To Have And To Hold. Dawn Temple

breath.

      “Yes?”

      “What came?”

      Shayna giggled. “Sorry. I’m just so exci—”

      “Shayna!”

      “The picnic tables and benches. Ooh, they’re so tiny and cute. It all looks pretty ratty now, but once we repaint them they’ll be so precious.”

      Lindy plopped into one of the wing chairs just inside the family room. The picnic tables. Ten of them. And twenty benches. The prepaid, nonrefundable picnic tables and benches she’d bought at an online auction.

      Ten picnic tables weren’t enough to accommodate her long-range plans for Country Daze, but her budget insisted she make do her first couple of years. This purchase had stretched her already burdened credit card to its limit.

      Her mind spun with details. After so many years of hoping and planning, her dream was within her grasp. If she lost the farm, she’d lose everything.

      “Lindy, what’s wrong?” Shayna stooped in front of her, worry lines etched between her eyes. “You’ve lost all your color. Are you sick?”

      “No, I’m not sick. I’m stuck.” She rubbed her palm over her forehead, scraping her hair back. Tilting her head, resting her chin in her palm, she stared at Travis. He stood there, staring back, looking strong and reliable. But could she trust him?

      I don’t have a choice.

      “Shayna, why don’t you go on home for today? Travis and I have some things to settle.” She gave her friend a weak smile.

      “Are you sure?”

      “Yes. I’m sure.” The conviction in her voice pleased Lindy. At least she sounded like a woman in control.

      Travis still leaned against the door frame. Lindy felt the pressure of his eyes, like a finger lifting her chin, demanding her full attention.

      She met his gaze, calling on every ounce of her Lewis pride to hold his stare. Emerald and gold swirled together, offering understanding, threatening to break the seal on emotions she’d packed away months ago.

      How would she get through this without sacrificing her pride? Or her heart?

      Their gazes remained locked, their lips still, as Shayna gathered her things and let herself out. Neither moved until the back door snicked closed. Finally Travis straightened from his doorway slouch. “Should I sit?”

      She noted the lack of humor in his voice, relieved to know he took this situation as seriously as she did.

      Lindy lurched to her feet, bumping the upholstered chair against the wall. She was about to admit defeat, accept the terms of the will, invite Travis into her home.

      She needed a moment alone before she surrendered.

      “Make a pot of coffee first,” she ordered. “I’ll be right back.”

      Travis stared out the window over the kitchen sink, studying the tiny green sprigs dotting the fields of dark soil. What did she grow here? Did she make a profit? Was she happy? There was so much he didn’t know about farm life. So much he didn’t know about his wife.

      Behind him, the coffeepot chimed. Grateful for the activity, he pulled down two mugs and turned to the fridge for Lindy’s cream. Two cow-shaped magnets secured an August calendar page to the freezer door. An orange smiley face marked the second Monday with the words Opening Day written underneath. Each weekday block for the rest of the month contained the name of a least one school followed by the number of children in their group.

      Intrigued, he lifted a bottom corner and found the page for September. Almost every school day was already booked.

      A soft shuffling noise alerted him to her presence. “Looks like you’re going to be very busy this fall,” he commented without turning around.

      “You should see the spring schedule.” She sounded tired, sad.

      He doctored both their coffees before turning to face her. She looked tired. Sad. Travis wanted to hold her. Instead he carried the two mugs to the table, set them on opposite ends and took his seat.

      Lindy laid the yellow legal pad and pen she carried next to her cup. Pulling out the chair, she folded her right leg into the seat and sat.

      He could see the decision in her eyes. She was going to accept the terms of the will, but she wouldn’t meekly lie down and let life steamroll her. He’d bet his last nickel she still had a lot of fight left in her.

      “Before we go any further,” she said, “I want to know why you’re willing to do this.”

      Dangerous question.

      He took a sip of his sugared coffee, and for half a second considered telling her the whole truth. How would she react if she knew about the many nights he woke, covered in sweat, haunted by the look of devastation on her face the night their son died? What if he told her part of him died that night, too, that he’d do anything to make up for the pain and loss he’d caused her? What if, God forbid, he admitted what a wasteland his life had become since the day she left?

      She’d spit in his face, that’s what. Lindy obviously didn’t want him in her life. No sense putting himself out there just so she could trample him again on her way out the door.

      Best stick with a partial truth. “Because, after everything that’s happened, I don’t want to see you suffer anymore.”

      Her eyes narrowed, as if she waited for the other shoe to drop, certain it couldn’t be as simple as that.

      “I also have a selfish reason.” Oh, he loved the way she raised that chin, telling him loud and clear she thought he was full of bull.

      “I’ve been trying to distance myself from Monroe Enterprises. A couple months of AWOL should do the trick.”

      Lindy’s brows knotted. Travis could almost see the questions forming in her head.

      “You expect me to believe you plan to go five months without working?”

      “I don’t intend to stop working.” He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. This was the first time he’d discussed his plans with anyone other than his attorney and best friend, Brad Middleton.

      “There’s a huge potential in renovating old buildings and turning them into condos. The revitalization of metropolitan downtown districts is becoming big business. The board of directors doesn’t agree, so I’ve decided to branch off and start my own company.” He shrugged. The skeptical look on Lindy’s face made him glad he’d opted against explaining his more personal motives.

      “Get real, Travis. No one knows better than I do how much the family business controls you. You’d never just walk away.”

      “My goals are different these days.” During their marriage, he’d worked extra hard, putting in long hours, building a legacy to leave his child. Now that he didn’t have a son, he no longer needed a legacy. “I’m not quitting Monroe Enterprises altogether. Not yet, at least. With my laptop, Internet access and a fax machine, I can keep an eye on things from here.”

      He paused, taking another sip of coffee. “Besides, I owe your grandfather one.”

      “What’s that supposed to mean?”

      “I promised him I’d take care of you and our baby. I failed.”

      “Losing the baby wasn’t your fault.” Her voice hitched, but she kept her chin level with his.

      “If I’d been paying attention to the road, that van never would’ve hit us.”

      Lindy’s blue eyes suddenly sparkled with tears. She sniffed into her coffee cup, obviously fighting for control. Travis’s gut tightened. He’d give anything to go back in time, to avoid that drunk driver, to be able to keep Lindy and their son safe.

      He watched