The Late Bloomer's Baby

He didn’t want to have this conversation on Isabel’s front porch, but he could at least start them talking. “I walked out on a failing relationship.”

“There you go.”

Callie didn’t meet his eyes. Ethan stepped nearer and realized she was watching someone park a battered pickup behind the little white Mazda she was driving.

A redheaded man got out and walked up the drive. At first, Ethan had the blinding thought that the slightly plump man was Callie’s boyfriend, and the cause of her irrational behavior.

But then the guy said, “Hi, Callie. No one was home at Josie’s apartment. Did Isabel bring my kids here?”

“They’re in the house,” Callie said.

Aha! The redhead was Isabel’s boyfriend. Ethan wondered at his sense of relief. He still cared about Callie and always would, but he didn’t expect her to live the life of a hermit.

He didn’t intend to do that. He had LeeAnn, who had made her readiness for romance quite apparent. His marriage had failed. He should move on, and be happy for Callie.

“Wait there for one minute until I’m finished here, and I’ll go get the kids,” Callie hollered at the other man. Then she shot a glance at Ethan and added, “All of them.”

Man, she’d sounded bossy. Isabel’s friend stopped immediately and stood perusing the pile of junk at the end of the drive.

Callie returned her attention to Ethan, her eyes huge. “Okay, you win,” she said, speaking quickly. “I’ll meet you somewhere later and we can talk.”

“I could come in and help.”

“No. You have to go now.”

For whatever reason, she was rushing him off. Ethan liked the idea of meeting her later, though. He could use the time to think about how to approach the subject of divorce. That shouldn’t be hard after a two-year separation, but it was. Apparently, on both sides.

“Tonight at, say, ten o’clock, I’ll meet you at Mary’s Bar,” she said. “You know the place, out off Ohio Street?”

How could he forget it? Before they were married, he and Callie had spent hours making out in the bar’s back parking lot. “All right. Mary’s at ten.”

Callie paused and frowned as if she intended to say more, but then she just tugged on his sleeve. “Come on.”

“What are we doing?”

She started down the drive. “Walking to your car.”

He laughed. Did she expect her boyfriend to show up? Maybe she didn’t want to explain Ethan’s presence to her new love interest. Come to think of it, maybe the guy didn’t know she’d been married.

As much as the thought bothered him, Ethan knew he was probably right. A jealous boyfriend would explain her bizarre behavior. “All right, but you’d better show up,” he said as he opened his car door and sank inside. “I know where to find you if you don’t.”

“I’ll be there.”

Ethan was much happier to hear those words than he should have been.

Chapter Three

Callie stepped inside the door of Mary’s and allowed her senses to adjust. The sharp smell of cigarette smoke made her want to pinch her nose, and the crowded darkness invited trouble. The bar was small and shabby, but it fulfilled a purpose. Local citizens kept the business going because they preferred to drink and mingle without having to drive the extra few miles to a more upscale place.

Since she valued logic over social approval, Callie didn’t mind admitting that she preferred clean smells and daylight. She’d never frequented Mary’s or any other bar, but she’d wanted a good place to talk to Ethan tonight.

The crowd added safety, yet unless something happened, folks would be uninterested in her and Ethan’s conversation. Besides, she’d wanted to meet Ethan late, so she could leave Luke at Josie’s apartment without burdening her overworked sisters with his care. He’d been asleep for an hour already, and he’d likely sleep through until morning.

Ethan was here, somewhere. She’d seen his car in the lot. She scanned the space and located him sitting at a table just yards in front of her with his back to the door. Surrounded by four pretty women, he was entertaining them with an anecdote that must be enthralling.

The ladies were all pitched forward in their seats, eyes wide, heads nodding and lips pursed. Suddenly, all four women opened those pouty lips to gasp.

Callie swallowed a lump of jealousy. Ethan had always liked people. All people, not just women. He was probably passing the time, expecting her to be late, as usual. In any case, his behavior was none of her business.

Heavens, he looked good. The sight of his broad shoulders and muscled arms made her wish for things she shouldn’t. Ethan had made her feel sexy and soft, instead of just smart. No couple could have had a more romantic beginning. None. Just like the ladies at his table now, she’d brightened in his company.

She’d be tempted to repeat every trial of their marriage, just to relive one of those early days.

If that were possible, however, she’d be wishing Luke right out of her life.

She couldn’t do that. Luke was her life.

Her deep, crazy wishes hardly mattered, anyway. Ethan had made it clear that he was finished with her. He’d tired of her, just as her mother had predicted.

An outbreak of wild female giggles nearly brought tears to Callie’s eyes. She knew her envy didn’t make sense. She wasn’t supposed to care. She was supposed to be over him, vanishing into her separate life while he vanished into his.

Unfortunately, when it came to Ethan, Callie’s emotions often overtook her rational thoughts.

She’d have to be very careful.

She approached the table, stopping at Ethan’s side. “I’m here,” she said.

Ethan said goodbye to the ladies, then grabbed his bottle of beer and stood. “I couldn’t find an empty table a few minutes ago, but we can hunt for one together.”

They surveyed the area. Most of the crowd had gathered around the pool tables or the bar. All five tables in the larger room were occupied, but Ethan put a hand at Callie’s waist to guide her in that direction.

A single guy sat alone at a table, ogling a petite blonde waiting to order at the bar. Ethan approached, offering the guy a nod in greeting. “Pretty girl,” he said. “Interested?”

“Sure as taxes,” the man said.

Ethan handed him a bill. “I saw her eyeing you earlier. She’s receptive. Go offer to buy her a drink.”

“Wow. Thanks, man.”

“We’ll be taking your table, though.”

“No problem.”

Callie smiled as they sat down. Ethan was in a friendly mood. Maybe they could talk without getting into an argument. She’d always felt so out of control during their clashes, and she feared that she’d say something she’d forever regret.

Could she convince Ethan that he should simply vanish again, without discussing a divorce?

“You want something to drink?” he asked. “I’m sure they have something nonalcoholic.”