Have Husband, Need Honeymoon (11 page)

“But—”

“No buts about it.” She wagged a red fingernail at him that was so long it could be ranked as a lethal weapon. “I’m not leaving here until I get an answer.”

Brady limped back to the small break room, poured them each a cup of coffee and sat down at the table, massaging the pain away as best he could and trying to think of some way to appease his sister. Vivica stormed in a minute later, her hands on her hips, her head wobbling from side to side, she was so angry. He wondered if Joe had witnessed her temper yet.

“All right, spill it, Brother.”

Brady’s stomach balled into a knot. “Why do you think I did something to Alison?”

“Because I saw her after her morning swim and she was upset.”

“She was?”

“Yes. I’ve never seen her so agitated. And when I mentioned you, I thought her blood pressure was going off the charts. What in heaven’s name did you do?”

Brady shrugged. Maybe he’d finally pushed her away for good.

“Either spill it or the next physical therapy session will make the others look like a picnic.”

Oh, hell. He might as well confess. When Vivica got something in her head, she’d never let it go. She’d drive her husband crazy.

She tapped her foot on the floor. “Brady?”

“Okay, you want to know what’s going on between me and Alison?”

“Yes, and you’d better tell me the truth.”

He nodded, resigned. Obviously Alison hadn’t told his sister about their marriage. The realization stung. “All right. Vivi. You’re right, I did have a thing for Alison years ago.”

“I know that. Heck,
everyone
knew it.”

Heat scorched his neck. He hadn’t realized he’d been so obvious. “Well, what you don’t know is that I married her.”

Chapter 10

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“
Y
ou did what?” The chair clattered as Vivica fell into it.

“I married her.” Brady studied his hands, then finally met Vivica’s wide eyes.

“When did this happen? Since you came back?”

He shook his head and explained about their hasty ceremony the night before he’d shipped out for training.

“You’ve been married for the past four years?”

He nodded.

“How romantic, Brady.”

He shrugged. “Yeah, well, we were young and impulsive—”

“And in love.” Vivi sighed dreamily, clasping her hands together. “And you still are, aren’t you? After all these years of being apart—”

“You didn’t let me finish.” He cleared his throat. “Alison’s father found out that night and hit the roof. He insisted we get the marriage annulled.”

“Oh, so you aren’t still married?”

“Actually, we are.”

Vivica was sitting on the edge of the chair now. He’d never seen her so quiet. “I don’t understand.”

He explained about the hope chest and annulment papers. “Apparently Alison’s grandmother forgot to file the papers.”

“So you’re still married.” Vivica broke into a smile. “Brady, that’s wonderful!” She jumped up and hugged him, oblivious to his turmoil.

He stiffened in her arms, took her by the shoulders and set her back. “No, honey, it’s not. We’re filing for a divorce.”

“A divorce?”

“Shh, we don’t want everyone to know,” Brady said.

Vivica’s
eyes widened. “But why?”

“Because everyone will talk, and Alison’s concerned about her reputation as a wedding coordinator—”

“No, I mean why are you getting a divorce?”

“Because…” he ran his hand through his hair “…because we’ve grown up and changed and—”

Vivica grabbed his arm. “That’s ridiculous. You still love her and I know she loves you!”

He stood, nearly knocking over his chair, and crossed the room to the window. “She’s marrying that Emerson guy.”

“No, she’s not.”

“She’s not?”

“I don’t think so. But now I understand why she’s so upset.” Vivica stalked toward him. “You asked for this divorce, didn’t you?”

“Well, yes.”

“You big, stupid, stubborn oaf!” She swatted him with her purse. “You came back and thought she’d found someone else and got jealous and gave up.”

He covered his head to ward off another blow. “I’m not jealous!”

Her eyes crinkled with disbelief. “So you didn’t mind seeing her with Thomas?”

“Of course I minded, but—”

“See, you are jealous, because you still love her.”

“It’s not like that.”

She batted him again. “Yes, it is—”

“Listen, Vivi, I’m not the same man she married. For God’s sake, look at me.”

He caught her hands and made her stop and really look at him. “I can barely walk, much less jog anymore. I’m on medical leave from the Air Force pending an evaluation over whether or not I’ll be able to return to active duty. I don’t know what my future holds, I’m—”

“You’re using your medical condition as an excuse.”

“What?”

“You are, Brady Broussard. You’re embarrassed about a few silly scars and you’re using them as an excuse not to be with the woman you love.”

“You’re wrong, Vivi.” Brady turned and leaned against the counter, suddenly exhausted as the burden of his guilt weighed down on him. “It’s a lot more than that. A whole lot more.”

Vivi
placed a hand on his shoulder, her voice softening. “Then tell me what’s wrong, Brady.”

He squeezed his eyes shut, the image of Josh’s body lying in the charred rubble of the plane flashing in his mind. The image was so vivid bile rose to his throat.

“You have to get over feeling sorry for yourself so you can move on,” Vivica said.

Brady glared at her. “You don’t know what you’re talking about, Vivi.”

“I know this – if you give up Alison without fighting for her, you’ll be making the biggest mistake of your life. And if you give up the flying, you’re not the Brady I’ve always known.” Vivica threw up her hands and stormed toward the door. “And we all want the old Brady back.”

Brady tossed his cup in the trash without bothering to reply.

After all, she didn’t want to hear what he would say – that the old Brady was never coming back. Because the old Brady had died in the crash that had killed Josh.

* * *

Alison gathered her wits while her father dumped half a container of sugar in his coffee, rolled up the sleeves of his flowered shirt and settled into the seat across from her.

“Hey, cupcake.”

“Hi, Dad.”

He slurped his coffee. “How’s the business?”

“Great. I’ve scheduled four weddings this month and I’m working on filling the August calendar now.”

“Vivica’s getting married in August, right?”

“Yes, Daddy. You know I’m planning her wedding.”

“You’re the maid of honor?”

“Actually, yes.” She’d been so busy thinking about Brady she hadn’t even thought about her own role in the wedding.

“You’ll be beautiful, I know it.” He broke off the edge of a cinnamon bun and bit into it.

“Dad, what’s going on between you and Mom?”

Her father’s eyebrows knitted together. “Nothing, hon. We’re just trying to be friends. We decided we needed to be civil if we’re going to live in the same town.”

Alison nodded.

Her dad sipped his coffee. “I saw Brady at the parade the other day.”

Alison squirmed. “Yes, he’s back for a month.” She explained about his accident, his temporary medical leave, the physical therapy.

Finally her father looked into her eyes. “Your mother told me about the divorce.”

Here it comes.
Did he think she and Brady had pulled something over on him? “Dad, Brady and I didn’t know the annulment papers hadn’t been filed until a few days ago.”

“I realize that.”

“Oh. Janelle shouldn’t have told you. I told her I wanted this whole thing to be kept quiet.”

“Honey, your mom cares about you and was worried.”

Alison fiddled with her napkin. “Did you know Grammy hadn’t filed the papers?”

Her father chuckled. “Nope, but I’m not surprised.”

“Why? Was she having trouble remembering things?”

Her dad laughed again. “Hardly. Your grandmother is the most lucid woman I know. But she’s also the most stubborn, thinks she knows everything.”

Alison leaned her cheek in the palm of her hand. “I don’t understand, Dad.”

“I think she didn’t file them because she didn’t want to.” He wolfed down another bite of the cinnamon bun. “See, your grandmother disagreed with me about the annulment. She thought I was wrong to push you into it.”

Alison’s mouth gaped open. “Really?”

“Yep.” Her dad wiped icing from his chin. “I’ve been thinking lately, wondering if I made a mistake that day.”

Alison frowned. “I never thought I’d hear you say that.”

Her dad reached over and squeezed her hand. “I saw you with that baby doctor. Mimi said he asked you to marry him.”

Alison winced, wondering if he wanted her to marry Thomas. “I told him I needed time, Dad.”

“Because you still love Brady?”

“Dad—”

Her father held up his hand. “Look, hon, I know it’s none of my business. And I’m sorry for the way things happened four years ago. It caused a rift between us and I’ve always worried about that.”

Alison’s throat clogged at the misery in her father’s face. “Dad, I know you did what you thought was best. Brady and I were young and we got carried away.”

He pushed away his plate, shifting restlessly, his face ruddy. “But sometimes that one person comes along, and if you don’t grab them right then, you can lose them forever.”

Like she was doing right now with Brady. “But if it’s real love it lasts forever, Dad.”

“For better or worse. Remember that when you and Brady sit down to sign those divorce papers.”

Confusion filled Alison’s head. What exactly was her father trying to say? Was he suggesting they shouldn’t go through with the divorce?

* * *

“Brady, a couple of your old friends are here to see you,” his mother chirped.

Brady looked up from the computer in surprise. “Johnny, Bobby Raye, it’s been a long time.”

Johnny, a hulking ex-linebacker for his old high school team, pumped his hand. “Hey, man, we heard you were back.”

Bobby Raye, a former member of the wrestling team, grabbed him in a hug. “Yeah, we didn’t expect to find you here, though.”

Brady shrugged. “I told my mother I’d help her out while I was here.” He gestured toward the wooden chairs in the office, and his friends sat. Except for a few gray hairs, Johnny still looked in pretty good shape, even in his dull-gray work uniform, but Bobby Raye had added about fifty pounds, mostly in the form of a beer gut.

“So, how long are you here for?”

“I have a month’s leave. Wanted to be here for my sister’s wedding.” Brady explained about the accident, omitting the details.

“We were hoping you’d go with us for a beer.” Bobby Raye checked his watch. “It’s
five o’clock
, quitting time.”

“Yeah, Pinto’s Pug has ninety-nine cent drafts till seven,” Johnny added, already standing.

Brady considered declining, but decided it would be nice to catch up on his old friends’ lives. After all, if he decided not to reenlist, to stay in Sugar Hill, he’d be seeing them often.

A few minutes later they were seated at the smoky bar, ice-cold drafts and a bowl of peanuts in front of them. A pool room occupied the back corner, a dart game the right, and a big-screen TV blared in the background.

“Is this your regular hangout?” Brady asked.

“Most of the guys come here to watch the sporting events,” Johnny replied.

“So, tell me what you guys have been up to since college,” Brady said.

Both his friends shrugged. “Me and Wanda split again,” Bobby Raye said. “She’s just a nag. Don’t appreciate how hard I work at the shop.” He cracked a peanut shell with his teeth, then sucked down the contents. “Got this honey-do list a mile long. Wants me to come home and do this, do that, then crawl into bed and cuddle her.” Bobby Raye patted his glass. “Sometimes a man just wants to kick back, watch the ball game and have a cold one, you know what I mean?”

Brady nodded, although he wasn’t sure he did. Bobby Raye had planned to major in engineering. He’d once talked of building bridges in
Europe
. “Didn’t you go into engineering like you planned?”

Bobby Raye shrugged and crushed another handful of peanuts in his fist. “Nah, dropped out after the first year. I work at my daddy’s auto shop now.”

“He does the best brake work in town,” Johnny said, elbowing Brady. “Gives the best damn price, too. I take all my trucks there.”

“Your trucks?” Brady frowned. “I thought you were going to study finance and make a million before forty.”

Johnny shrugged. “Flunked out first semester. Too much partying.”

Bobby Raye and Johnny laughed. “But he runs a great delivery service, even moving into that ‘dot.com’ stuff. And he’s single, out with a different woman every night.”

“Tell us what you’ve been doing, Mr. Air Force pilot.” Johnny gave a low whistle. “All those things we talked about doing sort of slipped away, but you actually went out and did them.”

“Yeah, you got guts,” Bobby Raye said.

Brady frowned into his beer, remembering the way the three of them used to sit around and dream. The guys were right. He had gone out and chased his dream. Only now, he was considering giving it all up.

He glanced at both of them again, studying their faces. They seemed content, but would he be if he stayed here and took over his father’s business?

* * *

Alison tried to escape the coffee shop without running into her mother, but her day seemed destined for family interference.

Her mother cornered her at the door. “Can we talk for a second?”

“Sure.” Alison checked her watch. “But I have to meet a client in a few minutes.”

Her mother smiled. “Okay, I just wanted you to know I filed the papers, so everything’s underway.”

Alison nodded. “I can’t believe you told Dad about the divorce. Who else did you tell?”

“No one. And I’m sorry, honey, but he is your father and he cares a lot about you.” She stroked Alison’s shoulder. “If you ever want to talk, ever need someone to listen who might understand, I’m here.”