A Merger...or Marriage?. RaeAnne Thayne

meant it as a joke but she apparently didn’t quite catch the humor. “Are you running for mayor or something?”

      He gave a rough laugh. “Me? Not quite. I’ve just lived here most of my life. You can’t help but come to know a lot of people when you’re part of a community.”

      “Why did you stick around Walnut River?” she asked him. “You always had such big plans when you were in law school. You were going to head out to the wild frontier somewhere, open your own practice and work on changing the world one client at a time.”

      He remembered those plans. He had dreamed of heading out West. Colorado, maybe, or Utah. Somewhere with outdoor opportunities like skiing and mountain biking—all the things he didn’t have time to do now that he was a single father.

      “Things change. Life never quite turns out like we expect when we’re twenty-two, does it?”

      He didn’t think he had ever confided in her the rest of those dreams. He had been desperately in love with Anna Wilder and wanted to bundle her up and take her into the wilderness with him.

      She was quiet, her eyes on his son, who was giggling at her little rat-dog. “Maybe not. But sometimes it’s better, though, isn’t it?”

      The fading rays of the sun caught in Ethan’s blond hair and Richard’s heart twisted with love for his son.

      “Absolutely.” He paused. “And to answer your question about why I’m still here, mostly it’s because this is where my mother lives. She takes Ethan most days when I’m working and they’re crazy about each other. She’s a godsend.”

      “Is Ethan’s mother in the picture at all?”

      He wasn’t sure he could honestly say Lynne had ever really been in the picture. Their relationship had been a mistake from the beginning and he suspected they both would have figured that out if not for her accidental pregnancy that had precipitated their marriage.

      “Is that the wrong question?” Anna asked quietly and he realized he had been silent for just a hair too long.

      “No. It’s fine. The short answer is no. The long answer is a bit more…complex.”

      He wasn’t about to go into the long and ugly story with Anna, about how Lynne hadn’t wanted children in the first place, how she had become pregnant during their last year of law school together, that she probably would have had an abortion if she hadn’t been raised strict Catholic.

      Instead, he had talked her into marrying him.

      Though she had tried hard for the first few months after Ethan was born, Lynne had been a terrible mother—impatient, easily frustrated, not at all nurturing to an infant who needed so much more.

      It had been better all the way around when she accepted a job overseas.

      “I’m sorry,” Anna said again. “I didn’t mean to dredge up something painful.”

      “It’s not. Not really.”

      She didn’t look as if she believed him, but by then they had reached the shaved ice stand. Ethan was waiting for them, jumping around in circles with the same enthusiasm as Anna’s little dog as he waited impatiently for them to arrive.

      “I want Tiger’s Blood, just like I always have,” Ethan declared.

      Richard shook his head. His son rarely had anything else but the tropical fruit flavor. “You need to try a different kind once in awhile, kiddo.”

      “I like Tiger’s Blood,” he insisted.

      “Same here,” Anna agreed. “You know what’s weird? It’s Lilli’s favorite flavor, too. I think it’s the whole dog-cat thing. Makes her feel like a big, bad tough guy.”

      Though Ethan looked puzzled, Richard felt a laugh bubble out as he looked at her tiny dog prancing around at the end of her leash.

      His gaze met Anna’s and for just an instant, he felt like he was back in high school, making stupid jokes and watching movies together and wondering if he would ever find the courage to tell the prettiest girl in school he was crazy about her.

      They weren’t in high school anymore, he reminded himself sternly. She might still be the prettiest girl he had ever seen but he certainly wasn’t crazy about her anymore. The years between them had taken care of that, and he wasn’t about to change the status quo.

      Chapter Four

      The line was remarkably short and they had their icy treats only a few moments later.

      “I saw a bench over there,” Anna said. “Do you want to sit down?”

      Richard knew he ought to just gather up his son and head home. But he couldn’t quite force himself to sever this fragile connection between them, though he knew damn well it was a mistake to spend more time with her.

      He was largely silent while they ate the shaved ice. For that matter, so was Anna, who seemed content to listen to Ethan chatter about his friends in kindergarten, his new two-wheel bike, the kind of puppy he wanted if his dad would ever agree.

      Though Richard wondered how he could possibly have time to eat around all the never-ending chatter, Ethan finished his shaved ice in about five minutes flat then begged to play on the playground conveniently located next to the stand.

      “Not for long, okay? It’s been a long day and you need to get home and into the tub.”

      Ethan made a face as he handed Lilli’s leash back to Anna then raced off toward the slide.

      “He seems like a great kid,” Anna said after a moment.

      “He is. Seeing the world through his eyes helps keep my life in perspective.”

      “He’s lucky to have you for a father.”

      She paused, her eyes shadowed. “My dad’s been gone for six months and I still can’t believe it.”

      Her father’s opinion had always been important to Anna. Maybe too important.

      He had respected her father—everyone in town had. James Wilder had been a brilliant, compassionate physician who had saved countless lives during his decades of practicing medicine in Walnut River. He doubted there was a family in town that didn’t have some member who had been treated by Dr. Wilder.

      But he didn’t necessarily agree with the way James had treated his children. Even when they were younger Richard had seen how James singled Anna out, how hard he tried to include her in everything and make her feel an integral part of the family.

      From an outsider’s standpoint, Richard thought James’s efforts only seemed to isolate Anna more, reminding her constantly that she was different by virtue of her adoption and fostering resentment and antipathy in her siblings.

      “I tried to find you at the funeral to offer my condolences but you must have left early.”

      She set her plastic spoon back in the cup, her features suddenly tight. “It was a hard day all the way around. My father’s death was such a shock to me and I’m afraid I didn’t handle things well. I couldn’t wait to get out of there and return to New York so I could… could grieve.”

      He found it inexpressibly sad that she hadn’t wanted to turn to her siblings during their moment of shared sorrow.

      “Have you seen Peter or David since you’ve been back?”

      “No. Only Ella, today at the hospital.” Her brittle smile didn’t conceal the hurt in her eyes. “I’m quite sure they’re all going out of their way to avoid me.”

      “They may not even be aware you’re back in town.”

      “You know better than that, Richard. They know I’m here.”

      She was quiet for a moment, then offered that forced smile again. “It’s not exactly a secret that NHC has sent me here to