith, even though he wasn’t half as smart, half as talented or half as handsome. He’d always reminded Reenie of a weasel.
“Reenie?” Alex prompted when she paused.
Reenie had been about to suggest he dance with Beth while she finished her drink. But seeing her ex-husband come into the bar changed her mind. She did not want Keith to find her alone at a table. She knew he’d spend the entire night trying to talk her into going home with him, especially since the girls were out of town. Although her feelings had definitely changed toward him, he was still the only man she’d ever slept with, and she was beginning to miss having a sex life. She didn’t want to do anything she’d regret in the morning.