Chapter 7
CHAPTER SEVEN
Once again, Cadee found herself at Honky Tonk Heaven.
But this time, she didn’t feel anxious when she stepped inside the front door of the dancehall.
This time, she felt spitting mad.
And the man she was spitting mad at stood right in front of her . . . being mauled by a woman in a dress so short Cadee could see the lower part of her butt cheeks as she leaned into his chest and batted her Minnie Mouse fake lashes.
“Come on, honey. I’m sure no one would notice if you slipped away for a few little ol’ minutes.” Her smile was seductive. “I promise I’ll make it worth your while.”
“Sorry, sweetheart, but I can’t leave my post.” He smiled and winked at her. “Maybe some other—” He glanced over and saw Cadee. He didn’t look the least bit surprised to see her. Almost like he’d been expecting her to show up. His smile faded. “Hey, Cadee.”
She skipped the social greeting. “I need to talk to you.”
He hesitated for only a moment before he nodded, disengaged himself from Cartoon Eyelashes, and slipped off the stool he sat on. “We can talk out back.”
“Wait a second,” the woman huffed. “You wouldn’t leave your post for me, but you’ll leave for her?”
“Yes.” He held out a hand for Cadee to precede him.
As they weaved through the crowd to the back door, people called out greetings. Even though she was hopping mad, she smiled and answered. She was a Stockton, after all, and being social and nice was expected . . . no matter how mad you were.
Jeff Mueller, who ran his family’s hardware store, caught her arm as she passed. She had dated Jeff a few years back. While no sparks had flown, they were still good friends.
“Hey, Cadee. I didn’t think I’d see you here. You want to dance?”
Before she could decline, Huck placed a hand on her waist. A possessive hand that, maddeningly, had sparks flying inside her like the Fourth of July.
“Sorry, Jeff. She’s a little busy at the moment.” He drew her toward the back door, calling to Poppy who was bartending. “I’m taking a quick break, Pops!”
Once they were outside, Cadee turned on him, trying her best not to notice how hot he looked in the black Henley with Honky Tonk Heaven printed above one hard pec. The cotton hugged his chest like a second skin and the pushed up sleeves showed off the thick ropes of muscles in his forearms.
She pulled her gaze away and focused on her anger.
“Just what the hell do you think you’re doing, Huck Hennessy?”
“Just saving you from getting your toes broken, Catydid. Jeff is the worst dancer this side of the Pecos. And why didn’t he expect to see you here? Don’t you ever go out dancing? You used to love to dance.”
“I don’t have time for dancing. And I’m not talking about Jeff. I’m talking about you altering our agreement.”
“And what agreement is that?”
She gritted her teeth. “You know damn good and well what agreement I’m talking about. You giving me your share of your inheritance so I wouldn’t contest the will.”
“And I’m still going to give it to you.”
Her temper flared. “If I give you visiting rights!”
“And why is that so surprising? After all, I am his father.”
“I thought we went over this and you realized you’re not father material.”
“Yeah, well . . . I changed my mind. I want to try to be a daddy.”
She stared at him, her disbelief bringing down the volume of her voice. “You want to try? Like you tried to run in the elementary school fundraising marathon and quit after the first lap? Or like you tried football our freshman year and quit before the first game? That kind of try, Huckleberry?”
“Those weren’t important.”
“I bet the school board and football coach would disagree. You struggle to commit to anything, Huck, and you always have. Schoolwork, girlfriends, the numerous schemes you came up with to strike it rich. One little bump and you gave up and moved on to some other scheme. And now you’re going to try to be a daddy. ”
She snorted. “Well, excuse me if I’m not jumping with joy.
And you’re right, Camden is more important.
More important than football or get-rich-quick schemes.
More important than anything. And I refuse to let him get attached to a man who quits whenever things get too serious or tough.
And let me tell you from experience that parenting is serious and tough, Huck.
There are days that I want to run off and I’m not a runner like you. ”
At one time the hurt in his eyes would have sent her backpedaling and apologizing. She’d always hated to hurt Huck. But that was when she didn’t have a son to protect.
He swallowed hard. “You’re right. I am a runner. But I’m not going to run this time.”
She tipped her head. “Really? Tell that to someone who hasn’t been left in your dust.”
“That was different. I was young and stupid and . . . confused.”
“And you think I wasn’t confused? We were best friends since kindergarten, Huck, and then suddenly we’re having sex.
Yes, I was confused. But when I picked up my phone to sort it out with my best friend, you didn’t answer.
When I went by your house, your mama said that you had left town.
Which made me feel like it had been all my fault.
Like I’d done something horribly wrong. And that wasn’t right, Huck.
That wasn’t right at all. We were both there that night. We both made the decision to have sex.”
She waited for him to say something. Instead, he turned and headed down to the river that ran behind the dancehall. Since she wasn’t about to let him get away, she followed.
“See, you just proved my point. You can’t even have a serious conversation without running.”
He stopped and rested his hands on his hips, staring up at the branches of the old oak tree that grew by the river as if searching for something. When he finally looked at her, his eyes were sad.
“I never blamed you for that night, Cadee. I blamed myself. I’m the one who fucked up what we had.
I’m the one who stepped over a line I had no business stepping over.
You had just lost your daddy, and you didn’t need .
. .” He swallowed. “You didn’t need me forcing you to do something you didn’t want to do. ”
He hadn’t forced her. She had more than wanted to have sex with him. She had dreamed about touching him and kissing him for months . . . years. But she didn’t say that. She couldn’t say that. Not when it would only complicate things even more.
“And I’m sorry,” he continued. “I’m sorry for taking advantage of your pain and sorrow. I’m sorry I ran.” He sighed heavily. “But I just couldn’t face you. I couldn’t look into your eyes knowing how badly I’d screwed everything up.”
She didn’t know what she expected him to say, but it wasn’t that.
She had thought he ran because she had finally released all her feelings for him that night and it had scared him away.
She hadn’t thought he’d been filled with as much guilt as she’d felt over ruining something as special as their friendship.
She didn’t know what to say. There was nothing to say. There were no redos in life. They couldn’t go back. As she stood there looking out at the river reflecting the moon in ribbons of rippling gold, she realized she would do it all over again if it resulted in Camden.
Her son was worth all the pain.
And maybe it was time to release that pain.
She glanced up at the branches that hung overhead. “Maybe it had nothing to do with either of us. Maybe it was all the magic of The Kissing Tree.” She glanced back at Huck to see him looking at her with confusion before a light dawned in his eyes and he smiled.
“We did kiss under it. And according to the legend . . .”
Cadee didn’t know how the legend started.
Probably like all legends do—gossip that was repeated and grew more elaborate with each retelling.
Supposedly, kissing beneath The Kissing Tree resulted in wedding bells.
Which was how she and Huck had ended up having their first kiss when they were only thirteen.
“You were so damned determined to test the legend.” His smile grew, revealing a glimpse of even teeth beneath his mustache and deepening the dimples in his cheeks. “Although I don’t know that I’d call the smashing of chapped lips a kiss.”
She couldn’t help laughing. “It was pretty bad.”
His smile faded as his eyes grew intent. “I didn’t think so.”
She hadn’t either, but she wasn’t there to walk down memory lane. “Look, Huck, I just want to protect my son.”
He stared at her with disbelief. “You think I want to hurt Camden?”
“No. But I didn’t think you wanted to hurt me either.” But he had. He had hurt her so badly. Even if it hadn’t been on purpose. “Have Billy take the stipulation out of the contract. You don’t really want to be a daddy. You told me that yourself at least a dozen times when we were growing up.”
He nodded. “You’re right. Being a daddy wasn’t something I ever wanted . . . until I met Camden. I thought I could just see him once, just to satisfy my curiosity about what a kid we made together looked like.”
Talk about an arrow right through the heart. Cadee struggled to keep from rubbing her chest as he continued.
“Once I met him, I could step out of the picture, knowing that he’s got the best mama a kid could ever ask for.
” His eyes softened. “And I know you’re a good mama, Cadee.
You sure mothered the hell out of me when we were growing up.
But kids don’t just need mamas. They need daddies too.
And if anyone should understand that, I do.
I won’t be as good a parent as you are. Hell, I proved that the first time I met Camden.
But I figure I’m better than no daddy at all.
So no, Cadee, I’m not having Billy take the stipulation out.
You want the money, then you’ll let me see . . . our son.”
She hated the tears that sprang to her eyes. Hated even worse that her heart felt like it was being tugged in two different directions. Which was so wrong. No part of her heart still belonged to Huck. Not one tiny speck.