One More Day (14 page)

“Now, many of you know the story of how the Alexander family barbecue started but for those who don’t, I’ll share it again. It was, oh, a million years ago,” that got a soft titter from the crowd, “that I met a handsome, young man named Mark Alexander.” She looked over at her husband, who stood with his arm around Bennett’s shoulders.
 

“We lived on neighboring farms our entire lives and I even played with his younger sister, Maria. But since he was a little older than I was, I never really took notice of him until the summer my parents took me to the Alexander’s farm for a party. When Maria introduced me to her older brother, who was home after recently graduating from college, well… let’s just say my teenage heart went pitter pat.”

Ridley leaned back against Jackson’s chest, completely wrapped up in the story. She could just see the scene his mother described, a young woman meeting the love of her life for the first time on a hot summer day.
 

“I thought he was quite handsome and sophisticated. That didn’t last long, however, because he said something stupid, as young men often do, and we hated each other for the rest of the summer!”

Ridley laughed along with everyone else as Mark held up his hands, then bowed theatrically.
 

Jackson pulled her closer to whisper in her ear. “He always acts embarrassed, but secretly I think he loves it when she tells this story.”

“I bet he does,” Ridley sighed. “It’s obvious how much they love each other. I’ve only just met them and I can feel it.” They turned their attention back up front as Julia cleared her throat.

“Anyway, after many failed attempts on Mark’s part to get back into my good graces, tragedy struck. My dear parents died in a car crash leaving me as the sole owner of the Bennett farm.”
 

She stopped and looked up, one hand over her heart. Silence descended over the group, everyone equally affected by the grief in Julia’s voice. When she looked back at the crowd, tears shimmered in her eyes.

“I was so lost but faith is what carried me through. That and the gracious love of the Alexander family. Mark, especially, was by my side through that heartbreaking time and taught me that family is about so much more than a blood bond. Family is about the heart.”

Ridley sighed as Julia blew a kiss to her husband. She wiped her eyes quickly, embarrassed to be so affected by the story. It was exactly the kind of thing she’d always hoped to find with someone. A genuine love, deep and true that could carry you through the tragedies and the joys of life.
 

She’d started to believe it didn’t exist.

“Ever since then, we’ve continued the tradition and hosted our own summer party as a reminder to cherish the ones you love, and the time you have together. This year coming up will be our thirtieth wedding anniversary.”

She stopped as everyone broke out into applause. Ridley clapped along with everyone else. She couldn’t even imagine spending thirty years with someone. They’d been together longer than she’d been alive.

“And the most important thing I’ve learned from these thirty years is to take each day as it comes and cherish it.”

“I asked her that one day,” Jackson whispered in her ear.
 

“What? You asked her about being married?”

“No, I asked her how she knew my dad was the one. She’s always said you’re with the right person when no matter how bad things get, you’d still rather be with them than anywhere else. She always says that no matter how long she and my dad are together, she still wants more time with him. She wants one more day. Every day.”
 

His arm tightened around her waist and Ridley stopped breathing. For a long moment they stood staring at each other until his mother’s voice came over the sound system again, breaking the spell.

Ridley whipped back around and faced front. Jackson’s arm squeezed her tightly before he let her go. She moved away slightly, ignoring the rapid beating of her heart.

“Enjoy the rest of the party, everyone, and make sure you take a plate home. Don’t you leave us with all of this food! On second thought, leave some of those ribs for Jackson, he’s getting too skinny.” On that note, Mrs. Alexander pushed the microphone back to Elliott and bustled over to the picnic tables.

Jackson groaned. “Oh, the joys of having a big family.”

“It’s nice! She’s worried about her baby boy.”
 

“Do I look like a baby to you?”
 

She giggled when he flexed his muscles. “Okay, okay. You are definitely not a baby.”
 

“All right, I guess I should stop showing off. Come on, I want you to meet some of my cousins. They live over in West Haven.”

*
 
*
 
*
 
*
 
*

A FEW HOURS later, Jackson was forced to admit there wasn’t anything else he could clean up or move around in the backyard. His parents had taken care of packing up the leftover food and Matt had stayed to help him corral all the recycling and trash containers into the garage.
 

There was simply nothing left for him to do. Except go in the house and face Ridley.

You’re an ass, you know that?

He cringed. Introducing her to his cousins and then leaving her to fend for herself had seemed like a good idea at the time. She was just so beautiful and fit in far too well with his family and friends. The last thing he wanted was for them to start something they couldn’t finish.
 

He’d been
this
close to kissing her in the middle of the yard before his parents had shown up and he had no doubt it would have been as hot as he thought it’d be. But as hot as the fire sparked between them, it would be a temporary thing at best. She deserved better than that.
 

“I’m going to take off.” Matt appeared at his left elbow holding one of the plastic containers of food that Julia had divvied up for everyone to take home. “Hopefully Mara and Trent will already be asleep by the time I get there.”
 

Jackson clapped him on the shoulder. “Are you going to be okay? Seriously?”

“For months all you can think about is coming home but when you get here, you realize everyone else hasn’t been sitting on their hands while you’ve been gone. Things change and you just have to deal with it. I’ll be fine.”

“Getting your own place would help.”
 

“Funny you should say that. Nick has decided to take care of that for me. He’s taking me out to look for condos this week. You know how he is. According to him, I just need to get laid and not having my own place is blocking my swag.”
 

“That sounds like something Nick would say.”

They both shook their heads. Jackson had gotten a reputation over the last year as a player but it was nothing compared to Nick’s. His brother took debauchery to another level, and treated it like a career.
 

“Where’s Ridley?” Matt asked.

Jackson nodded toward the house. “I noticed her go in a while ago. I think the boys wanted to show her some of their games. I should probably go rescue her. I’m sure they’re tired and cranky by now and need to go to bed.”

“Can I tell you something? Without you getting mad?” Matt shuffled his feet.
 

“We’ve been friends too long for you to hold back on me now.”

Matt stared at him for a moment, then said “Ridley’s great and I think she’s perfect for you. So get off your ass and do something about it before I do.”

Then he turned and walked off.

“Good night to you too, old friend!” he called out after Matt’s retreating back. The only reply Matt gave was raising his hand and pointing his middle finger to the sky.

Jackson was still smiling when he walked into the house. A light glowed faintly in the kitchen. The rest of the house was dark.

“Ridley?”

The counter was wiped clean and all the party platters had been stacked neatly next to the sink. He walked back out to the family room and up the stairs. Ridley was no doubt exhausted and had probably gone to bed already. Not that he could blame her. He was used to listening to Chris’ chatter but someone who wasn’t would feel like their head was spinning after an hour or so.

“Come on boys. It’s time for bed.” There was no reply. He hadn’t really been expecting one.
 

Despite the fact that bedtime came around the same time every night, it was always a fight to get them to brush their teeth, put on their pajamas and stop asking for water and bathroom breaks. It was usually a good hour before he was able to get them settled down and in the bed. As he approached the boys’ bedroom door, he heard the soft murmur of voices.
 

He pushed the door open and to his delight found both boys clustered around Ridley on floor pillows as she read from one of their favorite books.
 

“But I was never to see Peter Pan again. Now I tell his story to my children and they will tell it to their children, and so it will go on—for all children grow up… Except one.”

 
As she finished the last page of the book, she hugged them to her before waving them over to their beds. Jackson watched, astonished as they scrambled beneath their covers and waited patiently for Ridley to tuck them in.

Who are these angels and what have they done with my real children?
Jackson thought.

Normally he would give the boys hugs and kisses good night, but he was afraid to break the spell. He backed out of the room and waited in the hall for Ridley to come out. She appeared a moment later, pulling the door closed behind her.
 

“Hey. Is everyone gone?”

He nodded and leaned his head back against the wall. The day was starting to catch up with him and he was suddenly exhausted.
 

“So, did you guys finish cleaning up outside?”
 

“We did. Matt helped me put everything back. Sorry for just leaving you on your own at the end there.”

“I hardly expected you to stick to me all night. Besides, I got a chance to chat with your brother, Bennett. Did you know he’s been cultivating new strains of disease-resistant crops?”
 

“No, I had no idea. He’s always so quiet.” His oldest brother was usually reserved around people he’d just met, but it wasn’t hard to believe that he’d opened up to Ridley.
 

She seemed to have that effect on people.

“He said he’s working on a new corn hybrid right now. I only work with flowers but it was so interesting to hear about how technology is changing the farming industry.” Ridley tucked her hands in her pockets and leaned against the wall next to him.
 

“I really appreciate you putting the boys to bed. You didn’t have to do that. I know they’re a handful. Jase is usually up five or six times wanting water or something. Anything to keep him from having to go to bed. Luckily Chris sleeps just like I do. Like a corpse.”

“It was no problem. They’re wonderful. Boisterous and happy just as children should be.” A wistful look passed over her face as she glanced back at the closed bedroom door.

“You really love children,” Jackson said. He didn’t phrase it as a question. “I noticed it when we first met and even more so today. And the boys adore you.”

“I adore them, too. Children represent the best of us. My mom had to work late a lot of the time, so my sister and I were usually on our own. We used to take turns ‘mothering’ each other. It’s sad, but we were just imitating the bedtime rituals we saw on television. Our own mother wasn’t the most maternal person.”

“Sorry. That’s rough. I know how hard it is to be a single parent but I’m trying to make sure my kids never feel it.”

“Now that I’m older, I’m trying to understand that it wasn’t personal. She got pregnant accidentally and we never had a lot of money. So, I think under the circumstances she was doing the best she could even if it wasn’t anywhere near good enough.”

Jackson looked over at her. “It still sucks.”

Ridley laughed out loud before covering her mouth with her hand and glancing at the boys’ door. “Oh, Jackson. You have such a way with words.”

Just then the boys’ door opened and Jase came out into the hallway. “RiRi, I want kisses.” He raced over and threw his arms around Ridley’s legs. She scooped him up and kissed him soundly on the cheek before depositing him back on the floor. He then grabbed Jackson around the legs and hugged him, too.

Jase pointed at Jackson. “You put daddy night-night with kisses, too?”

“I don’t think your daddy needs help going to sleep, baby.”
 

“You’d be wrong about that,” Jackson muttered.

Their eyes held for a moment before she blushed and looked away. She held out her hand to Jase. “Come on, back to bed.” He grasped her hand and allowed her to lead him back to the room.
 

A moment later she emerged again, pulling the door shut behind her. “You weren’t kidding about Chris. He’s already snoring!”

“I wish I could say I don’t know where the snoring came from but unfortunately he inherited that from me, too.”

He couldn’t help staring at her. After a day in the sun, her light brown skin was tanned a shade darker. She looked golden and glowing with health, especially since she’d loosened her ponytail so her long curls spilled around her shoulders.

 
“What?” Her hand came up to her face. “You’re staring.”

“I am. You’re beautiful.”
 

“Jackson? I mean I know we were pretending to be together before but—” She stopped, seemingly at a loss for words.

“It wasn’t much of an act on my part. I like you, Ridley,” he admitted softly. “Way more than I should.”

“I like you, too. More than just about anyone else I’ve met. What’s wrong with two people liking each other?” she asked.

She stepped close enough that her scent enveloped him, a soft fragrance which reminded him of wildflowers. He tried to keep his hands out of the equation, sure that if he touched her again there was nothing in the world that would convince him to let her go. But when she stood on tiptoe and ran her hands over his hair, he gave up.