The Marriage Season. Linda Miller Lael

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.”

      Tate sent her a sidelong glance. Damn him, he wasn’t even breathing hard. He obviously did run on a regular basis; he hadn’t made that up to impress her. “Yeah, Hadleigh and your other friend, Melody, wear them, too.”

      She just nodded, didn’t explain.

      A moment later, he spoke again. “Not that you don’t have enough on your plate—what with Tara and Josh and all—but I’m supposed to make some decisions about the finishes in the house so they can be ordered. Would you mind, if you have a free evening, going shopping with me? I’d like a second opinion. Otherwise I’m fairly sure everything would end up brown. Not because it’s my favorite color, but because the boys can do the least harm to brown. They’re dying for a puppy. I get asked on a daily basis and you’ve seen them with Muggles, Ridley and Harley, so we all know I’m going to give in once we have space for a pet. Which means more brown will be needed for the obvious reasons, like muddy paws. If there’s another option, please save me.”

      Bex laughed. “Looking at paint and wallpaper, hmm. Are you asking me out? I hope I’m not being presumptuous here—but it sounds like an interesting first date.”

      “Personally I consider running ten miles together a first date. So that would technically be our second date. Dinner’s on me.”

      Date. She’d rarely said that word out loud since she’d heard about Will’s death. Sure, she’d danced at weddings and even flirted once in a while, but for the most part, she’d gone out with her friends and immersed herself in her business. She hadn’t given any serious thought to a relationship in many years.

      Tate Calder wouldn’t be the place to start, though. She didn’t have time for a built-in family, especially since she had Tara and Josh living with her these days. And if Greg was unwilling to even pay for his son’s lunch at school, it was going to be a very messy divorce. At least Tara recognized that she no longer had any option, other than divorce...

      What she hoped would happen was that Tara would finally get control of her life now that she’d actually made the decision. Some depression was natural, of course, but she needed to think about her son.

      “I’ll make you a deal,” Bex said as they jogged along, sticking to the runners’ side of the path as two cyclists whizzed past. “I’ll be more than happy to offer my unbrown opinions in exchange for advice on six-year-old boys. Lunch cards? I remember them from when I was in school, but you couldn’t load them online then. It never occurred to me to ask Josh if his was paid for. What else am I missing? He’s a sensitive kid, and he doesn’t discuss whether he misses his dad. I don’t have video games or anything like that yet, and if I asked Greg for anything, he’d tell me straight where he wants me to go.”

      “He’d better not.” Tate’s voice had a hard edge.

      Nice to know that between him and Tripp, not to mention Spence, she had some male backup.

      He added, “You have a deal. His class has a field trip coming up, and they have to bring a sack lunch. It’s next Tuesday. If you like, I’ll pack a couple and send them both with Adam. I have two cupboards, one labeled What You Want Them to Eat, and the other What They’ll Eat When You Aren’t Watching. I’ve learned to combine them and hope for the best. I’ve tried to stare down young Ben Calder over his aversion to cooked carrots before with no success, and then discovered he would eat them raw. The bonus is that they’re actually healthier that way. I pick my battles, and with that one, I figure I came out the winner.”

      This new responsibility scared her a little. Well, more than a little. Tara would emerge from her emotional stupor—she had to—but when? Until then, Bex knew she was in charge by default.

      “I’m not up for this, am I?” she said ruefully.

      “It is definitely a learn-as-you-go process, and it seems to me that you’re doing just fine.”

      She wasn’t too sure about that, but at least she had another ally now, one with on-the-ground experience, so to speak. “I’m trying.”

      “If you really don’t mind helping me out, would you like to see the house sometime soon? Maybe it’ll help you visualize the project.”

      “Sometime soon,” Bex agreed, with no hesitation at all. “How about after the marathon?”

       CHAPTER FOUR

      THE NEXT MORNING, Tate found himself riding herd over three boys as opposed to the usual two.

      He could handle it, but they were kind of a wild bunch. They’d eaten a civilized breakfast—he’d insisted some fruit be included, not just pancakes and syrup—and then they’d gone to the park. Josh seemed happy enough, and he and Adam got along well, while Ben obviously enjoyed being the kingpin.

      Bex could’ve requested a better day for the marathon, though. Later on, about