Aside from that major thing, they’d been happy together.

  But that was about to be put to the test.

  “I don’t know who you’re talking about.” She left the

  room when the dryer buzzed, and she started folding

  clothes, well aware that he had followed her.

  “Come on, Iris, don’t bullshit me. You’ve been waiting for

  this from the day she drove away. Hell, I know that’s why

  you got yourself put on that planning committee for the

  reunion.” He moved closer to her, but his voice got louder.

  “Did it give you shivers when you licked the invitation

  closed and dropped it in the mail to the high and mighty

  professor?” He took another swig of the beer and licked his

  lips as he slapped her ass again. “I know that’s what all the

  dieting and exercise was for the last couple of weeks. It

  certainly wasn’t for my benefit.”

  Iris put her hands on the washing machine and leaned

  forward a little. “Jaxon and I were only friends—why can’t

  you accept that? She isn’t here anymore, but you are. I’m

  not married to her—I’m married to you. Don’t you get it? If

  you don’t, I’ll explain it to you in a way you’ll understand

  once and for all. You won, Daniel. I married you, that means

  you won, so give it a rest.”

  “I’ve heard that before, and you might think I’m an idiot,

  but I’m not. She looked down her nose at me today, and all I

  could think of was how you’d be salivating all over her the

  first chance you got. That’s a fact, but the fucking thing I

  can’t stand is that everyone in this fucking town knows it

  too. It’s embarrassing to hear them still whispering when I

  walk up. But why would that be different from any other

  day? Thanks to you I’ve been nothing but a laughingstock in

  this town since that bitch left.”

  She didn’t move from the front of the washer, but she

  turned her head to look back at him. “What in the hell are

  you talking about?”

  “Come on, don’t play dumb now—you know exactly what

  I’m talking about. How long are you going to wait before

  running over there? How long before you start pulling out

  photos of all she missed out on?”

  “Did you start drinking before you left work? I still don’t

  know what you’re talking about.”

  “She left before you could show her your special little

  project,” he said with as much venom as he could conjure

  up. When he was this angry, she knew venom was never a

  problem for him. She loved him, but he could be trying

  when his manhood and ego were challenged.

  “Spit it out, or stop talking.” God, would this day ever

  end? This was the millionth time they’d had this same

  argument, and it was never going to be put to rest, so it was

  a waste of time.

  “Iris, stop fucking lying to me and to everyone else. You

  know exactly what I’m talking about, and I’m going to enjoy

  all the shit that’s about to blow up in your face when she

  sees Sean. The downside is that all your lying is going to

  take me down with you.” He crushed the can and threw it

  toward the trash can and missed, making it clatter across

  the kitchen.

  When Iris’s eyes widened, he stopped talking and turned

  around. He punched his palm when he saw their daughter

  standing in the back doorway. From the look on Sean’s face,

  she had heard every word of the fight. Without saying

  anything, Sean ran to the back of the house and slammed

  her bedroom door.

  “Honey, wait,” Iris called after her, but for the second

  time that afternoon she didn’t get a response from one of

  her children. When she glared at Daniel, he put his hands

  up.

  “Don’t you dare blame me for this. All this is on you. I’m

  not the bad guy here.”

  “What you should’ve done was leave me a long time ago

  if you felt so wronged. I didn’t marry you to make your life

  miserable. Actually, it’s not too late.” The tears she was

  tired of shedding in private came again, and she wiped her

  face impatiently. “The way you talk to me and constantly

  blame me for everything that’s wrong in your life means

  you’d be happier without me.”

  He sighed, his shoulders dropping as he relented. “Don’t

  give me that shit. What we need to agree on is that we

  made this bed and we’re stuck with each other. We can

  spend the years we have left having this same fucking fight,

  or put a bullet through it.” He lowered his voice and came

  closer. “All I’ve ever wanted was for you to admit what you

  did. What you did to us, to yourself, and more importantly,

  what you did to Sean.”

  “I was young and stupid, and I apologize…again.

  Sometimes I don’t acknowledge what you did for me, but

  I’ve always appreciated it.” She lowered her head, thinking

  not for the first time how lucky she was. Daniel was often an

  ass, but he’d come through for her. He liked to remind her

  constantly that he’d done that, but he’d been what she’d

  needed.

  “What I’ve always wanted was for you to love me for it,

  Iris. That’s it—it was all that was important to me.” He

  rubbed his forehead. “You can’t bring yourself to say that,

  can you?”

  “Daniel, if you don’t think I love you, then we really are

  over.” She motioned between them. “Neither of us ended up

  with the life we wanted when we were young and stupid.

  You thought you’d go to college and play, hoping it would

  lead to something else, and I thought I’d go to college and

  be something more than a secretary.”

  “We gave that up for Sean.” He put his hand on her

  shoulder and she nodded. “I’m sorry. Sometimes it makes

  me mad, but not about Sean. You were both worth it.”

  “Thank you, but you remember how they talked about

  that woman I graduated with, when they found out she was

  pregnant before we graduated? Anywhere else in the world

  it wouldn’t have been a big deal, but this place thinks we’re

  still living in Victorian England. I panicked.” Her tears fell

  faster, and she didn’t protest when he held her. It had been

  years since that moment she found out she was pregnant,

  but it still brought with it that sense of dread. That still

  surprised her, considering pregnancy had been part of a

  convoluted and ill-thought-out plan to bring Jaxon home.

  “What we are as a family isn’t going to change. We’ll get

  through this together, and what happens in the next few

  days will decide for us how everyone will treat us from now

  on.” He kissed the top of her head. “I don’t know about you,

  but I’m damned tired of all these assholes talking about us

  and our kids. No matter what, we handle this with our heads

  up and tell anyone who doesn’t like it to fuck off.”

  “I agree, but I don’t think Sean’s going to accept us not

  talking about it—really, me not talking about it. She wants

  out of here, and we have a year to change her mind about

  staying at least a few more years, until she’s really ready.”

  Their daughter had been bright from the moment she was

  born, and Iris understood everyone thought that of their

  children, but in this case it was simply fact. Sean was

  leagues ahead of everyone else, and the only reason she

  wasn’t graduating this year was because they didn’t think

  she was ready emotionally to be away from them.

  “I don’t think we can,” Daniel said bluntly. “Sean isn’t

  going to be happy here no matter what, and she’s ready to

  see what’s out there for her. I’m sure Adeline is packed

  already and pushing her out the door. Keeping her here will

  only make her miserable. It hit me like a two-by-four when

  she let us know that, by the way.”

  “You’ve evolved,” she said, laughing. “She’s been saying

  that for months.”

  “I don’t want her to hate me more than she does already.

  I’m not happy she’s in love with that girl, but only because

  her life will be hard. Maybe living somewhere else will make

  it so she’s happier.” He gave her a sad smile. “We know the

  kind of regrets that can lead to.”

  Sean was their daughter, but she was Jaxon in every way,

  right down to her looks. She was smart, driven, and ready to

  fly. She didn’t need propping up, and it was hard to change

  her mind once she’d set it on something she wanted. That

  she was smart would help her in college, but letting her go

  wouldn’t be easy. And Iris had already known how important

  it was for Sean to go, but the relief she felt at Daniel

  accepting it made it far easier.

  “Thank you for this. Let me go check on her.”

  Daniel held her tighter. “One thing,” he said in a flat

  tone. “Jaxon Lavigne has nothing to do with her. I mean that,

  Iris. She’s my kid, and I expect you to respect that.”

  She had no response because she didn’t know how she’d

  handle this. It wasn’t about Jaxon and her anymore, but

  about Sean and what she needed. “We’ll see,” was all she

  could say.

  * * *

  The people next door waved when Jaxon went out on the

  porch with a book, and she smiled at the woman who put a

  drink on the small table next to the rocker she’d picked. She

  couldn’t quite make out the neighbors and briefly wondered

  if they recognized her. If they did, the gossip network that

  worked overtime in this town would be in overdrive,

  eventually reaching her mother. Her promise to Margot was

  something she took seriously, but facing her mother for a

  talk she in no way wanted to have might take a day. Despite

  time and distance, there was no doubt in her soul her

  mother hadn’t changed her mind.

  It was a weird concept to wrap her brain around, that the

  person who loved her enough to bring her into the world

  would find her so lacking that she’d throw her away. On the

  days she wasn’t busy enough, the things she thought about

  were the pictures that lined the hallway of her childhood

  home. They were proof of all the things she’d done in her

  life, leading up to her high school graduation. Her mother

  wanted them on display for all the world to see what great

  people she’d raised. They’d probably all been taken down

  now.

  In the span of a life, those early years were infinitesimal

  when you compared them to what came next. College,

  licking the wounds of first love, a career, and then true love.

  All that overshadowed the years at home trying her best to

  make her parents proud. Once she’d been sent away,

  though, there’d been no parents scrambling to the front to

  take a picture, not when she’d finished at LSU, and for no

  other achievement since.

  “How could I be so unforgivable?” she whispered, closing

  the book and concentrating instead on her drink. The most

  amazing thing in all this was that Margot loved her. But

  there were still moments she felt unfit to be her partner.

  Hell, if her mother had found her that depraved, shouldn’t

  the rest of the world?

  That small bit of the little kid that still lived in her had a

  fantasy that her parents would show up one day and beg

  her forgiveness. They’d made a mistake when it came to

  her, but then she was too much of a pragmatist to not know

  that line of thinking was as stupid as it was delusional.

  When she’d started teaching, she’d study the gallery, often

  searching for her father’s face. He’d been the reader in their

  family, and she suspected he would enjoy some of her

  lectures. She wanted to think that he’d be proud of her for

  the job she did with her students.

  She shook her head and took a sip of her drink. It wasn’t

  until someone was standing right in front of her that she

  glanced up. The sight of her old English teacher made her

  smile and stop the train wreck of morbid thoughts. Eugenia

  Landry hadn’t changed all that much, and Jax stood to hug

  her.

  “Miss Landry, it’s good to see you. How are you?” There

  was some guilt that she hadn’t been in touch in a long

  while.

  Eugenia held on to her after kissing her cheek. “Jaxon,

  either you start calling me Eugenia, or I’ll be forced to start

  calling you Dr. Lavigne. Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten your

  manners already. Ask me to sit.” Jax laughed as she waved

  her to the rocker next to hers and got the bartender’s

  attention through the front window.

  “How about a glass of the pinot?” The bartender kissed

  Eugenia as well, which meant there was another generation

  who appreciated her for the great teacher she was.

  “That would be lovely, and don’t forget about the book

  club next week. You missed a good one last time, so don’t

  fall too far behind.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” The bartender saluted before going to get

  Eugenia’s wine.

  Jax smiled, remembering those gentle reprimands, and

  they’d kept her engaged when she’d been subjected to

  them. The main reason she was sorry Margot couldn’t make

  it was not being able to introduce her to Eugenia. She’d

  been such an influence on her that Jax attributed most of

  her success to this small but fierce woman.

  “Still giving everyone hell, I see,” she said and smiled

  when Eugenia reached over and took her hand.

  “If I had to guess, I’m not the only one. Bert’s the best

  gossip in the world, and he’s told me about your classroom

  antics. He tells me there’s not an empty seat, and the kids

  love you.”

  The pride in her mentor’s voice was hard to miss, and

  she had to swallow the lump in her throat. All the emotions

  of coming home were starting to build to the point of

  embarrassment.

  “It’s okay, honey. I didn’t come to upset you. How are you

  really?”

  “I’m good, and I’m happy. I’m sure Bert told you about

  Margot.” Just mentioning Margot’s name made her smile.

  “He did, and she sounds like a lovely girl. I realize coming

  back isn’t something you’re wild about doing, but I’d like to

  meet her. That said, I’m glad I get you all to myself for a

  little while.” Eugenia smiled as the bartender put her wine

  down, and they clinked glasses before she took a sip. “I

  wanted to thank you for all those great notes you’ve sent

  through the years. It’s amazing that I blinked, and you

  became the best writer I know.”

  “After all the authors you introduced me to, I doubt that’s

  true. I have tried to make you proud, though.” She didn’t

  mean to admit that last part, but Eugenia deserved to know

  just how important to her she was.

  “I’ve always been proud of you. Of all my students, you

  were the most memorable. That you became an educator

  makes me think my life has had some meaning. But enough

  mush for one day.”

  “Thank you,” she said, toasting Eugenia again. “An

  overflow of tears puts dents in my cool facade.” She took a

  sip of her drink and exhaled. “How have you been?”

  “I’m tired, and the school board is pushing me to retire. I

  think after this year I might give in to their wishes and enjoy

  what’s left of my life.”

  To know Eugenia wouldn’t be in a classroom giving kids

  the start they’d need to fly one day saddened her. “Is the

  board as clueless as it was when I was here? If teaching is

  what makes you happy, they should leave you alone.”

  “I’m not retiring because of them, Jaxon. I’m retiring

  because there’s a few things I’d like to see and do before I

  die. The first might be coming to visit you, so you can

  introduce me to your wife.” Eugenia winked and laughed.

  “I’m not married.”

  “You should be, and from what Bert tells me, Margot

  Drake is madly in love with you. Only books should be put

  on a shelf, Dr. Lavigne. If you love her, then prove it to her.”

  They’d never discussed their private lives, but she never

  remembered Eugenia with anyone. She’d never married,

  and if she dated, she didn’t do it in Chackbay. “I do love her,

  and I’m working on it.”

  “Love is a precious thing.” Eugenia held her wineglass

  and stared off into the distance. It was like she was flying