Ever After

by Carolyne Aarsen

  “It was good,” Denny returned, fidgeting with his truck keys.

  Tyler ran his hand over the lapels of a suit Denny figured had been tailored specifically for him. The guy looked like an ad for expensive men’s cologne.

  “You and Evangeline seemed kind of cozy,” Tyler said. “Are you serious about her?”

  “I don’t see that’s any of your business,” Denny returned.

  “She was a part of my life,” Tyler said.

  “Was. For two years. And then you dumped her. Big mistake.”

  “You’re right. It was a mistake. I miss her. She’s such a perfect person.” Then he released a harsh laugh that held no humor. “You don’t seem like Evangeline’s type. She always told me she didn’t like the rough and rugged sort. Reminded her too much of her father. Come to think of it, you do kind of remind me of Andy.”

  Denny didn’t think the comment required a response, yet Tyler’s words struck a chord. He knew he was more like Evangeline’s father than Tyler was. Denny fell short in many ways of Evangeline’s ideal.

  “I had better be going,” Denny said. “Got to get back to the ranch.” He knew he was being curt with Evangeline’s old boyfriend. The guy gave him the willies with his cologne and perfect skin and clothes. He reminded him too much of one of the lawyers Lila had hired.

  “Have a good day,” Tyler said with a forced smile. Without another word, Tyler turned and walked away, leaving Denny to wonder what the guy had really wanted.

  He didn’t have time to wonder too much. His cell phone was buzzing at him. He glanced at the number and felt his heart slow. Andy. Evangeline’s father. Finally.

  “Hey, Denny. How’s it going? You working right now?” Andy asked him.

  “I’m out and about.” He wasn’t about to tell Andy that he had taken his daughter out to lunch. Somehow he didn’t think Andy would approve. Andy had mentioned Tyler once in a while and Denny had the idea that Evangeline’s father would have preferred it if she was still dating him.

  “Got a few minutes?” Andy asked. “I need to run something by you.”

  “Go ahead,” Denny said as he got into his truck, rolled down the window and propped his elbow on the edge. From here he could see the river that flowed through town, could hear it splashing over the rocks, moving relentlessly onward.

  Andy was quiet a moment, which generated a slow beat of concern.

  “It’s about the ranch. We need to talk about the terms,” Andy said.

  The beat quickened, filling his chest.

  “What about the terms?”

  “Well, I did tell you I’d give you a five-year lease. I need to change that.”

  Denny closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, concern morphing into dread. “How do you want to change it?” Denny guessed Andy didn’t want to lengthen it.

  “I was thinking you could buy me out in the next month.”

  The dread turned into ice curling through his veins. “Buy you out now?”

  “This guy told me about a real-estate deal he wants to put together. I can double my money in less than a year. Which means I could sign over the store to Evangeline and not have to make her buy it out. I could come back to Rockyview and give her everything she’s wanted.”

  Which is what Evangeline had been waiting for all these years. While Denny was happy for her, thrilled for her, in fact, he couldn’t say he felt the same way about his own situation.

  “I can’t come up with that kind of money right now,” Denny said. “The lease agreement gave me just enough room to save up a down payment.”

  “What about your trucks? What if you sold them?”

  “I need the income from them to get my stake together.” There was no way he was buying a ranch, diving deep into debt and scrabbling his way out of that black hole for the rest of his life. Especially not if his life was moving in the direction he had hoped.

  Together with Evangeline.

  He had no intention of subjecting her to that kind of subsistence living. He had scrambled enough when he and Lila were married and look where that had got him.

  “You sure you couldn’t shorten the lease to three years?” Denny countered. That would give him some breathing room. Not as much as he’d like, but enough.

  “I need the money now, Denny. It’s a great opportunity.”

  “And if I don’t buy you out?”

  “I have to sell the ranch one way or the other. Sorry.”

  He didn’t sound sorry and Denny finally, truly, realized what Evangeline had had to deal with most of her life. Andy didn’t have the guts to tell him this to his face. He had to do it over the phone.

  “Give me a day or so to think about this,” Denny said. “I need to make some plans.”

  “Sure. But I’m under the gun. I need to get some kind of assurance by the end of the week. I can borrow the money but only if I know I’ll be able to pay it back when you get financing for the ranch.”

  “Even if I do get financing, it won’t happen for a while. I can’t just waltz into the bank and get them to hand over that kind of money.”

  “I’m okay with that. I don’t mind carrying the loan if I know money’s coming. I trust you, Denny.”

  Which was more than Denny could say for Andy.

  “Like I said, give me a couple of days. I need to figure a few things out.”

  “Say hi to my girl, will you?”

  Denny clenched his teeth, his frustration and anger with Andy spilling over.

  “Why don’t you come up for a visit and say hi to her yourself?” he asked.

  A moment of silence followed his outburst and Denny figured he had overstepped an invisible boundary.

  “I know. I should.”

  “She misses you,” Denny said, surprised at the chastened tone he heard in Andy’s voice.

  “I’ll come up when I can sign the store over to her. When this deal is through and I can give her what she wants and not make her pay for it.”

  “Does transferring ownership of the store to her depend on this deal?”

  “I won’t need the income Evangeline’s been giving me from the store once I get this deal together.”

  That put another angle on the situation. Added another complication. Denny knew what that store meant to Evangeline.

  “I’ll talk to you by Wednesday,” Denny said. “That’s all I can give you now.”

  Denny tossed his cell phone onto the seat beside him and turned on his truck, struggling to slow his spinning thoughts and the dread hovering at the center of them.

  For a brief and blessed moment his life had had a solid and stable focus. For a moment he had dared to envision a future with Evangeline and Ella.

  Once again his life was dumped upside down. Once again he had to plan on the fly.

  Only this time he felt as if more was at stake.

  He drove home in a daze, trying to think. Trying to plan.

  He didn’t even mind that as soon as he got home Jodie and Trista gave him a quick progress report on Ella, who was napping, and then took off. He didn’t want to talk to anyone.

  He dropped onto the worn recliner and looked around the room that held some wonderful moments. Was it only last week he had sat in that love seat with Evangeline, pretending to watch a movie when all he could think about was her? He had dared to make plans the past few days, feeling fairly confident she felt the same way about him. He was thinking of marriage.

  But now?

  What could he possibly offer her? Debt and struggling and a life of wondering if they could make ends meet. He thought of the clothes she wore, the car she drove. The things she liked. Behind all that he saw Tyler and his perfect clothes and obvious wealth.

  He knew Evangeline wasn’t shallow or materialistic but at the same time, he couldn’t begin to provide for her on the level she seemed to be accustomed to.

  But what else could he do? Walk away?

  He massaged his temples, trying to think. To plan. Then finally he prayed.
<
br />   “Lord, help me to make the right decision. I have Ella to think of now, as well. I have to do what’s best for her, too.”

  He spent the rest of Ella’s nap time sitting at the kitchen table with his calculator and a pad of paper, scribbling figures, adding, subtracting and budgeting. If he sold the trucks he would have enough money to make a down payment, but it would mean a larger debt load than he had planned and a reduced income to pay it with. If he kept the trucks to help make the payments, he would have to work full-time, which meant the cows wouldn’t get proper care, which would reduce the ranch income. If he sold the cows, he would lose that income, as well.

  He could make it okay if he had five years to lease the ranch and build up his cow herd enough that he could sell the trucks and pay down whatever debt he would have to incur. It was a good plan, a solid plan, but it was a five-year plan that needed both the income from the ranch and the trucks to work.

  Two hours and reams of paper later, reality hit him like a punch in his stomach.

  There was no way he could buy out Andy right now. There was no way he could make this work.

  There was no way he could give Evangeline the kind of life he wanted to offer her.

  Evangeline laid the handset in the cradle and drummed her fingers on the counter. Denny still wasn’t answering his phone nor had he replied to the two messages she had left this morning.

  She walked to the front door and locked it. Late-afternoon sun slanted into the store, illuminating dust motes dancing on its beams. She turned off the low-key music she often played in the store and a heavy quiet descended.

  Somehow, since Ella had moved to the ranch, the quiet seemed palpable and filled the store. A shiver tickled Evangeline’s neck as she looked around.

  Someday it would be hers. Someday.

  But now that didn’t matter. At one time the store had been all she had. Even when she was dating Tyler there had been an emptiness in the relationship that the store had filled.

  But with Denny she felt as if her heart couldn’t get any fuller. Couldn’t hold any more happiness.

  And she missed him.

  Evangeline had stayed away Monday and Tuesday to give Denny a chance to catch up with his sisters. He hadn’t called her but she wasn’t surprised. Now that Jodie was here she knew he would be able to work a few more shifts on the gravel truck.

  But still, she had hoped to hear something from him. It was now Wednesday and she wasn’t sure what to do.

  She could go upstairs to her quiet apartment or she could go to the ranch.

  Her thoughts cast back to their date on Sunday and a smile curved her lips. Maybe he was waiting to hear from her?

  With this in mind she ran the rest of the way up the stairs and took her time to pick out precisely the right outfit. Did her makeup just so. Wore her hair the way he said he liked it, hanging loose and free around her face.

  Half an hour later she was pulling up to the ranch and parking beside Denny’s truck, which was next to the beat-up old car that belonged to Jodie and Trista.

  She stepped out of her vehicle, her heart lifting at the sight of the sun slanting down the hills and the cows grazing contentedly in the pasture. Her thoughts ticked back to a scene so similar it made her heart ache.

  Her father’s cows in the pasture. Her mother calling her to come in for supper.

  A sense of melancholy drifted over her but it was replaced by a happier thought.

  Someday she might be living here again.

  She took in a deep, cleansing breath, easing away the sadder memories. Then with a lift of her heart she walked over to the house.

  She knocked lightly on the door and stepped inside. She heard voices. Loud voices, which made her pause.

  “Does Evangeline know about this?” she heard Trista ask. “Are you going to tell her?”

  Evangeline pressed her hand to her suddenly erratic heart, moving to one side of the door, out of view. Tell her what?

  “Not yet,” he replied. “I can’t tell her yet.”

  “When will you?”

  She should leave, she thought as a sense of impending doom hung over her at the sound of Denny’s answering sigh.

  But fear and worry kept her feet planted to the spot as she leaned back against the wall for support.

  “I’ve finally connected with Lila’s parents,” Denny was saying, as if ignoring Trista’s other question. “They’re back from their trip and they said they could help me out. I just have to figure out what to do about the cows.”

  Lila’s parents? What to do about the cows? What was Denny talking about?

  “Uncle Ben said he knew of a place I could take them,” Denny continued. “If I can’t, I’ll have to sell them before I leave.”

  His words thudded like a cleaver in her soul. Leave?

  “So you’ll keep the trucks when you go?” Trista asked.

  “I’ll take them with me. Leave a couple here to finish off this contract. They’re what makes me money. It’s the only way I can get my stake together. I have to think about the future.”

  Evangeline stifled a sob at the words Denny used. The same ones her father always used. And now he was making the same choice her father always made.

  Go to him. Tell him that you matter to him. Tell him you want to be involved in this decision.

  Evangeline beat down the insidious voice. She had no claim to Denny or any input into his decisions. Besides, there was no way she was pleading or begging. She had done enough of that with her father. She had even come close to doing that with Tyler before she’d seen him with that other girl.

  Dear Lord, I can’t do this. I can’t be left behind again.

  Evangeline waited another moment, her feet rooted to the floor, clinging to a slim hope that Denny would say something that would change everything.

  But all she heard was the clink of silverware and Ella’s burbling voice.

  Evangeline pressed her hand to the sharp pain in her heart. She was losing them both. Denny and Ella.

  And he hadn’t had the decency to tell her himself.

  She dug down deep and pushed herself away from the wall, blindly stumbling over Denny’s work boots.

  She caught her headlong fall by grabbing the bench close to the door, but she’d misjudged the distance and fell to her knees.

  “Who’s there?” Denny called out.

  Evangeline righted herself, scrambling to her feet. But just as she was about to reach for the door handle she felt Denny catch her by the arm.

  “Evangeline. Are you okay?”

  She was far from okay, but she wasn’t telling him that.

  Instead she gathered the few remnants of pride she had left, shook his hand off and turned to face him.

  “I’m fine,” she said, her voice cool.

  “But your dress...”

  Evangeline looked in the direction he was pointing, dismayed to see a large rip in the skirt of her favorite dress. The one her father had bought her the last time he had come rolling into town. Said he had bought it at some upscale store in the United States.

  Not that it mattered what her dress looked like when her life felt torn from top to bottom.

  “So, you’re leaving?” Evangeline asked, holding her head high, her chin up, trying desperately not to cry like she had the first time she had seen Denny. When he had come to give her news of another disappointment in her life.

  But this one hurt so much more.

  “Is that why you didn’t call me?” she challenged. “Because you’re planning to leave?”

  “I had too much to think about. Too much to organize.”

  “Was I somewhere on that list of things you had to organize?” she asked, unable to keep the challenging tone out of her voice.

  The sudden frown on Denny’s face showed her she was being dramatic again. But she didn’t care. She had heard him. He had his plans in place.

  Denny grabbed the back of his neck with his hand, pulling down. “Yes, I was going to talk to yo
u. I just needed...” He sighed and looked at her. “I had a lot to organize. To plan.”

  “I’m sure you did.” She grabbed the door handle, unable to keep up the pretense that her opinion mattered. That she had any part in his future. “I better let you get back to your plans.”

  “Evangeline. Wait. I can explain.”

  She stopped. “Explain what? Explain how you made all these plans without thinking I might want to be involved? Explain how you are leaving?”

  Exactly like her father always left?

  “It’s for a while. Just until—”

  “You get your stake together.” Evangeline released a harsh laugh, repeating the words he’d spoken only minutes ago. She had heard this too often.

  No. This time she would be in charge. This time she would be the one leaving.

  “You know what? Let’s forget it,” she said. “I don’t want you to feel you have to involve me in your plans and I’m thinking you’re not the right person for me, after all.” She felt her words spilling out of a place of hurt and pain and a history of disappointment. But she couldn’t stop them. “I don’t think this would have worked.”

  Stop. Stop.

  But Evangeline didn’t listen to the voice of reason. She was beyond that.

  “So I guess this is goodbye,” she said.

  And then, before he saw her tears fall, she turned and ran toward her car. She got in and as she drove away she glanced in her rearview mirror.

  Denny wasn’t even watching her leave.

  She looked ahead, barely able to see the road through the tears filling her eyes. She blinked them away as sobs gathered like a storm in her chest.

  What had she done? What had she said?

  The truth. Denny was leaving. And he hadn’t bothered to let her know why or to ask her for her input. She didn’t matter as much to him as she’d thought.

  Somehow she made it back to the store. Once inside she ran up the stairs to her bedroom, where she dropped onto the bed, letting the tears and sorrow overtake her.

  And with them, reality.

  Denny was no hero, after all.

  Denny was just like her father.

  “You need to go after her.” Jodie stood with her hands on her hips, glaring at Denny as he gathered up the dishes from dinner. He had been busy all evening sorting out his cows, trying to decide which ones to ship and which ones could go to his uncle’s ranch, so dinner had been late. Trista had been gone yesterday for a job interview and Jodie had taken Ella for a long walk. They had gotten back just when Denny had returned from a day of truck driving.