Chapter Sixteen
Present Day
The woman’s name was Patty. They learned that soon enough. After a short game of twenty questions that Samantha wasn’t sure they won, and an interrogation of Tristan about how they ended up in this predicament, she agreed to take them back to her house where they could find warmth and sleep.
“It’s a good thing I stumbled upon you two.” She nodded. “I’m afraid the closest payphone is over a hundred miles away and we don’t have a cell tower yet. They say it’s coming, but I’m not holding my breath.”
She waited for them to gather their things, while Samantha and Tristan thanked her profusely for her generosity. There were two sleeping toddlers snoring away in the back seat, though Patty looked to be no more than twenty-five. It was odd—seeing someone so close to her own age with a growing family. One the woman seemed proud and protective of.
Tristan took their bags from the trunk, while Samantha gathered her purse and tried to recover from their almost kiss. She wished she knew what he was thinking. Wished she could rewind the last ten minutes and have more self-control.
Samantha approached the oversized van a moment later, where Tristan helped her into the front seat and handed her the seat belt.
“We’ll be okay,” he whispered in her ear. “I promise.”
She knew he was talking about the car, about being stranded right before the wedding, although she couldn’t help but wonder if he was talking about more. She took the seat belt from his hand, thankful for the darkness so he couldn’t read all insecurities on her face. Right now they were out there for everyone to see, and she couldn’t put them away, because for the first time in six years, she began to question what she was doing with her life. With Steven. If she could feel so much for a man she hadn’t seen in half a decade, how could she even think about a future with Steven?
Tristan moved away a moment later, allowing her the space to breathe. The Jackson Five’s “ABC” was playing on the radio, and Samantha turned to look out the window. Tristan climbed into the back seat, putting their backpacks to the floor, and settling himself between the two car seats. He seemed oddly comfortable there, even though his broad shoulders hardly fit. But he was always like that. Always comfortable. Never complaining—so unlike Steven.
Steven. She couldn’t help but cringe at the thought of him. He was honest, hardworking, and didn’t deserve this. He was meeting her in NY on Friday, and this needed to stop. Whatever this was, whether curiosity, or an unfulfilled girlhood fantasy, it would end here. She wouldn’t risk their relationship. She wouldn’t risk her heart.
Closing her eyes, she tried to force all the emotions from her body. But the fact was, a simple touch from Tristan caused lightning bolts to shoot through her limbs. A simple touch from Tristan made her ache for more. A touch from Tristan wasn’t easily forgotten.
The road ahead became dark and twisty, making Samantha’s stomach roll with nausea. Either that or from the speed at which Patty navigated the narrow path so easily. Patty’s large belly was pressed against the steering wheel, and her eyes were focused on the path ahead, but neither stopped her from talking.
“Ya’ll are lucky,” she said to Samantha, glancing over from the corner of her eye. “Really lucky.”
She clucked her tongue, then turned down the radio and continued to ramble. “I don’t normally come out this way so late at night. It’s only because Mr. Miller had a heart attack last week, and I had to check on the cattle. That’s the only reason.”
Samantha nodded her head, though Patty must have noticed her increased discomfort, because she quickly slowed the van.
“What brings you ’round these parts anyway?” she asked, almost as a distraction technique.
Samantha swallowed, hoping the action would calm her stomach. “My best friend is getting married,” she answered. “We’re on our way to New York.”
“Yeah?” Patty grinned. “Are you the maid of honor?”
“Yes. Though I haven’t seen the dress yet.” She smiled.
“I bet you’d look beautiful,” Patty said softly. Then she glanced in the rearview mirror to look at Tristan. “Don’t you agree?”
He didn’t hesitate a second. “Stunning.”
Samantha looked down to her feet, realizing that, just like everyone else, Patty thought they were a couple. She didn’t blame her, given the scene she’d pulled up upon. Samantha would have thought the same thing.
They continued talking. About everything and nothing. About the town. The people who lived there, and when they finally turned off a bend, Samantha’s stomach had settled quite a bit. “I should have gone out hours ago,” Patty confessed. “I’m ashamed to admit I got caught up in one of my shows again. The new season of Felicity was delivered this morning, and I plain lost track of myself.” She glanced over again, seeming pleased by Samantha’s condition, and gave her a nod of approval. “That happens a lot when Trevor’s gone.”
“Is Trevor your husband?” Samantha asked.
“Yes.” Patty agreed, rubbing slow circles on the top of her belly. “He got me a seventy-two inch TV for Mother’s Day. I told him it was a guilty conscience for leavin’ so much, but really, it was the most thoughtful gift I’ve ever received.” Her smile was sleepy, but her eyes were bright and filled with tears when she looked over again. “You’re lucky to have a man to warm your bed at night.”
They pulled into the driveway of a small white home, and Patty threw the van into park. “Well this is it,” she said quietly. “Home, sweet home.”
Samantha wanted to correct her about her and Tristan, but decided clarification would only bring more questions, so she remained silent. She glanced out the window of the van—to the horseshoe-shaped driveway lined with little lights to illuminate the cobblestone path. Patty popped open the door and unfastened her seat belt. “Well, I best get these little ones to bed.”
She yawned before hopping down from the cab, then slid open the back door and began unfastening her babies, one at a time, as they slept peacefully in the back seat. She took one out, then the other, holding them on each side like huge sacks of flour. But Tristan stopped in front of her and held out his arms. She looked up, surprised by the offer of help. But then she nodded, hesitating for only a moment before handing over a child.
The small toddler nestled his blond head into the top of Tristan’s shoulder, wiping his nose back and forth a few times before falling back asleep. Samantha smiled watching them. Tristan was so big and strong, but seeing him with a baby curled up on his shoulder, he looked like he couldn’t hurt a butterfly.
She took a deep breath of the cool country air, then gathered the rest of their belongings and followed in after them.
She’d never seen Tristan with a baby before, and for some reason the image rocked her. She knew she wanted children, but the sight of Tristan cradling a small child in his arms caused a physical reaction to stir low in her belly. One she’d been repressing for a long time. That sort of primal longing she’d always heard her mother talking about. That ache deep inside for a family of her own. She told herself she was being silly and her reaction was still the effects of the car ride, but she knew it was more than that. Because in all her childhood daydreams, all the games she played with Renee as a girl, she always imagined herself like Patty. With a round pregnant belly and a baby on each arm. It was only since Steven her dreams had changed. With his goals for his career and ideas of success, he wanted one. One child. Not three or four. He was realistic, always took her wild eccentric dreams and reminded her of reality. Starting a family in their late thirties was the goal. When he was sure to have good medical care, stability, and a home.
She walked in through the open door of Patty’s home a moment later, finding it cozy and warm, and Tristan and Patty both standing in the living room by a wood burning stove. True to Patty’s word, a seventy-two inch television sat front and center. It was odd seeing such an extravagant appliance in the middle of what was otherwise a modest dwelling, but after knowing Patty for no more than an hour, Samantha would have expected nothing less.