“Of course.” I gesture to the chair across from me. “What’s going on?”
“Lindsey invited me to Mistletoe Fest on Saturday.” He folds his hands on the table in front of him. “She mentioned the whole family was going.”
My heart hammers an erratic beat in my chest. The news comes as a bit of a surprise, even though I told Ellie they should go without me.
“Everyone except you.” He pins me with a concerned stare. “And anyway, I don’t know if you already have plans, but I would love it if you could come, even just for a bit.”
“Oh.” I take a long sip of my coffee, hoping to quell my dry throat, but I may as well have been drinking a spoonful of sugar. “I, um, it’s not that I have plans, per se.”
I can’t tell him the real reason I’m not going. I’ll be a blubbering mess, and my insides are already mixed up enough as it is, like a deck of cards scattered on the ground.
“I hope I’m not overstepping here,” he says. “But when Lindsey mentioned you weren’t going, she looked kind of…disappointed. Sad, even.”
Fingers wrap around my heart, giving it a squeeze. “She did?”
He nods. “MJ, I really like Lindsey, and I want to keep getting to know her. Part of that means getting to know the people who mean the most to her. And that’s you.”
I blink, a rush of emotion jolting through me like a power surge. “Really?”
“Well, yeah,” he says with a soft chuckle. “You’re her mom.”
I run my fingertip along the edge of my cup.
“So, would you come to the festival?” he asks.
I open my mouth to protest, but he cuts me off.
“Please. It would mean a lot to me, and I know it would mean a lot to Lindsey too.”
His fixes his hopeful brown eyes on me, and all I can see is Lindsey. My first daughter, the second love of my life. I swallow the lump that forms in my throat. Her happiness means the world to me, and this precious man in front of me just wants to make her smile.
Guilt washes over me. Maybe I’ve been selfish in not agreeing to go. This festival brings back painful memories as so many things do. My entire life has become a never-ending reminder of what I had. Whatwehad. But how can I expect Lindsey to think about her own future if I’m not willing to take even the tiniest step forward? I’ve always prided myself on leading by example. I need to do this and take one for the team.
“Okay,” I finally say. “I’ll go.”
His eyes brighten. He stands and reaches for my hand, giving it a squeeze. “Thank you, MJ. Seriously, we’re gonna have a great time.”
The box I’ve kept locked deep inside rattles, the Ghost of Christmas Past clamoring to be let out.
I swallow hard. “I’m looking forward to it.”
He heads to the counter. Once I know he can’t see me, I drop my head into my hands.
What am I doing? In the span of mere hours, I’ve agreed to go to dinner with a man who isn’t my husbandandgo back to where my dream life became a nightmare.
My phone buzzes, vibrating the table, and it’s a text from Lindsey.
Having a movie night with Kayla. Be home around ten.
At least I’ll get to keep one of my questionable choices to myself tonight.
“Mr. Ron,”a young hostess greets us from behind the podium at the front of Lovebird Brews. “It’s good to see you. I was wondering where you’d been.”
“I was visiting my son in Cincinnati,” he says. “I had a minor medical issue a couple weeks back, and he insisted I stay with him until I got back on my feet.”
Her blonde ponytail bobs as she leans across over the stand, gripping the edge. “Are you okay?”
“Fit as a fiddle.” Ron smiles and places a hand on my arm. Even through my coatandmy turtleneck, my skin prickles. “MJ, this is Kerry.”
