Starting Over (17 page)

“If only it
were that easy.” She sat back, her hand drifting to her flat
stomach.

“Look, I don’t
know what else to say, hon. The divorce is final, he left town, and
he’s made it pretty clear he’s not coming back anytime soon.”

“Maybe he’d
change his mind if he found out he’s going to be a father.” Eve had
no choice but to let James in on her secret. She had to find Alex,
and James was her only hope at the moment.

“What did you
say?”

“I’m
pregnant.”

“Are you
serious?”

Eve tipped her
head back, looking at the wide wood molding where the wallpaper met
the ceiling. “Do I sound like I’m joking?”

“Oh my God, how
long have you known?”

“I found out
the day he gave me the divorce papers.”

James groaned.
“Talk about lousy timing.”

“You can say
that again.” Their conversation had played over and over in her
mind since that day, reminding her that Alex was unlikely to take
the news well. “I need to see him. I know he’s trying to move on,
but I’d never forgive myself if I didn’t tell him about the baby.
He deserves to know.”

“Yeah, of
course he does. He would want to know.”

“So, did he
tell you where he is?” Eve held her breath, praying he would be
able to give her the information she’d been waiting for.

“No, he
didn’t.”

“Damn it,” she
said, slapping the desk. “So we’re no further ahead.”

“I wouldn’t say
that. I know where he is.”

Eve’s heart
hammered when she asked, “You do? How?”

“I was tracing
the call. I thought he might try to contact me. I needed to know
where he was.” James chuckled, obviously happy with his decision.
“He called from his cell, so I’ll call in a favor and find out
which tower it bounced off. I’ll text you as soon as I know.”

“Is that even
legal?” Eve asked, already out of her seat and making her way to
the door.

“I won’t tell
if you don’t.”

***

Eighteen hours
later, Eve was sitting in what appeared to be the only diner in the
small town James had told her about. She’d driven through the
night, which wasn’t an easy feat without caffeine.

The weary
waitress approached her, pen and paper in hand. “Can I take your
order, hon?”

“Um, maybe just
some orange juice. I’ll have a look at the menu in a second.”

“Take your
time,” she said, sticking her notepad back into her stained white
apron.

Eve looked at
the plastic menu, wondering if she should take the time to eat. She
didn’t want to, but her stomach rumbled and reminded her that she
was eating for two. She decided on blueberry pancakes before
setting the menu back in the metal frame. Eve had a hard time
imagining her sophisticated husband making his home in that town.
It wasn’t his style. Her mind reminded her that he was her
ex
-husband, but her heart said that Alex would always be
hers, no matter what some stupid piece of paper said… as long as he
still felt the same way.

“You decided?”
the middle-aged waitress asked.

“A short stack
of blueberry pancakes please. Hold the whipped cream and
butter.”

“You got
it.”

“Um, could I
ask you something? I’m looking for a man…”

She snorted,
rolling her eyes. “Aren’t we all?”

Eve smiled.
“I’m looking for my husband, ex-husband, actually.”

Narrowing her
eyes, the brunette leaned in. “Is he refusin’ to pay child support?
I know what that’s like, hon. My ex is a real piece of work. I been
tryin’—”

“It’s nothing
like that,” Eve said, wishing she didn’t have to share her personal
business with a stranger. The only way to find Alex in this little
Podunk town was to ask around. “It’s just that he and I have
something really important to discuss. He’s not from around here,
but I know he called a friend from here yesterday. His name is Alex
Bolton and—”

“Hey, is he a
really hot guy riding a motorcycle?” she asked, grinning. “Tall,
short black hair, dark tan, broad shoulders…” Her eyes drifted
closed as she practically sighed. “And those eyes, not really blue,
more silver, really…”

“That’s him.”
Eve wasn’t surprised the waitress had taken a physical inventory of
Alex’s obvious assets. Most women did. “Do you know where he’s
staying?”

“As a matter of
fact, I do. One of the waitresses talked her old man into renting
your husband his fishing cabin. I think it was only supposed to be
for a week, but he must like it because he was in here for dinner
last night.”

“Oh, could you
tell me where this place is?” Eve asked, excited just thinking
about the prospect of wrapping her arms around Alex again. Every
night since he’d left the inn, she’d fallen asleep thinking about
the night their baby was conceived.

“I can’t, but
he can.” She hooked a thumb over her shoulder. “His name’s Jim. He
owns the place Alex is renting.”

“Thanks,” Eve
said. Her eyes drifted to the big man at the counter reading a
newspaper and drinking coffee. Steeling her courage, she got up,
rounded her shoulders, and walked toward him. She hoped he was
nicer than he looked. “Um, excuse me, sir. Could I speak to you for
a minute?”

He eyed her up
and down, noting the black capri leggings, long black tank top, and
gold flip-flops. She’d dressed for comfort since she was driving a
long way. She could have flown, but given her queasy stomach, she
didn’t think that was a good idea.

“What do you
want?” he practically growled, barely sparing her a glance.

“I’m looking
for someone. The waitress told me you might be able to help
me.”

“I doubt
it.”

“His name is
Alex, and I understand you’re renting him your cabin?”

That got his
attention. “What do you want with him?”

“He’s my
ex-husband. We—”

“Huh, so you’re
the little lady who broke his heart, huh?” A slow smile spread
across his face. “You must’ve really done a number on him if he
wants to hole up in my fishing cabin instead of lookin’ for another
job. Tell me something, how long can he go on without work?”

Eve wasn’t
about to tell a stranger Alex didn’t have to work a day in his life
even if he had confided in the man about his job and marriage. “Um,
if you could just tell me where to find your place—”

“I don’t know
if I should,” he said. “You look like you could be trouble.”

Eve tried to
tamp down her irritation. Jim was the only person who could give
her the information she needed, and she had to hold her temper if
she expected to wear him down. She forced a smile she hoped he
perceived as genuine. Eve hadn’t flirted with a man in years. She
was so out of practice her attempts would warrant an eye roll from
the nearest woman, but if she could sweet-talk Jim, he could lead
her straight to Alex. “Now what makes you think that?”

“A pretty
little thing like you,” he said, chuckling, “is always hell on a
man’s heart. Let me tell you, when that poor old boy rolled through
here, he looked like he’d been to hell and back.”

Eve’s heart
twisted when she thought about Alex all alone, feeling betrayed by
the people he loved most. She let the tears build in her eyes,
knowing most men would do almost anything to halt the waterworks.
“That’s why I need to see him, Jim. He and I… Alex and I met in
college.” She sniffled, reaching for a napkin as he looked on,
appearing horrified. Dabbing at her eyes with the napkin, she
caught sight of her waitress winking with an amused expression. “I
never expected us to grow apart. I still love him. I need him to
know that. Please help me find him.”

“Jesus,” Jim
muttered, shifting in his seat. “I don’t want to get in the middle
of no lovers quarrel.” He patted the pockets of his plaid
button-down shirt. “I must’ve left my pen in the car.”

“No problem,”
Eve said, whipping out her Blackberry. Pulling up the notepad on
her phone, she held her finger over the keypad. “Just give me the
address. I’m sure my GPS can find it.”

“It’s a little
out there.” He looked out the window and spotted her convertible
Mercedes. “I don’t know if your GPS will pick it up.”

The last thing
she wanted was to get lost in the middle of nowhere. She slipped
her phone back in her oversized Louis Vuitton purse and dug around
for a pen. “Okay, maybe you could just jot the directions down for
me.”

“You got
anything to write on in that suitcase?” he asked, looking amused.
Eve frowned and dug through the pockets for an old receipt large
enough to accommodate his directions. “Never mind. This’ll do.” He
chuckled and pulled a napkin from the dispenser, jotted down the
directions, and handed it to her. “Good luck, honey. I hope y’all
work things out. Your man seems like one of the good guys.”

“He is.” Eve
smiled as she folded the paper napkin. “Thank you.”

“Pancakes are
up, hon,” the waitress said, rounding the counter with Eve’s
plate.

“No time to eat
now, Bernice,” Eve said, eyeing her nametag. She pulled two
twenties from her purse and dropped them on the table. “Thanks for
all your help though.”

“Good luck,”
Bernice called after her.

Eve waved and
rushed out the door, hoping she wouldn’t need luck.

Alex was just docking
Jim’s old fishing boat when he heard footsteps on the old wood
planks. Looking up, he spotted Gloria carrying a paper bag and
running after her little boy. He and Gloria had become friends.
Since he could only buy groceries in small quantities because of
the storage limitations on his bike, he usually went into town
every other day. He’d always stop by the diner to see if she was
working, and if she was, she’d join him for a coffee on her
break.

She reminded
him of Tonya, but without the advantages of a life of privilege. He
knew being a single parent was hard for her, and if he could access
his bank accounts without raising a lot of questions, he would have
gladly given her the money for a decent car and a few months’
rent.

“What’re you
doing here?” he asked, grinning as he tied off the boat.

“I had a rare
day off, and Jacob was jibber-jabbering about fishing. I hope you
don’t mind we crashed your party.”

Alex hopped out
of the boat just in time to reach the little guy before he got too
close to the edge. Swooping him up, he said, “Hey, mister, don’t
you know that if you get too close to the edge, the fish will bite
your toes off?” Tickling his belly, Alex smiled when Jacob
laughed.

“Thanks,”
Gloria said, flattening her palm against her heaving chest.
“Sometimes he’s so fast I can barely keep up. It almost makes me
wish for when he was still crawling. At least then I had a
shot.”

Alex could only
imagine how hard trying to juggle the demands of being a single
parent with school and work must be for Gloria, but she obviously
loved her little boy. Alex had met Jacob a few times at the diner,
when her father brought him along to pick up Gloria, and he seemed
like a happy, well-adjusted toddler.

“Oh, I left his
fishing rod in the car,” she said, setting the paper bag down on
the dock. “I better go get it.”

“And his
lifejacket,” Alex called after her. She waved to let Alex know
she’d heard him. The water was only a few feet deep off the end of
the dock, but Alex knew if Jacob was his kid, he wouldn’t take any
chances. “So how you been, buddy?” He walked Jacob to the end of
the dock where he’d seen a few smallmouth bass jumping earlier.
“You wanna catch a fish today?”

“Fish,” Jacob
said, pointing at the water.

“That’s right,
there are lots of fish in there just waiting for you to catch
them.” He smiled when Jacob giggled. Alex remembered some of the
afternoons he’d spent on a fishing boat with his dad. They’d had
some great talks about school, sports, friends, and girls. Anything
that was on Alex’s mind, he knew he could share with his dad.
Thinking about Jacob’s dad just walking out of his life angered
Alex. Anyone could see Jacob was a great kid who would eventually
need a father to confide in. He had a grandfather who loved him,
but no one could take the place of a father.

“Sorry that
took so long,” Gloria said, running down the dock. “The damn line
got caught, and I had to work out a rat’s nest.”

Alex smiled
when he saw the small plastic rod. Gloria had told him her little
boy would turn three next month. He was big for his age, but he
wouldn’t be ready for a real rod and reel for a few more years.
“Well, it looks like you’re almost ready to go fishing, buddy. Hmm,
your mama may have forgot one thing though. Bait?”

“Damn,” she
said, tossing down the lifejacket. “I knew I forgot something.”

“No worries.”
Alex set Jacob down when he reached for his mama. “Your dad has
some gear in the bunker. Let me grab a few baits.”

“Maybe worms
would be better,” Gloria said, looking amused.

Raising an
eyebrow, Alex said, “If you see any squirming around here, be my
guest, girl.”

Gloria wrinkled
her nose as she peered over the edge of the dock at the wet
shoreline. “Yuck, I’m not going after those.”

“Okay, so we’ll
pass on live bait for today.” While he wouldn’t admit it, he was
glad they’d stopped by. Having some company for a change was nice.
“Whatcha got in the bag?”

“Lunch,” she
said, securing her son’s lifejacket before reaching for the hat and
sunscreen she’d brought. “I figured I owed you an order of
fries.”

Chuckling, he
shouted, “You owe me a couple of orders, not that I’m keeping
track.” As he opened the door to the dusty, crowded bunker, Alex
knew he would have his work cut out for him if he planned to make
the place his own.

***