Rockefeller tree. Too big for him. He was like that puny tree—simple, unsophisticated, not glitzy. His love would drag her back here and crush her dreams and he couldn’t abide that. He’d had no choice but to let her go.
Lots of high school lovers break up. It’s a rite of passage for many. People realize they’ve grown apart and move on, and soon the old love is forgotten. He’d told himself that for many years, yet it sometimes seemed that his feelings for Olivia were like gum on your shoe—persistent, still there after you’ve scraped it off a zillion times.
Olivia’s voice brought him back to the present. He was glad to see she’d changed the subject. “Look,” she said. “I know I didn’t have the best example in my life to show me how to be a mother. But you learned to be a father to your siblings and I can learn how to take care of Annabelle, too. Even if it is the scariest thing I’ve ever done.”
Her determination in the face of her fear got to him. His impulse was to comfort, but he bit back the words. Ones that would tell her she was doing her best and it would all work out, regardless of the scars her mother had left behind.
“I know you’ll do the right thing for Annabelle.” Weak, but what could he say? In Brad’s experience, people didn’t change. He’d almost forgotten that Olivia would always be a hard-driving, high-achieving woman. And Annabelle would suffer for it.
From the diaper bag, Olivia’s cell phone rang. Brad picked it up and read the caller name. “It says Sylvia ,” he said.
“My boss. I have enough headaches now.” She hand signaled to him to put the phone back. “I’ll talk to her later.”
“How is your job? You edit self-help books?”
“Relationships, self-esteem, work-life balance, overcoming adversity, getting organized.” She smiled. “I love it.”
“Why?” She’d always read a lot as a teenager, but he’d usually seen her with romance novels.
“When you have as messed up a childhood as I had, self-help books are tantalizing. They teach you that there are a whole lot of other people just as screwed up as you are. And that gives hope.”
Interesting. “Which one’s your favorite?”
“Hard to say. Putting Karma Back into the Kama Sutra was a blockbuster. Huge.”
“ You edited that?”
She laughed, a deep, belly laugh with a little snort she couldn’t control. He hadn’t heard her laugh like that in years. “I’m teasing, Brad. Just teasing. I just wanted to prove you’re not beyond looking at self-help books, either.”
“Honey, I’m never ashamed to be an innovator. Not that my skills need improvement, mind you. But I’m always open to new ideas. Especially that kind, if you know what I mean.” He waggled his brows for emphasis.
He’d made her blush. Good, because she deserved a little payback. He’d forgotten how funny she could be. Together, they could joke and tease and play off one another like the old days. And that was a very scary thought.
Meg popped her head around the door. “They’re gone. Oh, can I hold her?”
“She . . . needs to be burped, and I’ve got to get back to work.” Brad handed Meg the baby, suddenly desperate for some fresh air.
“Oh, I love burping babies,” Meg said as she hoisted Annabelle over her shoulder and rubbed her back.
Alex handed Olivia a cold can of diet soda. “Here, honey, thought this might hit the spot.”
“Thank you all for helping me,” Olivia said. She turned to Brad. “And you for tormenting me.”
“Always a pleasure.” He made certain to sweep his gaze slowly up and down her body, lingering at all the right places just to piss her off.
And he was pleased to see another bright scarlet flush spread up her face.
As Brad walked out, he caught a whiff of lavender and the faint, sweet smell of roses. All that sappy talk must have gotten to him. He breathed in a big lungful of lake air to clear his head.
Olivia was clearly a woman struggling to come to
Lots of high school lovers break up. It’s a rite of passage for many. People realize they’ve grown apart and move on, and soon the old love is forgotten. He’d told himself that for many years, yet it sometimes seemed that his feelings for Olivia were like gum on your shoe—persistent, still there after you’ve scraped it off a zillion times.
Olivia’s voice brought him back to the present. He was glad to see she’d changed the subject. “Look,” she said. “I know I didn’t have the best example in my life to show me how to be a mother. But you learned to be a father to your siblings and I can learn how to take care of Annabelle, too. Even if it is the scariest thing I’ve ever done.”
Her determination in the face of her fear got to him. His impulse was to comfort, but he bit back the words. Ones that would tell her she was doing her best and it would all work out, regardless of the scars her mother had left behind.
“I know you’ll do the right thing for Annabelle.” Weak, but what could he say? In Brad’s experience, people didn’t change. He’d almost forgotten that Olivia would always be a hard-driving, high-achieving woman. And Annabelle would suffer for it.
From the diaper bag, Olivia’s cell phone rang. Brad picked it up and read the caller name. “It says Sylvia ,” he said.
“My boss. I have enough headaches now.” She hand signaled to him to put the phone back. “I’ll talk to her later.”
“How is your job? You edit self-help books?”
“Relationships, self-esteem, work-life balance, overcoming adversity, getting organized.” She smiled. “I love it.”
“Why?” She’d always read a lot as a teenager, but he’d usually seen her with romance novels.
“When you have as messed up a childhood as I had, self-help books are tantalizing. They teach you that there are a whole lot of other people just as screwed up as you are. And that gives hope.”
Interesting. “Which one’s your favorite?”
“Hard to say. Putting Karma Back into the Kama Sutra was a blockbuster. Huge.”
“ You edited that?”
She laughed, a deep, belly laugh with a little snort she couldn’t control. He hadn’t heard her laugh like that in years. “I’m teasing, Brad. Just teasing. I just wanted to prove you’re not beyond looking at self-help books, either.”
“Honey, I’m never ashamed to be an innovator. Not that my skills need improvement, mind you. But I’m always open to new ideas. Especially that kind, if you know what I mean.” He waggled his brows for emphasis.
He’d made her blush. Good, because she deserved a little payback. He’d forgotten how funny she could be. Together, they could joke and tease and play off one another like the old days. And that was a very scary thought.
Meg popped her head around the door. “They’re gone. Oh, can I hold her?”
“She . . . needs to be burped, and I’ve got to get back to work.” Brad handed Meg the baby, suddenly desperate for some fresh air.
“Oh, I love burping babies,” Meg said as she hoisted Annabelle over her shoulder and rubbed her back.
Alex handed Olivia a cold can of diet soda. “Here, honey, thought this might hit the spot.”
“Thank you all for helping me,” Olivia said. She turned to Brad. “And you for tormenting me.”
“Always a pleasure.” He made certain to sweep his gaze slowly up and down her body, lingering at all the right places just to piss her off.
And he was pleased to see another bright scarlet flush spread up her face.
As Brad walked out, he caught a whiff of lavender and the faint, sweet smell of roses. All that sappy talk must have gotten to him. He breathed in a big lungful of lake air to clear his head.
Olivia was clearly a woman struggling to come to
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