The Marriage Season

Maybe Alma should’ve been a child psychologist instead of a school secretary; maybe in some ways it was the same job. Bex wrote the check on the spot, making it for the entire semester. After that she decided that with the marathon tomorrow, she could use a run. A light one, because it wasn’t a good idea to push herself too hard the day before a race. The other benefit was that when she ran, there was nothing to do but think, and she needed to get a grip on the current situation.

Of course, as she exited the building, she bumped into Tate. Or rather slammed into him, her head down since she was searching for her keys and not paying attention. He caught her by the arms. “In a hurry?” he asked with a low laugh.

“Kind of.” She flushed. “This is getting to be a habit.”

“Seems to be.” He let her go. “Ben forgot his math homework. I thought I’d do him a favor and drop it off, although he’d better remember the next time or take a zero. I’m trying to teach him about responsibility but he is only eight, and he did do the assignment without having to be reminded. So he gets one free pass. What are you doing here?”

Bex steadied herself and fabricated a smile, which she usually never did. However, Tate Calder shook her normal composure. “Josh forgot his lunch card.”

He frowned. “They keep it here at the school.”

She gave it up. “Fine. That’s true. His parents forgot to pay for his lunch card. I ran over to take care of it, but I’m new to this experience. I’m going to go home, ask my sister why she isn’t on top of it and then go for a run. I have a marathon tomorrow morning.”

“Want someone to run with?”

He meant himself? “You’re a runner?”

His smile was addictive. She could become a fan. Wait, she already was.

“I sure am.”

“Ten miles,” she warned. “I usually go longer, but tomorrow’s the race.”

“Ten miles is no problem. I’ve run marathons, so I know you’re right about not pushing too hard the day before.”

“Really? I mean, you’ve run marathons?” She felt a little foolish repeating his own words back to him, but verbal dexterity seemed to have deserted her.

“I have,” he replied. He had the most delicious smile, spontaneous and easy. “Where should we meet and what time?”

She sensed that he was issuing a challenge, and she was always up for that. “Pioneer Park, top of the trail, and give me about twenty minutes.”

He opened the door wider. “Will do. See you there.”

That was one dangerous man, Bex concluded as she walked to her vehicle.

Those flashy good looks concealed a sensitive interior if he was dropping off his son’s homework. Besides, he’d definitely stood up to Greg and he’d had no obligation to do so, other than his friendship with Tripp. Even more than his support of Tripp, his obvious concern for Tara and Josh—especially Josh—had particularly appealed to her.

So he was a runner. Huh.

She’d show him the true definition of a run for his money. She had some frustration to work out.

Predictably, Tara was in bed when Bex got to the house to change her clothes. Her sister was bleary-eyed and seriously in need of coffee when she emerged from the guest bedroom.

It was almost noon.

Bex went into the kitchen, pressed a button on the coffeemaker and prepared the coffee. The lunch money mattered not at all. Josh did. As she delivered the coffee, she said, “Tara, I get that your life is upside down, I really do. But you need to talk to Josh. Make sure he doesn’t have issues you haven’t addressed.”

“Like what?”

How could the woman be so self-involved? So obtuse? And about her own child! Oh, boy, Bex really needed this run. “Can you just talk to him? That’s all I’m asking.”

She’d have to leave it at that for now and hope Tara discovered her better self—not to mention her maternal instincts—in the next few hours.

* * *

TATE MET HER at the top of the path in a dark T-shirt and gray sweatpants, and she had to admit to a small—well, not that small—heartthrob moment.

It wasn’t just that he was handsome, or tall, or all-around gorgeous. Oh, he was all those things, but none of that meant as much to her as dropping off his son’s homework at school in the middle of the day. She wasn’t sure why that was such a turn-on; it simply was. The single dad at the elementary school who was also a sexy former pilot. She went for interesting when it came to guys, and he qualified.

She pointed. “This way.”

They took off, and she immediately had to tone it down, because she was such a competitor and this wasn’t the time for it. He was definitely very fit from what she could see, and she was really looking. She knew he’d be able to outpace her. “Ten easy miles, okay?”

He ran with the grace of a natural athlete, and she liked the symmetry of his stride. “Easy is better for me. With the boys, I don’t have much opportunity. I’d love to run more often. I can’t manage it.”

She wanted to ask about his wife, but shied away. Will was still an unhealed wound for her, so she should give Tate the same consideration by avoiding the places that remained raw and sore. Instead she concentrated on the path. “The temperature is perfect. Not cold, but cool enough.”

“The scenery is perfect, too.”

It was true that the mountains were magnificent with their forested sides and snow-covered peaks, but he was studying her. She said wryly, “I have a feeling I was paid a compliment and I have no idea how to respond—except to point out that I probably look as tired as I feel—and there are a lot of miles between me and that finish line tomorrow.”

“What if I take Josh and the boys out to eat and we watch the finish? I’m sure they’d want to be there when you cross the line. The boys would think it was fun, waiting for you to show up. Would that work?”

For her, yes. And it was generous of him to include Josh. Tara was like a bulb that went on and off. Sometimes she was a great mother and sometimes—now, for instance—she just wasn’t there. “I’m not his guardian in any way, so I’ll ask my sister, but I suspect you’re on. Thanks for the offer.”

“Seems to me you’re very much his guardian right now.” He said it seriously. “Of course, I do need his mother’s permission. Tripp mentioned your brother-in-law’s visit to the club. I’ve met him, and he doesn’t seem dangerous, but he is angry.”

Naturally she’d shared the whole story with Hadleigh and Mel, which was why Tripp, and no doubt Spence, had heard it, too. Bex shook her head. “Greg doesn’t like me and the feeling is mutual. I wish Tara hadn’t told him I tried to talk her out of marrying him in the first place, but she did, and after that there was no going back. He was running around on her when they were engaged and, needless to say, after they tied the knot. The entire town knew it, and she married him, anyway.”

They rounded a curve. “Fidelity in marriage is not negotiable.”

Curious at the vehemence in his tone, she looked at his profile as they ran. His expression was suddenly remote, as though he was thinking of something else. No woman in her right mind would cheat on him, so that couldn’t be it.

Could it?

“I agree.” She was hitting a comfortable pace now, and hoped the same thing happened tomorrow. She decided to change the subject. “So you’re building a house from the foundation up and going into horse-breeding as a new business, plus you’re a single parent. Sounds like you have a stress-free life.”

“You bet. I am completely without cares in this world. Hey, didn’t you recently franchise a chain of fitness centers? Does that mean you’re as happy-go-lucky as I am?”

“Sure thing.” She grinned and then responded in a more serious voice. “The reality is somewhat different from the dream, but I worked hard to get this far, so I refuse to complain.”

“Do you always wear that bracelet?” That question came out of nowhere.

He was referring to her bracelet with the three charms from the marriage pact.

He’d noticed.

She said, “Always.”