Love Is a Battlefield (22 page)

Sam's hatred of the leash was evident after just a few steps. For such a small dog, he sure was stout. Ace gave the leash another tug. “Come on, little guy. We're almost there.” They'd only been walking five minutes. But Sam couldn't be coaxed along any farther. He sat back on his haunches and regarded Ace.

“Fine.” Ace scooped the dog into his arms and carried him the rest of the way to the mortuary monument of W.H.L. Wallace. He sat down on the corner of the concrete step and put the dog on the ground. Sam scampered out as far as the leash would allow and collapsed, panting as if he'd been on a ten-mile hike.

Ace grinned at his canine companion. “You just might be the most spoiled dog I've ever met.” He stood up and looked at the monument. It was comprised of a large concrete square with General Wallace's name on it. Two steps led up to the monument itself. In each of the four corners was a pyramid of cannonballs. In the center, a shiny black cannon tube faced the sky. Even though General Wallace hadn't actually died on the battlefield, the wound that had eventually ended his life happened right on this spot.

Life sure did throw curveballs sometimes. Ace often wondered what might've happened if Caroline had lived. Would they be together now? As much as a part of him wanted to believe that they would, deep down he knew better. He'd loved her, sure. But all the talk lately about true love had made him realize something. Caroline, even though she was his best friend, wasn't his true love. He'd miss his friend forever. But he took some solace in knowing she'd want him to be happy.

And with Kristy. Wow. The thing that took him most by surprise was how he felt when he was with her. She could be his best friend. Easy. But she could also be more. The memory of their kiss was evidence of that. He couldn't wait for her return. And once she returned, if she still needed some time to grasp what was happening between them—well, he could give her that.

Funerals were never easy. Kristy had been to a few rare ones that seemed more like celebrations of a life well lived than sorrowful occasions. But each of those had been an instance where the deceased was far advanced in years and had lived a happy life. In a situation like Brad's, there was a feeling of heartbreak and the sadness of a life cut too short.

Watching her dear friend endure the pain of saying good-bye to her husband was even harder to bear than she'd anticipated. She'd clung tightly to Vickie's hand, her eyes traveling between the large photo of Brad that sat atop the mahogany coffin and the back of Ainsley's head as she sat in between her parents.

“It was a lovely service,” Vickie remarked as she flipped on the headlights of the rental car. She followed a red minivan into the long processional of cars leaving the church.

Kristy nodded. “The preacher did a wonderful job.”

They were silent for a moment.

“He really would've hated that, wouldn't he?” Vickie asked.

“Totally. He probably would've wanted us to tell funny stories about him.”

Vickie smiled. “Maybe we can do that later, once we're used to him not being here anymore.”

“The only comfort I have is knowing that Brad was a Christian.”

“I know what you mean. That at least makes it a little easier.”

Kristy looked out the car window, glad the day was overcast. Bright sunshine would've somehow been too much to handle.

“More coffee?” Mrs. Garrett asked.

“I'm fine, thanks.” Kristy scanned the crowded living room for a familiar face. She finally spotted Vickie speaking softly to an elderly woman. She made her way over.

“Your grandson was a wonderful man,” Vickie was saying, patting the woman's arm. “We were all better for knowing him.” Kristy nodded her agreement.

“And you must be Ainsley's other college friend, the one who lives in Tennessee?” The woman looked at Kristy through red-rimmed eyes.

“Yes, ma'am. I'm Kristy O'Neal.” she extended a hand, and the older woman took it in hers.

“I'm Martha Bledsoe, Brad's grandmother.” she dabbed her eyes with an embroidered handkerchief. “We're all just devastated.”

“I'm so sorry.”

Mrs. Bledsoe spotted someone across the room and excused herself.

“Have you seen Ainsley?”

Vickie played with the single strand of pearls around her neck. “Not lately. She might've gone back downstairs. I can see how this could be a little overwhelming.”

“You're probably right. Do you think it'd be okay if we went to see?”

“Sure. She might want the company.”

They scooted through the crowd to the basement door.

“Oh, good. I was just coming to find you,” Mrs. Garrett called to them before they could descend the stairs. “I think Ainsley is probably down there. This was just too much for her.” she held up a box. “Could you take this to her? One of Brad's colleagues dropped it by. Said it was stuff from his locker. I thought it might make her feel better to look through it.”

Kristy took the box. “Sure.” she followed Vickie down the stairs.

Today Ainsley was sitting on a blue plaid couch. Her red hair was pulled into a bun, but corkscrew tendrils escaped. She still wore the plain black dress she'd had on at the funeral.

She looked up at them through puffy eyes. “No one tells you how to act,” she said. “When all these people, these well-wishers, keep saying the same things over and over. ‘We're so sorry for your loss,' or ‘He was so young'. And I don't know what to say back. Because nothing they say makes it okay or makes it hurt any less.” she motioned to the dark, empty room around her. “So I figured I'd just be better off to come down here. I think I make people uncomfortable anyway.” she managed a brave smile. “But I hoped you guys would find me.”

Kristy sank down in the overstuffed recliner opposite the couch, clutching the box.

“One of Brad's coworkers was here,” Vickie said, sitting down

Beside Ainsley. “He brought the contents of his locker.” Kristy held up the box.

“But you might want to wait a few days before you look at them.”

Ainsley looked interested. “No. I'd like to see it, actually.”

Kristy handed the box over.

Ainsley lifted the lid and began pulling out the contents. She set the tattered wedding photo on the coffee table. “This was his favorite. He loved the way I was looking at him instead of the camera.” she smiled. “He'd just made a wisecrack about the photographer, and I looked back at him just as the picture was snapped.”

Kristy remembered their wedding day like it was yesterday. Such a celebration of love. It wasn't fancy, and it didn't come with all the bells and whistles of some weddings. She'd left the church that day thinking the ceremony was more about the marriage than the wedding. It had been refreshing compared to some of the extravagant weddings she'd been to.

Ainsley looked up at them, fresh tears in her eyes. “I was lucky to have had him for as long as I did.”

They both nodded.

“I've known the kind of love most people only dream about.” she covered her stomach with her hand and smiled tearfully.

She reached into the box and came up with an envelope stuffed so full it wouldn't close. She pulled out a stack of letters bound together by a rubber band. Flipping through them, she wrinkled her brow. “These aren't Brad's,” she said.

“Do they have a name on them?” Kristy asked, glancing over her shoulder.

Ainsley flipped through the stack. “It looks like each one is only addressed to ‘The Man of My Dreams' and is signed ‘Love, me'.”

Vickie looked puzzled. “And they aren't from you?”

“These aren't Brad's,” Ainsley said again, shaking her head. Kristy and Vickie exchanged glances.

Kristy reached over and took the stack of letters out of her friend's hand. “Then we'll just see to it that they get returned to the right person.”

Ainsely nodded. “Good.”

Kristy stuffed the stack of letters back in the envelope and projected calm for her friend's sake. She needn't have bothered putting up a good front, though. Ainsley had forgotten the letters already and was back to looking at the pictures and cards spread out in front of her.

Kristy stared at the envelope in her hand. Was there a lie lurking at the bottom of every declaration of love?

“I can't believe you brought those with you to the hotel,” Vickie chided her.

“Why? she said they weren't his. So don't you think it's okay to look through them and see who they belong to?” Kristy looked up from the bed where she lay on her stomach, reading the letters one by one.

“It isn't our business,” Vickie said, pulling some Crabtree & Evelyn lotion from her bag and smoothing it on her hands. “Besides, it's tacky to read someone else's love letters.”

Kristy pushed herself into a sitting position and crossed her legs akimbo. “Listen to this. ‘The time we spend together is magic. You are an incredible man. It would take an eternity for me to tell you how much I love you.'” she threw the letters down on the bed. “Not only are these poorly written, but they're also proof that Brad wasn't the devoted husband we thought he was,” she said angrily.

Vickie gasped. “You don't know that for a fact.” she chewed on her bottom lip. “And don't you dare utter a word of your suspicion in front of Ainsley or anyone in her family.”

“I'm not completely without tact. I'll try my best not to put my foot in my mouth. Besides”—Kristy folded the letters together and bound them with a rubber band—“don't you think she'll come to the same conclusion at some point?”

“No. You saw her today when she saw them. There wasn't an ounce of doubt in her voice or on her face.”

Kristy shook her head. “I guess at this point, her complete trust in him will protect her from the truth.”

Vickie eyed her suspiciously. “Just make sure that you take those letters with you tomorrow when we go say our good-byes. Don't tell Mrs. Garrett what's inside, either. There is no need for the others to suspect. That wouldn't do anyone any good.”

“I'd already planned on handling it that way.” Kristy pulled back the bedcovers. “Don't worry. I promise not to make some kind of etiquette faux pas.”

But as she drifted to sleep, Kristy couldn't help but have a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach. Ainsley and Brad had been the ideal couple. And knowledge that there might've been a secret side of Brad shook Kristy to the core.

Ace paced behind the front desk of the visitor center. Kristy should be in the air right now. He'd said an extra prayer for her safety this morning, but he couldn't help but let worry cloud his day.

He tried to tell himself that planes were safer than cars, but then he started thinking about her fighting Memphis traffic and worried even more. He knew a lot of his worry stemmed from Caroline's accident. It had been such a wake-up call for him that life was fleeting.

One minute a person could be standing next to you, telling you their plans for the future, and the next you could be standing over their grave, clinging to only the memory of their past. Things just happen so quickly.

He'd spoken to Kristy this morning, right before she got on the plane. He felt like an idiot for calling. But he just needed to hear her voice. The intimate moment they'd shared last week was still replaying in his mind. And it was strange, but the moment that meant the most to him wasn't the kiss. It was the fact that when she needed someone to comfort her during a tough time, she'd chosen to share it with him.

He knew her well enough to know that moment spoke volumes about how much she trusted him. Maybe she didn't trust him completely yet. He could understand that after what she'd been through. But it showed him that she was at least on the road to trusting him.

And nothing would make him happier than the chance to earn that trust.

Kristy felt a sense of relief as she turned beside the park entrance sign. She couldn't get home soon enough. All she wanted was to wash the plane germs off herself and fall into bed. In between her nice clean sheets.

When Ace had called this morning as she was boarding the plane, he'd told her that Sam would be waiting on her when she got home. She was glad. She didn't want to have to drive over to Ace's to pick the dog up. She had a feeling Ace would want to talk about her trip. She also had a nagging feeling that he was ready to talk about what had happened between them last week.

And the only thing she was sure of, besides Brad's infidelity, was that she wasn't ready to talk about her feelings yet.

She'd finally admitted to Vickie on the car ride to Phoenix just how much those letters had bothered her. “They were the only real-life, modern-day example of happily ever after I could come up with, and now I find out that it was all a sham,” she'd said.

Nothing Vickie could say made her feel better. Not even when Vickie promised that she would at least think about signing up with an online dating service, and Kristy had been trying to get her to do that for years.

She parked the Jeep in the driveway and pulled her suitcase out of the back end. Sure enough, there was Sam in the window, his whole body wagging with happiness.

“Hey, little guy. Did you have fun with Ace?” she knelt down on the floor and let Sam give her puppy kisses. “Come on, let's go outside.”

At her words, Sam ran to the back door, eagerly waiting for it to open.

Kristy unlocked the door, and he ran outside.

As she walked into the kitchen, she cringed. Her list. Her anti-Mark list was prominently displayed on the fridge. Had Ace seen it?

She flipped the light on and saw a shiny silver gift bag on the counter. That definitely wasn't there when she left. She went over and peeked inside. Gourmet hot chocolate mix, bubble bath from bath & body Works, and the newest John Grisham she'd mentioned she was looking forward to reading.

She set her prizes on the counter and spotted a card in the bottom.

She thought back to the advice she'd given Robert about getting to know a prospective girlfriend. Ace certainly knew her well. He'd paid attention to her.

She just wasn't sure she was ready. She glanced at the list on her fridge. Was she ready to risk her heart again? How could she know for sure?

Ace was at work extra early. He'd been so excited this morning, because he knew she was back. He looked impatiently at his watch. Of course, there was no need to be here early. She usually didn't make it until 8:00a.m. On the dot, and sometimes that was even pushing it. He smiled.

“What are you grinning about?” Owen asked.

“Oh, nothing,” Ace said, embarrassed.

Owen chuckled. “I figured you were just happy because Kristy'll be in today.”

“Oh, is she coming back today? I'd forgotten.” He tried to keep a straight face but lost it and burst into laughter.

Owen joined in. “So I take that to mean you'll be at the picnic together tonight?”

“That was the plan before she left town. I'm hoping we're still on.” He grinned. “How about you? You bringing a date?” He leaned against the front desk, glad there weren't any visitors yet.

The older man nodded. “Dorothy's coming with me. She tried to back out, said she was embarrassed about Zach and the silly string. But I told her nobody held it against her.”

“Has he warmed up to you any more?”

“Maybe a little. I took him fishin' yesterday. Let him drive the boat.” He shrugged. “That seemed to win me some points. Though I hate to bribe him.”

“No harm in that. Once he starts to get to know you, he'll come around.”

“I hope so. Can't help but feel for him, though. That's a tough age, even without all the changes he's had to get used to.”

Ace wondered if every age could be considered a “tough age.” it sure seemed that way to him sometimes.

“Can you handle things out here?” Owen put his hat on top of his head. “I need to run over to the administration building.”

Ace nodded. “Take your time.”

Owen walked through the swinging doors and into the office area. In a second, Ace heard the back door close. A moment later, it opened again.

“Did you forget something?” He stepped through the swinging doors, and there she was. Kristy. “Oh. It's you.” His heart beat a little faster at the sight of her.

“Sorry I'm running late.” The dark circles underneath her eyes gave away her exhaustion. Even so, he had to resist the urge to pull her into his arms right there.

“Not a problem.” He grinned. “I'm glad you're back.”

She nodded. “Me, too. And thanks for the gifts. And for keeping Sam.” she finally gave him a tiny smile. “I can't thank you enough.”

“Tell you what. Say you're still going to be my date to the picnic tonight, and we'll call it even.”

“It's a deal.”

The bell on the front door rang. The first visitor of the day had arrived.

“I'll take care of them.” He motioned toward the front desk.

She slowly made her way into the seasonal office. Something was different.

“Hey.”

She stopped in the doorway and turned to face him. “Are you okay?”

She nodded. “Just tired, that's all.”

He stepped through the swinging doors to greet the visitors, but he couldn't shake the feeling there was something wrong with her besides exhaustion. Of course, she had just been through an emotional time with her friend. That was probably it. She'd be back to her old self in a few days.