Chapter 8
8
Why did Keith feel like the prince in Cinderella? At least he had more than a shoe. He had a name... Michelle. He didn’t normally do the coffee runs, but this morning he was glad Chip was on the phone with the hotel in Asheville and Max was dozing. When the barista called his name, he stepped up to the counter to retrieve their order. “Does she come in here often?” He lifted his thumb toward the door Michelle had gone through.
“Often, no, but long enough that I know her order. She’s never changed it in the years I’ve worked here.” Gretchen looked at the woman through the window. “Looks like she has early plans. Normally she’s in gym clothes when she comes in.”
Keith’s brows furrowed. “So, you know her well then.”
Gretchen laughed. “You’re not from around here, are you?”
“No.”
“This is a small town, Mister. We all know each other’s business if we want to.” She tapped her finger on her chin. “You know how people say that bartenders and hairdressers get all the gossip?”
Keith nodded.
“Around here, it’s just about anyone in the service industry. If you go to a restaurant or bar or gym enough, people recognize you. They know your order if they’re worth their weight in salt by your third visit.” She shrugged. “It’s just the way we are around here. Welcome to Waynesville.” She smiled.
Keith picked up the three to-go cups of coffee. “Thanks for the information.” He left her a nice tip before walking out the door toward their rental SUV with four-wheel drive and tinted windows. Keith handed Chip his and Max’s coffee and climbed into the passenger seat. “Did you see a beautiful blond woman walk out the door?”
“Who didn’t see her? She had a secret smile on her face, and I think she could stop traffic with it.”
“Damn, sorry I missed that. Did you see what she was driving?”
“Red Jeep. Why?”
“She was nice and polite. She didn’t know who I was.” He waved his hand in the air. “I mean, she thought I looked like me, but she didn’t recognize me as me. You know what I mean?” He cut his eyes at Chip, who nodded. “She was like a breath of fresh air.”
“You do remember the divorce isn’t final, right?”
Keith chuckled. “I’ll never see her again, Chip, but I don’t think I’ll forget her eyes anytime soon.” He took a sip of his coffee and stared out the passenger window, wishing he knew where she was going.
Michelle pulled into Jackie’s driveway and practically ran to her back door. There wasn’t another car, but she knocked on the door anyway. Looking through the window, she saw Jackie waving her inside.
She dropped her purse and keys on Jackie’s kitchen counter as she got a glass and filled it with water. She knew her way around Jackie’s kitchen much like Jackie did hers. “You are not going to believe what I just did.”
A half smile pulled at Jackie’s lips and her eyes danced. “You got laid.”
“What? No!” Michelle sat the water down as she walked around Jackie’s kitchen and turned back to face her. “I paid for a date ! I have never, and I mean never, paid for a date!”
“I thought you were just going to watch his game.”
“I did, but afterward I casually made the comment that I didn’t eat breakfast beforehand and was going to the diner on Hazelwood. I suggested he could come with me.”
“So, you invited him.”
“No. Yes. I guess.” Michelle shrugged.
“It’s not like you can’t afford it.”
“That’s not the point. I did that in the past and the man still paid.”
“You mean, Bill?”
“Yeah, but others.” She huffed out my breath. “And he’s looking for a sugar mama. A sugar mama! Do I look like a sugar mama to you?”
Jackie rolled her lips inward, and Michelle knew she was trying not to laugh, just like Michelle had done to her. “I see.”
“And to top it off, we ran into Cade!” Michelle threw her hands into the air.
“Oh.” Jackie’s eyes widened. “Um, how did that go down?”
“Who knew my son played in a rec softball league? His game was after Ronnie’s. We were walking back to my car, and Cade came over to us. I told him we’d talk later.” She looked at her watch. “He’s probably at the house waiting for me.”
Jackie pushed a dining chair away from the table. “Sit down and let’s talk through this.”
Michelle sat and clasped her fingers together over her mouth. This couldn’t be happening.
“Let’s start from the beginning. Did you have fun at the game?”
“Yes.”
“So much so that you invited?—”
“Suggested.”
“Whatever... opened the door for Ronnie to join you for breakfast.”
“Yes.”
“Then what happened?”
Michelle proceeded to tell her of the conversation where he was looking for a benefactor of sorts. Finally, she said, “When the bill came, he pushed it toward me and reminded me that I’d invited him. I was so embarrassed that I grabbed the check and paid it while he was in the restroom. He came running after me as I pulled out of the parking lot. My phone has been blowing up with notifications, but I refuse to look at them. Now, I gotta face my son.”
“Oh, Michelle, I told you dating in the twenty-first century was different than when we were younger.”
“I never thought . . .”
“Well, sometimes you pay for yours and he pays for his. Most of the time that happens in the initial meetings. One of you should have suggested that.”
“I didn’t know to do that.”
“Now you do.”
Michelle’s elbows rested on the table, her fingertips pressing into her forehead. She closed her eyes. “I don’t think I’m cut out for this.”
“Over one bad experience? That’s not the Michelle I know.”
“The Michelle you know was married for most of her life and had a husband who took care of her. She wasn’t floundering like a fish on land.”
“This was the first time you’ve been out in over a quarter of a century. There’s a learning curve. Give yourself a break.” Jackie laid her hand on Michelle’s shoulder. “Was Bill the first man you ever dated?”
“No.”
“Did you always have good dates with the other men?”
“No.”
“Then why do you think now would be any different?”
“Because I learned from my mistakes. I married the man of my dreams.”
“I didn’t think you were looking to remarry.”
“I’m not, but I’m not looking to financially support some grown ass man who needs to be working and earning his own way.”
“True. So, now you know that you aren’t into younger men unless they are men of means.”
“I decided... no younger men, or at least not that much younger. I think I embarrassed Cade. Something I never wanted to do. Ever.”
“Cade will be easy. Tell him that you aren’t ever going to see Ronnie again.” Jackie lowered Michelle’s hands, causing them to look eye to eye. “How are you going to handle Ronnie?”
“I’m going to practice what I’ve preached to my children forever. I’ll tell him the truth.” Michelle shrugged.
“Feel better?”
“Yeah, I do. Thank you.” They hugged, and Michelle was so grateful for their friendship. “Are you going to tell me who you had to run out of here this morning?”
Her cheeks flushed. “Oscar.”
“What? That was quick.”
“We’ve been talking, and I’ve been seeing him at the gym. I asked him over for a late dinner. Another bottle of wine later, and well, one thing led to another, and nature took its course. We had a good time. I made breakfast this morning, and he left right before you arrived. He said he’d call me this afternoon.” She shrugged.
Michelle knew Jackie well. She was leaving out details, she was blushing, and she was quiet. “You like him.” It was more of a statement than a question.
“I like him,” Jackie quietly admitted.
“I’m happy for you.”
“Thanks.” She smiled. “We’re taking it one day at a time.”
“That’s smart.” Michelle stood and kissed Jackie’s cheek. “I need to go talk with Cade. I pray he hasn’t called in reinforcements.”
“You’ll know what to do.”
“Yeah.”
Jackie followed Michelle to the door as they said goodbye once more. Michelle waved through the window as she walked toward her Jeep.
Ten minutes later, Michelle sat in her driveway, where she found Cade’s Tacoma parked. She took a deep breath as she made her way inside. Her son was sitting at the breakfast bar, slouched back in a chair with one ankle resting on the opposite knee, which couldn’t stop bouncing, and his fingers drummed on the countertop.
“Hi.”
“Hello.”
Michelle raised her eyebrows. A formal greeting was a sure sign that Cade was angry with her. “Before you get upset, just know that I’m not going to see Ronnie again.”
“I figured that when he was waiting for me after my game.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah, he said that y’all had breakfast, and you were gone when he came out of the restroom.”
“Hmm, yeah. Not my proudest moment, but one I’m happy I did.”
“For you to run like that, I figured he did something, so I wrapped my fist in his shirt and backed him into a tree.” He looked her in the eyes. “Not one of my proudest moments either.”
Michelle’s hand flew over her mouth. “I’m sorry, Cade. I never imagined that I’d run into you... any of my children when I was out. You never told me you played softball.”
“Because it’s just something I do for fun. It wasn’t like when I played Little League, Mom. But I never dreamed you’d go out with someone closer to Adam’s age than yours.”
“It was stupid of me.” She laughed and shook her head. “I guess for a moment, I was flattered to have a much younger man find me attractive.”
“You’re beautiful, Mom. But guys like him, I don’t know...” He sighed. “I asked around, and he’s got a rep. He’s... He likes...”
She laid her hand over his drumming fingers. “I know, Cade. He told me. I’m not a cougar. I’m not a sugar mama. That’s not what my dating is about. I know that now. I’m sorry if I embarrassed you. I would never do that on purpose.”
“I know, Mom. I was just worried about you.” He finally smiled. “Just so you know, he wasn’t the first person I almost punched today. My male teammates think you’re hot.”
Her face heated. “That’s sweet, but if y’all are losing games, they may need their eyes checked.” Cade laughed, and she joined him. The tension was gone. “Thank you for worrying about me. I’m going to be more careful next time.”
“Next time?”
“Just like when y’all were little, you got three strikes. That’s what I’m giving myself. I now have strike one.”
“Mom, it was your first experience in decades. Maybe that one can be a mulligan.”
“A do-over?”
“Yeah, a do-over.”
“Have you told your siblings?”
“Nah, I figured this one could stay between you and me.”
“Thank you. Adam might have a coronary.”
Cade laughed. “Yeah, I don’t have time for that.”
“I love you, Cade.”
“I love you too, Mom.”
He stood and kissed the top of her head. “I’ve got a date tonight, so I need to wash the truck and get a shower. And before you ask, it’s not that serious yet.”
“Dash my hopes, go ahead.” She smiled. “Be careful and have fun.”
He left, which meant she had one more chore to do to put this ordeal behind her... respond to Ronnie.