A Second Chance (3 page)

Heaviness filled her chest as she
looked into her son’s apologetic eyes. “Oh, no, honey. This has
nothing to do with you at all. He loves you. He was most worried
about all of you.” She patted his hand and reached for Clara’s.
“Matt and I, well, we’ve just grown apart. After your dad and I got
a divorce, we seemed to need each other. I just don’t think we ever
loved each other like a man and wife should. We loved each other
like friends.”

Clara flew from her seat and into
Madeline’s arms. The strength that she’d been holding on to
collapsed, and she sobbed with her daughter against her chest. The
softness of Clara’s hair brushed against her cheek, and the
strawberry scent reminded her how young her children still were.
How precious. How innocent.

Eduardo stood and walked to his mother
and sister. He wrapped his arms around both of them. Christian sat
strong across the table and watched, as she’d known he would. He
was the strong and silent one. He’d break down in his room with the
door shut. When he did, she would go to him.

And when it was time, she went to
him.

She’d gone to each of them. She’d
kissed and hugged them and tucked them all into bed. Even at
fifteen Eduardo hadn’t protested.

With the house quiet, Madeline closed
the door to her bathroom and locked it. She ran the bathtub as full
and as hot as she could. Then she took the pamphlets she’d received
from the doctor’s office out of her bag. As she sank into the hot
bath with bubbles and candles surrounding her, she read about the
cancer that was eating away at her body.

Her doctor had told her that
her chances for survival were almost one hundred percent. But it
was the word
almost
that had her nervous. She’d supported breast cancer research
with donations and by walking in charity events. She’d even known a
handful of women who had gone through it, including her boss. Never
in a million years did she imagine she’d be going through it. Worse
yet, she was going through it alone.

There was no reason to alarm her
children. Until she had to, she’d keep it from them. Matt was gone.
The end of her marriage only needed finalization from the courts.
He’d even told her he was planning to take a job in Kentucky to put
some distance between them. So certainly, she wasn’t going to call
him and tell him.

She closed her eyes and began to
sob.

The one person she knew she’d be able
to count on would have been Carlos. But then she recalled all of
the stories her children had come home with. Each and every one of
them had Kathy’s name attached to it. He’d moved on. It was only a
matter of time before Carlos found happiness and remarried. It had
always surprised her he’d stayed single for so long.

He’d take care of the children if he
had to. They seemed to like Kathy a lot. Perhaps she’d be a good
mother to them if she…

She didn’t want to think about Matt,
cancer, or Carlos anymore. She dropped the pamphlets on the floor
next to the tub and dropped her head under the water, waiting till
her lungs burned with the need for oxygen before she came back up.
It didn’t help clear her thoughts of Carlos.

Chapter Two

Carlos watched Kathy set the table for
dinner. She fit right in with the domestic lifestyle, he thought.
She smiled when she caught his glance. “How is your
sister?”

“
Happier than I’ve ever seen
her.” He pulled a slice of carrot from the salad bowl and bit it in
half. “Tyler is the love of her life.”

She filled their glasses with the red
wine he’d brought. “I never thought anyone would edge out
Zach.”

Carlos watched her as she moved the
rest of the meal to the tiny table where he sat. She was so
different from his ex-wife, Madeline. Thick blonde hair skimmed her
shoulders. Her eyes were crystal blue and her figure was slim and
fit. She was tall and leggy. She was what every man had dreamed of
when he was younger.

Madeline, on the other hand, was curvy
and barely cleared five-foot-three. Her hair had been long when
they’d fallen in love, but after each child was born, it got a
little shorter. He liked the way she wore it now. It was a classic
bob, as his daughter told him once. Madeline’s eyes were as dark
and rich as his were. She was full-blooded Italian and he was
Puerto Rican. It had made for a beautiful mix in their
children.

Kathy touched his arm and he looked up
into her worried eyes. “You seem preoccupied. Are you
okay?”

“
I’m fine. I already miss
the kids.”

“
You’re a great father.” She
dipped her head down and brushed his lips with a gentle kiss. “Now
what’s really wrong? This isn’t your usual I-miss-my-kids
look.”

They’d been together for almost six
months, but in that time, she’d learned to read him. He couldn’t
hide anything from her. “Madeline was there.”

“
How is she?” She set the
casserole dish on the table and then sat in her chair.

He kept his eyes on her. She really
was something. There wasn’t even a hint of jealousy in her voice.
That couldn’t be normal, he thought. Wasn’t the woman who came
after the wife supposed to be bitter and hateful toward the
ex?

“
I don’t think she’s feeling
very well. She set Tyler back in his bassinette and almost passed
out.”

Kathy’s head snapped up. “Oh, no. What
do you think is wrong? Did you call Curtis? Did he see her? If you
think something is wrong, you should get her some help.”

A smile crept across his
lips.

Kathy’s eyebrows rose. “Why are you
smiling? People just don’t pass out if they’re healthy. You need to
get her some help. Call Matt and see what’s going on.”

“
I love you.” The words had
flown from his mouth before he’d had time to consider
them.

She sat back in her chair and kept a
cautious eye on him. “Excuse me?”

“
I love you.”

“
I heard you, I
just…”

“
I know I’ve never said it,
but I’m saying it now.” He took her hand in his and kept his eyes
steady on hers. “You’re amazing. You just sat here and completely
worried about my ex-wife.”

“
Oh, Carlos.” She pulled her
hand from his and stuck the spoon into the casserole. “She’s a
lovely woman. The two of you get along very well, and she’s never
been anything but nice to me. Why shouldn’t I care about
her?”

“
Because she’s my
ex-wife.”

“
And the way you’ve always
talked about her, I’m not sure why that is.”

How many times had he heard that? The
thought had him squirming in his seat. “Point is that’s what she
is. She’s married to my ex-best friend, and they live in my
ex-house.”

She laughed. “And she’s the luckiest
woman to have you as a friend.”

“
Thank you.”

“
Now eat.” She spooned
casserole onto his plate, and he caught her arm. “What?”

“
Move in with me.” He felt
her pulse rise under his fingertips.

“
What’s gotten into
you?”

“
I want us to be
together.”

She pulled her arm back. “We are
together.”

“
You know what I mean. I
have never said, ‘I love you,’ to anyone but Madeline. I love you.
Does that mean anything to you?”

Kathy sat back and studied
him.

He cocked his eyebrow “You’d better
answer me or I just might ask you to marry me.”

Her eyes widened. “Okay, okay! I’ll
move in with you.”

“
Good.” He tugged her arm
until she slid out of her chair and onto his lap. “We’ll start with
that,” he said as he pressed his lips to hers and they became
pliant and warm.

Madeline walked from the doctor’s
office. Her knees were weak and her breast was sore where they had
taken the biopsy. There was no option to walk all the way to the
car before she broke down. She found a chair in the waiting room at
the hospital and sat. Tears streamed down her face, and she tried
to brush them away as they fell.

She’d undergo a double mastectomy in
three weeks. She’d check in two days after Christmas. She’d begin a
rigorous treatment schedule of chemo. If she was lucky enough and
the cancer was gone, she could have reconstructive surgery and have
her breasts recreated. As it was, it was too much to think
about.

The first thing she would do would be
to ask Carlos to take the kids for a few extra weeks. Maybe she
could tell him she’d be out of town. Until she knew if they could
get the cancer, she didn’t want anyone worrying about her,
especially her kids. She was doing that enough for everyone. Her
boss had been through this stupid thing called cancer, twice. She
knew she could lean on her for the support she’d need. Madeline
thought of herself as a strong enough person to get through the
surgery, and if the kids were with Carlos she’d have time to
recover. Her parents could be there in case she needed them. But
her plan was to keep it as far from her family as she could, until
she absolutely had to tell them.

She waited until she was home and
seated at the kitchen table with a glass of water and an icepack on
her breast before she called Carlos. Breathing exercises she’d
learned in yoga classes weren’t doing much to calm her as she
dialed his phone number.

“
Hello.” Kathy answered, and
the discomfort in Madeline’s chest increased, though it might have
been heartbreak that caused it.

“
Kathy? It’s
Madeline.”

“
Madeline! How are you?
Carlos said you weren’t feeling well before Thanksgiving. Are you
feeling better?”

She swallowed hard and batted away
more tears that tried to push their way through. She should have
known he’d have been worried enough to say something to Kathy.
Truth was, she was surprised she hadn’t had a visit from his
brother, Doctor Curtis. “I’m doing much better. Must have been
trying to catch something.”

“
I’m glad to hear
it.”

Madeline swallowed hard. “Is Carlos
there?”

“
He just went out to the
truck to get a few more boxes.”

“
Boxes?”

“
He asked me to move in.”
Kathy’s voice rose in a delighted pitch. “We’re unloading all my
junk right now. I can’t believe how much stuff I have. And neither
can Curtis. He must have commented on it a thousand times while he
was loading it for me.”

Madeline forced a laugh. “Leave it to
Curtis.”

“
Can I have him call you
back?”

“
Oh, I can catch him later.
Congratulations on your new living arrangements.” She choked on her
own words.

“
Thank you. I think he’s
thinking about getting married.” Kathy’s voice had dropped to
almost a whisper.

Madeline gripped the phone tighter and
squeezed her eyes closed. “I’m sure he is. He’s a very lucky
man.”

“
That means the world coming
from you,” she said, and Madeline heard the voices of men in the
background. “Oh, wait. Here he is. Madeline is on the phone for
you,” she heard Kathy say and then the obvious jumbling sound as
the phone was passed off.

“
Maddie?” he said, and she
smiled. It had been a long time since he’d called her that, and she
wasn’t comfortable with how it still melted her inside. “What’s
up?”

“
Oh, I didn’t mean to bother
you. I hear you’re getting a new roommate.”

“
Yeah. About time, don’t you
think?”

“
Uh-huh.” A twist of nausea
hit her stomach. “You know, I can talk to you later.”

“
No. What did you
need?”

“
Well…” She tried to keep
her voice light and happy. “I’m taking a trip out of town. I was
wondering if the kids could stay with you for about three
weeks.”

“
Wow. That must be some
trip.” His voice lifted, and she knew he was happy for her. It
broke her heart that it was all a lie. “Early Christmas present
from Matt?”

“
Just a trip.” The weight of
her deception was heavy in her chest. She’d never lied to Carlos in
all the years she’d known him. It wasn’t easy to do.

“
Sure. That won’t be any
problem.”

“
Great. I really appreciate
it.”

“
Sure. Oh, Maddie, don’t say
anything to the kids yet about Kathy moving in. I want to surprise
them.”

She cleared her throat. They were
going to have a lot of surprises. “Okay. Thanks,
Carlos.”

She disconnected the call and put her
head between her knees. Kathy had moved in. She knew Carlos well
enough. They’d be married in six months.

Christian pushed around the cereal in
his bowl. “You really have to go for three weeks?”

Madeline watched him as he tried to
act uninterested, but that wasn’t Christian. His heart was always
on his sleeve. “You’ll be with your dad and Kathy. You’ll be
fine.”

He only nodded his head.

Clara smeared jelly on her toast. “He
said I can hold Tyler on Saturday. Aunt Regan and Uncle Zach are
going out to dinner, and we’re watching him.”