Chapter 17
MAVEN
We made our way up the stairs of the bleachers, searching for seats in the crowded stands. Thanks to my train from New York being delayed thirty minutes, we’d missed the entire first quarter and part of the second.
Mom spotted a row near the top and, with Penny’s hand in hers, led the way.
“Why do we have to sit all the way up here?” Penny asked. “Last time we sat closer.”
“Last time we got here before the game started.” My mom sidestepped along the row to avoid hitting anyone on the row in front. “And since it’s homecoming, it’s extra crowded.”
I took the seat next to Penny. “Sorry, Sweet P. It’s my fault we’re late.”
Penny’s frown lessened. “It’s okay.”
Once we were situated, I searched the crowd for Ben.
He didn’t know I was coming, and being that I’d prefer to keep it that way, I needed to make sure I stayed out of his line of sight.
Thankfully, the Walkers were on their usual bench two sections over toward the middle of the bleachers.
Ben was seated on the same row as his family but farther down next to Tate.
Wait. There was a woman sandwiched between the two of them.
She turned her head slightly to speak with Tate, and I glimpsed her profile.
I leaned toward Carson. “Is that Liv Rawlins?”
Carson’s gaze followed mine, knowing exactly where I would be looking. “Yeah. She’s apparently back for a while and staying with the Walkers.”
Huh. That seemed odd. “Do you know why?”
Carson shrugged. “I’m not sure.”
Maybe she just needed somewhere to stay. There was nothing Ann and Tom loved more than being of service to others, and Liv had been friends with the Walker boys in high school.
The cheer of the crowd sent our attention back to the field. A maroon-and-gold-clad Autumn Ridge High player carried the football, weaving through several defenders before finally being tackled at their twenty yard line.
In celebration, Carson gave his signature whistle.
Penny sent her dad a very effective scowl.
Carson chuckled. “Sorry, Penny. Should I warn you next time?”
She rolled her eyes with his teasing, but her scowl dissolved into an affectionate grin.
Without thinking, I looked back toward Ben to find him glancing in our general direction, his gaze searching.
Shoot. He must have heard Carson’s whistle.
Before I could lean back, using my brother to block me from view, Ben’s eyes locked with mine.
His brow furrowed at first, but then his head quirked slightly and a smile lifted onto his lips.
He said something to Tate and gestured with his chin in our direction.
I quickly set my gaze forward, pretending I wasn’t hyperaware of Ben standing in my periphery and making his way down the row.
“Say no,” I said to Carson, who sent me a confused look as Ben started up the stairs toward us.
“To who?”
“To Ben,” I hissed.
Carson noticed Ben right as he passed us and took a seat on the row behind.
Ben placed a hand on Carson’s shoulder. “I’m not sure if you got my text, but we saved seats for you guys.”
“Where are your seats?” Penny asked before Carson could respond.
Ben pointed. “Right there, in the middle.”
Penny’s eyes brightened, and she sent her dad a pleading look. “Can we go sit with them?”
Oh great! Carson now had to choose between what Penny wanted and what I wanted. “It looks pretty crowded,” he said. “I’m not sure there’s room for all four of us.”
“You two can go.” I didn’t want Carson to have to make a choice. “Mom and I can stay here.”
Penny looked affronted by my blatant offense. “You and Nana have to come too.”
“We might be a little snug, but there’s enough room,” Ben said.
Mom smiled. “I’m good with whatever.”
Of course she was.
Penny’s pout was absolute perfection. “Please, Aunt Maven.”
“Okay,” I said, accepting my fate. Honestly, it was ridiculous to have thought I could show up at the game without Ben spotting me.
But, since the opportunity had presented itself, I might as well get through the conversation we desperately needed to have.
Boundaries and expectations were going to be essential over the next three weeks.
“Since I didn’t get dinner yet, I was going to check out the snack shack real quick. Does anyone want anything?”
Mom and Carson shook their heads, but Penny nodded. “Can I get a pretzel with cheese?”
“You’ve got it.” My gaze landed on Ben. “Want anything? Because if so, you could come with me.”
Ben grinned at my poorly executed attempt. “I feel like I’m supposed to say yes. So… yes?”
I barely resisted rolling my eyes. “We’ll meet you over by the Walkers,” I said to my family.
Starting down the stairs a good way ahead of Ben, I waited until we made it off the bleachers, where most of Autumn Ridge couldn’t see us, before turning to face him.
“I only came back to Autumn Ridge because I’d forgotten that I promised Penny I would be at the game.
And the barn raising. I couldn’t disappoint her. ”
“I’ll have to thank her later.”
I pinned Ben with a look, ignoring the way my body wanted to betray me with one hint of a flirtatious comment.
“Since you won’t let us change our divorce case to New York, I think it’d be best if we just follow Judge Rost’s court order exactly as it’s written—one brief weekly experience and shared meals digitally.
That’s it. Nothing more. Well, besides the final marriage counseling session next Monday. ”
Ben gave a slow nod. “What about the seventy-two-hour period we’re supposed to spend together? This might be a good weekend to get that over with since you’re in town anyway.”
“She said it was strongly encouraged but optional, so I think we go the optional route.”
Ben shrugged. “If you think it won’t matter, that’s fine with me. I would just hate to get to the hearing and have that be the thing that stops Judge Rost from finalizing the divorce.”
I let out a huff of frustration. He had a point.
I had no idea what optional meant to Judge Rost, but it wouldn’t surprise me if it was less of the we-didn’t-need-to-do-it meaning of the word and more of the if-we-didn’t-select-that-option-we’d-fail-her-test-and-remain-married-for-an-indefinite-amount-of-time-while-she-went-through-our-case-with-a-fine-tooth-comb variety of optional.
And the fact that she had added the stipulation during our last hearing made it all the more likely.
That woman was turning out to be the bane of my existence. Right along with Ben.
“How about instead of seventy-two hours consecutively, we do seventy-two hours collectively over the next several days?” If I made the next round of auditions for the New York Philharmonic, it likely wouldn’t be held for another three to four weeks; and I had nothing else on my calendar currently, so a few more days in Autumn Ridge to knock out this seventy-two-hour provision made the most sense.
“Judge Rost seemed okay with us modifying the requirements for our specific needs, as long as we did it in good faith.”
“I’m assuming you mean we won’t be capitalizing on all of those hours of sleep?”
“It’s probably best if I stay at my mom’s.”
Ben’s grin was all the confirmation I needed. He knew exactly why I didn’t want to stay at his place—because I didn’t trust myself around him. Which was definitely concerning.
“The futon in the office is really comfortable,” I said before he could voice his conclusion aloud.
“Probably a lot more comfortable than my expensive king-sized mattress I custom built a frame for in my trailer.” He stepped closer and leaned in, his voice lowering. “Though I suppose you wouldn’t need to share the futon.”
My pulse quickened, and I gestured with a thumb over my shoulder. “We should probably get those snacks. I bet Penny’s wondering where her pretzel is.”
Ben kept aggravatingly close to me as we made our way to the concession stand. “Have you heard whether you made it to the next round of auditions?”
“No, and I likely won’t for a couple of weeks. The orchestra is leaving on a European tour. Jean-Paul said they’d hoped to complete the third round of auditions beforehand, but it didn’t happen, so I’ll just keep practicing like I made it until I hear otherwise.”
“You felt it went well, though?”
I gave a small shrug. “I thought so, but I also thought that last time.”
He nudged his shoulder into me. “I bet you’ll make the next round.”
“One can hope.” I looked over the list of menu items. There wasn’t much in the way of actual food, but of the available options, nachos definitely sounded the best.
Ben’s attention shifted to the line of people ahead of us. “So, a pretzel for Penny and…” his gaze flicked back to me “…nachos for you?”
I grinned up at him. “You remember my weakness for that globby orange cheese?”
“It’s not the only thing I remember you having a weakness for.” The way he said it, in combination with his weighted look, sent a wave of heat coursing through me. I might not know precisely what he was referring to, but there was no way I was taking his bait.
Not knowing how else to respond, I held up a fist between us and put my thumb down, causing Ben to laugh loud enough that several gazes drifted in our direction.
“Shhh.” I jabbed my elbow into him. “You’re going to give people the wrong impression about our reconciliation.”
He shrugged, his arm brushing against mine as he leaned in. “And what if I do?”
I glanced up, locking eyes with him, his face inches from mine and stealing my breath. “There are going to be a lot of disappointed people.”
By the time we made it to the stands with our snacks, the halftime performance had just started.
Tom and Mayor Monroe had moved to the row below to make room for Carson, my mom, and Penny on their bench, which meant the only open seats were further down by Tate and Liv.
I passed Penny the pretzel, and she turned toward me with a smile and a thumbs up before fixing her attention back to the marching band.