Chapter 24
Chapter Twenty-Four
M aude had run errands on the way home from the hospital, including picking up a few groceries and dropping off an Amazon return at the UPS store. Once home, she’d done a full sixty minutes of yoga, taken a long soak, and while in the tub, caught up on client emails.
She’d also sent Ollie a super short text. Just something to let him know she was available to talk.
Now you have my number, too. M
But then she’d gone right back to client emails and once she got out of the tub, worked on the updates they’d requested, including building a new page for one of them.
Work was a good way to distract herself from replaying her conversation with Ollie. And to keep paying her bills.
To be honest, she was torn when it came to Ollie. She believed everything he’d said. The pain in his eyes at the loss of his marriage looked real.
But she was torn because he was technically still married.
Getting involved with him now had some ick factor.
What if his wife suddenly changed her mind and decided she wanted Ollie back?
Maude did not want to be the woman in the middle of that.
Or feel like she’d done anything to keep it from happening.
She never ever wanted to be the other woman. Especially not when there were kids involved.
She was going to have to tell Ollie that, but it didn’t need to be done now. Whenever he reached out to her, she’d work it into conversation. Or, if she had to, just say it straight out. They’d never had a hard time telling each other the truth in high school.
Being older shouldn’t change that.
Mind made up, she focused on her work, stopping only when her stomach grumbled. After a dinner of hummus and pita chips eaten while sitting at her computer, she finally finished her work and went to sit on the porch with her iPad.
She’d bought the book for the book club but she’d yet to start it. Tonight was as good a night as any.
She took a diet Snapple iced tea with her and settled in. The air was so nice. Just the faintest tang of salt came in with the breeze. The sky was striped in pink and orange from another incredible sunset, and if she listened closely, she could just make out the shushing of the waves.
Or maybe that was wishful thinking.
She hoped to fit in some beach time tomorrow. That would be good. She’d take the book with her. Probably finish it.
She opened the book on her iPad and started reading. She was two pages in when the sound of a golf cart pulled her out of the story, which was already grabbing her attention. It was going to be a good read.
She turned her head toward the sound. Golf carts weren’t unusual. Everyone had one, herself included. But this one was close. Maybe at her neighbors’? Or on the street in front of her place? Then the engine turned off.
Someone knocked on her door. She got up to see who it was, flipping on lights as she went, now that it was dark in her house.
She opened the door. Ollie stood there in his scrubs, holding a colorful bouquet of flowers. Nothing serious like roses, just a pretty, random mix wrapped in white paper and tied with a few loops of raffia twine.
She couldn’t remember the last time she’d gotten flowers. “Hi.”
“Hey. I know I shouldn’t have come by without calling but I’m not here to do anything but drop these off and say thanks for listening to me today.” He held the flowers out. “That meant a lot. I didn’t realize how much I needed to talk to someone. It was good to say some of that stuff out loud.”
“Thank you. They’re beautiful. And it was really good to talk.” She took the flowers. He was smiling, but his eyes held sadness. Ollie had never been hard for her to read. “Are you okay?”
He looked past her and shook his head. “I will be.” His voice was gruff with emotion. “The papers were waiting for me when I got home. I only went there to change before bringing you these but…” He turned his face away.
“Oh, Ollie.”
He sniffed once as he backed away from the door.
He looked so hurt that her own heart ached. “Do you want to come in?”
He swallowed hard, still not making eye contact. He held up a hand, then gained his composure. “I need a little time to process. I’ll be all right. I already knew this was coming.”
“Okay. I’m here if you want to talk. Or when you’re ready.”
He laughed suddenly, the sound bitter and sharp. “I do not want to talk about her to you .”
Maude smiled, despite her heart breaking for him.
Ollie had always worn his emotions on his sleeve.
It was one of the things she’d loved about him.
For all his macho swagger, he had a truly soft side.
Probably what made him such a good doctor.
“Whenever you’re ready to hang out, then. You know how to find me.”
“Thanks.” He didn’t move. Looked like he wanted to, but couldn’t.
She took a chance. “You want a hug?”
He nodded, clearing his throat.
She set the flowers down on the little entry table and went to him, wrapping her arms around him. He smelled of aftershave and a scent that was so uniquely him. It triggered a million different memories of her youth, but nothing could take the place of having him in her arms again.
He held onto her like she was the only thing keeping him connected to the earth, his face pressed into her shoulder. She decided right then that she was going to hold onto him until he let go. This hug would last as long as he needed it to.
After a few long moments, he pulled away, kissing her cheek as he did. “Thanks. Talk to you soon, okay?”
She nodded. “Okay.”
With a little wave, he jumped into his golf cart and left.
She watched him go, then went back inside. Did this mean his marriage was officially over? That he was now divorced? She wasn’t sure. He’d tell her when he was ready. Until then, she’d be right here. Waiting.
Because Ollie Keen was worth waiting for and after thirty-seven years, what was a few more days?
She put the flowers in an old pickle jar because she didn’t have a vase, but they were still beautiful. She tied the raffia around the jar in a bow and set them on the table by the front door, which made them visible from almost everywhere in her house.
She smiled the whole time she did it, and went back onto her porch still smiling. It was hard not to, even though poor Ollie was obviously miserable.
That probably made her a terrible person. She did her best to stop smiling. She should just read. She needed to get through a few chapters tonight if she was going to have this book read in time for the next book club.
She wasn’t a slow reader, but she often got distracted. And right now, she had Ollie on the brain.
How could she not after today? And tonight?
She had so many questions. What had happened between him and his wife to cause this divorce?
They had two kids. And a golden retriever.
That was like the American dream, wasn’t it?
Had his wife fooled around? Maybe the long hours he worked meant she’d had too much time on her hands.
But then again, there were kids to take care of.
Shouldn’t that have been enough to keep her busy?
Maybe not when those kids were older and had their own lives. They were off at high school and college. Doing their own things.
Maude stared at the sliver of Gulf she could see, now just a plank of dark inky blue against the horizon. Would it be unethical to search for Emily Keen online? See what Maude could figure out? No one would know but her.
She tapped a finger against the edge of her iPad. She really should be reading.
She closed the cover on her iPad and went inside, straight to her desk. She shook her head at Pixel. “I shouldn’t be doing this. It’s not my business.”
He swam closer.
“You’re right. It could be my business if Ollie and I start dating. What if he’s the one that broke up the marriage? Maybe he cheated. Or spent all their money gambling?” Although she didn’t believe either of those things even a tiny bit.
She woke her laptop up and started a deep dive on Emily Keen. There was no telling how long it might take. Maude decided immediately that if nothing popped up within ten minutes, it was a sign that she wasn’t supposed to be doing this.
Emily Elizabeth Keen appeared at the top of the search list on Facebook.
Maude glanced at Pixel. “I kind of have to keep looking now, right? Or do you think it’s a sign that her initials spell EEK? I mean, that sounds like a warning.”
Pixel just stared. Probably wondering why she wasn’t giving him a shrimp pellet.
Maude clicked through to Emily’s profile. She was a pretty blonde who looked like she took care of herself the way a lot of women in their age bracket did. Regular highlights, regular Botox, maybe some fillers, plenty of water and exercise, limited carbs, lots of steps.
But was she maintaining herself for Ollie? Or for some other man? Maude wasn’t sure she’d be able to answer that. Especially if Ollie was the real reason the marriage had broken up. But she would do a little more digging. Not a ton. She wasn’t going to obsess over this.
Also, by ten, she wanted to log into Nightforge and spend an hour or so playing. And she still hadn’t gotten anywhere in the book.
Okay, half an hour of looking, then that was it. She’d just wait for Ollie to tell her whatever she was supposed to know.