A Second Chance (23 page)

At the mention of his son, guilt hit
Madeline for being so nasty, and she sat back in her chair and let
her shoulders fall. “Congratulations.”

“
Thank you.”

“
I’ll bet he’s
handsome.”

“
Oh, yeah. Of course. Eight
and a half pounds. He’ll be a linebacker,” he said on a nervous
laugh. “Anyway, I just wanted to see that you were doing well and
wish you the best on your continued good health.”

“
Thank you. Good luck with
your son.” She paused and then added, “And your new
wife.”

Her hands shook as she hung up the
phone. Rattling off all of her successes over the past few months
should have made her happy. Instead she felt empty. Each of the two
men she’d vowed to love till death do them part had vowed the same
in return and now had moved on. How could she not take that
personally?

Armed with her passport and her
printed airline tickets, Madeline loaded up her luggage and the
kids and headed toward their father’s house.

Eduardo sat in the passenger seat, his
arms tightly crossed over his chest. “I don’t see why you don’t
just go next weekend when Dad and Kathy are home. It’s silly that
he wants you there and you won’t come,” Eduardo continued his
assault on her as she drove. This would be the fourth time they’d
argued about her timing, but she wasn’t cracking. “You’ve been at
every family event together for the past five years. I don’t see
why his wedding would be any different.”

“
It just is.”

“
Well, it’s
silly.”

“
When you’re my age
and
your
ex-wife
gets married, we’ll have this talk.” Her words were getting
sharper, and she knew he’d noticed. However, it didn’t stop
him.

“
You’re friends, Mom. Above
all else you’ve always been friends.”

“
And after this weekend we
will still be friends.” She tried to smile, but it actually
hurt.

He was silent until she pulled into
the driveway.

They all piled out of the car and
grabbed their suitcases. Christian kissed his mother on the cheek.
“Have fun.”

“
I will, baby. Thank you. Be
good for Auntie Arianna.”

“
We will,” he said,
smiling.

“
I know you will. Keep her
in line, will ya?”

“
That’s more like it.” He
shook his head and walked toward the house.

Clara wrapped her arms around her
mother, and Madeline held her tight.

“
I’m going to miss you,
Mommy.”

“
I know. I’ll be home in a
week. And I’ll have a tan and I’ll feel so much better,
baby.”

Clara looked up at her. The apples of
her cheeks were pink, and her eyes were soft. “Will you send us a
postcard?”

“
You bet I will. I’ll bring
you home something very special. I promise.”

Clara nodded and hugged her mother one
more time before running up the back stairs and into the
house.

Madeline turned around and saw Eduardo
lingering at the trunk, slowing pulling his backpack out. He
slammed down the door and stood there.

She let out a breath and walked to
him. “I’m sorry this is upsetting you. I need to do
this.”

“
I just think it’s
dumb.”

“
Ed.” She laid her hand on
his shoulder. “I can’t watch him marry someone else.”

“
Why? You did
it.”

“
You’re right. I did.”
Embarrassment and anger stirred inside of her. She’d done just
that, she’d moved on right away, and it had never felt right. There
was only one thing she could say to her son. She had to come clean
on why she wouldn’t be there. “Ed, you have to understand. I can’t
even tell you anymore why your father and I got divorced. I don’t
remember. It just happened. Everything just got so hard, and we
didn’t handle it too well. Matt and I grew closer, and when he
asked me to marry him, I said yes. I never loved him like I loved
your father.”

“
Well, the two of you should
have worked harder.”

“
Be that as it may, we
didn’t.”

“
He was miserable while you
were married to Matt.”

“
I know. I’ve been told.”
Guilt stirred in with the embarrassment and anger, and nausea was
washing over her.

“
Well, you should at least
support him.”

“
I do support him.” She knew
she had been the one to push him right into Kathy’s waiting and
wanting arms. Had she not opened her big mouth, perhaps he wouldn’t
be getting married tomorrow. There was nothing she could do about
it now.

She lifted her hand to Eduardo’s
cheek. He was old enough to understand. “Ed, I love him. I want him
happy. Kathy makes him happy.”

“
Mom…”

“
No, don’t say anything
else. I can’t watch the man I love marry someone else.” She shook
her head, trying to ward off the tears that stung her eyes. “I need
you to support me on this. I need you to understand.”

She knew he wouldn’t accept it, but he
wouldn’t say anything to Carlos and Kathy either.

He gave her a quick hug. “Have fun.”
He turned from her and headed into the house.

She’d hoped to make a clean exit
without having to see anyone, but when she looked back at the door
that Eduardo had just walked through, Kathy stood there
smiling.

“
I’m sorry you won’t be
staying for the wedding.”

Madeline tried to keep her shoulders
down and look less tense than she felt. “Timing was just right for
the trip. My boss gave me some extra vacation. I certainly think I
deserve it.”

“
Oh, yes, you do,” Kathy
said, walking down the back steps toward her.

Suddenly the ring she was wearing
around her neck felt heavy. She hoped it was tucked under the edge
of her shirt. Damn, she’d meant to take it off.

Madeline cleared her throat.
“Everything is set? Last-minute jitters?”

“
Like crazy,” Kathy admitted
and let out a quick breath and put her hand on her chest. “I don’t
think I’ve ever been so nervous in all of my life.”

“
You’ll be fine.” Madeline’s
legs were becoming weak beneath her and she clenched her hands at
her side to keep Kathy from seeing them shake. “You’re getting a
wonderful husband.”

“
Thank you. That means the
world coming from you.” Kathy turned and looked toward the house.
“Why don’t you come in.”

“
Oh, no. That’s not
necessary. I have to get to the airport,” she said, but Carlos
walked down the back steps toward them.

“
Did she have any luck
convincing you to stay for the wedding?” he asked Madeline, lacing
his arm around Kathy’s waist.

“
No.” As painful as it was
to watch him put his arm around Kathy, she was sure her heart would
actually burst if she stayed for the wedding. “I leave in four
hours. Sun, sand, and water await me.”

Kathy’s sister opened the back door.
“Kathy, you have a phone call,” she shouted from the back door,
waving the cordless phone in her hand.

“
Have a great time,” Kathy
said, smiling, then she ran up the steps toward the house and
disappeared inside.

“
Well. I’d better be going.”
She turned back toward the car and lifted the handle.

Carlos touched her arm. “Please
reconsider.”

She could feel the tears stinging her
eyes. She wouldn’t shed them. She’d promised herself she
wouldn’t.

“
I have to go.”

“
I want you here.” His voice
was quiet. “You’re very important to me.”

“
Carlos, I
was
important to you.”
She watched him wince and she hated that he was hurt by her refusal
to attend his wedding, but she couldn’t help it. This wasn’t the
place for her. “I will always be part of your life because I am the
mother of your children. But I can’t watch you get
married.”

He closed his eyes and let out a
breath. He took a step closer to her, still holding her arm, and
opened his eyes. His dark eyes peered into hers, and in them she
saw panic, just as she’d seen when she told him she was pregnant
the first time. Once she’d have kissed it away, but he wasn’t hers
anymore.

Carlos looked at the door and then
back at her. “Am I doing the right thing?”

“
Why are you asking
me?”

“
Because I need to know it’s
really over between you and me. Marrying someone else makes that
very final.”

Madeline swallowed hard. “Yes. It’s
the right thing.” She looked at her bag in the seat and thought of
the money she’d spent on the airline tickets. She considered what
awaited her if she did go, and what was in store if she didn’t. “I
have to go. Get married to Kathy tomorrow. Be happy, Carlos. Be
happy.”

She moved in to kiss him on the cheek,
but he turned just slightly and their lips met. As her mouth
lingered on his, the moment felt longer than it really could have
been. Carlos moved away first, and her heart broke in
two.

As quickly as she could she opened the
door and slid behind the wheel.

“
Be careful,” he said,
shutting the door, creating a barrier between them.

Madeline backed out of the driveway
and headed toward the airport, never looking back. Tears steamed
from her eyes and her sobs shook her whole body. She’d given him
away, again. This time it was forever.

Alone, Kathy sat staring at herself in
that dammed mirror in Regan’s spare bedroom on her wedding
day.

The house was already too full of
people, and her dress, so lovely and elegant, constricted her. The
rental company had arrived at nine and set up the chairs for the
ceremony and the tent and tables for the reception. The caterers
arrived at ten, and the florist was finishing the arrangements on
the altar and on the tables.

Heidi, Kathy’s hair stylist, had
driven out for the wedding. She had just finished Kathy’s niece’s
hair and left the room to fix herself up for the
wedding.

Her hair was perfect, her veil the one
she’d always wanted, and the dress… oh the dress. She sighed. She
couldn’t imagine anything more beautiful. Everything about the day
was going to be picture perfect.

The tiny bubble that had started as
nerves and stirred into fear began to rise in her chest and settled
in her throat as if to strangle her. Everything was perfect, and
yet she wasn’t happy.

The image of Madeline and Carlos in
the driveway the morning earlier had etched its way into her head
and had kept her awake all night. She’d watched him kiss his
ex-wife. Nothing had ever hurt so badly. It was innocent enough,
she tried to convince herself. They’d been married and they
remained close friends. She’d had this information going into the
relationship, and nothing had changed.

Madeline was a decent person. She’d
fought a battle that Kathy hoped she herself never would have to
face, and she’d won. A vacation in Mexico was well deserved. And
Kathy thought the timing was wonderful.

Oh, she’d have welcomed her at the
wedding, and Madeline wouldn’t have been obtrusive. She’d have been
decent enough to sit in the back, blend with the crowd, and exit
almost unseen. Never would she have ruined Carlos’s wedding or
Kathy’s perfect day. Genuinely, she was just that nice.

It should have been a comfort that
Madeline had left the country, but it wasn’t.

She’d seen Carlos’s face when Madeline
had driven away.

He was crushed.

He was still in love with his
ex-wife.

That strangling fear pushed tears to
the surface, and she swallowed them back. He was here, wasn’t he?
He’d shown up at his sister’s house and changed into the tuxedo
they had rented. The photographer was with him taking pictures of
him and his children, his sisters, and his parents. Regan had given
her the update just moments before she’d gone to feed her son, put
on her dress, and meet her brother for those very
pictures.

Kathy knew she was foolish to be
upset. But was it right to be dressed in the dress she’d picked or
to actually walk down the aisle? Would he love her like he’d loved
Madeline? Was she fooling herself into thinking that her stress was
about the wedding?

A tap at the door kept her from
processing the question.

Regan opened the door, and she and
Arianna walked in dressed in their royal-blue dresses. Regan held a
flute of champagne, and Arianna one in each hand.

“
We thought you could use
this.” Arianna handed Kathy a glass.

“
Thank you.”

“
To the future Mrs. Keller.”
She lifted her glass, and her sister did the same.

Kathy stared blankly at them both and
then raised her glass, clinking it against theirs. In a mere hour
she would be Mrs. Carlos Keller.

She sipped the champagne, but it was
bitter on her tongue and burned her stomach as it landed there like
a weight.