Better Late Than Never (8 page)

He headed over to a table where the trio was sitting, with Eric following right behind him. Kristen was sitting facing him. When she saw him, a look of shock crossed her face. She cleared the expression but not fast enough for him not to see it. He smiled. Kristen was more affected by him than she wanted to admit. When he reached the table, he noticed Kayla was busy studying her menu and Keirra was digging around in her purse.

“Good evening, ladies. Do you mind if we join you?”

Kristen hesitated briefly before sliding over to make room for him. He grinned at Keirra when she looked up from the menu, and she froze. Not being a stranger to sexual attraction, he could tell Keirra was attracted to Eric as well. He chuckled under his breath when Kayla nudged Keirra to encourage her to move over. He watched Keirra regain her composure then slide over. He gave the introductions after Eric sat down.

“This is Eric Brooks, a candidate for the vacant deputy position.”

His eyes widened when Keirra began to choke on a sip of soda. She turned and gave him a hard look. He looked at Kayla, who gave a quick shake of her head. He looked back at Keirra, who was still glaring at him. He sighed, looking over at Kristen. Her attention had been directed to the menu in front of her. He smiled when he saw the slight tremor in her hand. Pursuing Kristen might be more fun than he thought it would be.

Chapter Six

“What do you want to eat?”

Kristen glanced at the menu before looking up at Randy. “I will take the chicken marinara.”

Randy nodded. “Anything else?”

She shook her head, and when their waiter came up to the table, he placed their order. It was their first official date. So far, everything was going okay.

She had been shocked when he sent a large bouquet of orchids to the day care with an apology for having to cancel their dinner plans for the night and asking her to join him another night. Gerri and Zebbie had teased her, telling her that she would be crazy to turn down the invitation. She let the two of them worry when she pretended to ponder the invitation she already planned to accept before putting them out of their misery, and she called Randy to accept his invite to join him for dinner. She could no longer fight her attraction to him. She wasn’t sure she wanted to.

It ended up being a forty-eight hour rain check, and now as she sat across from him, she was glad she had the opportunity to see him this week. Even though it was only Wednesday, she knew he had conducted quite a few interviews. He looked tired, and she reached across the table and touched his hand. She was deeply moved that he no longer wanted to put the date off but not at the expense of his rest.

“We can take the food to go if you want to.”

He smiled and shook his head. “No, I have always enjoyed taking you out, and I have been looking forward to this. It won’t kill me to stay up another hour or two. Not for you.”

The waiter came back to the table with their food, and they caught up on old times laughing at the good memories they shared. Some of her fondest memories existed right here at Sam’s Café. She didn’t know what it was about the small, family-run restaurant, but something appealed to her, her sisters, and Randy. A lot of their dates had been here. She could remember squeezing into the booths together and eating off of each other’s plates if they weren’t feeding each other.

They finished their meal, and she declined dessert when he offered it. There was plenty of ice cream in the freezer if she had a sweet-tooth attack later. Kayla always made sure they were stocked up on it, but she ran every morning to counter the effects of her guilty pleasure. It was amazing that Kristen was able to stay in such good shape because unlike her sisters, she didn’t work out. Chasing children all day was
all the
workout she needed.

Randy walked her to her car. He gave her brief kiss good night, and she could swear she felt the earth shift to the left then right itself. She missed his touch more than she thought. When she was able to open her eyes again, she released him and watched him walk to his truck. She climbed into her own vehicle, and they headed in separate directions toward their own houses. During the drive home, she wondered how long the laughter between her and Randy would last. After the events leading to the end of their relationship last time, she knew anything could happen. Deep down she hoped the happiness would last forever.

* * * *

“Where are we going, Randy?”

He smiled as he waited for her to lock the front door. “If I told you, then it wouldn’t be a surprise, would it?”

She shook her head, and he led her to his truck. After a short drive, they stopped at the park. She looked over at him in surprise. It was one of her favorite places. Being here reminded her of fond childhood memories, of her mother and grandparents push her on the swings. Randy opened her door and helped her out before reaching behind her seat. He pulled out a blanket and picnic basket. After finding a shady spot, he took out two ham sandwiches with all the fixings, potato chips, and dill pickle slices. They ate in silence and enjoyed the cool breeze while watching the kids come through with their parents. They greeted everyone they knew, and she enjoyed watching the children play. She struggled to clear images of watching her own children play.

A feeling sadness came over her when she thought about it. If she and Randy had stayed together, they would be married and have kids. She looked over at Randy, who was watching the other kids play and knew without a doubt they would. She closed her eyes and tamped down the anger threatening to bubble up to the surface. Like Kayla said, she deserved to be angry and upset, but she couldn’t continue to take it out on Randy if she intended to make things work. Besides, Randy was really trying, and it wouldn’t be fair to him if she didn’t do the same. Still she couldn’t hide her disappointment.

When they finished their lunch, Randy packed up all of the remains from the picnic and put them back in the basket. She watched as he sat the basket aside prior to standing.

“Let’s go for a walk.”

She gave him a surprised look but took the hand he extended and allowed him to pull her to her feet. He led her through the park. “I didn’t notice it when we were younger, but this is a beautiful park.”

She looked up at him and smiled. “Yes, it is. I haven’t been here in a while, but it is still pretty.”

“Well you can thank the seniors. They have put a lot of effort into cleaning up the community for their class project.”

Kristen nodded. “I heard Kayla mentioning something about it.”

“I’m glad because Wade likes it here. If I can’t bring him, my mom tries to.” Randy grinned. “How is teaching at the high school going for Kayla?”

“It is going pretty well. Kayla says it’s almost like being back in high school at times.”

Randy smiled. “Well then, she must hate that.”

She laughed. “Believe it or not, we had fun in high school. Mostly due to the fact I had two sisters to share it with. I’m also glad that I was able to share it with you.”

He paused, looking deep into her eyes. There was an emotion there she couldn’t decipher. “It was a good time for me, too. One thing I wonder about now is if you will love me anywhere near the amount you used to during that time.”

She was speechless, but it was a good thing because she couldn’t admit to him that it was something he would never have to worry about. She had never stopped loving him.

When he stopped, she looked over at him. “Let’s sit down for a moment.”

She nodded and sat down on the bench next to him. He stared out at the playground, and she took the chance to study him.

“Kristen, did you ever think about having a family with me?”

She gave him a stunned look. “Of course, I did. I thought about getting married as well.”

“Do you still think about it?”

She shook her head. “That isn’t a fair question, Randy.”

He smiled. “You might be right. However, I will admit that I do.”

She remained silent. What was she supposed to say? Randy reached out and took her hand in his giving it a tight squeeze.

“I know that I will never be able to say sorry enough.” He sighed. “I know that you may not believe me, but I can understand the hurt that you are going through, and it was never my intention.”

She made a small sound of frustration before pulling her hand from his. “How can you say you understand, Randy? You have no idea what it is like to have the person you love walk away with know explanation. So,
tell me,
Randy, how do you
know
how I feel?”

“Because Lila did it to me,” he responded softly.

Even through her anger, she heard his words, but she didn’t understand them. She looked over at him and found him hunched forward with his elbows resting on his knees.

“What did you say?”

“I said that Lila left me.”

She was at a loss for words. What was he saying? What did he mean by the statement? Closing her eyes she knew she wouldn’t find out until she asked. “Tell me what happened, Randy?”

Randy glanced up at her briefly, and the pain she saw there was staggering. She reached out and laid a gentle hand on his shoulder. “Tell me what happened, Randy. I would like to know. I’m not sure we can go forward until I do.”

She felt a twinge of guilt for pushing him, but it was true. She did need to know. Maybe it would provide her with the knowledge she needed to move forward.

“Lila and I met when she came to Baxley to stay with her aunt and uncle. We bumped into each other at the store because neither of us was paying attention. We hit it off instantly, and soon we were dating.”

He paused sighing deeply. “Lila told me everything that I needed to hear, and I believed her. It turns out they were empty words. Lila became pregnant, and she panicked. I thought that it was because she didn’t think I would marry her, but I assured her that I would.”

His laugh was devoid of humor. “Even though I didn’t love her, I cared about her, and I thought we could at least try to give our child a normal home. She seemed to calm down when I bought the ring, and everything was okay for a while.”

He smiled. “Then she had Wade, and to me, nothing could be more perfect. The first time I held him was indescribable. I made the vow then to be the best husband and father that I could be no matter what it took.”

He paused again rubbing his hand across his eyes. “Then Lila left. She took Wade over to my mom’s house and said she was going to the store, but she never came back. When my mom called me, I almost went crazy thinking something happened to her. I called her aunt and uncle, and they hadn’t heard from her. I didn’t know what to think.”

He looked over at her, and the pain there almost blinded her. “When I got home, there was a note on the table from Lila telling me that she couldn’t stay with me and Wade. We weren’t the life that she wanted.”

Kristen couldn’t hold back the gasp that escaped her. She felt a sharp pain in her chest as she reached out to Randy. She was at a loss for words. Never would she have imagined Randy had gone through what he had.

“I’m sorry that you went through something so horrible, Randy.”

He shook his head as he looked at her. “Don’t be. In a lot of ways, I have come to realize it was my punishment for what I did to you.”

Her eyes widened in horror. “
Oh my God,
you
can’t
think that?”

He gave her a look that told her he did. She shook her head and knew that she could reason with him. She could only tell him how she felt. He had been honest with her. Now it was her turn to do the same.

“What about Wade? Is he a part of your punishment?”

Randy gave her a shocked look. “No. He is the best thing that came from my relationship with Lila.”

She sighed. Both she and Randy had suffered through heartache. It was complete irony that it was another connection they shared. Still they had a lot to work through.

“I don’t know Lila myself, but from what you say she sounds like an awful and selfish person. Trust me, in the end, it was her loss.”

He gave her a small smile. “So you see I do understand heartache.”

She shook her head. “It doesn’t even compare. I just wish you had trusted me.”

He reached for her hands. “I did trust you, Kristen. What can I say to make you believe it was me?”

She paused. “That’s the problem. I do believe that it was you, and that is what scares me.”

He gave her a confused look. “Why?”

“Because I wonder what your reaction will be the next time you doubt yourself.”

* * * *

Randy exhaled softly as not to disturb Kristen. After his revealing conversation with her, he convinced her to rejoin him on the blanket. Now they were lying together with her in his arms. It was something that he didn’t realize how much he missed until he had her there.

She still fit against him perfectly. It reminded him of the first time they had spent the night with each other. He had gone up to Athens for the weekend to visit her. It had been a wonderful weekend one that ended with her walking into the living room in the middle of the night and joining him on the futon. When he tried to wake her early the following morning to give her the chance to go back to her room before her sisters started to move about, instead of getting up to leave, she chose to snuggle closer to him and told him she was an adult and capable of making her own decisions. He took in her determined expression then retook his position beside her and pulling her back into his embrace. When he woke up the next time, Kristen was sprawled over him, and Kayla had been in the kitchen cooking breakfast. Kristen must have smelled the breakfast because she had begun to stir from her sleep.